The experienced eye
I have had the privilege of writing and editing content for some excellent publications, organizations, and individuals including The Canadian Press. I currently work as a editor at Pagemasters North America, which is its editorial wing, where I design layouts and copy-edit pages for print newspapers in the United States.
You can review a selection of my best pages for them below.
Beaumont Enterprise
The Beaumont Enterprise is a broadsheet newspaper that covers the region of Southeast Texas. It is currently owned by the Hearst Corporation which acquired it in 1984 from the publication arm of the Jefferson-Pilot insurance company. The publication currently has a daily circulation of 21,717 and a Sunday circulation of 29,492.
I learned many lessons an editor can only learn on-the-job, such as the value of a mixed column layout and the importance of a few inches between two margins. And working on these pages towards the end of a long day have also taught me the value of perseverance under pressure.
I have attached a copy of the front page of this paper’s Business Section, from the February 25th (Saturday) 2023 issue, below.
Manistee News Advocate
The Manistee News Advocate, also known as the News Advocate, is another Michigan-based daily broadsheet also owned by the Hearst Corporation. It covers local events and a range of issues (religion, obituaries, sports) that concern the community in Manistee County.
My time management and collaboration skills were thoroughly tested when working on the Sports section of this publication. I was responsible for completing many pages across the section before the deadline, so I had to work in an organized, systematic, and collaborative manner. A significant challenge for was fitting all the assigned jumped stories, spread between two pages. I enjoyed overcoming it!
I have attached a copy of the section from June 10th weekend (Saturday, Sunday) below.
Process, challenges, and mission(s) accomplished
I apply a step-by-step, break-it-down approach to the pages I am assigned since I usually work on at least two at a time. My process is best summarized as “Identify, Prioritize, Design” which begins with identifying the pages I have designed and their individual requirements (eg. author’s mug must be included), and their respective deadlines. Doing so helps me prioritize my work which, in turn, makes the design and copy-editing processes much smoother.
The biggest challenge is re-designing a laid out and copy-edited page if circumstances suddenly change. One can get emotionally invested in a page because completing it took time and considerable effort. Sometimes it is beautiful to look at but not what is needed, and my heart breaks slightly when I redraw it.
There are two incredibly rewarding aspects of the job for me. The first is to successfully to improve a headline or a deck while preserving the author’s voice and message. The second is to work collaboratively with other editors because there is much to learn on-the-job. I have excellent colleagues at PMNA who I learn from every day. The end product created by a synchronized group effort is something I am hugely proud of.
I have worked on weekend and regular editions of the Huron Daily Tribune, the Manistee News Advocate, Midland Daily News, and the Big Rapids Pioneer (also called The Pioneer) which are all based in Michigan. I have also regularly worked on pages across different sections in the Texas-based Beaumont Enterprise and the Midland Reporter Telegram. I started working on pages in the Connecticut-based The Middletown Press in January 2024