 At college, Fiske often wrote short stories and sketches for magazines and soon became an editorial writer and dramatic critic for the daily newspaper the "Jersey City Argus".He later served in a similar capacity for the "New York Star," which set the stage in 1879 for what would turn out to be a 32-year affiliation with the popular trade magazine the "New York Dramatic Mirror".After achieving success as a contributor to the "Dramatic Mirror", Fiske decided to leave college after his freshman year with hopes of becoming a journalist.