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[Dunamisdeos]

Christopher Tolkien passed away and that makes me very sad.

[Reelya]

It occurs to me now that I don't think I'm cut out to continue pursuing my major. As a Journalism major, I'm currently taking a class that requires me to write a minimum of 2 articles a week.

I'm having difficulty just writing one, and part of that is because I can't come up with any ideas for stories so the one I came up with was kind of last-minute and ill-prepared. I'm sitting at my desk right now with barely 15 minutes worth of interviews (probably less since some of that recording is silence) and I have no idea how to put that into a cohesive story that isn't extremely dry.

Real journalists don't really "come up with ideas" very often. They'll have templates for the kind of stories they can use to pad the paper. Go into pretty much any small business when they're not too busy, ask the owner about what they think of the local government rules that affect their business. Get a chatty person and you'll probably get hours of recording on a variety of topics. The key would probably be to ask "open" questions at first. Don't go in with a pre-prepared list of "closed" questions, because then you'll get short answers you probably won't be able to use. If you get more than one topic from a conversations, split it up and use the material to craft multiple weeks worth of stories. That'll give you some topics you didn't know about so you can fine-tune it by interviewing different people about it, or doing research and quoting other publications. And keep any quotes around from the first interview to pad out more than one story. Nobody ever said you can't quote the same person in two different stories and just omit the fact that both quotes came from the same interview.

For ideas about types of stories that you can write when you have nothing to write about, go read small town papers. That's suitably local for the type of stuff a journalism student can write. Also, go look for any student council, campus clubs, classes, workshops, meetup.com things etc that are running in your vicinity. You don't need "breaking news" two times a week. There are all types of subcultures, band fans, D&D/boardgame/videogame players, sports fans etc. Interview people about hobbies and interests. Also consider hanging round a cinema and interview people about a movie or about how often they go to the cinema.

[AzyWng]

Still thinking of going to have my major changed, but if I do decide to stay the course, I'll keep that advice in mind.  Thanks.

[ChairmanPoo]

Still no offers from the HSE 

[Tingle]

Look at the bullshit modern professional journalists get away with, and copy that.

This is horrible advice.
Journalism needs revitalising not the continuation of its culture.

[Kagus]

It certainly does!


I don't think telling that to the professor is going to work though.

[ChairmanPoo]

No jobs expected in Cork in the next few months ☹

[hector13]

Quite a change in industry there, Poo.

[WealthyRadish]

This really isn't the thread for bottling it up.

[dragdeler]

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[LordBaal]

It's time to go to the authorities and file a complaint or something drag. Be smart and don't let your anger boggle your mind.

[dragdeler]

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[Yoink]

Typed out this rant earlier, when my internet decided not to work. Might as well post it now.

I really hate how passive I am.

Just now hours ago in the daytime when I wrote this, I was heading back from some stupid appointment and it occurred to me that I should hit up this great local bakery that I'm more-or-less a regular at.
This is a venture that for me is generally fraught with anxiety, but I figured I really ought to do so since I hadn't been in some months now, plus I have a tab there that my dad paid for and I would like to eat my way through that before I (presumably) move away from the area next month and it ceases to be so convenient.   

So I turned down the appropriate street and made my way along it in search of tasty baked goods.
The first obstacle was not long in coming: midway along the street I was almost run down by a derro on a pushbike (one of those kids' ones with the wide tyres, no less). At first I made to hold my ground, since this dickhead was riding on the wrong side of the footpath, but I saw in his tweaker eyes and dull-witted expression that he wasn't likely to alter his course for anything.
I scurried out of his path, hating myself for it. Should have held firm and shoved him off his stupid bike if he tried to collide with me. I consoled myself with the thought that I wasn't looking for trouble, I was just trying to get to the bakery with a minimum of fuss added to this already-stressful journery - and so thinking, I pressed on.

Before long, I made it, struggling through the irritating plastic flaps guarding the entrance with something close to relief. But my relief was short-lived - the inside of the cafe was mildly crowded, and one of the other customers had brought along a friggin' pram. The inconsiderate bitch had left it parked right in the walkway you're supposed to queue in, no less, blocking most of the space between a set of tables and the counter.
At first I decided to keep my distance and wait it out 'til I could be served, and so I occupied myself intently studying various legumes, cake mixes and tubs of spices along a nearby set of shelves. This didn't end well at all, since a couple more customers entered the shop and breezed past me before the first gronk had even finished ordering.
Hating myself for shooting myself in the foot like that, I made my way closer to the front counter. I didn't want to stand immediately next to the obstructing pram, since I wanted nothing to do with this lady's disgusting little crotch-goblin, so I hung back a bit - but not so far that it wasn't very clear that I was waiting to be served.   

Then, to my utter shock, some bogan clad in high-vis and wearing a trilby decorated with metal studs pushes past me and makes his way up to the front. Now and appropriate response here would have been to hamstring the rude fuck and stand on his head, or at the very least raise my voice and tell him not to push in, but instead... I simply turned and left. I went home with no tasty Lebanese baked goods, just a rotten mood and increased levels of self-loathing.     
Perhaps violence is "not the answer", but it's certainly a damn sight better than the ones I tend to come up with.   

   

[dragdeler]

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[Kagus]

In my quest to develop a social life and join the community of the living, I have unwittingly become the confidant of several friends. I apparently have "one of those faces" that people can talk to.

I am now full of secrets. Dark, poisonous secrets. About and from the people I looked up to and hoped to emulate in the attempt to make an actual life for myself.


Don't get me wrong; I like being able to help, and I do appreciate the trust they place in me... But damn.