Why do you write for the beacon?
I write for the beacon because it is a cool job, I like to write and also I like sports a lot, so being a sports reporter really synergized as cool job for me. It doesn’t hurt that it’s a paid job either, but I would have written for the beacon for the sake of the experience regardless of the pay.
How do you think this will help you professionally?
Writing for a student newspaper may seem trivial, and kinda useless, but truthfully it is a really good experience. Going forward, if I want to pursue a career in the field, this is a perfect resume builder. Working for the school newspaper is really not much different from a real newspaper, we have deadlines, we do real reporting, and we perform real interviews. It’s a perfect stepping stone.
What is your specialty and why?
As previously mentioned, I love sports. So I specialize in sports reporting. I like to interview other athletes, and when possible do profiles on them. Being a reporter gave me a new insight into the realm of sports, and I think that’s really cool.
What does a week look like for a writer like yourself?
In a field that is surprisingly “on the fly” I.e there is always something happening, we have a lot of structure. Our week begins on Tuesday, when I get my assignment(s). From there I email anyone I might need for an interview, and try to set it up as early as possible. Once the interview is concluded, I can really start to write, and hopefully have a draft ready by Sunday. Then the editors will edit and give me tips. Then I make the changes and by Tuesday the final copy is ready, and it will go in the paper the next day.
What do you plan to do as a career?
Realistically I am not going to pursue this career, I’ll much more likely become a clinical psychologist. But there isn’t any reason why i can’t combine writing into psychology, and my Career in general. I would love to write books, and performing case studies in psychology is not much different than an interview as a reporter.