CNF 76 — Pitch and Publish Your Nonfiction Stories
Quarter: Spring
Day(s): Saturday and Sunday
Course Format: Live Online (About Formats)
Duration: 2 days
Date(s): Apr 15—Apr 16
Time: 10:00 am—12:30 pm (PT)
Refund Deadline: Apr 8
Unit: 0
Grade Restriction: NGR only; no credit/letter grade
Tuition: $255
Instructor(s): Amy Ettinger
Limit: 21
Class Recording Available: Yes
Status: Open
Spring
Date(s)
Apr 15—Apr 16
2 days
Refund Date
Apr 8
0 Unit
Fees
$255
Grade Restriction
NGR only; no credit/letter grade
Instructor(s):
Amy Ettinger
Limit
21
Recording
Yes
Open
How do you share your story with millions of readers? The country’s largest media outlets—including The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Time magazine—are often looking for experts to sound off on important topics of the day. Whether you are looking to get your first byline or to boost your digital platform, you will learn how to develop an idea into an article that editors will pay to publish. We will cover opinion pieces, personal essays, reported features, and criticism, and we will talk about which magazines, newspapers, and websites are most open to new writers. The course will also explore how to take your freelance writing career to the next level and offer tips on building ongoing relationships with editors. In addition, we will consider which nonfiction pieces should be written before reaching out to an editor and which types of stories can be sold using a well-targeted query. Students will gain an understanding of the online and print marketplace and will leave the course with at least one promising story idea that is ready to pitch and a strategy for selling the idea to an editor.
AMY ETTINGER
Author; Journalist; Essayist
Amy Ettinger is the author of Sweet Spot: An Ice Cream Binge Across America. She has appeared on All Things Considered, Marketplace, Here & Now, Forum, and The California Report. She has written for The New York Times, McSweeney’s, The Washington Post, The Huffington Post, New York, and Time. Textbooks for this course:
There are no required textbooks; however, some fee-based online readings may be assigned.