For those of you who have never written a weekly column, I thought I’d share what it’s like. Before we get to that though, let me remind you how I came to writing this column more than twenty years ago.
Back around 1995 I was working freelance for any publication that would print my words. They didn’t even have to pay me, just seeing my name in a byline next to an article was compensation enough.
The arts editor for the Troy Record back then was a kind man named Doug deLisle and he noticed my work. He and the editor at the time Lisa Lewis, took me to lunch at Manory’s diner in downtown Troy to pitch me the idea of writing a weekly column. I told them no immediately, not because I wasn’t flattered, but because I didn’t think I could come up with 52 original ideas in a year.
That’s the downside of committing to a weekly column; they expect an article every single week. I’m proud to say that in the 25 years since that lunch, I have not missed a single week. That meant turning in my column on time even when my mom died, I was sick or on vacation. That adds up to about 1,300 columns since 1995.
I looked back to the year I started writing this column and saw Bill Clinton was president, OJ Simpson was found ‘not guilty’ and everyone was excited about this hot new thing called the internet. In fact, 1995 was the year the internet went private and dot com started appearing on these strange new things called ‘websites.’ Oh, and because I know you’re curious, gasoline cost $1.15 per gallon.
Getting back to the art of writing a column; the first thing to know is, in the words of the late great Nora Ephron, “Everything is copy.”
That means whatever you see, hear, experience and know; they are all fertile ground for a potential column. This practice of using those close to you for subject matter is rife with trouble, as some loved ones might not want to read about their lives in print. No matter. You need 52 unique ideas each year so all is fair in love, war and column inches. And each of those columns must be 850 words so the pressure is on. In fact, if I were tracking how many words I’ve written so far in this column we’d be right about 400, so I obviously have some work to do reaching that magic number.
The second thing to know about being a columnist is you have to have a thick skin. Odds are, no matter what you write, someone somewhere will take offense. I’ve had people send me nasty emails, call my boss at the TV station and yell at me on the street. And I’m a pretty tame writer, so I can’t imagine what life is like for the guys and gals who bang away at more controversial subjects.
Doug deLisle gave me the best piece of advice back when I started down this bumpy literary road. He said, “Don’t read the comments section of the newspaper, it will only affect your writing; be the comments good or bad.” He’s right. Too much praise goes to your head and too much nastiness makes you pull your punches. Nothing worse than a wishy-washy columnist.
The third rule to doing this job is use your time wisely. You don’t know this, but I’m writing the words you are reading right now in a rather uncomfortable seat in the lower level of the MVP Arena; formerly the TU Center, the Pepsi Arena and the Knickerbocker Arena. Did I miss any of the previous names? No? Good.
My son Jackson is graduating as I write this and I got here an hour early to secure a good seat. At this very moment the kids are marching in with their silver gowns on and the parents around me are going insane. The woman directly behind me is screaming “LANCE” over and over again as if her son was deaf until tonight and is still learning his name. It’s all good, she’s just proud, as she should be.
As I look at the faces in the crowd, I see a melting pot of diversity, which makes me smile. I’ve been re-watching the mini-series for John Adams on HBO and I’d like to think our founding fathers would be astonished at how far we’ve come as a nation. Sure there are still warts, but it’s a good country at its core.
Every year I’m convinced these high school seniors get younger. The alternative being it is I who is getting older. Have you noticed when you are young there can’t be enough mirrors in the house, yet as we age the desire to acknowledge the toll time takes diminishes greatly.
It appears the graduation program is about to begin, so this is where we part. Thank you for reading me this week and thank you to Doug and Lisa for believing in me when I did not.
![What the Biden administration is doing to the Title IX civil rights law, the purpose of which is, among other things, to ensure equality between men’s and women’s sports, reminds me of a childhood game. We kids would sit in a circle and one would whisper something to the one next to them, who would […]](https://www.troyrecord.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/33598c0ca14bbdfc9f5d01c83d20b3f4-1-2-2.jpg?w=298 "What the Biden administration is doing to the Title IX civil rights law, the purpose of which is, among other things, to ensure equality between men’s and women’s sports, reminds me of a childhood game. We kids would sit in a circle and one would whisper something to the one next to them, who would […]")
