Writing Exercises

I've been getting quite an education on the Middle East this weekend. Today I had to write two stories for work -- one on President Bush's upcoming meeting with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki of Iraq (link), and one on the Israeli-Hizballah conflict (link). Just figuring out the correct spelling of all the names involved has been quite a challenge for me since my expertise is in East Asia. It was very satisfying, therefore, when the two Middle East experts who reviewed my stories this afternoon said they did not need any changes.

North Korea, which IS one of the countries in my region, has been keeping me busy as well. This week I had to write some stories on Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill's remarks before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (link) and at the Washington Foreign Press Center (link). I received a note from the office expert on arms control and non-proliferation issues complimenting me on the stories, which was very nice to hear. Coincidentally, my office's local expert on Korean Peninsula issues has been on vacation for the last two weeks so she has missed most of the excitement over North Korea's July 4 missile launches and the United Nations Security Council's resolution condemning the launches.

Although my primary function at work is that of an editor, it is nice to exercise my writing muscles from time to time and get some bylines. I hope things start slowing down soon, though. I'm starting to get nervous twitches worrying whether or not I'm getting all my facts straight.