Time to read. Wish I had more of it.
If that were the case, I might have finished reading three special books by now.
- “Of Course You Can Have Ice Cream for Breakfast! A Journalist’s Uncommon Memoir” by Ron Cohen. Just published. Ron is an award-winning journalist for more than 40 years who led coverage at United Press International and later at Gannett News Service, which is where we worked together. His previous book: “Down to the Wire: UPI’s Fight for Survival.”
- “Poison Girls” by Cheryl L. Reed. Just published. Cheryl is an award-winning investigative reporter and a current colleague at the Newhouse School. This is her first novel.
- “Unveiled: The Hidden Lives of Nuns” by Cheryl L. Reed. This was Cheryl’s first book, which she wrote after interviewing more than 300 nuns, and which she describes in the Prologue as “a first-person journalistic account.”
For journalists, to read is to take in air — it’s essential. For authors, such as Ron and Cheryl, to read is what enables them to write with authority — for fiction or nonfiction.
- If we want to share the public’s right to know, we need to be in the know.
- If we want to educate, enlighten and entertain, we need to be educated, enlightened and entertained.
- If we want to disseminate news, we must recognize what actually is news, not what is old news or what’s not news at all.
That’s why, for example, among the 50 strategies that make up our book, “Think Like an Editor,” we insist on the need to read:
- Read. The more an editor reads, the more ideas will come. … Get ahead of the news and gather story ideas by reading more than your own news product. (Strategy 6, Curiosity)
- Read a lot. Pay attention to leads in a variety of publications. Critique them as you read them. Ask yourself why a lead works for you and why not. Be aware of which types of leads are overused and which are wisely used. (Strategy 10, Structure: Lead)
- Read for content, context and color. Does the story merely tell what happened or does it show it, with ample anecdotes, examples and details? Does the story explain what led to the news? Does it tell readers the significance of the news, what it means to them and how they will be affected? (Strategy 23, Treat Editing Like a Mystery)
- Visualize as you read. When news is accurate, then readers trust the information and the institution. They consider the news product credible. Credibility hinges on accuracy. (Strategy 28, Edit for Accuracy)
- Read every word. Cliches are easy to skim over when editing because they are familiar. Read them and recognize them. … Notice cliches published elsewhere. When you realize how often they appear, you will be even more determined to rewrite them. (Strategy 35, Lively Language)
- Read the story top to bottom. Feel comfortable that you know the answer to this question: “What’s the story?” (Strategy 41, Headlines, Keywords and Metadata)
- Know what you know. An editor who is well-read on a wide variety of topics is more likely to recognize material that sounds familiar — material that the editor has read because it has been published elsewhere. (Strategy 48, Plagiarism and Fabrication)
Time to read. Not going to try to make time. Going to actually make time.
But, first, breakfast. Hmm … butter pecan or mint chocolate chip?