You're Writing About What....From Where?—by Derek Pettie

Travel writing sounds like a phenomenal career for an English major, so why not start off this exploration in Mongolia.  Well I'm not there, but that is where I found Bill Donahue, a freelance writer who has written for magazines such as The Atlantic, Backpacker, and Runners World, newspapers like the Washington Post and The Oregonian, and news website Salon.com.  While waiting for his second email, I speculated what he was doing on the other side of the world: trekking in the Sayan Mountains, traveling across the country’s 1900 miles on horseback or covering the Horse procession documenting Ghengis Khan’s 850th anniversary?  Actually he had “scared” up a smaller story to write about, cycling from Ulanabatoor, Mongolia’s capital city, 35 miles to the world's largest statue of Khan, before traveling to Bejing for an article on American ultra-marathoner, Diane Van Deren. 

Jealous yet?

If the answer is yes, then it's time to delve further into what the job entails.  Travel writing is more than just reviews and is primarily about the writing rather than the travel.  An important distinction to make.  Whether a piece is written about a pilgrimage to Djibouti to discover what chewing Khat leaves is all about, or covering a destination or event near your home, what matters is the quality of the writing.  Frank Bures, a freelancer from Minnesota, has focused on building his career by improving as a writer, instead of trying to get published in high-profile publications.  This has had led to pieces in Outside, Bicycling and he is currently working on a story for Harpers.

Still interested?

Music Journalism- By Devan Cook

To put it simply: music journalism, or music criticism, is reporting about music.  Critics of popular music will often write album reviews, song reviews, concert reviews and previews, band/artist profiles, music related news, etc. While music journalism is most frequently associated with magazines like Rolling Stone and Spin, music critiques can be found everywhere from local weeklies, television broadcasts (this once included MTV, back when the “M” actually stood for music), websites and blogs, and major newspapers like the New York Times.

Writing up a Fortune: the Easy Life of Freelancing - by Fleecy

Freelance writers have the luxury of working from home, free from the burdens of bosses, coworkers, commutes and office hours. Such freedom, however, leaves the writer responsible for his own inspiration and work regimen; there’s no boss to handle the overhead, and no colleagues with whom to relate. Consequently, the flexible schedules often entail hectic work loads, with completed articles returned for immediate revisions in the midst of looming deadlines for current assignments. And since the work loads are inconsistent, so is the pay. Therefore, a big paycheck must be spent with responsible budgeting foresight, for it might just be the only paycheck of an otherwise meager season in the marketplace. Furthermore, since the assignments come in fits and starts, freelancers have to exercise the discipline of turning down some wonderful projects when the stack gets high, for such assignments might be impossible amidst an already tightly filled docket; a tough call for writers who’ve lived through their share of work droughts. As women’s magazine freelancer Margrit Ragland states in her mediabistro guide Get a Freelance Life, “[d]on’t take on too much just because you can, and don’t be too worried when editors aren’t biting – there’s always something new for you to try pitching” (Ragland 11).

Writing the Adventures

Somewhere people are actually being paid to write about testing free gear in the Alps, hiking in Alaska with their kids, and being dropped by helicopter into the woods and finding a way out. And at least one man has been paid to climb and write about Mt. Everest. Outdoor magazine journalists inspire people to get outside, whether it’s on hiking trails, bikes, skis, rivers or mountains.

As a subscriber of such myself, these writers show parts of the Earth, most of which I’ll probably never go, but remain grateful for the opportunity to know that such wild and rugged places are out there. Food for fantasy. But, for the trips I do go on, the various magazines have their own mission that tries to show where the best and freshest places are, what gear is solid, as well as supplying essential safety and other clever tips. After that, it’s up to the reader to get out and make his or her own adventure happen.

Writing as a Music Critic

Is it all about the music as some musicians will put it in their interviews; or is it something else? In the world we live in today, we have hundreds of new ways to discover music and assess whether we like it or not and even more opportunities to hear or read about what other people think. For example, take a band or musician that you like and type their name into Pandora.com, now you have the ability to listen to music based around one band at the touch of a button. If that’s not enough for you, people who want to see more physical evidence in connecting bands or musicians, try mapping your favorite artists with the help of music-map.com by conducting a search of that same artist. Either way you look at it there are many different ways to discover new music other than word of mouth or reading the latest issue of Rolling Stone. With the endless options of discovering new music, there is the need for people to review music as an art since exists since so much music exists that one can listen to and discover but we still have need for unwanted music and genre classifications.

Broadcast Writing

News writers write, edit, and sometimes do on-air reporting of news stories. They should be naturally curious, like research and writing, and have the ability to simplify and produce reports for newscasts and news and information programs as well as the Internet. These people are responsible for investigating, gathering information, and reporting news and current affairs.

Beth Hyams, editor, newscaster and radio host at Oregon Public Broadcasting, writes and edits her own copy. She studied English and American lit in college but never planned on working as a journalist. “I wrote all through high school and college. I thought I would be a fiction writer. I had always been a writer, but I didn’t know I was going to be a journalist,” she says. Beth has been working at OPB for 17 years, and in radio for 25. She says within that time nothing has changed for writing; the basics are the same, but the technology has advanced significantly.

Industry Coverage

Once upon a time, journalists covered science and war. Both have become too ‘conventional’ for modern print and broadcast news. You could still hold a war or technological revolution these days but nobody would tune-in to it. Newspapers are finding that it is hard to market the news to diversified readerships. You just cannot cater-to them all. Magazines might have an edge because they’re usually read by more specific audiences. Magazine editors have to bank on stories that will still be news when their publications are released anyway. In newspapers, stories don’t get as much time to run cold before going to print. Broadcast journalism has encountered similar issues. Audiences get their news before they get home to the TVs and follow topics online without ever needing to pick up a newspaper.




