Turning Inward

In a couple of weeks, I'm doing an individual journalism retreat. That is, I'm taking the opportunity of a coming trip to rural Missouri to steal time outside the firestorm of media consumption and production to reflect on what I want and expect from my own work.

It is not news that we are in a moment of profound transformation -- not just in the journalism industry, but in how we as a culture understand information, how we see (or don't see) truth, how we tell stories, empathize, make choices, and believe.

It is powerful. It is a swift current, and I am thrilled to be alive to see what happens, to say nothing of the participating in it. But for all the uncertainty in journalism (often underscored by panic and sometimes irresponsible media-making), I feel drawn to reflecting on what I want to be certain about my own journalism.

The thing is, I've felt myself moving with the current too easily at times, perhaps bending myself more to the interests of certain publications than to the kind of work I want to create. I've written some things because I had the opportunity to do so, rather than because it was what I wanted to write. I feel wary of being pinned as a certain "kind" of journalist, a reputation shaped more by circumstance than choice.

In this journalism retreat, I want to pause the rush, to still the current, and consider my standards for both the integrity and art of journalism. It may sound bold, but I want to articulate both a foundation and vision that will define what I want to create. I am in the business of narrative, after all; the medium of voice and truth-telling. I believe in its power and worth. And I want to do well by it.

In this retreat, I intend to be writing (by hand) and reading and thinking and questioning.

• What do I fear most about the current evolution of media, and what does it say about what I fundamentally value in journalism? 
• What excites me most about the current evolution of media, and what does it say about what I fundamentally value in journalism?
  
• How do my fiction and nonfiction sensibilities feed one another? 
• How do my convictions about the significance of reporting fit next to my belief that some kinds of fact can only be contained by fiction?
  
• Whose work do I admire, even envy, and why? 
• What writers have I admired, and then felt disappointed in? What does that tell me about my core beliefs in journalism?
• Whose work, or what publications, rub me the wrong way?
  
• What have I published that I regret?
  
• What have I re-read that has made me cringe, and what has made me flush with pride?
  
• How do I feel about each part of the process of traditional journalism - such as multiple-sourcing, beat reporting, fact-checking, copyediting, word counts, editing, headlines and subheads, wire services, FOIA requests, the inverted pyramid, the "invisible" reporter, and the notion of objectivity?
  
• How do I feel about the features of newer journalism - such as social networking, an emphasis on opinions and voice, interactivity, online comments, content sharing agreements, aggregating, linking, the prominent persona and voice of the writer, citizen journalism, blogging, and multimedia features?
  
• What writing has reason to last? Does that matter? Why?
• How does multimedia work fit within the kind of journalism I want to do -- including this website, video, and audio? Even Twitter, and other online realms of connection? How about letters to the editor and commenting on other people's journalism?
• If I could have any kind of journalism training, what kind would I want? What skills do I value, but lack?
• What skills do I offer? Are these skills resonant with the kind of journalism I want to do? Am I using them well? How might I apply these skills in ways that are different than my current habits?
• Who have been my best teachers -- literally and indirectly? What have they taught me?
• What media do I like to read, or listen to, or watch?
  
• How do my identities as both a producer and consumer of journalism reconcile?
  
• How do I measure the value of a particular piece of journalism, my own and others'?
  
• Both in terms of content and process, where have I felt joy?
  

I'd love your suggestions for books, articles or simply your heartfelt ideas as I move into this space -- anything you think might provoke my thinking of what kind of journalist I am, and what I want to be. It might be something that explicitly addresses the sort of questions I'm considering, or it might be more indirect: an example of astounding investigative journalism, for example, or a work of philosophy. Or questions.

I'm listening.

Comments

[Nina]

Anna, This sounds so wonderful! I too am craving an inner retreat to meditate on what kind of writing I want to do, what goals and priorities I want to set. I feel so woefully unprepared, but I am hoping to get at least one day to myself soon, away from work, husband and kids, to do this!

I am in such a different phase than you, still learning, playing and exploring ideas, so I am not sure anything I have to share would be helpful to you.

I love your questions, they are so incisive. I think the key is the last question- where have you felt joy? What are you proud of and excited by? What felt too much like "work" or left you chagrined? I think if you pay close attention, this awareness will illuminate the path for you.

I wish you the best and hope we get to find out how you answer some of your questions!

[Rebecca]

My best suggestion - take a few minutes not to think about any of these questions and just breathe. The "answers" will come to you when you least expect them. I commend you for doing this. It sounds incredible. I cannot wait to hear what happens.

[Caitlin Constantine]

I have to say, I find it interesting that you are in this place of re-assessment with regards to your journalism, particularly as you find yourself wondering about the kind of journalism you do. I say this because I have been a fan of your journalism since before I even found you on Twitter, because the things you report on are important to me as a feminist, a writer and an athlete. Obviously reflecting on one's self and one's goals, and re-assessing if necessary, is a critical, valuable part of being human, but please don't lose sight of the fact that the work you've produced up til this point has had a positive impact on many people (like myself).

[Anna Clark]

Thank you so much, all, for your heartening and thoughtful comments. It means a lot to me, and definitely adds fodder for my musing ...