People ask, “What do you do all day?” “How do you find story ideas?” “How do you know what questions to ask people?” They say, “It must be nice to have a flexible schedule!”
So I thought I would give our readers a glimpse into a day in the life of a Community Journals reporter.
First, there’s no typical day for a journalist. I write for both the Greenville Journal and Upstate Business Journal, so on any given day I could be covering a City Council meeting, interviewing a real estate developer about a new project or doing research on a breaking news story. My day is filled with phone interviews, in-person interviews, Internet research and – oh, yes – writing.
7 a.m. I wake up and immediately check email on my iPad to see if anything interesting has come in overnight. I scan news stories from Greenville and across the state and nation. Things that are happening somewhere else may affect us here in the Upstate so I like to stay informed.
8:15 a.m. I’m headed downtown for our weekly news team meeting. Each week we meet to talk about the stories that we’ll all be working on for next week and future editions. We pitch story ideas and everyone helps each other with sources and provides input into the stories we’re working on.
11 a.m. Meeting is over. I check email and make a few phone calls. Twenty-three emails have come in since I last checked. Luckily some of them I just scan, decide they are irrelevant and delete.
Noon. Today I’m having lunch with a PR rep to touch base and see if any of her clients have anything interesting going on that would make a good story. Even if I don’t come out with a new story idea, it’s a good idea to keep in touch with as many people as I possibly can. Story ideas come from everywhere. From social media, friends and colleagues, other news stories, press releases, message boards and tips from readers. I’ve even gotten story ideas from classified ads!
1:30 p.m. Headed to interview a business owner about new expansion construction.
2:30 p.m. On my way back to my office I take a call from a lawyer whom I’ve been playing phone tag with. I wanted to get more information on covenants on a new development. Also for a story I’m working on.
3:30 p.m. Phone interview with Greenville City Councilwoman Lillian Brock Flemming who will be participating in UBJ’s Who’s Who panel. (Look for more details on that soon in UBJ.)
4:30 p.m. Deep into Internet research on a complex story I am working on. I somehow get off track and start reading about technology that was in the Sears catalog 30 years ago. Must. Get. Refocused. But this is fascinating stuff!
5 p.m. I have two more stories due tomorrow, so back to work.
6:30 p.m. I decide I can’t look at my computer anymore.
I’m not going to lie. The truth is, yes, it’s great to not have to be in a cubicle in an office from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. every single weekday, but it’s not like I’m sleeping all day and sitting on the couch eating bonbons (a saying my Mom used all the time). I have deadlines, and that sometimes mean I work nights, weekends and 12-hour days to get everything ready in time to go to print.
I wouldn’t have it any other way.
