The stereotype is alive and well …

• Posted in General musings, On Writing

The Smart Bitches and Diana Peterfreund have some interesting posts up regarding a letter a journalist from the Washington Post sent to a group of romance writers asking for information for a Valentine’s Day piece. Go read it for yourself.

As a professional journalist, I would never, ever send anyone a letter like that. I don’t even know that I’d send my friends a letter like that.

As a journalist, you don’t try to be funny. Professional? Yes. Respectful? Yes. Funny? No. You tell people what you’re doing and then ask them for their input, even if it ends up being no comment.

Geez. To the person who wrote that letter: you work at the Post. You should know better.

4 Responses to “The stereotype is alive and well …”

  1. Edie says:

    Are you sure that was a real letter by a real journalist? Could it be a joke letter? Like you said, very unprofessional.

  2. Jennifer Estep says:

    As far as I know, it was a real letter from a real journalist. According to Diana’s blog, the journalist sent it out to a group of Washington, D.C.-based romance writers.

    What I want to know (other than what this person was thinking when she wrote the letter) is this — who in the world has a heart-shaped bed? Do they even make those? ❓

  3. Janus says:

    Jennifer, I don’t think the writer of that letter WAS thinking when he/she wrote it — that’s the problem right there.

  4. Jennifer Estep says:

    Lots of us do stupid things without thinking. But to write a letter that long? You’d think at some point, she’d wonder if it was really a good idea or not.

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