Magazine Writing From the Boonies
How to Write for a Living While Buried in the Backwoods
In their book, Magazine Writing from the Boonies, two experienced Canadian freelance writers, Mark Zuehlke and his one-time student Louise Donnelly, present a been-there, done-that guide for the beginning writer. Even if you are a freelance writer living in the city, the book has much to offer.
Experienced Magazine Writers
Each of the authors has developed a full-time writing career in a relatively small town (Kelowna and Vernon, BC, Canada, respectively*). Their personal stories, their anecdotes of success and failure, and their combined advice based on practical experience form the content of the book.
According to the book blurb, Zuehlke has published more than 100 articles in magazines such as Canadian Business, The Financial Post, Profit Magazine, Canada and the World and Canadian. Donnelly's work has appeared in such magazines as The Financial Post, Moneywise, Canadian, and a variety of trade magazines. These are established professional writers, working full-time and earning a living from their craft.
How to Write in the Backwoods
What gives this book its unique perspective is that it was written in 1992, in the early days of the personal computer and pre-Internet, by people who didn't have access to even a major library. To some extent, this dates the book--especially parts of the sections on research, copyright, and the Canadian GST--but not badly, for there are still many would-be writers in rural areas who lack the convenience of Internet access, bookstores, and libraries. Even so, as this book points out, if you have a place to write and occasional access to a telephone, you can do the job.
A Basic Course on How to Write
To some degree, the book is a basic writing course (no surprise, since both authors conduct writing courses), with familiar topics aimed at the out-of-the-way writer. How to find ideas and story topics when you're far from the center of things; how to research markets when your local store carries five different magazines; how to write a query so that a national magazine will want a local story; all good stuff.
Louise's anecdotes about scavenging for magazine samples in the local landfill and writing on a piece of plywood as a table are particularly enjoyable. Of great value are both writers' specific examples of recognizing story ideas in their own backyards. The samples of successful queries are also interesting and helpful.
At only 131 pages, the book is concise, yet it does a thorough job, and even experienced writers will find it helpful. For the target reader, the beginner in the boonies, it's worth tracking down.
Zuehlke, Mark and Louise Donnelly, Magazine Writing From the Boonies.Ottawa:Carleton University Press, 1992. 131 pages. Paper 9780886291853. Might be out of print, but available by inter-library loan.
*Note: The Okanagan valley cities of Vernon and Kelowna have grown over the past 15 years. Kelowna now has a population of over 100,000 which qualifies it as a good-sized city by Canadian standards. Vernon, at 34,000, is also ranked as a city. They no longer qualify as boonies. That starts just up the mountain, about five miles from the city limits.
Rural Landscape, Writer's Retreat in the Boonies
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