I made a promise to myself at some point during the year to blog about what I was doing in the realm of student media, or my thoughts about journalism in general, but somewhere around the first issue of The Times-Delphic, I got distracted by deadlines, assignments and any other excuses I could make up. I was no longer getting graded for blogging, so it fell by the wayside.
Now though, with my summer being spent halfway across the country, I’m hoping to be able to spend some of my free time blogging about my experiences at an afternoon newspaper, and just what it’s like to transplant myself into a state and a town I’ve never been to before. I cannot wait.
It’s tough though. I have an idea of what I’m getting into. I’ve researched the town I’m living in, but no matter what research I do, I cannot prepare myself for the situations I’ll get in to. Thinking about it, it is the right time for me to go out and do this. It’s time for me to explore my strengths and weaknesses as a journalist. I’ve been lucky to learn from some of the greatest professors in the Midwest, but it’s time for me to spread my wings. I need to get out of the comfort zone of knowing everyone on campus and being able to guide my editors and my reporters. I’ve worked my system to the bone. I know the sources. I know who to talk to. People know who I am on campus and what I do, but I’m ready for the change.
The “Drake Bubble” that I’ve been reporting in for three years is small and quaint. I’ve become so accustomed to it, that I can almost predict if a source is going to be willing to talk to me or not. Nothing surprises me at Drake (well, except for that time I wrote a story about the tuition change and no students I found wanted to talk to me, that was strange).
I’m ready for surprises though. So as I finish up my plans for the summer, I can’t help but think of some of the things that will happen to me. I’m nervous, I truly am, but there is nothing I’m more ready for. I’ve given up a lot of opportunities over the past two years because of my love and dedication to the school’s newspaper. Now though, I get to do something for myself. I get to write once again. I get to write articles everyday. I get to report. I don’t have the immense responsibility of making sure every page of the newspaper is flawless. I won’t have to worry about timecards or salaries or printing budgets. Instead, I get to go back to the core of why I wanted to be a journalist: writing.
