Before I started this job, I was told by the editor not to expect a 40-hour work week. The company can pay overtime to hourly employees but doesn't; those of us in the newsroom are expected to "make up" the hours by leaving early on other days. That has been impossible for me.

In the past few weeks, I have been averaging a 57-hour work week. On my second week, I hit 65 hours. I think part of the reason this is happening is that I'm still learning about my beat and trying to find stories but I'm staying for hours even on days when I have tons to write about. I have had no opportunity to make up the hours by leaving early without shirking my responsibilities. The quality of my writing also is dipping when I hit the twelfth hour and I can't seem to decompress when I go home because I know I have to return in nine hours. I expected to work nine or 10 hour days at most.

Is the newspaper standard to work endless hours and forget overtime exists? Am I just whining? I am not sure that my editor knows just how many hours I've been working (although I think it would be obvious when I told him I came in at 10 a.m. and he saw me work straight through to 1 a.m...)

Overworked in the Northeast

A: Although there are a lot of people working their fingers to the bone in a lot of newsrooms, this is not right. Conscientious reporters put in lots of unpaid time, but you're way over the top.

I wouldn't call this whining, but let's do something about it.

Editors often don't know just how many hours their reporters work, so start informing yours. Leave a note, shoot an e-mail or stop by the desk and say, "I had to work 12 hours Monday to get those stories, so how about I take an early slide on Friday to make up for it?"

You should even be able to take shorter shifts in the beginning of the week in anticipation of big days later. But let's start getting the hours back in the week you work them. A place that is not paying overtime is unlikely to make things work out later.

But try this: If you do not have much vacation this year because you're so new, negotiate a plan with your editors to turn some of these extra hours into some solid, paid time off later in the year.

One more strategies: If the paper hasn't already killed off all of its veterans, ask them how they survive. It could be they have some strategies.

You have to diplomatically get your hours under control or you're going to burn out. Don't let that happen.