Ann Friedman lists old favorites like Dropbox but also some new apps and gadgets in this Columbia Journalism Review post from reader suggestions. "For recording in-person interviews, I am in love with my new Echo Smartpen, a James Bond-ish invention that allows me to take notes on actual paper and then syncs those notes with my audio," Friedman writers. "My white whale? I have yet to find an app I love for recording iPhone calls. Drop me a line if you’ve got one."
Science writing news
In order to help freelancers navigate the labyrinth of contracts and legalese — and increase their chance of negotiating reasonable and fair terms — the Freelance Committee is undertaking the task of building a reference contracts database. To help out, please submit your relevant writing contracts or clauses from the last three years.
So says Carol Costello on The Book Designer, where she summons dark memories enroute to a series of tips for authors hawking books: "Thousands of wonderful books go by the wayside because book promotion is haunted by the Ghost of Selling Past. These nightmare scenarios involve Girl Scout cookies, school raffle tickets, magazine subscriptions — and even chocolate bars," Costello writes. Authors "equate promoting the book they love with these selling horror stories."
On the Open Notebook site (funded in part by the NASW Idea Grant program), four science writers discuss how they make sure their work is free from errors, or as free as possible. The strategies include attaching a source note to each fact as the story is written; using blue and red color-coded text to show whether a sentence has been verified or not; and trusting your gut — "If something a source is telling you doesn’t ring true, ask another."
Hormone therapy in rehab. Again. New hormone therapy data confirm that timing matters. The Nobel Prizes. Chemistry is biology, and biology is physics. Reprogramming stem cells: betcha didn't know it dates to 1962. G protein-coupled receptors: "bio with huge pharma implications." Physics: uhhhh ... But why not the Higgs boson?
It's standard procedure for academics; before starting a research project, check to see what's already out there. In this Nieman Lab article, John Wihbey, managing editor of the Journalist’s Resource portal, that doing so "will make for better questions, more rigorous scrutiny of assumptions, higher-level journalism. Scholars perform a literature review as they approach questions; most topics have been studied for decades. Why neglect all of that accumulated knowledge?"
On the Huffington Post, David Hochman offers his advice for a successful freelance career, based on two decades in the business. Among his tips: Keep a notebook to jot down ideas, then use them in making pitches: "Edison held a world record 1,093 patents for inventions like the incandescent lightbulb, the phonograph and the Shake Weight for Men. Why him and not you? Probably because you don't write down every random idea you get and trust that it's worth pursuing."
Is this your first ScienceWriters meeting? Do you have experiences to share from previous meetings? NASW Member Michael Newman is once again organizing a chance for first-time meeting attendees to get together and have their questions answered by veterans. Read on to learn more about how you can get your questions answered and meet new colleagues in an informal setting.
If there is one book essential to understanding John McPhee's mastery of structure, it's his triptych about environmental icon David Brower, Adam Hochschild writes on Nieman Storyboard. Hochschild marvels at how McPhee arranged Brower's three encounters, but adds a surprise: "After being awed by the engineering of Encounters with the Archdruid, I found it a revelation to learn that in McPhee’s mind the idea for the book’s structure preceded his choice of its subject."