Why Taylor Swift once wrote me a letter, how I coaxed Mila Kunis to the US Marine Corps Ball and the time my interview ended up a "Jeopardy" question

How my early journalism days in Hollywood shaped my war work today

Some conflict reporters go to Harvard and earn Masters Degrees in International Relations. Others work for UNICEF and branch out. And then there are those of us who score a dream journalism job at twenty, under the barrage of glitter bombs that is Hollywood. I wouldn’t change this training ground for the world and I wanted to share a few recollections from those old journals…

The fondest memories I have are of seeing newcomers, genuinely lovely people, rise through the ranks into superstardom. On one occasion, a Nashville publicist named Paula begs me to interview her new client, Taylor Swift. 

I sit with this unknown bubbly blonde in western boots for hours, gossiping about everything from boys to God to diaries and Tammy Wynette as she strums on her guitar…