Journalism as a Conversation

nessieonthelane asked: Hiya! I'm 16 and would most certainly need help in the career path of Creative Non-Fiction Journalism...I have been fascinated with this category of Journalism since, I began to learn the creative side of writing...although, I do not want to be involved with media base Journalism, especially the news. But, I would love to work with publishers etc. If, you could kindly help me to begin my journey...that would be great!...I am in no clue...where to start...

I’m not quite sure I know the kind of journalism you’re talking about, but let me take a stab at answering your question, and if I misunderstood, just let me know.

Back in the 1960s/70s, a different kind of journalism developed called “New Journalism.” It basically consisted of writers doing non-fiction reporting but filling in the gaps of a story, so to speak, with fictional elements to make the story read more like a novel. Lots of these writers became wildly famous, among them Truman Capote. Beautiful, intoxicating writing.

Many traditional journalists were deeply offended, and this type of journalism quickly fell out favor. That’s because one of the core principles of journalism is accuracy and not making stuff up to tell a better story. It’s ingrained in what we do.

If by “creative non-fiction” you mean “new journalism,” I’d encourage you against building a career on it. You’d probably have a tough time getting published in journalism circles. On the other hand, if you simply mean non-fiction reporting on human-interest feature stories, as opposed to hard news, I’d definitely encourage you to go for it.

Either way, you should keep in mind great journalism is built on one thing and one thing only: great information-gathering. I often refer to this as “reporting” (as opposed to “writing.”) Two very different things. You can be a great writer but not a very good reporter, and you won’t make it as a professional journalist. But you can be a lousy writer and a terrific reporter, and achieve soaring success.

Everything depends on the quality and accuracy of your information. An editor can fix bad writing but not bad reporting. Here’s a terrific example of long-form, non-fiction feature reporting on James Franco, an actor I have a bit of a crush on. (Story’s featured in Tumblr’s Radar today via toldorknown.)

If I were you, I’d scout out colleges/universities specifically with long-form narrative reporting classes, or magazine sequences. Not many schools offer this stuff anymore, but they’re out there.

Finally, if you simply love creative writing, don’t worry about studying journalism. Just go write. There are colleges that specialize in fiction writing, such as Iowa’s Writer’s Workshop. Use your Tumblr blog to practice whatever type of writing you settle on, and see if you can find an audience in it. You’ll eventually know if you have the talent to make it as a fiction writer. Audiences don’t lie.