My head high, my mind open

Generating story ideas for my school newspaper was one of the most terrifying tasks for me. We had a news meeting every Wednesday to discuss story ideas for next week's issue, and I struggled to find something unique and interesting to pitch to my editors. I was hesitant to go into the newsroom because I was worried that one of my editors would ask: "So, have any story ideas for Thursday?"

But I learned Saturday that I should be as observant of my surroundings as possible. I should draw from my own experiences as a way to find story ideas. I also learned that my editor will not expect me to have great story ideas right away. But this won't stop me from learning as much as I can about my new community. It won't stop me from learning how to generate and develop story ideas. I also know that my writing coach, Mary Ann Hogan, will help me when I'm in trouble. Now, more than ever, I feel confident that I can enter my newsroom with my head high and my mind open to what is happening in my new community of Asheville.

-- Jeffrey Javier, University of Arizona, The Asheville (N.C.) Citizen-Times