Tag Archives: writing

Reporting Isn’t About Facts. It’s About People.

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Today’s post is from reporter Amy Zillner. She’s the reporter who reached out to me in November to help me get the word out about The Unemployment Cookbook.

As a creative writer, I’m intrigued with how reporters grapple with “just the facts”. I opened up a Guest Blog post to Amy with one caviat: Write what you want. I gave her no leading, no subject, and when she asked, I refused to give her direction. I wanted this post to be strictly herself, in her own words.

This is Amy’s post.

Reporting isn’t about facts, it’s about people

 
Hi all!
 
It’s such an honor to be a guest on Molly’s blog. I’m so grateful to be here.
 
Molly’s such an inspiration to me. I bet she inspires you too. I feel truly blessed to have met her.
 
She’s amazing! She took her dream of publishing The Unemployment Cookbook took action and made it a reality.
 
My dream. I wanted to be a freelance writer. Of what, I didn’t know. My B.A. in English hung on my wall, a gleaming example of my education —a dusty reflection of disappointment.
 
Can I tell you something? I never wanted to be a reporter. I had one class in college and said Nah! Too factual! Too boring!
 
As a creative writer and avid reader, facts were considered a part of daily living that I strove to escape from. Whereas fiction weaved a beautiful world I could get lost in.
 
It wasn’t until I actually had my first assignment that I experienced what a blessing and a challenge being a reporter really is.
 
The Blessings:
 
·        If you’re passionate about something it can become your whole life if you let it.
 
·        Forgiveness can bring peace and healing to many if a victim of tragedy can share their story to educate others.
 
·        Listening to someone’s life story is something everyone should do.
 
·        Reaching 100 years carries a lot of living with it; one person can influence the lives of many.
 
·        Dreams can’t become a reality if you don’t take the steps to make it happen.
 
·        People out there are rooting for our youth to have the opportunity to go to college, and they’re actually raising money to help them get there.
 
My Biggest Challenge:
 
·        Fear
 
I’m not going to get the interview. I’m going to sound like a fool. I’m going to disappoint a lot of people. I’ll never be a good enough writer to make it through.
 
My constant companion.
 
If you’re looking to take a step toward your dream, fear is going to be your companion too. Sometimes you’re going to think you can’t do it.
 
Let me tell you something I know about fear. It’s a small creature casting a huge shadow puppet on the wall of your imagination.
 
And it isn’t until you face that shadow that you’ll see how small fear truly is.
 
So take that step toward your dream.
 
YOU CAN DO IT!
 
Let go of all the excuses of WHY you can’t and take a step towards HOW you can.
 
If you want to be a reporter start talking to people, immerse yourself in your community and the world around you.
 
Everybody has a story and everybody has a voice, we need only listen.
 
I’m listening.
 
Will you share your dream with me?
 
Genuinely Curious,
 

Amy Z.

And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!

TGIF: March 15, 2013

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It’s TGIF time. It always seems to work out that when I’ve been blog-absent and finally have much to say, it’s a TGIF post. I like that. Blog and I, we work well together.

And believe me, I have oh-so-much to say. The first is, I’m learning how to not say everything. As a writer, I’m a bit cavalier with my words. That’s not always a good thing. I see a story everywhere, but that doesn’t mean I should tell it. Some stories aren’t mine to tell. Others are mine, but not worth telling. Still more are shared stories, and to be told in different avenues than the Blog. I’m finding a Magic Filter that makes it okay to write… and okay to not write.

I’m making much better use of my daily organizer. Not only am I keeping track of appointments and writing assignments, I’m also keeping track of accomplishments. “Ordered mugs.” “Writer’s Group 10 a.m.”. “ICL Assign #4″. These are only a few of the entries for this month. It’s my goal to have at least one entry each day relating to writing. So far, so good.

Now that the Cookbook is in production and I have an actual inventory, it’s time to work on production of my next project. A Study on the Ten Commandments is a work I’m humbly proud of. The writing is finished, the cover is designed, and yes, there’s a Kickstarter campaign for pre-selling and raising funds for publishing.

Ten Commandments Cover

Ten Commandments Cover

My newest writing project is half done. Broken Girl and Other Stories of Redemption: A Collection of Parables, Poetry & Prose. I’m very excited about this one for many reasons. Even in my journals, I’ve written creatively. This is a collection of moments in the past two decades as I stretched my wings, flown the coop, and raised my own family. Lessons learned and failings felt. It will also feature photographs from my big brother, Mark. His photography skills are astounding, and last year he gave me carte blanche to use them as I see fit for this publication. I was so happy to call him this week and let him know this project is finally under way.

Broken Girl cover

Broken Girl cover

I don’t know how the entire project will come together, but I intend to use this beautiful photo as the cover. I call it “Desert Beauty” and I’ve used it on my Blog before. Of course, he has such a plethora of nature photos that by the time I’m ready to produce the book, I may change the cover… oh, who am I kidding?! I love this photo and I’ll use it nine ways to Sunday if I can!

Oh, sure, I could complain about my nagging fears and personal woes. But, as I so often used to say, “Everybody’s got something, y’know?” The specifics of my trials and tribulations don’t matter. The history of how I got here is insignificant. All that matters is the goal, and whether I reached for it. That, in itself, is a great accomplishment.

I have much to write over the next week:

  • My views on the Vatican and Pope Francis.
  • Joshua Tree blooms.
  • How to score birthday freebies.
  • Philippians 4:13.
  • My Morning at the DMV and Why Appearances Aren’t What They Seem.

I may not get to it all in the next week. But you know what? I’m okay with that. Because I’m also learning to not sweat the small stuff… and, as Pastor Tom often says, “It’s all small stuff.”

Whatever this week brings your way, Be Blessed!

And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!