Reading · Media Musings with Cassandra Brooklyn

Hi everyone,

I flew back from California late last night after a great 12-day trip with my sister. I worked with four separate tourism boards along the Central Coast, and they even extended my car rental by two days so my sis and I could spend an extra night visiting a friend of mine in LA at the beginning of the trip and then another friend near San Francisco at the end.

The pic above is my sister and our guide during sea cave kayaking in Channel Islands National Park. This was a really big trip for us since my sister never got to really take time off since our brother and then our mother died. She’s pretty high-anxiety and was basically terrified during the entire ocean kayaking trip, but it was such a big step for her and an incredible opportunity for us to do this together (huge thanks to Ventura Harbor for arranging this for both of us).

I AM EXHAUSTED! Anyone who has ever worked with me on a trip knows that I go way too hard. I get the itinerary, then I add in four additional hikes and bike rides. I was excited to hike, bike, or kayak nearly every day on this trip, but my butt and calves are sore, and I’m not sure if I’ll make it to Cuban salsa dancing tonight (I’m not a great dancer, but I used to dance a lot and want to get back into it).

Have a great weekend!

Cassandra

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As many of you know, I’m focused on my new grief-focused newsletter called Some Days are Shit, and I’m writing a book on grief, strangers, and the power of connection. As such, I’m not currently accepting or reviewing PR pitches, so thank you for holding off on sending them until I say otherwise.

Though I am not accepting PR pitches now, I am still writing a handful of articles based off my own ideas and firsthand experiences. I was assigned three Reader’s Digest travel pieces over the past few weeks, but I only need help with one of them (see below). I just landed my first piece with Travel Weekly about a longevity resort in Mexico that hosted me for my birthday in February. Woohoo! I’m also waiting on travel features for Bloomberg and Hilton, and a health piece for AARP to publish.

I’ll be at the Organic Spa Media Wellness show in midtown Manhattan all day tomorrow, so if you happen to be going as well, say hi if you see me (you’ll recognize me by the shaved sides on both sides of my head and the new sheet music tattoo running down my left arm).

Convince Writers to Attend Your Events

I'm working on a last-minute piece on where to witness astro events in the US this summer (meteor shower, planetary alignments, asteroids, etc. and I’d love your input on where to find them.

Please note three important things:

This piece only covers astro/sky events in the United States. Please do not pitch international destinations.
This piece is NOT about general stargazing and night skies, so please do not send pitches about stargazing, dark skies, or anything generically related to astrotourism. Pitches must specifically relate to a specific astro event occurring this summer.
I’m already set with astro events in California and Arizona, so I probably don’t have room for pitches for those states.

If this sounds like your destination, please send a pitch with that info, including hot tips on when/where/how to see it, along with hyperlinks to whatever events or locations you mention. For instance:

“You can witness the XXX asteroid on XXX date in this state. The best place to see it will be in the southeast part of the state, and both XXX National Forest and XXX State Park have open skies. They also have lots of camping options available, but be sure to book reservations well in advance since it’s a popular camping destination in summer. There will also be a star party or XXXX events occurring around the event and/or ranger talks and pop-up telescope events at XXX observatory.”

To pitch: Respond to this email and update the subject heading
Subject line: Summer Astro + INSERT YOUR DESTINATION’S NAME
Pitch by: Fri, May 15 EOD

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Thanks to those of you who helped me source products and quotes for these pieces.

Reader’s Digest: Get Ready for Summer Stargazing Season. Here are 9 Amazing Night-Sky Events to Catch

Sierra Club: 4 National Parks to Visit on Earth Day

Reader’s Digest: Hybrid Solo Travel is the Genius Way to Travel Alone, Together

AARP: 5 Best Scenic Spring Road Trips

Hilton: Summer City Escapes - Best Places for Urban Adventures

Hilton: Best Cities for a Cultural Spring Break Escape

The New York Times: Can a Humidifier Help with Winter Dryness?

AARP: Why Winter Nosebleeds Strike More Often After 50 - And How to Keep Them at Bay

The Wall Street Journal: Why Yellowstone Is Better in the Winter

National Geographic: Where to Find the Best Winter Wildlife Watching in the U.S.