HW Venture hosted The New York Times freelance writer Evan Nicole Brown ’12 to speak about her journalism career Jan. 13. During the presentation, Brown explained how she launched her journalism career before giving advice about how to find jobs after college.

Venture, BLACC, Vox Populi and the Character Leadership committee hosted Brown.

Workshop Lead Ryan Pinsker ’23, Speaker Events Lead Sophia Rascoff ’23 and Spotlight Editor Ava Weinrot ’23 partnered with BLACC, Vox Populi and the Character Leadership committee to plan the event.

During her time at the school, Brown spent three years on the Chronicle, the Upper School newspaper and her senior year on Vox Populi, the yearbook. She was also a prefect and a member of the the track and field team.

Brown attended Bard College and graduated with a joint degree in Literature and Written Arts. She later moved to New York to work at Ploughshares, a literary journal based at Emerson College in Boston, where she wrote book reviews. She also received a six month editorial fellowship at the Atlas Obscura, an online magazine.

“I got to work in the newsroom in Brooklyn everyday. It was like a typical Monday through Friday nine to five writing job,” Brown said. “That’s what I consider my journalism school. That’s where I really learned how a newspaper functions.”

Brown said she has forged valuable relationships through her work.

Brown discussed creating her own print publication, Double Space Magazine, a magazine that focuses on publishing several iterations of the same work to illuminate the editorial process. She then spoke about the importance of having mentors in journalism to help guide you. She said that the relationships she made throughout her time at different jobs has been equally important to her than the articles she writes.

“The best writers are people who remain open to being taught because that’s how you really keep growing and keep things interesting for yourself,” Brown said. “I have so many coworkers who I may never work with again and may never be edited by them again, but the relationships I’ve built with them are just as important to me as the articles I’m writing.”

Brown concluded the Zoom meeting by giving advice to aspiring journalists about ways to improve their writing and networking skills.

“I very much consider myself a student of journalism,” Brown said. “I’m always looking for ways to grow and learn and further deepen my skill set to perfect my craft. I think it’s important to never stop learning and to continuously look for opportunities and people to teach you.”