Now and again some dewy-eyed student intent on a career in science journalism asks me How I Got To Where I Am Today. My problem is that my career path was probably not typical. However, now I can direct all such neophytes to this excellent resource by Ed Yong in which the recollections of a large number of science writers is archived in the comments section. The totality shows, if anything, that the typical career path of science journalists is … er … not typical. (Thanks to my friend Dr R. P. G. of Rotherhithe for pointing me towards Ed’s blog post).
Cromercrox
is an author who lives in Cromer, Norfolk, England, with his family and numerous pets. He enjoys writing, playing rock organ, beachcombing, supporting Norwich City FC, and falling asleep. By day he is a Senior Editor of a well-known weekly professional science journal beginning with N, whose parent organisation wishes it to be known that none of the views expressed on this blog are theirs, because they don't know where they've been.Twitstorm
You are invited to follow cromercrox on Twitter @HenryGeeBooksFacebook
Please feel free to subscribe to the Henry Gee Page on Facebook.Amazon Author Page
You can browse (and buy) almost all my books at my Amazon author page.Geekwear
Visit cromercrox's Store at Zazzle for a wide range of products for the discerning geek or nerd.Croxinspectorate
-
Extanticrox
Croxpostulation
- John the Plumber on The Sunday Sci-Fi
- cromercrox on The Sunday Sci-Fi
- cromercrox on The Sunday Sci-Fi
- Richard Sutton on The Sunday Sci-Fi
- Richard Sutton on The Sunday Sci-Fi
Croxosphere
- Adventures In The Fog
- Author of Y'all's Destruction
- Blogging The PhD
- Books, Inq
- BugJemm's Blog
- City Limits
- Confessions of a (former) Lab Rat
- Dave Hone's Archosaur Musings
- Deep Sea News
- Deep Thoughts and Silliness
- Dreams and Hopes of a Former Postdoc
- Evolving Thoughts
- Expression Patterns
- Girl, Interrupting
- Keeper of the Snails
- Musings of a Techno Chook
- No Comment
- Not Ranting, Honestly
- Now Appearing
- Punctuated Equilibrium
- Reciprocal Space
- Ricardipus
- Science Behind The Scenes
- Tetrapod Zoology
- The Loom
- The Node
- The Occam's Typewriter Irregulars
- Trading Knowledge
- VWXYnot?
- Zygoma
GOOFTUG Roll Of Honour
Herewith Shall Be Emplaced the Roll of Honour in which Participants in this Blog are Judged to have made a Contribution that Transcends the Mere Ordinariness of the Merely Ordinary, and, Stepping Forward, receive the Order of the Unicycling Girrafe, and, this having been attained, shall join, in Perpetuity, Eternally and Forever, Whichever Lasts Longest, the Grand Order of the Unicycling Girrafe, and Shall Henceforth be Entitled to Style Themselves as GOOFTUG, Notwithstanding Inasmuch as Which, [Ahem, Clears Throat] ... er ... where was I?
* Dr H. E. of Toulouse, for an elegant caption entry in a Foreign Language.
* Dr R. W. of Toronto, for Much Silliness.
* Dr C. E. of Vancouver, ditto.
* Dr R. J. O'H of Frankfurt, for more of the same.
* Dr A. C. of Santiago de Chile, our Latin America Correspondent.
* Professor T. of North Wales.
* Dr R. P. G. of Rotherhithe, because he said he'd kill me if he wasn't included.Spear Carriers, Choristers, Defiant Guinea-Pigs, Noises Off by Members of the Cast.
Matinee Wednesdays. Concessions available.
