Briefly describe your job.

I write articles for newspapers and magazines and for the tabloids, the National Enquirer and the Globe. I also write for a website called bankrate.com.

I recently completed a book which will be published in 2006. I have also worked as an editor.

How long have you been working in this field?

I have been working in the field since 1974

When and how did you decide to choose this career?

I decided to pursue a career in journalism in 1971.  I always enjoyed writing and gathering information. What’s more, I have always been a current events “junkie.”

What education and training did you receive before entering your field?

I have a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s degree in journalism.

How did you begin OR what was your first job in the field?

My first job after I graduated from college was teaching sixth grade in Brooklyn, New York. While I liked teaching and enjoyed working with the kids, I did not like the idea of going to the same building and the same classroom day after day after day. One day a reporter from the New York Post came to our school to interview some of the teachers about something that had happened in the neighborhood. He told me about his workday and it seemed really interesting and exciting. As a result, I began to think about a career in journalism.

Describe a typical day on the job?

There is no typical day. During the day I’ll be on the telephone gathering information. Or I’ll visit someone to do an interview. Or I’ll travel somewhere to cover a story. Then I will either go back to the office, a hotel room, or home and write the story.

What do you like most about what you do?

What I like most is meeting and talking with interesting people.

What has been the most rewarding experience so far in your career?

It is very rewarding to hear from readers that something I’ve written has helped them. For example, I wrote about a new medical procedure, one-day hip replacement surgery, and received a flood of letters and emails from people who needed a hip replacement but put it off until they read the article.

What do you like least about your job?

Sometimes I am asked to interview people in the aftermath of a tragedy. For example, when I was a young reporter with the Record in Bergen County, New Jersey, a report came in that a teenager had been killed in an automobile accident. I was assigned to go to the teen’s house to interviews his family.

What is the biggest challenge for you in this job?

The biggest challenge is meeting deadlines.

What aspects of your job test your skills and knowledge the most?

A journalist gathers information and then organizes it into an article or broadcast report. Keeping it interesting is the aspect that challenges me the most.

What would you like to say to someone considering this career?

Journalism is a very competitive field and there seem to be fewer and fewer opportunities every year. But if you can find a niche, and if you can keep plugging away at it despite rejections it can be very rewarding.

What are the most important personal and professional skills necessary to succeed in your field?

First and foremost you have to enjoy writing and researching. You also have to be detail oriented and it also helps to be outgoing.

What would a person interested in entering this field have to do to get a good job in it?

Get a good education and get published. Editors want to see what you’ve done. I strongly recommend working on the high school and college newspapers. If your interest is in broadcast journalism, work on the schools’ radio stations or closed circuit TV station.

What could someone who is interested in this field do to learn more about it right now?

It’s never too soon to begin thinking about a career. Learn all you can about journalism. Call the newspapers, TV and radio stations in your area and inquire if you can intern for them. Offer your services as a correspondent from your school. If you love sports, offer to supply them with your school’s sports scores as well as articles about the teams. If you are into movies and plays, offer to write reviews from a teen’s perspective. And don’t be disappointed if your offers are declined. Far more ideas are declined than are accepted. With every decline ask, “Is there something else I can do for you?”

Is there any general advice you would like to offer to students on making a career choice or on work life itself?

The advice I would give is find what you love to do