Writing Assignment 3 – Query Letter

For this assignment the class had to research a publication, whether a newspaper, magazine, or website and formulate a query letter to the editor of the publication. We were tasked to write as though we were freelance writers who wished to contribute to the company with a feature article on any topic or event of our choosing.

I chose to write to Elle magazine because I love fashion, and fashion magazines are so editorial and artistic that it is hard to not want to be a part of a project like that. The feature of my article would the upcoming Charleston Fashion Week to be held in Charleston, SC March 19-23, 2013. This is an event that began in 2007 and has bloomed into a must-see occasion where local designers display their talent and hard work to world-renowned critics and fashion writers. There is also a model search competition during the five-night event.

My spin on CFW would be to focus on the changing demographics of Charleston. Although there are still cobblestone streets and horse-drawn carriages throughout the city, it is quickly emerging as a young, hipster location where all styles and tastes are welcomed and thrown into a melting pot of eclectic culture.

While I am not an accomplished writer now, I thought that an assignment like CFW would be a fun thing to do. To get to explore a charming southern city through the eyes of a youthful, artistic community would surely be a welcome task.

Writing Assignment 2 – Pembroke Day

Pembroke Day celebrates Town and gown relationship

             Walking through the UNCP quad one would be amazed to see the number of people standing in line to take a picture with one of the most iconic figures in American history – Kentucky Fried Chicken’s Colonel Sanders.

Such was the scene on September 26 at the 23^rd annual Pembroke Day, bringing together the UNCP community and the Town of Pembroke. Student organizations stood alongside local businesses to share ideas and information with attendees.   Despite the warm weather, thousands of people came out to see what Pembroke had to offer.

The fair-like atmosphere gave goers a chance to discover the various sororities and fraternities, academic organizations and other social clubs offered on campus. For Pembroke residents this was an opportunity to connect with UNCP students, faculty and staff, as well as learn about local businesses throughout Robeson County and the surrounding area.

Local restaurants and food vendors were also on hand to take advantage of the free publicity. While some sold their food, others, like KFC and Sweet Expressions, offered samples of goodies like chicken bites and cake pops.

There was also entertainment to wow the crowd during the festivities with Scott Bigelow, public communications specialist, acting as emcee. Performances were given by several UNCP student acts including former American Idol contestant local celebrity, Victoria Huggins and Layla Locklear, 2012 Miss Indian North Carolina.

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Writing Assignment 1

UNCP Lady Brave finds a new stroke with golf

Elizabeth Bundy, or Lizzie as her friends call her, never met a sport she did not like. As a young girl she participated in activities like soccer, t-ball, volleyball, basketball, and even dance. “I’ve tried almost every sport once,” she said.

Bundy is the only child of two athletic parents, Alan and Maureen. Her father was an avid golfer and racquetball player, while her mother enjoyed spending time in the pool. With a pedigree like that it is no wonder that Bundy gravitated to sports as she did.

It wasn’t until her freshman year of high school that Bundy realized she preferred swimming over anything else. So much so that it was her year-round sport. Bundy knew that swimming was going to be the thing that carried her through high school and into college.

During her first year at Clayton High School Bundy began to experience difficulty breathing. She received the devastating news that she had developed bronchitis, an illness that nearly sidelined Bundy for good. Doctors advised the young talent to give up swimming so that her body could recover.

However, Bundy refused to stay idle. She credits her father with being the driving force behind trading her swim cap and goggles for a set of irons, woods and wedges. Soon, Bundy began to flourish in her new sport winning many awards and accolades.

During her high school career, Bundy racked up three 4-A Conference Player of the Year titles, three top five finishes in the NC 4-A state high school championships, as well as a second place finish in the 2009 North Carolina Junior Championship. Her talent garnered a lot of attention from schools like UNC Pembroke and UNC Greensboro.

Ultimately, Bundy settled on UNCG, playing for the Spartans for one year. After a less than favorable experience with the coaching staff, she remembered the recruitment efforts of head coach David Synan and decided to make the transition to UNCP. While the campus and surrounding community are considerably smaller than Greensboro, Bundy has enjoyed her time at Pembroke.

The junior journalism major initially decided in high school that broadcasting would be a good fit. Bundy quickly discovered after taking communication classes that her strengths were best suited for writing and not speaking.

While Bundy has no plans to be the next Annika Sorenstam, she does want to use her experience in sports as a springboard for her journalism career. Over the summer Bundy interned in the UNCP media relations office and worked at a Durham, NC golf course. Now in her junior year, she hopes to get another internship next summer working with media relations for NC State University in Raleigh. Bundy is an admitted die-hard Wolfpack fan.

Upon graduation from UNCP Bundy would like to continue working for NC State, but in the Sports Information Office. When asked if she would ever consider working somewhere else, Bundy said “ESPN would be fun, but I would rather stay in the Raleigh area.”

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The first time is toughest

So, I finally finished my video feature and I must say I am proud of myself.

I took a behind the scenes look at Givens Performing Arts Center. First, I interviewed executive director, Patricia Fields. She gave an excellent off-the-cuff speech about the history of GPAC and its importance in bringing the arts to the university and the community. Then there was assistant director, David Thaggard. He is responsible for researching and booking the various broadway shows that come to GPAC as they travel up and down the east coast.

I also interviewed Tasha Oxendine, director of marketing. During our talk she imparted to me bits of wisdom on techniques for shooting and editing my video, which I greatly appreciated considering Ms. Oxendine was once a news reporter for WBTW in South Carolina.

Editing was fun. I used Window Movie Maker to piece together my footage, insert pictures and add music. Once it was complete, I uploaded my video to the class YouTube page (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVaAXYds7_I&feature=results_video). Hopefully everyone will get to see it during Friday’s class.

This was a great learning experience, getting to shoot and edit a video. I definitely learned a lot and have something else to add to my résumé.

Video Feature – Phase 1

In my previous post I talked about interning at Givens Performing Arts Center and using that experience as a basis for my video feature project. I am in the process of creating a script for my video in which I outline how the video will flow and what talking points will be featured.

While this may seem like a not-so-difficult task, I tend to be an overthinker. So, it is taking me a little longer than some of my classmates. Also, take into consideration this is the first time I have ever done anything like this.

My plan for the video feature is to interview various people that work at GPAC, students, and hopefully people from the community about the work that goes into getting Broadway shows to UNC Pembroke and the impact that has on the campus and surrounding community. I will begin shooting video in the upcoming week, which will give me an opportunity to possibly interview those attending the annual champagne gala before the first Broadway and More Series show, Smokey Joe’s Cafe. Hopefully they will be willing to talk about the importance of GPAC and the arts for the region.

Fingers crossed.

Welcome to Tina’s blog

This is the first blog that I have ever written. I hope that I can be diligent in maintaining it and posting ideas for my Feature Writing class with Dr. Tony at UNC Pembroke. As I sit and write I can’t help but think about the movie “Julie and Julia,” where Amy Adams character (Julie) writes a daily blog about cooking one recipe every day from Julia Child’s cookbook.

That is more dedication than I currently have, but I will make the effort to post WEEKLY to forevernspring.wordpress.com.