“Some
books that I've read on the Kindle, I've been like, 'I want that on my shelf.'
Because it says, 'I'm the kind of person who has read this.' The kind of book
that says, 'I'm serious and intellectual and historical and race-conscious.' “
—Jennifer Lee
Born on the Ides of March in 1976, Lee holds the distinction of having
the numeral 8 for her middle name. After
not being given a middle name at birth, she assigned this one to herself as an
adult “because in the Chinese culture, that number signifies prosperity and
good luck.”
Author of the best-selling book The Fortune Cookie Chronicles about "how Chinese food is more all-American than
apple pie,” she is a part-time journalist and full-time writer. She also serves on a variety of boards
including at the Center for Public Integrity, the
Asian American Writers' Workshop, and the advisory panel for the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation’s "News
Challenge.” And she is co-founder and president of the literary studio
Plympton.
Lee started writing as a journalist on The Harvard
Crimson, then did a series of internships at some of the country’s best
newspapers before settling in as a writer and editor for The New York Times. There, she occupied the “front and
last lines” of the newspaper world, serving as both a copy editor and a
headline writer.
Lee said she has the highest respect
for copy editors and headline writers, hates “bland” headlines, and absolutely
despises headlines that contain factual errors.
As a onetime headline writer myself, I think beginning writers could learn much from the study this very special “art” form. It’s truly the art of learning how to boil down
facts into a few key words, and an excellent lesson in how to present ideas both powerfully and
concisely. Not a bad skill to have on your writing resume'.
Share A Writer’s
Moment with a friend by clicking g+1 below.
No comments:
Post a Comment