‘Bit of fun’
45 Years of This Magazine Covers
Whether you’ve read it, written for it, or, gasp, have done neither, This Magazine‘s collection of 45 years’ worth of cover designs is worth browsing. From the very first This Magazine is About Schools in April 1966 up to its current 45th anniversary issue, watching the look of the magazine change over the years, as […]
Content farm spoof hits its mark
Content farming, as a web-based business model, is going through a tough time. Increased scrutiny from media critics and frustrated web users is targeting sites like Mahalo, which had to significantly decrease its staff after Google made its algorithm change, and the various online properties owned by Demand Media. Some people also include the Huffington […]
Sun News Network: the Right stuff
Yesterday, some unsuspecting late-afternoon channel surfers were likely puzzled by the sudden appearance of the Sun News Network on their screens. It sprang into action at 5 p.m. (after a half-hour preview), just in time to greet 9-to-5ers, still angry from their long commutes home and primed for the pundits’ right-leaning rants. The long-term ratings […]
Kurt Vonnegut’s tips for storytellers
Whether you’ve seen it before and need a refresher or it’s new to you, this lecture by the late Kurt Vonnegut—who began his incredibly sucessful writing career as a journalist—on the “shape of stories” is as full of laughs as it is an instructive summary of the most popular narrative arcs, and, therefore, always worth […]
Let me take this job, or shove it
Here’s an interesting tidbit that’s recently gone viral: a letter from Hunter S. Thompson looking for work at the Vancouver Sun. Reading it is a treat, as reading HST (nearly) always is. The letter is from 1958 – more than a decade before Hunter achieved his first taste of fame notoriety with Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. […]
Best. Assignment. Ever.
Raise your hand if you’ve recently had an experience like this with an editor. (Really, what woman hasn’t wanted to trade her children for a handbag?)
