Long before search bars and smart phones, in the days before my friends started calling me “google,” I was the human search engine for our independent student newspaper.
In the pre-Internet world of the mid-1980s, we did a lot of things the hard way. As the librarian of our college newspaper, I was determined, then as now, to get the information to those who needed it and to encourage each writer who walked into my news library.
Our newspaper was The Independent Florida Alligator, serving the University of Florida students and faculty. What made this newspaper different is that it was independently run off campus. We had ups and downs with funding. But it was the first time a seed was planted in my mind that I could work independently. The seed that grew into my eventual freelance writing and editing career was planted in that news library.
The News Librarian
At the start of my junior year of college, I needed a job. My roommate, a journalism major, was able to open a door for me at the college newspaper. She knew I enjoyed research and writing. When they announced a steady part-time job for a news librarian, she told them I would be great. I was hired right before the semester began.
In the years before Google, being a college news librarian involved scissors, a stapler, and manila folders. Lots and lots of folders. My job was to make sure the reporters had the background info they needed for their stories.
Four days a week, in between classes, I would sit in the newspaper library, poring through old issues and cutting out good background articles to put in our research file cabinets. I had to cut out the same story multiple times to put into different files. That meant brainstorming where a reporter might look for info and making sure a clipping of that story was in each of those files, creating new categories as needed.
Reporters would step into the library and either search in the file cabinet or tell me what they needed. I’d find the files or articles that would best serve their research.
I was also given the chance to write a few op-ed pieces about my field of study: international relations. That was exciting for me as a writer. I had just purchased my own electric typewriter—no computers back then. This model had correction tape, so I could back up and erase a word or two if need be. Of course, I couldn’t move copy around like we can on computers today. If I needed to move copy, I had to retype the page.
How the News Librarian Job Shaped My Work Today
Looking back on my college news librarian job, I can see how it shaped the work I do today as a freelance writer, editor, and coach:
- I became comfortable with research and evaluating sources.
- I got to experience first hand the flow of operations in a newsroom, from ideas and research to writing, editing, rewriting, proofreading, layout, and publishing.
- I was exposed to entrepreneurship and freelance possibilities.
I also learned how to think like an editor by watching our editors as they interacted with the reporters, the community, our readers, and the news stories of the day.
I was in the newsroom when the first reports of the Iran-Contra scandal broke, and it was interesting to see how our editors processed the information and responded.
What I Learned about Myself
Through my college news librarian work, I learned more about myself:
- I enjoy helping others bring their stories to life.
- I love gathering and evaluating information and helping promote clear communication.
- I care about readers and community.
- I am drawn to the creative as well as support and encouragement sides of writing and communication.
- I didn’t need someone to assign me a path. I was able to create one.
Encouragement for Young Job Seekers
When you’re first starting out, your jobs might not be glamorous. But they may be the most meaningful for you in the long run. Skills and experience can take root in surprising environments.
Take a moment to reflect on your current or previous job. Notice what makes you curious and brings a sense of well-being. What skills are you growing that might be meaningful further along in your working life?
The way you approach each job gives you insight into who you are and who you’re becoming. Make the most of each opportunity and watch how you will grow.
Get to know people, have fun, be encouraging, and create memories along the way. Don’t be surprised if, one day, you look back on that job and say, “Ah. That’s where that all began.”
Janet Eriksson 