I am interested in writing for the Technician. I was wondering if anyone has experience doing so, and if so, how was your experience?

3/24/2008 10:40:30 PM

PM jessiejepp

3/24/2008 10:45:16 PM

I ran today...viewpoint ftw!

I wrote for features last year...

3/24/2008 10:56:39 PM

I wrote for them a couple years back in the sports section. My experience was a pretty good one. I don't know how it is now, but if I had to give you any advice, I would just try to get up with the editors and tell them your interest in working for them. Also, try to have as much fun as you can. That's about the most I can say.

Oh yeah, make sure you save your published stories.

3/24/2008 11:36:40 PM

be prepared to have grammatical errors edited into your pieces

3/25/2008 12:13:51 AM

bwahahaha

3/25/2008 12:20:01 AM

I worked for Tech for four years ... was an entertainment writer, section editor and managing editor ... I saw Technician highs and lows ... PM me if you want to talk about it ...

3/25/2008 12:22:35 AM

I've worked there for five years and I'm the Science & Tech editor there now, so feel free to PM me if you have any questions also.

3/25/2008 1:36:46 AM

TGD can tell you about it if he has time.

McDanger used to write for them as well.

3/25/2008 1:41:19 AM

i think i've posted things on TWW that the Technician later copied.

Does that count?

3/25/2008 7:01:29 AM

If you want to write for any publication, you might want to familiarize yourself with its actual title. It's not "the Technician," it's just Technician.

3/25/2008 7:15:22 AM

I was a news editor and reporter for Technician when I was at State. I learned so much about the university, got a little money, met a lot of great people, and honed my writing skills. I really enjoyed it and recommend it.

3/25/2008 8:07:32 AM

I was there for four years, and I was one of the deputy sports editors last semester before I graduated.

LOVED it.

3/25/2008 8:11:03 AM

Quote :

"got a little money,"

Little being the operative word.

3/25/2008 9:29:27 AM

I wrote for Viewpoint for 2 years (didn't take the $$$ though b/c it felt like a conflict-of-interest) and had a lot of fun

As long as you've got something to say on a regular basis, Viewpoint was/is a blast to write for -- if you're doing News or Features or Sports though, I'll have to defer to someone else since your stories get assigned to you

3/25/2008 9:29:59 AM

Quote :

"If you want to write for any publication, you might want to familiarize yourself with its actual title. It's not "the Technician," it's just Technician."

Notice how I didn't capitalize "the?" That would be because I realized it isn't part of the title. If you would think about it, "I want to write for Technician," doesn't sound good.

Anyway, I am open to a variety or sections. I couldn't write for sports, due to a lack of knowledge. Otherwise, I would love to write for "Science & Tech," "News," or "Viewpoints." It basically comes down to which one I would have the best chance of actually getting work for. The learning curve should also play a factor. I would appreciate any further advice.

3/25/2008 9:36:07 AM

log off of here and go to 323 Witherspoon Student Center and fill out an application

no other advice is needed

3/25/2008 9:46:30 AM

Quote :

"if you're doing News or Features or Sports though, I'll have to defer to someone else since your stories get assigned to you"

Well, you get ENORMOUS bonus points with editors if you come up with your own stories (as long as they're good )

As for advice, go up to the office and talk to the editors. Or e-mail one of the section editors. Unless things have drastically changed in the three-plus months I've been away, News is pretty much always in need of writers..

[Edited on March 25, 2008 at 9:48 AM. Reason : writers]

3/25/2008 9:47:22 AM

HAVE YOU SEEN THE LATEST ISSUE OF THE SPORTS ILLUSTRATED

DO YOU SUBSCRIBE TO THE TIME, THE PEOPLE, OR PERHAPS THE USA TODAY

3/25/2008 9:49:15 AM

Most of the journalism professors at State would agree that it should be called the Technician, at least in most cases.

3/25/2008 9:53:49 AM

It is consistently referred to as the the Technician. I realize the word "the" isn't part of the title. It simply sounds better that way. This is not chit chat, you need not troll me.

Thank you all for your input. I believe I will put in an application this week. However, I would like to ask you all if you felt it was time consuming. Basically is is demanding, or does it vary between writers/sections?

3/25/2008 9:54:46 AM

PERHAPS THEY SHOULD SUBMIT AN ESSAY ABOUT IT TO THE GLITTER TRAIN

BUT BEING AN ENGINEERING SCHOOL, I SUPPOSE THEY'RE MORE LIKELY TO WRITE FOR THE POPULAR MECHANICS

3/25/2008 9:55:35 AM

Oh, I get it. Capital letters. Okay.

