Readers!
Well, it’s the last day in July here in Avalon, N.J., which means we’re rounding the corner to the unofficial end of the summer. For a lot of people, that’s Labor Day. For others, it’s the middle of next month when school starts up again. While most of our schools don’t go back until September, college kids will start leaving soon, just as I did every August to go back to the University of Tampa (pictured above), and things will start to feel more empty down here.
Why the blah blah blah about college? Because I recently wrote not one but two articles for The New York Times about the tradition of flying college flags in these Southern Jersey Shore barrier island towns. I’ve wanted to write about this since I started covering this area back in the mid ’00s. But I could never figure out a good enough hook. Why would something like this be newsworthy?
And then, suddenly, it was.
Here’s what happened.
The Story, part 1
“On the Jersey Shore, There’s a Flag for Everything,” The New York Times, June 30, 2024
The Back Story, part 1
I was in Avalon when news broke that Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito had flown an “Appeal to Heaven” flag from his beach house in Long Beach Island. Other than being appalled, I saw two other kinds of responses: first, what’s what the flags? And second, why didn’t he just fly a college flag like everyone else?
I had pitched the New York Times Styles section a few stories, and was writing an email to follow up when I thought…well, maybe this will be interesting too. I didn’t think they would buy it. Lo and behold, they did (and didn’t buy the other pieces I was following up on – ha!) I already knew the editor from my time writing for the Sports section, so I was a little casual in my approach, but I’d never written for him directly before.
The Pitch, part 1
Hey [EDITOR]! I wanted to check in on this one one more time since I’m in Avalon and going to check out lifeguard tryouts tomorrow. Also: I’m probably too late on this, but would you want an explainer about how flags down the shore work, given the Alito thing? It started as a very WASP tradition in the southern part of the Jersey Shore as an extension of wealthy Philadelphians and Main Liners to show off which Ivy League college you went to. It’s expanded from that to any college (see below – that’s our house right now) though of course Ivy League flags, and Villanova, are showing off, Eagles Superbowl wins, high school preps, and yes some political stuff though even I was shocked about his flag (he’s from this area and went to Princeton and Yale). My favorite though was a house that had six college flags plus a Frozen and Little Mermaid flag.
Anyway I thought about it on my run today and figured I’d toss it your way, and see if you had any thoughts on the other two ideas.
[I also attached a picture of the flags on our beach house]
The Timeline, part 1
Initial pitch: May 31, 2024
Assigned: June 7, 2024
Submitted: June 24, 2024
Publication Date: June 30, 2024
Paid: July 5, 2024
The one hitch was that I knew I’d be away June 30 to July 10. I made that clear, and my editor made sure that the story was all wrapped up before I left.
The Story, part 2
“What’s the Deal with all the Flags on the Jersey Shore?” The New York Times, July 5, 2024
The Back Story, part 2
The Times also has a column called “Times Insider,” where journalists give a behind the scenes look at how some articles came to be. I wrote one in 2021 about reporting and running a 24-hour race. I asked my Styles editor if I could pitch one about this story, and he said go ahead. I did so for two reasons: first, well, I would get paid twice. And second, I didn’t want someone to accuse me of being a New York City reporter carpetbagging into the area to write a piece. I know it. And I wanted to show that as well.
My editor for the main piece knew about my background reporting on the Jersey Shore, but this editor didn’t, hence why there’s more of that in this pitch. I made sure to point out that there were already photos, which would make one piece of their job easier if they bought the pitch.
The Pitch, part 2
Hey [EDITOR]! Hope you’re doing well. Been a while – I know! But I have another Times Insider idea for you, for a story I wrote that is scheduled to run online on Sunday in Styles. There’s photos too.
It’s about the tradition of flying flags from second homes along the South Jersey Shore. I’ve been writing about New Jersey for the Times since 2006, and my first two books were travel guides to that area of the country. I’d been going to the shore every summer since I was a baby, and I still didn’t know why people did this. I knew it was an odd quirk of the area, and I joked that the first weekend in May was the annual “raising of the Villanova flags” since people whose kids go there tended to also own homes down the shore.
