It has been a couple of years since I graduated in Journalism and I was just thinking about those magazines that I wrote for a long the way and how my writing style had changed. Looking back at my Journalism Portfolio I remembered Kettle Magazine and I would like to give them an extra special thank you.
I can’t remember how I got started with them, I remember being a writer in 2014 and I was expressing an interesting in writing about the arts. Then in 2015 the editor gave me a new role of theatre correspondent as I felt I was not ready to be an editor. So with that I continued to write about theatre, gaining confidence and skills- later on I decided to apply for the Culture Editor role. And I was in that role write up until I decided to leave of the summer in 2016.
What it was like writing for Kettle Magazine?
First of all I just wanted to say that I have made a lot of friends from Kettle Magazine and whilst most of them are all Facebook friends, I talk to them on a regular bases and they are all really great people.
Most of the communication done with Kettle was all on the Facebook group and it was a fantastic network of writers, everyone talked to each other and they all supported me when I was writing/editing a piece or I wanted to create a new feature for the magazine- no matter what your idea was, they always had my back and made my idea/writing the best it could be.
How it helped me in journalism?
Although I still don’t have a job in journalism yet, Kettle Mag have still been responsible for where I have gotten to in my career.
They have given me the confidence in pitching ideas, like I said before it didn’t matter how silly my idea was- the team were there to help build and develop it. So now if I have an idea for a magazine, I know how/what to say to make it attractive to the editorial team. And it was because of that, that my communication skills have improved. When I was apart of Kettle, I was always in conversation with someone from the team- whether that was via email, Skype or Facebook I was always chatting to someone.
When I was the Culture Editor I was in charge of creating a lot of new features and having to interview people for those features. So I’d definitely say that my skills in feature writing and interview techniques has improved because of that.
Now Kettle Magazine is an online publication for students , so I had to learn how to adapt my writing and learn how to write for online and for my age/student (at the time) reader.
Afterwards
I decided to leave the magazine in July 2016 to focus on my own career and I wanted to focus on my blog and online platforms. And although I did not get a job straight after leaving, I know former Kettle writers have gained roles in the media and do cite Kettle Magazine for helping them get a job. And one day I’d like to say the same.
I recommend Kettle
If you are a budding writer/journo student then I would give Kettle a whirl. It will not only look good on your CV, but it will help develop your writing, expand your portfolio and you will make some lovely friends along the way.
For information about Kettle Magazine click here
To read any of my articles for Kettle Magazine click here
Gemma's Journey 