Writing about yourself is difficult, isn’t it? It’s tough to sit in front of a blank document and fill it with words about yourself without either bragging about how cool you are or coming to the tragic realisation that you’re not cool at all.
All of this is to say that my name is Tom. I’m the new editor of Voice. And I’m almost certainly not very cool.
But what I am is really passionate about arts and entertainment – especially movies, television, pro wrestling, and musical theatre. I’ve been a film critic and entertainment journalist for seven years, having studied “proper” journalism at university and spent a little while as a newspaper journalist in Weymouth and Southampton.
I grew up in Coventry in the West Midlands and, back in those days, the idea of writing about films as a full-time job seemed completely absurd. In fact, it was difficult to even see movies outside of the latest Marvel blockbuster or animated comedy. That’s why, as soon as I could afford it, I moved to London – the only place the career of my dreams seemed possible.
But one of the reasons I’m here writing this now is to make it clear that I was wrong to believe that about London. It’s true that the UK is massively focused on its capital city, but that doesn’t mean you can’t experience cultural riches outside the M25. On the contrary, that’s where some of the best culture – and the best writing about culture – comes from.
I’m now back in Coventry – a proud Sky Blues season ticket holder as well, for my sins – and I’m thrilled to be able to take on this new gig as editor of Voice. I firmly believe in holding the ladder down to help new voices into the world of arts journalism. There’s nothing wrong with middle class folks from London, but it often seems like they’re the only people allowed to write about the arts.
When I was 14 years old, I rang every local newspaper in my area to try to get work experience. They all turned me down. However, the owner of a small, free magazine called Your Call said she would love to run a teenage voice column. 16 years later, I’m no longer a teenager, but I’m still writing that column. That editor gave me my first shot at seeing my writing in print, and I’ll never forget it.
That’s my goal as editor, to provide opportunities for people to write about the things that they’re passionate about. That might be a Star Wars movie, a true crime documentary, a ballet, a stand-up comedy night, a new gallery exhibition, or something entirely different to all of those things. The only important thing is that you’re passionate about it, whether your experience is a good one or a bad one.
So now it’s over to you. I’d love to hear from you about the things you’d like to cover and what you’d like to see more of on Voice. My virtual door is always open – by all means pester me via email at [email protected] – and I can’t wait to get started. Writing about arts and culture should be fun, so let’s have some fun.
Welcome to Voice, Tom! and I totally agree with what you say about celebrating culture beyond London and creating opportunities for new voices to be heard. Voice's mission in a nutshell!