More than any other medium, print journalism had to adapt-to the new technologies of the Information Age. Among an already elite corps, journalists now distinguish themselves by their online sophistication. That trend will continue while print-media becomes more interactive. ‘Bloggers’ serve a unique niche between print and internet media, and are the latest members of the civil press. They can be the most controversial, too. They often represent only their own views or concerns. So far, blogging has demonstrated the effectiveness of ‘civil media’. Like traditional print journalism, bloggers can have to answer to their content. Their accountability is usually limited to the extent of its exposure though. So is their influence.

Travel Writing-Justin Hoyt

Travel writing might rank as one of the most idealized jobs for us writers entering the job market. On the outset it looks as though it is a chance to go get into adventures, eat good food, and meet strange ladies all while documenting the travels in order to satisfy an editor.

It's not all a lark through exotic treasure lands or late-night dance parties with women clad in bikinis made of seashells. Not that luxuries can't be enjoyed but your there to write and if distracted and a poor article is submitted, that will probably be your last trip. Focusing on the writing involves being aware of your surroundings, look for the features other writers may have missed. This includes avoiding cliche travel writing at all costs. Everyone knows what to expect from the Eiffel Tower, not everyone knows the really dark, secluded but charming pub around the corner.

Narrative Justice

In the broadcast radio industry, it pays to be an engineer. There’s not a lot of ‘copy’ in radio, it all comes from on-air hosts and Associated Press feeds. The corner of the market devoted to correspondent coverage of broadcast radio offers the best opportunities for a writer. Not that a good writer wouldn’t make a good on-air host. A degree in English usually gives anyone a respect for the power of words.

Historically, radio journalists and correspondents have been on-air personalities. In the days before television news and AP feeds, leads were tracked and reported on by radio journalists. The internet has allowed listeners to access news on their terms. Like newspapers, radio news has changed. In radio’s case, it has shifted to talk radio and intellectual forums.

News Writer for The News

News writers write and edit news stories from information collected by reporters and correspondents and sometimes, if they’re chatty enough, get promoted to reporters or correspondents. Journalists are naturally curious animals. They research, write, omit serial commas, and produce reports for newscasts and news & information programs as well as the internets.

Broadcast journalists are responsible for investigating, gathering and reporting on news and current affairs. They are expected to present this information in a fair, balanced and accurate way through news bulletins, documentaries and other factual programs for radio, television and online broadcast.

Writers generate ideas for stories/features and follow leads from news agencies, the police, the public, press conferences and other sources.

A list of fun and games for journalists:

What the World Needs Now is Another Travel Writer

Actually it does.

Despite the allure of the job, many writers do not stick with travel writing for various reasons; low pay, early morning flights followed by late night bus rides, realizing they are not the next Hemingway, intense competition, traveling alone, spending your days and nights eating, sleeping, and visiting places that you'd rather not. Did I mention the low pay.

Roger Norum, a British travel writer put it well, "It’s not enough to be discontent with your job to want to become a writer: most writers are much more discontented than you with their lives."

BUT, if you love to write and travel, and can deal with the downsides of the gig then there are some amazing adventures waiting for you. What could be better than getting paid to travel?

Film Critic: A Job

Does the thought of getting paid to watch movies and write 11-thousand words a week about them make you swoon? It’s a typical work week that film critic Shawn Levy from The Oregonian recounted in his day-by-day blog. We can safely assume he didn’t start off writing about film so prolifically. So how does one get started, you ask?

Writing chops and a love for movies are obvious precursors to wanting a job as a film critic. To turn this inkling into a reality, get some clips together. Write a few film reviews and make them emit the luminous passion you have for film. In other words, make them as perfect as possible. Compare them to published film reviews. Show your clips to friends and family. Keep in mind that most film critics are writing for a broad audience, so reactions from non-film buffs are useful. If you’re a student, your college newspaper could be a good in. If you’re not, look into local publications.

Music Journalism

Music journalism, or music criticism, is reporting about music. Critics of popular music will often write album reviews, song reviews, concert reviews and previews, band/artist profiles, music related news, etc. While music journalism is most frequently associated with magazines like Rolling Stone and Spin, music critiques can be found everywhere from local weeklies, television broadcasts (this once included MTV, not so much anymore), websites and blogs, and major newspapers like the New York Times.

Along with applicable writing skills, a music journalist must also have a vast knowledge of popular music, both past and present. Some recommendations for expanding a knowledge and understanding of both music acts past and present, as well as examining the writing techniques of other music journalists would be to read music magazines like Paste and Wax Poetics, follow websites like pitchfork.com, read the music sections of local weeklies, and attend a multitude of concerts and local shows.

Sports Journalism

A lot of people may think that reporting about sports may be irrelevant from a news stand point nor worthwhile to have its own section in a newspaper. This may be so but the truth is that there are millions of sports fans worldwide that wish to be informed about what is happening in the sports world. If we look at sports journalism as a form of telling readers a type of news defined as: “Information about recent events or happenings, especially as reported by newspapers, periodicals, radio, or television,” from thefreedictionary.com, then sports journalism is a reporting of information, events ect. in the sports world.

Other arguments towards disregarding sports journalism is that sports journalists are too objective and do not report the news of what is happening in sports. That may be true but what form of journalism is not objective at all? If you desired to read a non objective piece of writing then you probably will not get any closer than sports journalism because at one point you will come across the statistics from the event, team or specific athlete that is being reported on. There is a voice to be heard by sports journalists even if they are objective because they can allow information that may not be recorded in spread sheets and stats such as crowd noise or weather conditions that may have affected the outcome.