Writing

During the budget meeting, I came up with this story by scrolling through my contacts, looking for people with interesting things to write about. While I knew my friend had something called Epilepsy, I was ignorant–like many others–of the invisible struggle she goes through every day. I wrote this story using the knowledge I accumulated from meeting her, my personal experience with her during a fire drill, wide-spread research and generous answers from a nearly 30-question interview. 

Ironically, I did not want this story in the beginning. Since I am adopted and was not raised in a culturally Asian family, I felt almost embarrassed. I even had a source turn away because they were only half-Asian. However, I did not let that discourage me and I continued to seek out a plethora of sources. Even though Asian and Pacific Islanders are a minor minority, I am proud of the diversity I was able to share. I hope to prompt the same curiosity in the readers I had experienced connecting with the Asian community at school. 

While this story is only a Q&A, it is a great insight into what my interview questions look like. After receiving Muhammad’s emotional and powerful answers, I could not write a single word that would have been able to convey all the heart, hurt and history her book holds and do it justice. I thought it would have been wrong for me to forcibly translate and cut her answers down into a story format. I was afraid too much of the authenticity and meaning would be lost. With her words untouched, I am enthralled by Muhammad’s courage to overcome and publish not just any old book, but the truth.

As a peer helper, I see an extra-special part of school the majority of students do not know exists. The tucked-away rooms are filled with the most precious and kind people. This is a heartwarming story about the bowling team’s intentional time spent with the special needs kids in our school. I loved hearing how impactful the activity is for the kids and the impressions it leaves on the bowlers. 

This story covers the emotions that go with having a deployed parent. I interviewed a student who had her dad deployed months at a time and moved six times. The other I interviewed never moved, but saw his dad even less because his parents are divorced. Looking back, I wish I could have covered kids who had lost a parent due to their service or were hoping to follow in their parent’s footsteps for even more variety in experiences. Regardless, I am still proud of the multi-faceted answers I received and the story I was able to write. 

Since they were all strangers at first who banded together for one friend, I enjoyed hearing how the podcast had grown their connections with each other. Personally I am not sport savvy in any way, but just hearing their passion for sports and their teams hyped me up. With three jam-packed interviews, it took me a while to break everything down. I had to ensure I used the best quotes and that they were not redundant.

I had the honor to meet with our new superintendent, discuss his goals for the school system and get an inside scoop into his personal experience. Despite having over 20 questions prepared, I found that the conversation naturally unfolded. Throughout the interview, I was able to get amazing, genuine responses and unlock his motivations and priorities. We each had a mutual respect for each other as leaders. Although it began as a one-way interview, it developed into a fruitful conversation that allowed both of us to learn more about each other.

My little cubbie heart could not believe how far this story has gone. This story unexpectedly won me a national award with a bonus monetary prize. Would you believe me if I told you this was the first story I ever wrote in the newsroom? I barely can. I was just a starting reporter writing about a new game I loved to play with my friends. That is how I fell in love with journalism–writing what I love. 

Since my mom used to be an elementary and special education teacher, I understand all of the unfair systems and disrespect teachers face. My heart goes out to all underpaid, burnt-out teachers and staff that go above and beyond to educate and inspire our future leaders. Since it was an editorial, I gathered comments from the staff and we discussed vital points we wanted to hit and emphasize. 

I was excited to interview the new band directors and see how they were planning to uphold the mantle of the previous directors. While change may be difficult, I hoped to do the new directors justice by highlighting their strive for excellence since they dared to match the previous directors' standards. I interviewed both directors while also including the opinions of several students and their thoughts on the transition.

Before the actual game happened, I wanted to emphasize why the fundraiser was important and why students should buy their tickets, other than to see teachers crush the basketball team. I made sure to make the story informational, but also share the passion the people at Make-A-Wish have for the kids. I admire all that Make-A-Wish does and I was thrilled my school was able to work with them. 

When I received this story, I was at a loss for where to start. I had no experience with JROTC or the military. During the interviews, I had to ask simple questions regarding basic vocabulary or procedures. While I felt embarrassed in the moment, I later learned my unfamiliarity made me the perfect candidate to write the story. It prompted me to ask a greater variety of questions and allowed me to explore different angles of the story. I enjoyed learning about Sergeant Brown’s personal journey in the military, how women’s roles in the military have changed and how she inspires her cadets to overcome adversities.