Columnist

Columnists write secondaries, and have more freedom to choose between personal statements, shorter features, or opinion-based narratives. While we encourage Columnists to share personal stories or explore a phenomenon in their own life, all columns should ultimately answer the following questions in their writing: What is the relevance of this story? How do I connect it to what is happening on campus/our country/the world? Light interviewing and research is advised in order to strengthen columns. Columnists should have advanced writing skills, a creative and curious mind, and the flexibility to write based on theme.

The Statement functions as a weekly magazine emulating publications like The New Yorker and The New York Times Magazine. Our commitment to narrative, immersive writing, as well as creative nonfiction, will give Daily staff writers – and freelance contributors – the opportunity to dive deeper into themes of relevance on our campus and Ann Arbor.

What types of pieces do we publish?
We publish pieces on a variety of topics, but they generally take two formats:

• A lede: usually between 2000 and 3000 words. Similar to a feature, ledes explore a topic in-depth and can be a mix between personal narrative and news journalism.
• A secondary: shorter pieces between 1200 and 1600 words. These can range from Op-Ed style to reporting to personal reflections, but should include the narrative voice. All aim to explore a pertinent campus issue with a connection to the writer.

Special editions: For a few editions throughout the semester, the Statement will be themed, meaning all pieces in that edition will explore the same topic (i.e. “mental health edition”). All staff will collaborate to come up with themes.