Good Stuff for Writers, 10/27
Atlas Obscura, Rewire, Wine Enthusiast, and more
Hiya writers,
I’m not sure how we’re supposed to get any work done this week. With the election coming up and all the unknowns that follow, I suspect most of us are feeling distracted at best right now. Tough times really underscore both the highs and lows of freelancing. On the one hand, we don’t need permission to climb back into bed at 1pm and binge watch the Great British Baking Show. On the other, we don’t make any money when we don’t work. Logging onto a company Slack channel and being just present enough to get paid for the day sounds kinda luxurious right now, doesn’t it?
If you’ve been here awhile, then you know I started this newsletter because times are tough. And because I believe the work we do as freelance writers, especially when times are tough, is really, really important. Which is why we must have each other’s backs in this industry. We have to keep encouraging each other and finding ways to make it work, because stories are what keep us informed and inspired and angry enough to keep fighting through all this shit.
That’s all to say, I’m here for ya. Take the mental health days when you need them. And keep writing when you can. We just have to.
(Jackson says hi.)
Now. On to some good stuff…
Education, Inspiration, Etc.
Guernica Magazine is accepting applications for their Winter/Spring fellowship program.
The Nine Dots Prize asks “What does it mean to be young in an aging world?” Answer in 3,000 words. One winner receives $100,000 to expand their answer into a book.
I’ve been hooked on the Longform podcast lately and last week’s episode with Latif Nasser was one of my favorite interviews yet. He offers excellent advice on how to find stories, and you can read more about his story-finding tactics here.
The Solutions Journalism Network is holding a intro webinar on the ins and outs of Solutions Journalism on November 4. RSVP.
I’m enjoying this newsletter series on the types of stories that rarely work.
And a recommendation for finding structure and flow:
What I’m Reading
But the future is the unwritten pages of the history book, the pages we are writing with our actions in the present. And in a moment like this, there’s a delicate balancing act between too much confidence in the desired outcome and too much defeatism that it could ever happen; both lead to inaction when action is required to bring it about. [Rebecca Solnit on Black Swans, Slim Chances, and the 2020 Presidential Election, LitHub]
How we might actually build an economy that isn’t based on greed. [Aeon]
These six core values might help us better understand those we don’t agree with. [We Are Not Divided]
As children, we all understood darkness and danger in stories. [Guernica]
Of course she read my book. This woman, who not only read my book but spoke to me about it, who wrote, who called, who loved me, who said she couldn’t stop thinking of me, who said she thought about things differently now, who said I had gotten under her skin and she would never be the same. [The Power of a Judith Krantz Sex Scene, Longreads]
Editors Who Want Your Pitches
That’s all for today, friends. I’ll be back in your inbox soon. Sooner, if you’re a paid subscriber! 💛
Stay Inspired,
Britany