Welcome to a brand new Kingston Nub News feature - 'From the editor's desk'.

Usually this will be my reflection on the week's news and will come out once a week on a Sunday.

However this week I thought I'd tell you a bit about myself - how I got into journalism and why I started working here at Nub News.

Getting into journalism

I graduated from the University of Leicester in July of 2019 getting a BA in International Relation in History.

However I had already set my sights on becoming a journalist.

Having first been political editor and then chief editor of the university magazine it was the natural next step.

I needed an NCTJ (a qualification the vast majority of journalists all have) and got myself a place at News Associates in Twickenham.

I am originally from Woking in Surrey so South West London was a lot closer to home after spending the past three years in the East Midlands.

The NCTJ course I did was a Fast-Track one - meaning it was effectively a year's work condensed into five months!

Safe to say it was the hardest I had ever worked and while I enjoyed elements of the course, such as reporting for South West Londoner, it was overwhelming at times and I really was stressed by the end.

However I made it through and breathed a sigh of relief as I began the search for my first proper job in journalism - then COVID happened.

During Lockdown (the first one)

I had been unemployed for a month or so when lockdown (the first one) happened.

Applying for jobs - especially when you don't have one - is a pretty gruelling process, and being rejected a fair few times is not fun either.

However ironically enough I think lockdown actually helped me get a job.

With no distractions I could really put all my time into applying for things and also I spent a fair-bit of time blogging and enjoying writing again.

In late-April I saw that Nub News were recruiting journalists and specifically in South West London.

While I really enjoyed growing up in Woking, my girlfriend and I were keen to move into London - so this seemed the perfect opportunity.

I got in contact with Nub News CEO Karl Hancock and wrote a few freelance articles for the site before we could eventually meet (with restrictions now relaxed) and I was offered the job of taking over Teddington Nub News - and long-term start a site in Kingston too.

Working at Nub News

Obviously I was delighted to get the job but I had a certain amount of trepidation going into it.

Teddington Nub News for the first two months of existence was edited by an incredibly respected journalist with decades of experience.

These were big boots to fill but luckily thanks to his help and some of the other Nub News journalists I've always felt confident in what I'm doing.

I was familiar with Teddington and Kingston from my time at SW Londoner and back when I used to row but I have to say I've been blown away by the people here.

My girlfriend and I moved from Woking into Kingston a couple of months into the job and while I haven't been able to do everything yet (thanks COVID) I've really enjoyed living here too.

Anyway that's enough personal self-indulgence for now and as always thanks for reading