Hi, Hopeless Grad Student, thank you for your letter and I understand your problem.
I deeply know how your feel because I love writing and critical thinking and want to be a journalist too. Actually I want to be kind of a music journalist.
By the way, I know the journalist is one of the most difficult and hard-working jobs so that to be a good journalist, you have to study harder than other people.
However, I think you may have good sense of writing. You can’t know the result of your effort soon.
Hang in there love! You’ve got to hold on now. Later you will be a good writer. Good luck!