When my father bought a house in Avalon, N.J. in 2020, I started taking pictures of all the unique flags I’d see on my morning runs there – custom flags of six colleges stitched together, Phillies flags, Eagles Superbowl win flags. That Christmas, my father bought each of his children their college’s flag to fly when they’re in the house.
I still didn’t know why though (other than I assumed showing off). Then the Times published the story about Supreme Court Justice Alito flying the Banner of Heaven flag from his home in Long Beach Island, three barrier islands up from Avalon. I was working from the dining room table of the Avalon house when the news broke. My University of Tampa flag was flying from the second story balcony. A friend asked me: hey, what’s with you shore folks and all the flags?
So I wrote about it.
If you think this would make for a good Times Insider, I’d be happy to write about it. The photographer on the story took a few photos of our shore house and the flags with a few of me in them — though goodness knows how I look since we’d just spent five hours driving up and down the islands looking for unique flags and talking to their owners. Of course, the last time I wrote one of these, I’d been running for 24 hours, so perhaps it’s a trend!
Let me know!
Timeline, part 2
Initial pitch: June 26, 2024
Assigned: June 27, 2024
Submitted: June 28, 2024
Publication Date: July 5, 2024
Paid: July 23, 2024
You’ll notice that this one came together MUCH faster, because it had to be done closely to the timing of the original story. I also pitched this and agreed to write it knowing that I’d have to work on it while I was away — and that’s OK because I really wanted to do this, and knew I’d have to adjust my plans. That’s a lot different than an editor trying to shove a revision onto me when they already know I’m going out of the office.
In the end, I’m pretty happy with how it went. As a bonus, both articles appeared in print on the same day — and a Sunday paper no less.
Two notes before I get on with it. First, I’m going to be speaking at two webinars for ASBPE’s “Solopreneur” series, about being a freelance writer. They’re in September. And second, remember this last newsletter about how I sent 12 check in emails and got two assignments immediately? It’s now up to five. That is VERY LUCKY, I know, but you’re not going to test your luck if you don’t try.
Recent Bylines
“An unusual sight in the US: A $570M Damn Goes Up in Colorado” for Construction Dive
“Cindy Hann ’22 is Working to Protect Artists from Theft by AI” for Princeton Alumni Weekly
“How — and Why — to Add Cybersecurity Provisions to Construction Contracts” for Construction Dive
What I’m Reading
- Long Bright River by Liz Moore. It’s about a beat cop in Philadelphia’s Kensington section, which has been the center of the opioid epidemic there. This is not an easy read, nor should it be. An even more depressing part is that Philadelphia’s new mayor seems hell bent on making it worse. Maybe she didn’t bother to read Moore’s book, which is a stark and frank portrayal of addiction.
What I’m Watching
- Homicide: Los Angeles. This is actually the second season of this docu-series. The first was about New York City. They profile different murder cases by talking to the same group of people who worked on them. I didn’t know the whole story behind how horrible Phil Spector was. Now I do.
- Dirty Pop: The Boy Band Scam. This is about Lou Pearlman, the mastermind behind boybands including Back Street Boys and *NSYNC. He was also running a massive ponzi scheme. It was pretty interesting, but I didn’t like that they sort of recreated Pearlman using old videos of him and a voice actor. It added absolutely nothing to the series, and just felt creepy.
- My Life is Murder (season 4). Alexa Crowe is back! I enjoy this New Zealand murder mystery show starring Lucy Lawless a.k.a. Xena, warrior princess. They had her shoot a bow and arrow in one episode, with a big wink to her most famous show. I watch it on AcornTV, though it’s made a cross over to PBS Passport this year.
Nail Polish of the Week
Sunlight Square by Nails, Inc. This is NEON yellow. I shy away from most neon colors because some brands stain my nails, but this one doesn’t. Yes, it matches a tennis ball.
Until next time,
Jen A. Miller
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