I have been at Fanshawe for the past six years, and it has been a place where I have gotten to grow as a person as well as a student. I have made unforgettable memories with people I get to call my friends and have been able to do incredible things through the programs I have taken.

One such thing was my time working as a writer and host for Interrobang for the last year and a half. I first attended the main campus in the fall of 2022, when I started my first semester in the broadcast journalism program.

I, unfortunately, didn’t start working at the Interrobang till later, but my first year allowed me to learn the craft of article writing and interviewing subjects to gather quotes. When the school year ended, I was having a hard time trying to look for a summer gig. It wasn’t until I went out for lunch with my friend Mauricio Prado that he mentioned he had been hired as a summer reporter at the campus newspaper, and he encouraged me to apply.

I took his advice, not knowing what to expect in terms of how the summer was going to unfold, as this was my first time applying to work as an writer for a paper. That summer turned out to be one of the most fun experiences I had, where I got to spend time writing and working with friends.

It was also the first time I got to explore, research and write on topics I liked as well as share with the rest of the college community. I wrote about a variety of articles explaining my opinion on why I thought video narratives are important to an article listing five haunted areas in the London area.

It was also the first time I was given the torch to carry on the Red Couch Podcast for the summer semester. Alongside my friend Alex, we hosted a total of 13 episodes that explored a variety of topics. It was a fun experience as we got to collaborate every week and brainstorm ideas and talking points to create an intriguing conversation with the guest. 

We got to sit down with professionals to discuss men's mental health and talk about the importance of Indigenous Heritage Month. We also got to talk about the difference between gaming on a console compared to a PC, which was the episode that inspired me to want to one day start my own podcast.

When the summer term ended, I knew for sure that I wanted to continue on as a reporter for the fall semester when I returned from vacation. Around that time the Canadian band, The Beaches, released their album Blame My Ex, and it started to gain a lot of buzz in the rock community. As a rock fan, I wanted to take the opportunity to listen to the album and review it.

I stayed up all night playing the album from front to back, highlighting my favourite instrumental parts and lyrical pieces. Handing in that article also helped me realize my passion for writing about music and also exploring London's local music scene.

For the Navigator, our student lifestyle magazine, I got the opportunity to check out the Palasad Social Bowl, which is a venue where many local acts perform. Students from the Fanshawe Music Industry Arts (MIA) program performed, which was great as a networking environment to meet the bands that could potentially be a good feature for a music article.

I slowly began to get more comfortable writing about music and eventually found my footing in reviewing albums and writing music news, starting with the comeback of the legendary Britpop band, Oasis, after a 15-year hiatus. Next was Linkin Park's comeback with an album after seven years and the announcement of a new lead singer.

Focusing back on the local music scene, I had the privilege of diving into London's hip-hop scene which features many artists with links to Fanshawe. I got to meet various rappers with unique stories and upbringings who all shared their music inspirations and upcoming musical projects.

Working at the Interrobang has given me multiple benefits during my time at Fanshawe where I filled the role of a community storyteller. I was able to meet people from various backgrounds who shared their expertise or personal stories with me and got to share them through an article.