Once in a while, an author I'm interviewing—usually an early-career scientist—will tell me I have a cool job. I tend to agree.

Being a science communicator means that I know nothing about everything. When someone asks me what I'm working on, I might tell them about the science of human screams or the secrets of menopausal whales, but just enough to keep it interesting. I like to think that I have all the qualities of a great dinner guest, but the conversation rarely flows into the realm of left-handedness in kangaroos, an area where I can really chime in.

I stumbled into my career in college. My plans to be a genetic counselor faltered when I had to drop a statistics class. To make up the lost credits, I designed a summer independent study inspired by the weekly readings of the New York Times Science section assigned to all Advanced Cell Biology students. My textbook was A Field Guide for Science Writers, supplemented by readings from the likes of John McPhee, Elizabeth Kolbert, Deborah Blum, and Chris Mooney. This interest turned into a job in my college communications office, where I wrote events press releases and the occasional math or science article for the alumni magazine. I'm grateful for that opportunity to this day.

But let's talk about you. If this blog post piqued your interest, I'm assuming you're someone who is a natural storyteller. Perhaps you have a few bylines out in the world. Or maybe you just want some tips. Either way, here are some things that I wish I had known from the start:

Read people who inspire you to write better

I feel anxious when I thumb through my annual edition of the Best American Science Writing series. It hits me that I'll never write as well as any of the people in that book. But then I stop and think about some of the narrative techniques that were used or how I might be able to apply a certain style to something as "bland" as a press release. Writers lay out their secrets with their published works. Steal them and make them your own.

Read about other kinds of writing

A writer is a writer. Your prose may include the names of proteins, but that doesn't mean there's no benefit to learning how to write fiction, lyrics, or screenplays. There are lessons in how to create a character (which you may need to do if profiling a scientist) or how to give your work rhythm. Also, there are many great books about the craft of writing and grammar. One of the most influential for me has been William Zinsser's On Writing Well. Try to read at least one a year to catch any bad habits that you've been forming or to practice a new skill.

Write stories you personally would want to read

Do the hard work to make information interesting. If you find yourself filling a story with technical details or tons of proper nouns, stop and consider whether it is something that you would actually want to read. Set a goal that any document with your byline is something that you would click on if it appeared in your Facebook or Twitter newsfeed. Producers of media sometimes forget that we are also consumers.

Be patient with replies to your interview requests

Unless you're the New York Times, scientists may sometimes ignore your passionate pleas for information. People wouldn't return my e-mails or phone calls even when I worked as an intern at Smithsonian Magazine. Don't let the success of a story rest on any one source. There are many reasons why they may not be available. One of the benefits I enjoy working as a press officer is that people are usually more willing to talk to you.

Don't limit yourself to your list of questions during an interview

It's not unusual for a person you're interviewing to ask for a list of questions beforehand. I always do it as a courtesy and will circle back to them, but for the most part I try to make an interview a structured conversation. For any given study I'm writing about, I usually touch on what inspires the researchers, how they know what they know, and who disagrees with them. I do always ask two questions when I'm preparing a press release that usually give me the best quotes: "What surprised you?" And "Is there anything I didn't ask you about that you think people should know?"

Transcribe interviews yourself

There are different schools of thought about interview transcripts. I find that transcribing it myself forces me to listen to and process what a scientist has told me, especially if I'm working on multiple things at once. Sometimes things start to click when I listen the second time through.

Don't let the scientist tell the story

One of my rookie mistakes is that I would lean too heavily on the scientific jargon or fill my stories with lots of quotes. I did it out of respect for the scientist, but after my aunt told me that she loved my writing but didn't understand a word of it, I needed to think about how I could let my audience in a little bit.

One exercise is to practice talking about the research with a friend and ask them what they find most interesting. I also don't look at my notes when I'm writing an opening paragraph and try to explain it as I would to a stranger.

Don't hesitate to check your facts

One of my most embarrassing moments came when I was writing a blog post about the Hubble telescope and just got the information wrong. My editor and I received an angry e-mail from the scientist and we had to temporarily take down the story so that it could be corrected.

While journalism often says you should never show a source your work, there is no harm in checking facts and quotes. It's better to get the science right than put someone in a situation where they feel they've been misquoted or misinterpreted. One of my favorite things about working as a press officer is that scientists always sign off on what you write about them.

Write direct titles

I always cringe when I see a title along the lines of "A colorful hope" or "Secrets unveiled" or something similarly vague. In a world where you have 144 characters or less to get people to click on a story, make sure that your title at least gives your audience a sense about what they might be getting themselves into.

Help others with their writing

This is a public service announcement to pay it forward. Not everyone is going to have the opportunity to develop the same communications skills as a science writer that you are, so offer your writing services to friends or colleagues when possible. Being able to teach writing is a whole other skill set, and it will test your abilities as a communicator.

Fast forward nine years from my science writing independent study, and I'm the press officer for Cell Press. The papers that I write press releases for now get write-ups in the New York Times Science section. It's a privilege to do this work for scientists and I enjoy being able to share their stories with the rest of the world.

If you'd like to chat about becoming a science communicator, feel free to reach out to me at jcaputo@cell.com. Cell Press is also in the process of developing a science writing internship program beginning in 2016, so stay tuned.