It took a while for self-proclaimed “journalism junkie” Kristina Fischer (class of ‘85) to find her calling as a legal journalist. Now the editor-in-chief of The New York Law Journal, she didn’t focus in on journalism until she was in her thirties.

Lisa Reyes always wanted to be a storyteller. As a little girl, she remembers standing in front of the mirror, reading out loud and hoping that some day she would be a successful news reporter. Since then, she has worked towards her goal in jobs that have taken her around the country.

The world of freelancing is not for everyone. The lack of benefits, intense competition and the financial insecurity make it a way of life that many people escape as soon as possible. Lea Sheloush, however, is not one of those people.

Jen MacNeil is like a superhero… well, in a way. She doesn’t jump from buildings or fight crime on a nightly basis like Clark Kent, but she does live a double life: copy editor by day, entertainer by night.

Seth Gladstone never expected to be shuttling presidential candidate John Kerry around New York City, but last fall he found himself in a minivan with Kerry sitting shotgun and bumping over pot holes in Queens.

When Barbara Gluck went to Vietnam in 1968 with no plans other than to visit a friend who was a journalist, she never expected to leave with photos that would launch her career as a New York Times war photographer.

“I didn’t set out to turn this into a business, it was more of a hobby,” Alperson said. “But we gained a local cult following and it became bigger than I thought it would.”

“My schedule was 11 p.m. to 7 a.m.,” he says. “It was tough, but it was a way in the door.”

“I thought I’d never want to do television,” said Fernandez. “And now I love it.”

“I understand where the customers come from because I have been a writer, a journalist, a musician, and a film-maker,” he said. “I can talk the talk and walk the walk.”

“The longer I’ve been away from NYU,” he said, “the more I realize what they told me there was true.”

“MTV is a great place to get your hands dirty and learn a lot,” Nadia says.

“A less well known publication gives you the opportunity to write and report more,”

“It’s seems to be crazy to be doing political reporting for this long,” she said, “but then you get sucked into it and end up realizing what you love about it.”

“You need to know more than just what’s written in a press release.”

“As I walk down this road it is endlessly satisfying and a constant education, you can’t ask for more out of life.”

“It’s not always a catch-22. You can get your foot in the door freelancing. Pitch ideas. Experience speaks volumes.”

“And when I wasn’t getting really depressed about it, I would write these essays,” explained Zevin in his even-toned, dry humored way. “Then I wondered if there was a book in this.”

A small paper in northeastern Alabama has meant big stories for Matthew Creamer.

Christian Martin is on his way to the Middle East to shoot a one-hour news documentary aboard a United States Navy ship for NBC News. “I can’t talk too much about this project because I don’t want to give away the story but I am excited about it,” said Martin.

“I was taking a lot more responsibility. It was intimidating because I was working with people who had previous experience at the big magazine publishing houses like Conde Nast,” Spilko said.