Palaeocrox
- May 2013 (9)
- April 2013 (8)
- March 2013 (7)
- February 2013 (9)
- January 2013 (2)
- December 2012 (6)
- November 2012 (5)
- October 2012 (5)
- September 2012 (3)
- August 2012 (10)
- July 2012 (10)
- June 2012 (8)
- May 2012 (7)
- April 2012 (2)
- March 2012 (3)
- February 2012 (6)
- January 2012 (4)
- December 2011 (13)
- November 2011 (6)
- October 2011 (12)
- September 2011 (9)
- August 2011 (12)
- July 2011 (18)
- June 2011 (8)
- May 2011 (7)
- April 2011 (12)
- March 2011 (12)
- February 2011 (18)
- January 2011 (24)
- December 2010 (14)
- November 2010 (12)
- October 2010 (14)
- September 2010 (21)
- August 2010 (12)
- July 2010 (22)
- June 2010 (12)
- May 2010 (11)
- April 2010 (13)
- March 2010 (18)
- February 2010 (2)
- January 2010 (2)
- December 2009 (5)
- November 2009 (2)
- October 2009 (5)
- September 2009 (11)
- August 2009 (5)
- July 2009 (10)
- June 2009 (12)
- May 2009 (19)
- April 2009 (33)
- March 2009 (15)
Croxulonimbus
antisemitism beach beachcombing big boots would have been better than crox canis croxorum chooks chthonic cromer data entry at the OK corral deep purple defiant the guinea pig die Labour die dog eldritch erumpent evolution Ham and High hieronymous bosch i remember when we once had grass jeremiad lobsterpots music no coach parties on the ball city! oy veh my poor feet Professor Trellis of North Wales release of calcium from intracellular stores rpg couldn't fight his way out of a wet paper bag science fiction science of middle-earth sea mammal research unit seven samurai seven transmembrane helix G-protein coupled receptors sex silliness syllabub that ursula andress moment the beowulf effect the sigil thinking thinking about thinking tolkien writing you might as well give up now and shop at mr fatbastard z-radiationCroxonomy
Metacrox
Disclaimer
The views and opinions expressed on this blog and in the comments do not necessarily reflect those of the Nature Publishing Group.Norfolk
... is a long way away from anywhere, and if I were you, I shouldn't start from here. By the time you get to the outskirts of Cromer, any distinctions between science, beachcombing, social commentary, writing and animal husbandry have started to blur. When the process is complete, you know you've arrived at the End Of The Pier Show. So, welcome. Find somewhere to park your unicycle. Pull up agirrafechair. Make yourself comfortable.-
-
And it seems like none of us science writers had a typical path. Typical!
"I always thought that Carl Sagan was an avatar of Kermit the frog. A sock puppet, if you will".on: http://blogs.nature.com/rpg/2010/08/18/on-the-origin-of-science-writersHenry – to me that Carl Sagan must be a friend of gossipy cat (maybe liked the video to croxi's minor):http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtgW7eHlayoThe great and intellectual "gossipy cat".Done for my son.
dude, Zimmer reads your blog….I somehow wish I was a science writer. Honestly it seems like a good gig. I write science, not of science, but of late that has become more painful than it should be. Doing the experiments (or at least being near the ones that do) is the best, but sadly it becomes a tedious and soul-crushing affair in the end. Perhaps I will blog all my lab's discoveries. Of course that won't get me the grants to do more bloggable science. Frankly Mr Shankly, this position I've held, it corrodes my soul.
@Benoit – me and the Zimmer go WAAAY back to when he was much less famous than he is today! And there is always that whole business of the grass being greener. Quite a lot of science writers start as scientits but the day dawns with the realization that they'll never be a P. I.
Yes, I also once wanted to live in Hawaii, drive a red Ferrari and have a butler named Higgins, solve crimes and… oh, you mean that other PI thing….Well later in the same song it goes "I didn't know that you wrote poetry, I didn't know you wrote such bloody awful poetry". Not everyone can or should be a science writer. To those who do it well, kudos; the population at large needs to be educated about science. Green grass back at you.
Benoit- ¿To tell me you read the blog of Zimmer?. ¿Why do I?
It might not be a case of greener grass. I guess that a lot of science writers started out wanting to be scientists but found that they hadn't the aptitude, determination or focus required. That was true in my case. I completed my PhD but realised that I didn't have what it took to be a top-flight researcher in what was and still is a very competitive field.