[cgbg]

The student with nine months between college and grad school who wants to write for a newspaper needs to get off her duff and write. Create a blog. Find a subject that interests her. Learn more about it. Write. Write. Write.

Then she can print out a book of her writings to hand out in future interviews.

If there are young folks out there like her with free time start investigating your local politics. Hang around at your town or city hall. Uncover corruption. Call the bad locals to account in your blog. ...and, don't forget to post your good stuff here so we all can read it.

[CindyDawg]

While she writes, she can still get a job at McDonalds or Walmart etc.

[patton]

That is a really good idea.