I got some feedback on my sample column this evening. They liked it, but they want me to be funnier. This disappointed me because I felt like the piece was quirky. Okay, it wasn't laugh-out-loud funny, but it was more casual and jokey than I ever allow myself to be as a "professional" writer. They seemed interested to work with me so I am going to try again and see what happens. I hope it works out as I was looking forward to this.

I was watching this excellent PBS program on journalism, media and blogging. God, was it good. It was basically about the shift from news on TV and in papers to the internet, and where we are going. It raised questions like, Are bloggers really "citizen journalists" or just commentators? Things like that. Good stuff.

I have been trying to figure out what to do with my life lately, and journalism has been one thought. I recently applied for a summer fellowship at Northwestern's journalism school. It's for "alternative journalism" and that was enough to draw me, even though I love creative writing. (I will find out what their verdict is in the next three weeks.) So I have been wondering, since a career as an award-winning novelist and/or creative nonfiction writer is a bit lofty an ideal to have, should I go to school for journalism and work on that as a career, with creative writing on the side? I thought it might be too cut-and-dried for me, but the PBS program made me wonder where journalism is going, really, and if I could be a part of wherever it winds up. Blogs sure do blur the lines.