What was your first job as a journalist?
High school columnist in the Lindsay Post (unpaid.) Summer reporter at the Lindsay Post (poorly paid but deeply rewarding.)
Have you ever used a typewriter?
I started my career on a manual Underwood!
How is social media changing news?
In a small town I could find out what people were talking about by going to the grocery store. Social media is my new grocery store.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Gloster Ridley in Robertson Davies' Leaven of Malice.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Giving curiosity free reign.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Email followed by phone call.
What's your favorite social network?
Facebook
Why did you become a journalist?
An older sister got her BA and had a job in retail. I am pragmatic. I needed a trade and I loved talking to people.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
I wrote about high school happenings and then typed it out on foolscap paper, which we reprinted.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
The story that touched me the most was about a four-year-old boy who died in a plane crash. All 4,000 words were heartfelt.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Add some psychology courses into the mix!
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
Will you do a story about how wonderful I am?
What's your favorite drink?
Pineau des Charentes.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Trying not to be one of those people who texts while she walks.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
New York Times.
