I went to see Norie Quintos, an executive editor at National Geographic Traveller, speak to a large group of Newhouse students. Quintos elaborated on the construction of a good story. She mentioned how even though she’s been writing professionally for quite some time, she cringes as the sight of her earliest professional work. She mentioned how she has evolved as a writer and she has come to realize the best way for her to paint a picture with her words is to nearly eliminate the use of adjectives in her writing. Furthermore with her point, she said that she has made an effort to eliminate the use of exclamation points at anytime believing that she could better express her excitement with words rather than a simple mark.
Quintos certainly made an effort to distinguish the difference between National Geographic magazine and National Geographic Traveller. While the two magazines fall under the umbrella of the same company, the voices and themes prevalent in both periodicals differ. Traveller is a magazine that will offer the perspective of someone who is curious about travelling, someone who is well travelled, and a focus on travel that isn’t necessarily luxurious. Quintos circled back around to her previous point of distinguishing the difference in National Geographic and National Geographic Traveller. She mentioned that a focal point in the production of Traveller is to stay true to its roots. Those roots being: Presentation of stunning photography, superb quality of writing and an impressive array of stories.
Towards the conclusion of her appearance, a question from the audience was fielded regarding the concept of pitching a story. Quintos went on to explain in great detail the process of pitching and the best way to go about it. She was adamant initially about “limiting yourself.” Her first point was that you must limit yourself to three paragraphs to get your pitch and message across. Should it take longer to convey your message, the idea probably is too complicated and unrealistic. She recommended the use of short, quick points to get your message across clearly and effectively. Long, elaborated points detract from the central core of the idea being pitched and usually results in a rejection. Finally, she concluded by stressing the importance of making sure you share your connection with the story you would like to work on for Traveller. Ideally, one would have a deep, intimate connection with the project they would like to embark on and essentially that makes the pitch that much more effective and easy to write about.
I thoroughly enjoyed listening to Ms. Quintos and the valuable points she had to make to a crowd of aspiring journalism/communication students. She was willing and able to put herself in our shoes and give us applicable advice compared to what she might say to an experienced photographer looking to advance their career.