The problem with being 22...

...is all of a sudden, I no longer qualify for most youth-led initiatives, which all seem to terminate at age 21. Does that mean youth ends at 22? Discuss.

In the meantime, for budding journalists under the age of 21, check out 'The Cut' -a free quarterly newspaper who are always on the look out for the next breed of journos.

For the older fogies, Catch 22 (absolutely no pun intended) happen to be recruiting. The deadline is 24th September, send it over asap at: http://www.catch22mag.com/academy/trainees-work/get-involved.

Good Luck!

(Un)written Rules: The Dos and Don'ts of Journalism

Eight weeks of Catch have flown by, and each week I learn something new. Most times, its the little things learned that I hang onto - and it's stuff that wasn't taught in school. I'll definitely keep  adding to this list as the course continues.

Let's get rid of that, shall we?

It's used to covey strong emotion, volume, or action. But in Journalism, I've learned it cheapens the text. And after hours slaving over my articles, I can't afford to let this happen!
Put simply, my beloved exclamation mark has been put to death.

Blog Alert: Musings of an Irate Commuter

I know we've all been there. If it's not the delayed trains, it's the clumsy passengers with non-existent spacial awareness. Sometimes it's easy to assume life in another part of the world would equal less stressful commutes...think again.


Musings of an Irate Commuter is a blog owned by a 'New Yaarker', who, like the rest of us, has many a commuting story to tell. Read them here at, http://bitchcakescommutes.blogspot.com/. Now, where's that train, dammit!!!

How I got my Journalism break...

Polly Vernon is deputy editor of The Observer Magazine. She's interviewed the likes of N Dubz and Piers Morgan, regularly informs readers what she's worn each week, and has even had a pair of jeans designed for her by high-street fashion brand, River Island. The question on everybody's lips: just how did she get her foot through the Journalism door?


"I didn't wake up and think, 'I want to be a journalist'. I started as a barmaid, then went into Fashion PR where I met other journalists. I then started writing fashion press releases, and freelanced from then on.
"I'd say I've always had an interest in writing, although journalism didn't initially cross my mind per se. I landed my first paid job at 25, but have been in the industry since I was 24. As I mentioned, I started as a freelancer, so began by pitching to magazines.


"My best advice to aspiring journalists is to become a good a writer as possible. Make sure you enjoy the writing process! Lastly, try not to be stunted by fear of ambition or anything like that - just write as much as you possibly can."


Find out more about the notable deputy editor at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/pollyvernon.

Lust-Have Placements

Catch 22 is partnered with diverse Media groups, giving students an amazing opportunity to train on four-week placements at one of these leading companies. With so much choice, it's difficult to narrow them down- nevertheless, here are my top 3 dream placements.

Conde Nast 
A consumerist company boasting 12 publications, many of which are leading titles such as Vogue, GQ and Glamour. They have headquarters some of the world's leading cities: London, Paris, New York, Tokyo, and Milan, to name a few. 2010 reports indicates star performers are: Tatler, up by 1.6%, and Vanity Fair, up by 2010 reports indicates 0.7%. My ideal publication to work for is Vanity Fair; I love that they combine high-fashion with more serious,cultural issues - creating thought-provoking pieces.



National Magazine Company (Natmags)
Established by William Hearst, and part of the Hearst division, Natmags have 20 publications reaching a (not so) modest figure of 14.8 million readers per year. My dream title? That would have to be Harper's Bazaar. Again, I have a thing for women's fashion magazines that inject broad discussion, writing about the history and evolution of fashion and incorporating other aspects of life, such as food and travel. Strangely, I would also love to intern at Esquire. OK, so it's a men's lifestyle magazine so that is slightly "out there" for me. But I would love to take up the challenge of writing for a male audience, and also enjoy the tone of the magazine. Although men enjoy fashion, I like that they take it less seriously as women. Both Esquire and Harper's Bazaar have improved over the past year: Esquire up by 10.3% and Harper's Bazaar up 8.1%. 

Bauer Consumer Media
Bauer (Europe's largest private publishing Group) houses consumer magazines and radio/TV broadcasting networks. Of all the exciting magazine publications, I'd choose Grazia, because they are leading in the women's weekly magazine market, have the best fashion picks and includes real life content that everyday women will be able to relate to. Media Guardian recently quoted Paul Keenan (chief exec of Bauer), saying: "Bauer Media's portfolio of influential brands continue to deliver compelling content that connects and engages with audiences wherever they are."


 Only time will tell which once of these dream internships I'll land- touch and agree with me! : )
 

30 seconds in the mind of...

... (Fehin)tola Betiku.

She's dubbed as the 'Catch 22 Chatterbox', though she insists she doesn't talk in her sleep. Meet bubbly Tola, the aspiring Glamour magazine journalist.

My first kiss was...
with a boy who had dreadlocks, I thought he was such hot stuff...in fact, he still is.

I'd never say never about...
saying never.

My favourite childhood memory...
was when my younger sister Fola was watching The Mask with the family, and attempted to copy Jim Carey by doing a back flip.

3 songs on repeat on my iPod..
Aggro Santos- Saint or Sinner, Tinchy Stryder- In My System and Dirty Money- Love Come Down.


If I were invisible for a day, I would...
spy on all my friends, and see what (if anything) they'd say about me.


Extra stuff..
Tola's fave tuneage: Gym Class Heroes- Papercuts
Website: www.concreteloop.com
YouTube Selecta:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiiU-Fky18s

Until next time...that's all folks!

Caught in a Catch 22

Judging by the choice of blog title you should be able to guess two things about me:

1. I'm a(n) aspiring  journalist
2. My name is Alison 

...and just because you've been so nice and read till this point, I'll also let you in on another fact: I'm currently a student at Catch 22 Academy; in a nutshell: journalism training for young adults who want to be journalists, but haven't got enough experience to do so...that's right, it's a catch 22! The best part: my idea, will be birthed into a whole article, featured in the homegrown Catch 22 magazine.

An average day's emotions at C22:

Morning Feature Meetings - Lights up! (sometimes it takes just one idea to spark the whole creativity process)

Throughout the day:

See Armstrong there? That's how I feel each day: 
s t r e t c h e d. 
This course is not for the faint hearted! 

And the smile on the chubby kid's face? That reflects my tutors: Kate, Simmy, Matilda,Toks and Mike..who are probably enjoying every moment of the gruelling (yet necessary) process. (Muahahaha and all that.)

4pm deadline: 

Pretty self-explanatory.

Yep, I'm caught in a Catch 22, and loving every single moment of it. The stretching, pulling, lightbulb moments and dim ones alike, this vid best describes my Catch 22 experience: 

like Dizzee says, you gotta have a dream, man! Join me in pursuit of mine.