“Perseverance is the key”

Abhirup Bhunia, a journalism student in India and UPIU contributor, was “totally frustrated at one point,” he says.

When he submitted his first story to UPIU, he thought of himself as a decent journalist.

“Writing was never a problem for me, I thought,” he says.

But the story came back again and again, each time with notes from the UPIU senior mentor. Abhirup had to review his story for opinion and poor word choice. He had to do more reporting than he initially thought necessary, and was told he couldn’t take quotes from other news sources.

“It was real slogging, but it did pay off,” he says.

Abhirup found that the fastest way to a UPI byline is to listen closely to mentors and take their critiques seriously.

“Perseverance is the key,” he says. “Working on the language to hook the reader is a must. Knowing whom to interview for a story and what to ask, and thus providing relevant quotes, always helps. “

Since then, Abhirup has earned four UPI bylines, and a fifth is pending. (Read his stories here).

Not bad for an aspiring journalist who found UPIU through a Google search.

Have you ever been discouraged during the writing or reporting process? Do you have any questions for Abhirup, or advice for UPIU’s aspiring journalists? Comment below.