Cherubs end workshop as columnists-in-training

The column workshop gave students a chance to explore different agendas, arguments and styles of experienced column writers.

By Carley Lake

Larry Yee, a cherub from San Francisco, found himself among the top column writers in the country.

Nestled between Frank Rich of The New York Times’ “Don’t Laugh at Michael Chertoff” and Mike Royko of The Chicago Tribune’s “Even a U.S. senator can somehow botch a recipe for success,” Yee’s article was featured in the column workshop packet distributed to Cherubs before the lecture.

“I sent my column in as a writing sample when I applied for the cherub program,” said Yee. “I wasn’t expecting it to be shown to all the cherubs.”

Yee signed up for the column workshop led by instructors John Kupetz, Victor Chi and Jesse Abrams-Morley. The instructors and students discussed the difficult task of writing a good column. They compared and contrasted the point of views and techniques of different columns. How much research and reporting does the columnist use? How well does the columnist make his or her point? How does the columnist use sarcasm?

Yee used sports events, graduation and even A Walk to Remember to support his argument that there are times when grown men should cry.

“Column writing is a way to express yourself the way you want to,” said Ivana Dukanovic, a cherub from Los Altos, Calif.

Kupetz opened the workshop with advice for the columnists-in-training from the Tribune’s Mike Royko.

“The hardest part of columns isn’t the writing. It’s the deciding what you’re going to write about.”

In the workshop, the cherubs learned that a good column takes a fresh perspective on a controversial subject. The columnists make their point and support it with reporting and research. Columnists talk to people to cultivate ideas and are well-read. They must know their audience. Good columnists have the power to change public dialogue.  

“Teen columns are an important way for younger perspectives to be heard and seen,” Hilary Soloff, a cherub from Santa Monica, Calif., said. “And the best column looks at something in a completely different way that has never been done before.”

Humor can draw readers to a column. Cherubs learned that columnists must decide whether humor is appropriate to the piece’s subject.

For instance, Yee used humor in his column titled “Big boys don’t cry, but real men do; so deal with it!” He made the point that there is nothing wrong with guys having a good cry every now and then. Michael Jordan cries, Andre Agassi cries and Yee admits he is sometimes a “crybaby.”

“When you have an idea, no matter how out there it is or different the story is, you just need to put it out there,” said Yee.
   
Dukanovic plans on writing columns for her school paper next year. She hopes to write about what teenagers are doing all over the world and localize it to show similarities and differences and connect it to her school. She likes the differences between column and news writing.

“With columns you focus on the punch line and the kicker,” she said. “At the end you leave the reader with something to think about.”

Yee ended with, “Yeah, I know everyone thinks I am a girl now. But I’m not going to cry about it.”