When I used to work for The Sage at Miramar College, or The Patriot at George Mason University, I never before had to push the boundaries of memory, history, and time before now. Those stories were current. Underneath their surface of relevant, viable, and timely information, there was a paltry amount of research and energy expended. I would call for an interview, get it in a relatively timely manner, and then move to complete the story with the newfound information that I'd recently acquired.
With this profile story, it's different. I call, get a message. I call back, find the person who I'm looking for has just left, and will return within an hour or two. I receive a call from that person, only to find out that they weren't the ones that I needed to speak with in the first place, and that they have no idea where to send me next. Digging through the layers of generational knowledge, and discovering that no matter how close people were with their families, rarely is it the case that they have a relevant anecdotal story to tell me regarding the story I'm writing. I've spoken to 73 people now. I've made more than 120 phone calls and sent out more than 90 e-mails to individuals pertinent or... possibly pertinent, to my story.
Man... I only hope the feature story is a photo-story. Because this is making my brain hurt.
Ooh a photo story would be pretty cool, even though I haven't picked up my camera all semester :(
ReplyDeleteHang in there.
ReplyDeletehttp://bit.ly/ee3Ar8
And seriously, you should approach it from a photographer's perspective as well as a writer's perspective. Your draft already has a lot of very descriptive visuals. You kind of made is so that you don't necessarily need the pictures. Keep it up.
I would say that you are doing great with your story. I don't think I've ever put in as much effort as you did with yours. I know this is going to sound generic, but usually the stories that you spend the most time on turn out to be one of your best articles. So I would say hang in there.
ReplyDeleteLissette is right! The more you put into a store, the more you get out. Part of your story might be how few people know their own family's heritage. Nick, if you do a good job, I'll do whatever I can to get it published. YOU deserve it.
ReplyDelete