Home / SPC Programs & Events / 5 Years In The Sandbox – ‘Learn About The Editing Process’
Comments Off on 5 Years In The Sandbox – ‘Learn About The Editing Process’ 40

5 Years In The Sandbox – ‘Learn About The Editing Process’

SPC Programs & Events November 1, 2016 , by

In November, the Sandbox celebrates 5 years.  It’s been a wild journey from a handful of online articles to multiple awards! We take a look back with some of our alumni reporters at what they got from the paper and what they see coming in the future in news.

14355793_546217415578165_2505522134822431050_nby Brittany Collins

When and how did you work on the Sandbox?

I wasn’t an official writer/correspondent for the Sandbox, but I took some classes with Kathy Bryson and some of my work was in the Sandbox during 2012. I believe one article some classmates and I wrote was published.

What your most memorable takeaway from the experience?

Though none of my own articles were published in the Sandbox, I was still able to learn about the editing process. The editors gave me great feedback on writing skills and how to use the inverted pyramid. Also, I learned how to keep my sentences straight to the point. My most memorable takeaway was finding an actual story through the characters I wrote about. I also met incredible people when covering several stories

How does media – traditional and otherwise – fit in your future or current endeavors?

I’m a multimedia journalist/Reporter for Fox24 and ABC16 in Macon, Ga. Media impacts me daily because I’m always working on day turnaround stories. I always have to keep up with the latest on news stories, whether it’s through TV, social media or print.

What role do you see media playing in everyday life?

Everyone is always on their phones, tablets and computers looking at articles. Some people say they don’t watch or care about the news, but they fail to realize that they do because media is transferring over to online/social media. Someone can post an article on Facebook, and the next thing you know hundreds of people are sharing it.

What advice would you give a current or prospective Sandbox reporter?

My advise for any Sandbox reporter is to remember the art of storytelling. Don’t just state what happened. Instead, tell me a story. Find an interesting character and set the story around them. Also, make sure your writing is conversational and straight to the point. People hate reading, so make the words on the paper reader friendly. The first sentence should be captivating and should want the reader to keep reading. Also, when getting edits, don’t take it personal. Many of the best writers started off with several edits. Just learn from your mistakes and do better the next go around. As stated earlier, I was never published in the Sandbox, but I still learned lots when getting my articles edited.

Related Articles

UPCOMING CAC EVENTS

Happening at SPC

Equal Access/Equal Opportunity
The Board of Trustees of St. Petersburg College affirms its equal opportunity policy in accordance with the provisions of the Florida Educational Equity Act and all other relevant state and federal laws, rules and regulations. The college will not discriminate on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, age, national origin, marital status, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, or against any qualified individual with disabilities in its employment practices or in the admission and treatment of students. Recognizing that sexual harassment constitutes discrimination on the basis of sex and violates this Rule, the college will not tolerate such conduct. Should you experience such behavior, please contact Pamela Smith, the director of EA/EO/Title IX Coordinator at 727-341-3261; by mail at P.O. Box 13489, St. Petersburg, FL 33733-3489; or by email at eaeo_director@spcollege.edu.

Search

Back to Top