3/25/2008 9:58:00 AM

Quote :

"or does it vary between writers/sections?"

yes

3/25/2008 9:59:04 AM

i would like to write for car and driver.



[Edited on March 25, 2008 at 10:03 AM. Reason : ]

3/25/2008 9:59:53 AM

Quote :

"be prepared to have grammatical errors edited into your pieces "

[Edited on March 25, 2008 at 10:30 AM. Reason : I'll just leave it at that]

3/25/2008 10:01:42 AM

^ You mean like comma splices?

3/25/2008 10:04:27 AM

Quote :

"catzor: However, I would like to ask you all if you felt it was time consuming. Basically is is demanding, or does it vary between writers/sections?"

A lot of that depends on your own personal motivation. I wrote every week and never had a problem, but I wrote alongside some folks who would roll out of bed the morning their piece was due and spend all day struggling to put something together

3/25/2008 10:04:52 AM

it can be pretty demanding, depending on which section and how many stories you want to write per week. it's pretty easy to get burned out if you ramp up your participation too quickly.

3/25/2008 10:15:21 AM

^^^I didn't say I was perfect but they have some pretty bad mistakes sometimes

and comma splices are a real bad habit I have haha

3/25/2008 10:29:23 AM

3/25/2008 11:15:02 AM

Quote :

"PERHAPS THEY SHOULD SUBMIT AN ESSAY ABOUT IT TO THE GLITTER TRAIN BUT BEING AN ENGINEERING SCHOOL, I SUPPOSE THEY'RE MORE LIKELY TO WRITE FOR THE POPULAR MECHANICS"

I fucking love you, Jonathan.

Quote :

"it can be pretty demanding, depending on which section and how many stories you want to write per week. it's pretty easy to get burned out if you ramp up your participation too quickly."

This can certainly become an issue if you don't cut out some of your other daily activities, like class

3/25/2008 11:22:35 AM

srsly

3/25/2008 12:15:47 PM

It depends what section you want to write in, I would guess it's a whole different experience. I used to write for viewpoint, and it was fun with the original editor, who pretty much left my stuff, meaning my opinoins alone. Then the editor left and we got another one (i won't say who it was to protect the guilty) and he would literally change my words and sometimes opinions, it was rediculous. Like someoen above said, he would often change the form and grammar to a worse construction, just to do something, there was really nothing to change. I don't know who the editor is now, this was years ago, but it's a kind of thing you might want to be ready for.

3/25/2008 12:25:03 PM

I used to write for sports on cross country and track (best damn reporter sports ever had, IMO).
I remember one very specific exchange I had with a few of the XC runners after an article I wrote on the national championships.

Them: "Hey Todd, what's Stanford's mascot?"
Me: "It's the Stanford Cardinal. Ummm, why do you ask?"
Them: "Well, in your article yesterday, you said it was the Stanford Cardinals. Like, plural."
Me: "What? No way! No I di--- GODDAMN COPY EDITORS! FUCK!"


That shit happened on several occasions.

Quote :

"Then the editor left and we got another one (i won't say who it was to protect the guilty) and he would literally change my words and sometimes opinions, it was rediculous."

Yes, but did he correct your spelling?

[Edited on March 25, 2008 at 12:51 PM. Reason : red]

3/25/2008 12:49:46 PM

Quote :

"Little being the operative word."

As news editor, I got enough to pay my rent each month, plus a parking pass.

I'll also add that writing for Technician was a huge reason I got the job I did and have had a great career so far.

[Edited on March 25, 2008 at 12:57 PM. Reason : sss]

3/25/2008 12:55:43 PM

Quote :

"be prepared to have grammatical errors edited into your pieces"

I don't know when the errors got in there, but they did.

3/25/2008 1:02:38 PM

Quote :

"I'll also add that writing for Technician was a huge reason I got the job I did and have had a great career so far."

Ditto for me. BOTH of my full-time, "real-world" jobs, for that matter, pre- and post-grad school.

3/25/2008 1:10:12 PM

Quote :

"I'll also add that writing for Technician was a huge reason I got the job I did and have had a great career so far."

Same here.

Quote :

"As news editor, I got enough to pay my rent each month, plus a parking pass."

I've heard they trimmed the pay. And when I was a section editor, they had cut out the parking passes except for the EIC.

