Ever thought of becoming a columnist? If you're the type who has a lot to say, make a little extra money, and be prepared not to grizzle your way from one column to the next, then it might be just the thing for you.
So what are the essential ingredients that make a captivating newspaper column - week after week? Sigh, I wish I knew. But here's how I go about it, and come up with passible results. After trolling the headlines a few days before the deadline, there's enough to write a story or two. Just between you and me, there are times when my mind is totally blank, and I've accrued absolutely nothing, causing me to pound the pavement in search for something to add to my blank palette.
Columnists have to develop a knack of making their words of perceived wisdom interesting, entertaining with a little humour and be constantly ready to duck below the line of fire from readers. Spelling, punctuation and grammar has to be spot on - but that's not always that easy to do. I may never get to remember when to use whose or who's and I have to double-check. Four letter words are avoided in my column - and anyway, for such words or phrases to get past the editor's desk would be highly unlikely. When writing about controversial matters, one must get the facts right.
Failing to do so, risks the validity of one's argument and the topic going up in flames. Every columnist has their own style, and it would be safe to say that the Rotorua Daily Post is well covered in this respect.
There's a strong code of ethics that one should not get stuck into a fellow columnist and (as I was quick to learn) not to slag off about the newspaper in which your column appears. And no matter how livid a writer may be with regard to someone's opinion, a personal attack (which can backfire), should never be launched. Commenting on someone's idiotic actions does not necessarily mean they are an idiot. I have pledged never to fall into that trap - well up to now anyway.
