And the chief distractions are fear of failure and drowning in detail, the two hallmarks of the daily reporter. Quiet zones range from simple to complex, and can involve space as well as time. Richard Aregood, editorial page editor at The Star Ledger in Newark, N.J., slowly circles the newsroom as he composes a piece. Colleagues quip that they know Richard s about to type when he passes the water cooler. One deputy editorial chief wears a red baseball cap when she wants total seclusion to think, which she does right in the middle of her six demanding, noisy writers, who temporarily respect her privacy, and then deluge her when she takes the cap off.
Some writers create a quiet zone by wrapping themselves in cigarette smoke.
I wonder if our new regulations about having to leave the building to smoke have made the zone more effective. Court reporters can think during recesses and bench conferences. City council reporters can jot down ideas while the mayor gives awards to Cub Scouts. Interviewers can plan in waiting rooms, after they ve surveyed the walls for topic and atmosphere tips, of course. Coaching editors can use this zone by teaching it to frantic reporters, even by entering the zone with them.