Welcome to Being a Young Reporter in the highly competitive news industry. It's daunting, arduous and rewarding all at the same time and I would probably describe it as a constant tug-of-war between talent and inexperience. Your inherent sense of what's newsworthy coupled with your inexperience developing an idea into a story generally, from what I have experienced, produces zero results or one hell of a story.

Unfortunately, no one is going to hold your hand through this dilemma and while your editors and colleagues may offer reporting tips and suggestions, it is really up to you to develop the necessary skills and train yourself to overcome this challenge in a "timely fashion" with each news story you pursue.

I go through this dilemma on a daily basis, but learn invaluable skills each day. That's why I thought it would be interesting to create a blog sharing challenges I've encountered, accomplishments I've achieved and reporting skills I've picked up since starting my journalism career five years ago as an unpaid intern at the Washington Diplomat Newspaper to my current position as an investigative reporter for Natural Resources News Service.

I plan on sharing reporting shortcuts, tips and techniques I've learned through trial and error and from editors and colleagues; mistakes I've made; embarrasing situations I've encountered, career frustrations and advice; stories I've accomplished and failed at; possible story ideas and information I find interesting among other things.

Some of the topics I plan on discussing are tips, tricks and advice for finding victims, experts and characters for news stories, ideas on staying organized when working on multiple stories and when you should stick up for yourself since being a young reporter often leads to exploitation by editors and colleagues.

I'm also hoping to use this blog as a vehicle for other young reporters to share their experiences and advice by either posting comments or through emails that I will post if they are relevant and interesting.

My goal is to get as many different perspectives as possible and I truly hope this blog will provide insight into the lives of young reporters and young news professionals who are struggling with developing their talents, surviving the news industry and looking for some sort of direction outside their own news outlet. Hope you enjoy.