From Seawolf to Storyteller: Ross Barkan ’11 on Writing, Reporting and Making a Difference

Ross Barkan ’11 discovered his voice as a writer at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, crafting works as varied as the number of places he wrote around campus. By honing his skills in reporting, satire and fiction, and exploring a love of teaching through the English Teacher Preparation Program, Barkan quickly connected with a community of readers, writers and mentors. From being the editor and writer for the Stony Brook Press to founding the campus’s literary magazine, Spoke the Thunder, he took his passion for writing fiction and nonfiction works into a successful career spanning novels, essays and political reporting.

Today, Barkan is a two-time New York Press Club award-winning journalist, a columnist and an author with five published books. In the fall, you can also find him teaching as an adjunct at New York University, passing along the lessons and experience he has gained and adapting them to an ever-changing digital world. 

This Homecoming, Barkan brings that passion for engaging students to Stony Brook to share his experiences, insights and advice during “An Evening With Ross Barkan” on October 23.

How did you first get into writing? Was this something you did before coming to Stony Brook?

Though I wrote for my high school newspaper and always enjoyed English class, I really began writing seriously when I arrived at Stony Brook. My freshman year, I discovered the Stony Brook Press and enjoyed its almost underground Village Voice, screwball sensibility. I showed up at the offices wanting to write, and the first piece I wrote for them was an Onion-style article about how Stony Brook was announcing a new state-of-the-art construction site, since at that time there were construction sites everywhere you looked. It was a great place to be. If you had an idea, you pitched it and it could end up in print. Later, I became the editor and published a number of pieces that allowed me to write creatively about what was going on around campus. It was the sort of place I wanted to be — and from the first months there, it felt like home.

What kind of writing did you gravitate toward at Stony Brook?

Most of my published work was for the Stony Brook Press. I had the chance to write traditional journalism, columns, satire and essays, along with some fiction. Between the Press and Spoke the Thunder, the literary magazine I founded during my senior year, I was publishing quite a bit. It was here that I found I really enjoyed writing for an audience. People wanted to know what was on my mind and were eager to engage with the world. It was a thrilling feeling to know your words were sitting somewhere around campus at the SAC or Student Union, and someone could just page through what you wrote. At the time, they didn’t publish much online, but when they did, it was always fun and exciting. It was the beginning of my career in many ways.

Where around campus would you write? Did you have one favorite spot?

I certainly wrote in my room, but I would write all around campus. You could find me in the library, the computer labs, the art center by Tabler Quad or anywhere else. I never needed quiet, so I didn’t mind the noise. If I had my laptop, I could get going. To this day, I can still write anywhere.

Besides being an English major and graduate of the College of Arts and Sciences at SBU, you were part of the English Teacher Preparation Program. How did you get involved in that program, and how has it shaped you?

I honestly wasn’t sure what I was going to do after graduation. It’s always been a perilous job market for journalists, so that future was uncertain. I did like the idea of teaching. My father was an English teacher when he was in his 20s and said those were some of the most rewarding years of his career. With that in mind, I entered the program to get certified to teach high school English, having a more secure career path under my belt.

It was a great program with some amazing professors. I remember Patricia Dunn and Kenneth Lindblom, who ran a very successful program — and it was quite rigorous. I was impressed by how much was expected, what I learned and the real-world experience that came with it. I was a student-teacher at Central Islip High School, where I taught AP classes, and it was quite rewarding. It’s a time in my life I’ll always treasure. The teaching program at Stony Brook prepared me for the real world, and I was able to take what I learned and apply it to not just teaching, but my writing and reporting.

Because of that love for teaching, I still teach at NYU each fall semester as an adjunct. It helps that I’m in the field since each year is so different, so I’m frequently adapting the syllabus. When I started teaching there in 2019, there was no discussion on AI — now we have an AI policy and robust discussions on its applicability. There’s always something new to discuss, and it’s something I love about teaching. It’s why I still do it.

How has your writing evolved from your first job to now? You’ve written for several publications, so what has that journey been like?

I very much started at the bottom. I began my career as an unpaid intern for a now-defunct Brooklyn magazine, The L Magazine. Though I wasn’t paid, I did contribute to the website and write for the magazine. After that, I got my first full-time job at The Queens Tribune, which is now also defunct. That was really my first foray into reporting. It’s still the hardest I’ve ever worked — seven days a week, covering boroughs larger than most cities and writing about every topic imaginable. While it was a stressful experience, it taught me a lot. From there, I moved on to become a political and City Hall reporter for The New York Observer.

After a while, I left and embarked on this long freelance journey, which has been preferable for me. I now write consistently for a number of places, including a twice-a-week column at New York magazine. I also contribute to The New York Times, do a column for The Statesman in the United Kingdom and have my own Substack website, where I try to publish every week.

It’s been a slow grind. There’s no one moment where suddenly you made it. It’s great that now people come to me, but for many years I was always pitching, finding editor emails and outlets for my work. I enjoy having the flexibility, and my days are never the same. Much like at Stony Brook, some days I’m writing at the beach or in my apartment or traveling. It’s a life where you have to be prepared for unpredictability, and that suits me. I don’t take it for granted.

What is it like being an author of nonfiction and fiction?

I’ve always cared a great deal about fiction. It’s been a primary passion in my life in many ways. I currently have three published novels with a fourth, Colossus, coming out next April. It’s just hard to make a living writing fiction. I’ve also cared about nonfiction, especially politics, and have carved out a niche there — publishing a book about [former New York Governor] Andrew Cuomo and a collection of essays. There’s a desire among readers to be educated but also have complicated issues explained because there’s so much confusion in the public sphere.

I’ve always done both fiction and nonfiction, and there’s a long tradition of writers doing both. I try to be the best I can be in every mode and take them all very seriously.

What advice do you have for students or aspiring writers?

Read a lot and write a lot. Writing isn’t about having the perfect conditions; it’s about showing up every day. Even if it’s just 50 or 100 words, even if you aren’t feeling inspired that day. Get something on the page. Read widely, whether it’s novels, nonfiction, magazines or audiobooks. I think reading is incredibly important, and I stress that to all my students. To be a writer, you must have a great amount of reading experience. One goes into the other.

What are you most looking forward to about your Homecoming event and being back on campus?

I always enjoy questions from students, faculty and the public. The back and forth is most exciting for me, and I find students especially have the greatest questions — even better than professional members of the media.

I’m also excited to share a bit about my experience. I’ve been writing now for about 13 to 14 years, and the industry has certainly shifted, both negatively and positively. I find that it’s good to offer insights and give the audience something they can use on their own paths. As an undergrad, I always appreciated having someone in the writing world share their experiences, so I like to give back and be as honest and helpful as I can be.

As for being back on campus, I look forward to seeing everything that’s changed. Already, I can point to where the hotel stands and tell students I remember when that was just a patch of woods. It’s fun to see the evolution of the school and revisit old memories. To think back to who you were, where you are now, how you’ve evolved and how you haven’t. I think it’s going to be fun to stroll around and see what it all looks like.

“An Evening With Ross Barkan” will be on Thursday, October 23, at the Poetry Center of the Humanities building from 5 pm to 6 pm. Click here to see all of the exciting Homecoming events and register.

–Kristina Brandt