What was your first job as a journalist?
Editor of the Iowa Baptist newspaper.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes. Until I was in my 30’s. Not lately though.
How is social media changing news?
Immediacy of news.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
John Grisham
What does it mean to be a journalist?
“Tell the truth and trust the people.”
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
Not sure. Don’t pay much attention to them.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
E-mail query
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
Ipad, MacBook, Pages software, Email.
What's your favorite social network?
Facebook
Who do you wish followed you?
Donald Trump
Why did you become a journalist?
From the time I was a high school freshman in an English composition class, I knew I wanted to write. Journalism experience has followed.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
Yes, I covered school activities, some sports and promo of events.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
A story about a police officer in a rough area of Kansas CIty who crashed and nearly burned. Then he became a Baptist pastor.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Write, write, write and send to editors. Don’t be discouraged if you get a rejection letter. Refine it and submit it somewhere else.
When's the best time to pitch you?
Mornings
What's the best pitch you ever got?
To write a small book called “Why Not Me: You Could Be A Bivocational Pastor” Published by Lulu .com and underwritten by a Baptist group.
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
Writing Sunday School adult assembly curriculum.
What's your favorite drink?
Coke Zero.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Fishing
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
Missouri Life magazine, Reader’s DIgest.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That religious stories have an axe to grind.
