060405
Getting writing gigs is tough. Especially if you’re like me and have zero references and only a few clips. This past week I decided to try a new strategy. I gathered together the addresses of a couple of newspapers here in the city, and I went to visit their respective editors.
I started with the New York Sun because it’s a small paper, relatively new, and their office is located within walking distance of where I live. It was actually really easy to talk to a real person because their office is small. But the editor was out when I was there, so I left my resume and I’m going to call next Wednesday.
Yesterday I went to visit the New York Post. Turns out their building security wouldn’t even let me in the door without an appointment. I called up to the features editor to try and make an appointment, but she was out. (boy, editors are busy. They’re always out.) I left a message and I’ll call again on Wednesday.
Yesterday I also stopped by the New York Times. It was really intimidating because it’s one of the oldest and most circulated newspapers in the world. After my experience with the New York Post’s security I decided to call up first. I asked the receptionist on the phone if I could speak with the features editor. Turns out the Times doesn’t have a features editor. Yikes I felt dumb. I guess that shows I really don’t read the Times much. (It is a buck after all, whereas the Post and the Daily News are each $.50)
I’ve been checking out the two commuter papers they have here, AM-New York and Metro. They have a lot of Associated Press stuff, which means they might be short-handed. I’ll try them next week.
.