I learned how to produce reports for public radio with reel-to-reel tape, wax pencil and a razor blade. It was a matter of months before we moved into the digital age, but I’m kind of glad I got the chance to learn it the old-fashioned way.

I fell onto the airwaves by chance. The alternative weekly that I worked for folded at the end of 1996. Shortly after my job-free holidays, the news director of local public radio station WCBE called me, said she liked my writing and, since the whole city knew I probably wasn’t up to much, asked if I might be interested in doing some arts stories for her.

She trained me to do everything on the fly, from how to hold the microphone for good sound to mixing tracks to editing the tape. She gave me tips on writing for audio and suggestions about how I might read more naturally. I did some of it well and completely stumbled through other parts. Audio can bring such great new dimensions to storytelling.

A lot of people felt certain that this should be the new direction of my career, except for me.  I was more comfortable taking notes and living behind a byline, not so much  with thrusting a mic into people’s faces and hearing myself in between the pros of  NPR’s “Morning Edition.” I even turned down a couple of opportunities, opting to pursue the freelance writing, editing and new digital frontier that all lived in my comfort zone.

I did maintain a freelance relationship with the station on and off for several years, though, and did a fair amount of visual arts reporting (a real challenge to do on the radio!) in conjunction with Dialogue magazine that was funded by the Greater Columbus Arts Council. It was good for local artists and arts organizations – the pieces were played on public stations all over Ohio because of the dearth of arts reporting on the radio. But as I took on other work and funding for those projects eroded, it fell by the wayside.

In hindsight, I wish that I’d let myself enjoy all of it more. These days, I’m rediscovering that writing and editing for broadcast is a total blast.

This fall, I had my first opportunity to do some television script writing for a local station and I can’t tell you how much fun I had using Avid and playing with words, sound and video to tell a few stories. I have zero desire to be on camera, but I’m not at all voice-shy anymore, and I love producing this kind of work.

Most recently, I produced the pilot episode of my husband’s radio show, Almost There, and contributed a segment of my own on adult-friendly children’s music. We have two more two-hour episodes airing over the holidays in hopes of landing a permanent slot, so please stay tuned.

And if you’re looking for someone with a strong writing/reporting background to produce audio or video scripts, I’m very interested in this kind of work. Please get in touch.

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