Hey weirdos! It’s that time again: we’re looking for some more warm human bodies to type words with us in a desperate attempt to fill the shrieking void. This time, we’re looking specifically for words about food, home, crafting, and DIY culture. Sound good? Great, keep reading!
Who We’re Looking For:
Autostraddle is looking for food writers who can cover one or more of the following stories/areas:
- Original recipes
- Vegan/Gluten-free/Soy-free/Nut-free recipes or a variation on those themes
- Original cocktail recipes
- Recipes with meat in them, but seriously
- Food-themed lists, like this one
- Queer cooking culture
- Cooking utensil and gadget info
- Queer cook/baker profiles
- Restaurant guides and reviews
We’re also interested in DIY and home writers with knowledge in the following areas:
- DIY project tutorials
- DIY accessories and fashion
- Tutorials with original patterns for sewing/knitting/crocheting/embroidery etc.
- Queer crafting circles
- Interior design tips
- Decor profiles
These lists are in no way exhaustive. If you have a great idea, we’d love to hear it! We are especially interested in bringing on writers who are currently running their own food and craft blogs. A good camera and access to photo editing software is a must! Original photography is required for almost all posts. We are only interested in reliable, web savvy applicants.
Time Commitment:
We are looking for regular food and DIY coverage or columns. You can apply to do one of these things or several of these things. Frequency for these varies from once or twice a month for regular food or DIY columns or videos.
Experience/Background:
- Online writing experience (personal blogs count)
- Solid knowledge of at least one area of food or DIY and overall knowledge of the food or DIY community
- Knowledge of and familiarity with all things Autostraddle
- Comfort with social media
- Comfort with having your photograph & name on the internet
How to Apply:
Send resumé (PDF), cover letter (in the body of the email with “Food/DIY Writer Application for Autostraddle” as a Subject line) and at least two relevant writing samples that include original photography to hansen [at] autostraddle [dot] com and cc: rachel [at] autostraddle [dot] com. If you have extra relevant video tutorials or photos, send those too!
Your cover letter should answer the following questions:
- What’s your availability?
- Why do you want to do this?
- What areas are you an expert in?
- 2-3 clips/specific posts that highlight your best work (should highlight knowledge and writing style)
- Concrete description of a regular, if pitching a regular, and four proposed column entries under that regular.
We can’t wait to hear from you!
What’s In It For You:
As an independently-owned website with an enormous readership and insignificant advertising revenue, we struggle every month to pay the five full-time staffers (40-80+ hours a week), four part-time staffers (15-30 hours a week) and 18 Contributing Editors (15+ hours a week) who keep this complicated operation running. Unfortunately we’re not able to pay occasional contributors (yet) — we’re well aware that this sucks and if we had any agency to change the situation, we would!
But you will build an impressive portfolio, be featured on a website with over 3.5 million views a month (we’re the second most popular queer-lady website in the world!) and have the freedom to write about the things you care about. We offer you free stuff whenever we can, A-Camp and Merch discounts (plus the chance to apply to work at camp and thus attend for free) and financial reimbursement for any expenses incurred while doing your “job.”
There’s room for advancement into paid positions within Autostraddle, and Autostraddle writers have gone on to secure gainful employment or snag freelance assignments at places like Gawker, Refinery 29, ReadWriteWeb, The Feminist Press, The Awl, Bitch Magazine, xojane, The Huffington Post and so many more!
Most of all, you should have fun! This means that you should consider writing, researching and working really hard to be “fun.” We do!
Deadline For Applications: 11:59 PM on Sunday, March 16
