Reading the journals: from new science to science news
When I was a graduate student, I enjoyed Fridays most. Those were the days I’d sit with stacks of science journals and just read for hours, without much direction or purpose other ... Keep Reading »
Avoiding fear and loathing in self-editing
Last March, an article I wrote about the spread of Asian carp in U.S. waters appeared in the journal BioScience. A month later, the editors received a letter from a ... Keep Reading »
Taking your work to the next level (Part 1: READ)
It happens to the best of us. You reach a certain point in your career—well past the newbie stage, well shy of the seasoned veteran. You’re in a bit of ... Keep Reading »
Friday Snapshot: Emily Gertz goes island hopping in paradise
Almost heaven, San Juan Islands. On my recent reporting trip to a research lab set in this glorious green archipelago, I was thrilled with the beautiful light. With seeing a ... Keep Reading »
Junkets: From boondoggle to best practices and beyond
One of the most enviable junkets I’ve ever heard of landed in the lap (palette?) of a food-writer friend. The sojourn: an “educational” trip to France to sip, nibble and ... Keep Reading »
Bookshelf: The Money Book for Freelancers, Part-Timers, and the Self-Employed
The issue of finances plagues many writers, especially freelancers who have to set aside money for taxes, health insurance, retirement, and office expenses that would be covered by a traditional ... Keep Reading »
In praise of editors
A couple of weeks ago, Jill U Adams (bio) posted a compilation of “first clip” stories. As we were gathering them on the SciLance list, we also acknowledged our deep gratitude* ... Keep Reading »
When freelancing feels like senioritis
Type the word “senioritis” in to Twitter’s search box and you’ll see a constant feed of tweets like this: hi. my name is anna. and i have senioritis. Senioritis is ... Keep Reading »
Friday Snapshot: Poisoning Japanese knotweed with Jill Adams
For a story about eradicating the invasive plant Japanese knotweed from New York’s Adirondack Park, I spent a morning with certified pesticide guy Ryan Burkum. Here, he’s injecting commercial-strength ... Keep Reading »
Boom! Crash! Pow! Breaking self-imposed writing limits
Long ago, as a student in the Science Communication program at UC Santa Cruz, one of my instructors sat down with me for a chat about my post-graduation plans. I can’t ... Keep Reading »
