Class Description
What publications are open to freelance journalists, essayists, and op-ed writers? How do you write for them? In this intensive introduction, we'll dive into the world of local publications --- from DigBoston to the Boston Globe, Improper Bostonian to Boston Magazine, WBUR and community papers. We'll look what makes an idea interesting as a local story, and then focus on idea development and refinement to make your story ideas marketable. We’ll also learn how to write pitch letters. Students will be asked to flesh out at least one story idea, do some initial research, and write a query letter as practice to landing a potential assignment or accepted article, essay or op-ed. We won't workshop your stories, but we will share some of your work together, and do class exercises and a little homework to hone your skills. A visit from a local editor is possible.
Part of The Freelance Essentials Series, which teaches students the skills and craft to become working freelance journalists:
- Freelance Essentials: Writing Killer Pitch Letters
- Freelance Essentials: Writing and Pitching the Op-Ed
- Freelance Essentials: The Ethics, Practice and Business of the Freelance Life
To learn more about instructor Ethan Gilsdorf and his teaching style, check out the short podcast with him in our GrubStreet Instructor Interview series:
Thanks to the excellent literary citizenship of our donors, scholarships are available for all GrubStreet classes. To apply, click the gray "APPLY FOR SCHOLARSHIP" button. In order to be considered for a scholarship, you must complete your application at least one week before the start date of a class. Please await our scholarship committee's decision before registering for the class. We cannot hold spots in classes, so the sooner you apply, the better. Scholarships cannot be applied retroactively.
For more detailed information about GrubStreet scholarships, including how to contribute to scholarship funds for other students, click here.
This class will take place using Zoom videoconferencing. After registering, a yellow Resources tab will appear in this section containing a link to join class. Please note that you will need to be logged into view the Resources tab.
Zoom Participation:
In our experience, the intimate nature of a writing workshop benefits from on-camera participation. Students are of course welcome to turn their camera off whenever they need to, but it is a community norm for cameras to be on most of the time. You can learn more about using Zoom here.
Zoom Accessibility:
You can enable closed captioning at any time during the meeting by clicking the CC button at the bottom of the screen. If you'd like to access the transcript after class, please make sure to let your instructor ahead of time that you'd like a copy.