One thing I learned this week was the power of intention when writing. How am I going to depict this moment? Why am I telling this story? The choices a writer makes shapes the reality of the story. Choices become responsibility when you are a reporter telling another person’s story. Coming from screenwriting fiction, reportive storytelling was a difficult but formative challenge. Instead of inspiring a world from my mind, I was responsible for reporting a stranger’s lived experience. From the moments I chose to capture to the descriptors I chose to write, intention directs the story. Reporting with NextGenRadio has clarified the responsibility of intention in writing, no matter the genre.
Stepping back to see the intention of the project as a whole, I wish I had written my interview questions with a different direction. I wish my questions revealed more of Barnard’s individual moment of truth, instead of focusing as much on the coalition’s origin.
Working with inspiring professionals with NextGenRadio is an experience I am forever thankful for. From this experience, I will pay closer mind to the intention driving my writing, while also opening my mind to the importance of others’ life experiences.