What I’m working on:
In general, I’m working on trying to figure out freelancing while looking for a staff job, and learning a bit about how I work best in the process. It’s been a tumultuous past couple years for me, after Grid (a start-up I joined in 2022) got bought by The Messenger in spring 2023, which (predictably) imploded in January 2024, leaving me and hundreds of other journalists without a job. I’ve been freelancing since then, hoping it would be more of a stopgap than my new normal, but it’s a tough market right now. Still, I’ve enjoyed writing for outlets I’ve worked at in the past, like NPR and Science News, while also working with new publications, like The Atlantic.
Freelancing requires an extra level of hustle compared to the staff jobs I’ve worked, and it’s been a challenge to find the right balance between quicker-turn stories that bring in steadier money and developing more-ambitious stories which may not always pan out. I’m trying to have a mix on my plate at all times.
The freedom of being able to write anything I can successfully pitch is exciting, but it can also be overwhelming. I’ve learned that, for me, the constraints of having a beat at a publication with a specific audience or voice provides firmer footing to be creative and think up story ideas. Now that I can, in theory, write about anything for any outlet, I don’t always know where to start! I’m getting better at working through this, in part by imagining myself as a beat writer at different publications, but the experience has shown me that I’m a bit more suited to a staff job than full-time freelancing.
In terms of day-to-day work, I’m just getting started with reporting on my first story for Quanta in several years and am loving it. Nowadays, most of my work involves a mix of science, health, and policy, so it’s been fun to go back to my biologist roots and just think about—and have the space to delve deeply into—a fascinating question about the evolution of life.
Where I work:
I live in Washington, DC, and work from the condo I share with my wife and our cat Tesla (named after the scientist, not the car!). My wife and I switch off between a small office and the kitchen table, but both look out into our little backyard, which is shaded by a beautiful pair of maple and elm trees. The elm tree is my favorite, and I often space out watching squirrels leap from branch to branch.
Daily routine:
Most days I wake up around 6:00 to go for a run, usually in Rock Creek Park (probably my favorite part of living in DC). As I’m making coffee or breakfast (I’m inordinately fond of Grape Nuts) I listen to Minnesota Public Radio, a habit I’ve kept since leaving my home state for grad school over a decade ago. I’ll scan X and news sites like WaPo, STAT, etc. to get a sense for what’s going on, or to flag stories for later reading, before starting work between 8:00 and 9:00.
The actual workday will be a mix of interviews, writing, and/or researching/pitching new story ideas, depending on what I’ve got cooking. I like to move around while I’m working, so I often pace while doing interviews, or do some mindless chore while thinking through a particular problem.
I usually work till around 6:00, when I try to get outside for a walk to decompress, as a sort of artificial commute. If we’re not grabbing dinner with friends, we’ll cook a meal and hang out for the evening, reading something not on a screen or (more often these days) watching some TV. Early-morning or late-evening interviews with folks in different time zones often alter this routine.
Most productive part of my day:
I’m a morning person. If I’m really pressed for time, or need to buckle down and focus, I’ll wake up before 6:00 to write for several hours. Something about these early morning hours just puts my mind right, but I can’t do it every day. I often have another spurt of productivity in the afternoon, but my writing brain tends to shut off after 7:00 or 8:00 p.m.
Most essential ritual or habit:
Running. Starting the day running with friends, or just alone with my thoughts, helps me get in the right frame of mind. If I don’t run, I get antsy (and a little crabby at times too).
Favorite note-taking techniques/tools:
I’m trying to take more notes by hand these days, after working on a story about the creative benefits of handwriting. I find this easier during the early stages of a story, when I’m trying to just collect and organize my thoughts. Once I’m ready to actually outline or write, I switch to Google Docs. I have a reporter’s flip notebook for field reporting.
How I keep track of my to-do list:
I keep track of interviews and deadlines in my calendar and use a spreadsheet to track invoices and such. Beyond that, it’s mostly just in my head. I’ve always had the aspiration of developing a more organized system, but I tend to default to working on actual stories rather than working on working more efficiently.
Essential software/apps/productivity tools:
I use TapeACall to record phone interviews, and upload the files to otter.ai to help transcribe them. I like to focus on listening during an interview, and occasionally jot down notes or ideas for a follow-up question instead of transcribing in real time. Otter.ai does a pretty good job transcribing the interview, but I still listen to key parts again, both to check the transcription and to process the information. I collect good/important quotes in a Google Doc that, for bigger stories, also serves as a more fleshed-out outline.
If I’m really stuck on a story, sometimes I’ll take a walk while listening to a key interview. Something about mixing up the context, and just moving, helps me think about the story in a new way.
Favorite time waster/procrastination habit:
In the run-up to the election, I’m spending too much time reading about politics. Also vacuuming, though that’s not election-related—just me becoming my father.
My reading habits:
While I’m working, I’ll flag and bookmark studies, or stories that look interesting from fellow science and health journalists, and read them in between interviews or when I tire of writing, often mid-afternoon. When I worked in an office, I’d print important studies, marking them up and adding notes in the margin—a habit I picked up in college after learning it helps me work through what I’m reading. I keep thinking we should buy a printer, but then I talk myself out of it.
Outside of work, I wish I read more than I do at the moment. I actually seem to read best on planes. I wish I could replicate that level of focus on my couch, because I don’t fly too often. When I’m in a good stretch at home I’ll read for an hour or so after dinner, alternating between fiction and nonfiction, or a physical New Yorker (I seek out the restaurant reviews despite living in DC—they’re great examples of short and vivid writing). I’m currently loving Ferris Jabr’s wonderfully provocative new book, Becoming Earth.
Sleep schedule:
I try to go to bed by 10:00–10:30.