3/25/2008 1:26:45 PM

^Oh, that sucks. It was a sweet deal when I was there, and motivated me to work harder for the paper.

Also, from reading the above comments, I remember several times when I had FACTUAL errors edited into my stories after I left for the night. That was always fun.

3/25/2008 1:51:01 PM

I wrote for science and tech for a while because my friend who used to be the editor tricked me into it but I liked it a lot. I had a lot of fun doing it.

3/25/2008 2:36:51 PM

Last question...

For those that said it had an impact on your careers, what do you do? Also, what was your major? I am in English:LWR, so I find this highly relevant to my interests.

3/25/2008 4:46:05 PM

Well my first job was as a staff writer at a newspaper in South Carolina. I came back for grad school, and now I'm an account executive at PR firm in Raleigh.

They were particularly impressed with my writing experience and my experience as an editor at Technician (for leadership purposes).

I have a B.A. in political science with a minor in journalism and an M.S. in communication.

[Edited on March 25, 2008 at 4:48 PM. Reason : clarify]

3/25/2008 4:47:33 PM

I was in the MDS (IDS) program and steered my major in the direction I desired; which meant (for the most part) minors in film, music and journalism.

Journalism is a tough field to jump into, but while working at Technician I had an editorial internship with the Washington Post. So that helped to serve as glitter on my resume along with my Tech experience and a freelance gig with Co-Ed magazine.

Right out of college I worked as a freelancer on the Outer Banks while working construction to make real money (freelancing paid about $75 per article). A little more than a year later I was offered a job with McClatchy Interactive. Now I am one of 10 content producers for the third largest newspaper company in the United States.

3/25/2008 5:00:11 PM

i was an eic and a cartoonist for the paper

my major was Art + Design in design school...what is that a BFA i think?

now i'm a graphic designer at the best job environment i've ever had

the paper helped me learn more about deadlines, crazy clients and running a staff more than they even touched on over at design skool

[Edited on March 25, 2008 at 5:41 PM. Reason : +]

3/25/2008 5:38:47 PM

I too worked for the Technician and the Yearbook.

When I interviewed for my job out of college. My employer didn't even look at my transcript (i was an anthropology major). They saw my writing, photography and knowledge of design and hired me.

I do marketing for an Architecture firm now, there are a lot of job skills you can gain through the Technician and the rest of Student Media that are applicable in a lot of industries.

3/25/2008 6:57:24 PM

The EIC from a couple of years ago in now an assistant travel editor for USAtoday.com. Her major was communications and Spanish.

One of the photogs is now a cameraman for WRAL and a photographer for wral.com

Quite a few of the sports editors have gone on to become sports writers for major publications. Off the top of my head, one is working for the Orlando Sentinel and another is with The Post Star in New York.

A former designer, EIC and news editor was a content producer for Boston.com (The Boston Globe's sister site) and is now traveling the world and blogging about his experiences for the publication.

Chris Hondros, a 2003 finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, was a photographer for Technician.

Richard Curtis, the founder and managing editor of graphics and photography for USA Today, is also a Technician alum.

I hope that is enough to encourage you to pursue a position with the paper. My experience was the highlight of my collegiate career (six years), and the knowledge I gained while working there is immeasurable.

[Edited on March 25, 2008 at 9:21 PM. Reason : ]

3/25/2008 9:06:13 PM

So, today I went and spoke with the news editor. He said that I should come to the staff meeting Tuesday night. Apparently, I will write a few stories before actually becoming part of the staff, which sounds good to me. However, though I am excited, I am also quite nervous about being thrown right into the fire.

I would appreciate someone telling me about how laid back the process is.

3/27/2008 11:34:31 AM

Don't put yourself under pressure. All I had when I applied my sophomore year was an interest in journalism and writing, and I worked my way up to news editor two years later.

Being "thrown into the fire" is the best way to start something like this. I always thought journalism was best learned by doing it, rather than sitting in a classroom just learning about doing it.

Have fun with your first few "non-employee" stories; it was a pretty laidback environment while I was there, but there was still an emphasis on quality. Be ready for some constructive criticism, enjoy the chance you have to get out there on campus and report on some really interesting stories, and go from there.

I was scared to death when I first started at Technician, and I ended up with a 1st place NCPA journalism award, which is one of my proudest accomplishments and helped define my career.

3/27/2008 12:02:59 PM

Thanks, that helps a lot.

3/27/2008 12:05:27 PM