Wondering how a virtual writing internship works? This will provide you with some insights.
- How much time is involved?
There is a 10-hour per week commitment. An advantage of this internship is that you can do your work any time of the day or night. As a writing intern, you’ll never be at a loss for work, as many of the projects you will be working on are self-initiated. So, when you find yourself running low on projects, just start one.
- How do you submit your work?
While there are different types of writing projects, all are done through Trello, a collaboration board. For the self-initiated ones, you start by creating a card on the board for approval. You include the requisite information depending on the type of project. Using Veteran of the Day (VOD) card as an example, you gather your information sources and photographs of the Veteran you will write about and post it for approval. Your department head will review your submission and either approve it or, via a post on the card, let you know if more information is required. Once you create a card, other team members will join the project. These members are also interns like you that work as editors, researchers/fact-checkers and graphic designers.
When your card is approved, you’ll write your first draft and post it on Trello. An editor will review it and post their marked-up version. You and the editor will go back and forth with revisions until you both are ready to move on. Next, a second editor will repeat this process with you, starting from the most recent marked-up version posted by the primary editor. A researcher/fact-checker will review the write-up for accuracy and post their findings on the card. The graphic designer will use the photographs you provided to create the visuals for this VOD. When all team members have completed their work and all issues have been addressed, the project is ready to be looked at by leadership. Leadership will conduct a final review and schedule it for posting on the VA blog.
- How is communication facilitated?
Slack is used to communicate with the DME group, whether it is a specific department or the whole community. Trello is used to communicate with your team members on a specific project. You have access to your leadership team for questions or points of clarification through Slack or email. There are also monthly department meetings on Zoom to discuss current issues.
Thus, doing your work virtually doesn’t mean you are working alone.
Writer: Michael Veronda
Editors: Amra Kandic and Lutfia Khaleque
Graphic Designer: Mohogany Bridges
