Why is the journalistic word for a due date deadline? It sounds very fatalistic, and most likely has prompted a wannabe journalist to find another line of work.

I was a so-so journalist. My heart was in feature, not newswriting, and I never did find a job that allowed me to focus exclusively on the former. My jobs centered around doing both, and my shortcomings as a newswriter overshadowed my strengths as a feature writer. I decided after repeatedly beating my literary head against the wall, to change tracks and go on for an MFA in creative nonfiction writing. A good choice, but jobs in this field are not as well defined as they are in the more narrowly defined world of journalism.

You can, with the degree that I have, be an essayist, memoirist, outdoor writer, indoor writer, and write for a wide variety of publications including magazines and literary journals. Journalists are lucky in that they have, in this respect, fewer options.

The one take away (I hate this cliched term) that I acquired in working on both my B.A. and my Ph.D. was the importance of adhering to deadlines. I am not a great writer, but I am adept at figuring out my writerly priorities and honoring them. To my knowledge, I have not missed a deadline. Actually, I may have in writing the essay for Wheels on Ice, but then I was not given a specific deadline. I should have inquired – this was a form of procrastination.

And so, yesterday morning, a local newspaper editor sent me questions that he wanted answered for an upcoming article in his newspaper. I stayed up late last night, first answering these questions, then turning them into the article.

This morning the fun began. I checked for phone messages after tending to the horses and was told that the article questions needed to be answered ASAP. So I got back on the computer and I finished the article and sent it to him.

I then went swimming. What I like about swimming is that my cell phone is not handy from the time I enter the pool area until when I leave. This was as it should be until I got back in the car and took a look at my phone messages. Editor said that he had edited what I’d sent him and he sent it back. Needed me to look at the revised article.

I got back to the hotel, and for the next 45 minutes was busy getting ready for the trick or street event. Right before leaving for physical therapy, Pete and I both looked at the article. There was just one thing amiss, and this was that it appeared that we are partners with the local recycling center. Pete changed this. What I like about physical therapy is that my cell phone is not handy from the time I enter the facility to the time I leave. This was as it should be until I got back in the car and took a look at my phone messages. Editor wanted photos.

I got him a photo of the event, of hundreds of kids and their parents picking out books. I had to stop what I was doing in order to do this. Well, it was difficult, more difficult than it would have been if writing was my full-time job. But I met my deadline, and under extremely difficult conditions. My training, it again served me in good stead.
Next: 291. 10/26/24: Write about Dogs