Q: I left journalism 15 years ago for public affairs. Now I’d like to get back in as a feature writer. What’s the best game plan?
M.B., Seattle
A: Yikes! There’s little to go on here. I’m going to assume you want back in as a writer. Editors will have three questions: How good is your writing and reporting? Can you meet daily deadlines? Why did you leave?
You can prove yourself on the first question by doing some writing — but it has to be journalistic. Writing clips from non-journalistic publications lack credibility, because the reporting and editing standards are different. So, string or freelance. You won’t catch anything with 15-year-old bait.
On the second question, you’ll have to do some talking. How do the pressures of your present job compare with the job you seek at a daily newspaper? How often do you turn things around in a day? Do you have to juggle several at once, deciding whether to keep writing or to take that call that a source is returning? The more similar your present experience is to reporting, the better off you’ll be.
The third question — about why you left — will hang on how good your answer is. Try to turn the question in the direction of what you’ve learned and why you want to come back. Spend more time talking about why you want to return than why you left.
