ByGD
Ah, back-to-school season. It makes everyone (sample size: one) feels smarter. And it makes sticking to a work schedule much easier. In case you missed anything, here is a roundup of articles I wrote that were published in September and October, and a peek behind the scenes of the blog.
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ByGD
Since I spent a lot of April traveling in Norway, I didn’t pitch as much as usual. But it doesn’t seem to have mattered, since I had ten stories publish in May. In case you missed any of them, here they are. (BTW, this new blog theme doesn’t underline links, and I think the slight difference in text color is too subtle. Until I figure out how to customize link appearance, please note that all titles are linked to the articles.)
Writing for Seattle Times is still new and exciting for me, so I’ll lead with the pieces I wrote for them. Only a few days after I got back from Norway, I met up with Seattle Times’ drinks columnist to celebrate the Blue Moon Tavern’s 85th birthday. The result was a new addition to the Seattle Times’ Arts Outing series: Opera in a Dive Bar.
I’m so proud of the article about Seattle Symphony’s Lullaby Project, my first real reported piece for Seattle Times. It was an honor and a privilege to hear Shawna’s story and talk to the symphony musicians who have helped women experiencing homelessness write music for their children.
I’ve been reviewing opera performances for years here on the blog. But writing the city newspaper’s review of Seattle Opera’s Carmen feels like writing the official version. I hope I did it justice; writing a professional critique of a performance that I just wanted to squeal in delight over was a challenge.
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I got to write a review for ParentMap in May, too. Seattle Public Theater’s The Call was excellent theater, but its incisive exploration of the complexities of international, transracial adoption hit pretty close to home. I hope I did it justice; writing a professional critique of a performance that sent me home in tears was a challenge.
I love recommending books, and in preparation for summer vacation, I got to write a list pairing Books That Celebrate Summer Adventures with real-life local adventures.
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On a related note, I got to do a book list for Earth911. Stop the Summer Eco-Slide lists summer reading books that will get kids excited about nature and the outdoors.
I also got to celebrate the winners of the Green Earth Book Awards, whose winners also aim to inspire the next generation of environmentalists.
Following up on the roofing buyers’ guide I wrote a while back, I reported on the longest-lasting roofing options in Lifetime Roofs. Following up on the dishwasher buyers’ guide, I looked at the Water vs. Energy trade-off.
In what turned out to be the most challenging buyers’ guide to research yet, I pursued The Search for Sustainable Pavers.
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The quest for meaningful blog data continues. The number of page views jumped 35% over April, but it was only a little bit more than March. So I don’t know. I published 15 posts in May, fewer than either April or March. Here are the most popular posts in May:
So I guess what I learned is that I should go back to writing about the Constitution and stop writing about music? And promoting posts on Instagram (except for music posts) seems to work.
ByGD
I was very busy in March trying to get everything wrapped up before my trip to Norway. Some of it won’t publish until April, but here’s what I wrote that was published in March.
ByGD
Last week I belatedly shared my 2018 reading recap. This week I’m belatedly recapping my 2018 writing.
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