Since the last post we've had a couple more Writing for the Print Media Classes. The time before last we had Catherine Porter, a Toronto Star reporter speaking to us and answering questions. One effect of her visit was to convince me that I'd never want to work as a reporter on a big daily. Sounded ruff, tuff, rude, crude, etc. A little bit of that stereotype of the gum-cracking reporter with the curmudgeonly editor came through.

My own newspaper experience, on a small weekly, was of another sort. The other two editorial guys and I were pals. It was like a big game. We had a pipe-smoking, grandfatherly publisher who took care of us--saw we were decently compensated--but who we otherwise never heard from.

In the most recent class we discussed column writing and we did a little exercise, breaking up into groups, in which we were instructed to write leads depending on what sort of publication it was for. (The lead or "lede" is the first paragraph or so of a straight news story.) Not to brag or anything, just reporting the facts, I kind of took charge of our little group and saved our bacon, directing us into the paths of better writing, gaining me favor in the eyes of the other, younger members.

Well, must run back to work now...