Reading · Media Musings with Cassandra Brooklyn

Hi everyone,

Greetings from New York City, where our 100-degree heat wave finally broke. I know you folks in the Southwest (legitimately) love complaining about your high temperatures, but those of us suffering in NYC also have to deal with humidity, the way concrete and exhaust compound temperatures, and the fact that we WALK everywhere. Ugh. It was five days of misery. So glad it’s back down in the 80s.

Last week, I got a last-minute invite to join an NYC Water Cruises sailing to see the tall ships entering the city for the 250th anniversary. I imagined it would be fun, but I had no idea how much I’d enjoy seeing, hearing, and even feeling the fighter jets flying directly over us. It was absolutely incredible, and now I want to take my nieces and nephews to an air show!

As many of you know, I’m very focused on writing a book and updating my Some Days are Shit newsletter (which you probably just got added to - lucky you). As such, I am NOT accepting any unsolicited pitches, but I do have some updates.

Also, I got such a tremendous response to my latest newsletter calling out a really special PR who has been a source of steady support over the years, including after my brother and mother died. If you haven’t read it, I hope you’ll check it out.

How a PR showed up like family

Have a good week!

Cassandra

P.S. I’m heading to Switzerland next week for a 12-day hiking trip and I’m leaving my laptop at home. Woohoo!

Over the past week, I’ve published three articles that I’m really excited about. Here’s a bit about each of them:

How to Walk the Length of Manhattan in a Single Day

NatGeo piece assigned this to me back in January, and I submitted it in February, but it was held for publication until summer (likely because that’s when people are most likely to walk the length of Manhattan). They assigned it at 900 words, but there was SO much to say; the editor agreed to go up to 1,200, which really helped me paint a beautiful picture and make the piece so much more usable. In the age of shrinking budgets, this was very much appreciated.

6 Unique Activities to Make the Most of Summer

Another is a piece for AARP about 6 unique activities across the country this summer, where they are, and what else to do in these cities. This piece was fun because I got to really dig into a variety of unexpected activities in a single city that helped create a well-rounded vacation like no other. Did you know that you could take classes in blacksmithing, parkour, and poured art in Omaha? No, you didn’t!

NatGeo actually expressed interest in this piece a few months ago, asked me to re-pitch it to them a few months later, then wound up turning it around. Huge bummer. I re-worked it for AARP, and they loved it. Unfortunately, of the 10 activities/cities I pitched to NatGeo, AARP only wanted six. As I’ve always said, pitching is a very time-intensive process and very much a long game. It’s also totally unpaid, which is why so many freelance writers like myself are moving away from pitching PR stories to focusing on long-term anchor client work.

Protected Public Lands are Still the Backbone of America at 250

The third article was a big deal for me and also for the destinations featured. Sierra approached me and asked me to write a piece highlighting six public lands across the country for the country’s 250th birthday. I had less than a week to put it together, so I put out a pitch call on my newsletter and got some really great input. In the end, I was able to highlight bucket-list and lesser-known National Parks in the contiguous 48, the Virgin Islands and some lesser-known public lands in the Pacific Northwest and the Southwest.

Some of the pitches were so good that I’ll be dedicating a future newsletter to how I chose the destinations I did.

National Geographic: How to Walk the Length of Manhattan in a Single Day

AARP: 6 Unique Activities to Make the Most of Summer

Sierra Club: Protected Public Lands are Still the Backbone of America at 250

Despite having just published all these amazing articles. I don’t have a single paid assignment on my docket right now. Yes, I’m working on my book, but until I get an agent and a book deal, I need to work on getting some rent money! Who can help me pay my rent this month???

Budgets are tight, and publications are folding left and right. As such, I’m looking to begin working with more businesses, non-profits, universities, and tourism boards as I have in the past. I have experience writing everything from blog content for car insurance companies and policy wording for travel insurance brands to crafting newsletters, press releases, and glossy print mags for tourism boards.

If so, please reach out!

I’ll be in Costa Rica for a women’s ayahuasca retreat in late November through early December, which I’m so excited about. Psychedelics and plant medicine have been shown to help people get through their grief, so I’m attending not only to research articles I’m working on, but also to work on my own healing.

Because I get more hotel invites in Costa Rica than in nearly every other destination in the world, I wanted to put the word out early. I’ll be at the ayahuasca retreat for six nights, but I’m open to checking out another hotel for two nights before or after. I’m especially interested in hotels that have recently opened or been renovated and that emphasize sustainability, accessibility, or longevity.

If you’d like to pitch your hotel, here are the details: