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The Boston Globe -- Wondering how to get started in writing? Follow the example of William Goldman '52. Start by being the editor of the student literary magazine, which won't publish any of your stories. Then take a creative writing course, in which you get the only C of your college career. Have your favorite story rejected 69 times. After working a few years and earning a master's degree, decide it's now or never, and dash out your first novel in 10 days.

Goldman relates this story in a piece noting the publication of his recent book, Which Lie Did I Tell? More Adventures in the Screen Trade. A prolific screenwriter as well as novelist, with produced credits dating back to 1965, Goldman attributes his success to hard work and lots of luck.

His book, by the way, is "a shrewd and beguiling blend of Hollywood war stories, screen-writing shoptalk, and... unstinting joie de vivre," wrote reporter Mark Feeney.

The New York Times -- The recent appointment of Robert Spano '83 to the position of music director of the Atlanta Symphony was noted in a story in "The Living Arts" section. Spano will retain his current position as conductor of the Brooklyn Philharmonic.

"Mr. Spano... is considered among the most important young American conductors, having cut his teeth as assistant conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra from 1990 to 1993," wrote Susan Elliott. Since then, Spano has conducted European ensembles and major American orchestras and made debuts with the Lyric Opera of Chicago and the Royal Opera. He also heads the conducting fellowship program at Tanglewood Music Center.

The appointment was noted in many papers around the country, including the Houston Chronicle, The Boston Globe, and The Atlanta Constitution.

Entertainment Weekly -- Those who know Julie Taymor '74 only as the director of the Broadway show "The Lion King" are in for a bit of a surprise with Titus, her feature-film writing, directing, and designing debut.

The film, an adaptation of the early Shakespeare tragedy starring Anthony Hopkins and Jessica Lange, "depicts life in ancient Rome as one big circle of death," said the weekly.

"I love revenge stories," Taymor told EW. "They're full of strong emotions."

Christian Science Monitor -- An article on winter term at colleges around the country highlighted Oberlin's program. Many students pursue internships or, like first-year student Rebecca Thompson, who spent winter term studying Latin, branch out into new subjects. "I've always wanted to learn Latin and never got around to it," Thompson said.

Alumni who remember their own winter term experiences are often eager to help students. Aaron Levin '68, a freelance science writer, and Pamela Hines '74, senior editor at Science magazine, tutored three students on how to write general-interest science stories.

"This is a nice opportunity for students to experience a new environment or career option," Hines said.

Architectural Record -- The noted architectural publication took note of the completion of the Adam Joseph Lewis Center for Environmental Studies, commenting on the building's construction, designed for sustainability, as well as its landscaping and educational mission.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette -- William F. Schulz '71, executive director of Amnesty International, said his organization's work in this country has focused on the death penalty.

The U.S., he said, is one of just five nations in which minors and the mentally impaired can be legally executed. He sees progress, however. The suspension of executions in Illinois, after death row inmates there were cleared of murder convictions, marked "a profound breakthrough," he said.

Schulz, a Unitarian-Universalist minister, was in Pittsburgh to participate in a conference on the state of human rights around the world, part of the H.J. Heinz Co. Foundation Fellowship Program at the University of Pittsburgh.