Recent Accomplishments

[Stew Shearer]

I was thinking recently. You hear so often about how hard it is to break into this career track that it can often be downright disheartening. So I was thinking maybe we could start sharing some of our recent advancements and accomplishments, if only to make things a bit less grim.

Let's see, I can start...

I recently had my first article published at UGO. It was a retrospective on Batman games for the run up to the Arkham Asylum release, which I hope might lead to more work.

A bit cooler on a personal level, I've been reading the video games column at Orson Scott Cards' Intergalactic Medicine Show for years now. I noticed at the beginning of the year that the writer in charge of it had stopped posting and recently I sent them a query concerning possible work. They wrote me back almost immediately and offered me the job. So once a month I'll be doing that which I'm stoked about.

Please share y'all! :)

[Chris Cesarano]

I wish I could, but aside of being one of thousands to be writing for Examiner.com I got nothin'. I've recently sent resumes out for a few things, including two internships (one of which is at UGO), but I've been unemployed for so long and rejected from all kinds of jobs it's hard to keep positive.

I am thinking I should look to try and pitch more freelance article ideas, though. I'm changing my website's style to more mimic Shamus Young's Twenty-Sided Tale blog, where I basically write about whatever I want no matter what. This way I get more regular practice writing while also seeing what concepts seem like popular discussion and thus may make interesting pitches for full pitches, but even then I dunno who I'd pitch to aside from UGO and Escapist.

Not to mention I'm not sure how I'd pitch.

Still very big congratulations to you.

[Stew Shearer]

Hmm, sorry to hear about your troubles. Maybe I can offer some help.

To my understanding UGO's freelance budget for the moment is pretty drained so you might want to hold off on them. They're more into stuff with a humorous side but you could try pitching to GamesRadar. Eric Bratcher, the features editor is a really nice guy and he should get back to you relatively quickly.

Also, try pitching to The Next Level. They don't pay for reviews and such, but they're in the market for good features and you will get cash for those. The amount varies on the article, but it's still paid work.

Best of luck to you man! I hope this helps.

[Chris Cesarano]

Thanks for the heads up on places to check out. I actually sent out an application to Ugo since they list out editorial internships on their Jobs page. It seems they always have freelance contacts up, but they list internships twice with several other job openings. Considering I'd much rather write than do web design, I figured I'd give applying for the internship a try. Haven't gotten a response yet, but that application was on Friday.

I'll see about pitching to GamesRadar and The Next Level, and I'm not surprised reviews don't get much attention. ANYONE can write a review, but you really get to learn about what sort of gamer or even analyst/critic someone is based on features and editorials they write.

Coincidentally enough, it seems that Future US is hiring some editors. Included is a features editor position for Official Xbox Magazine, but I'm way too intimidated by it to bother applying. It's not that I don't think I'd be able to do such a job, but I'm doubtful I've got enough of a portfolio available. Not to mention a lack of industry contacts.

[Stew Shearer]

I'd love to apply for one of those positions, but alas, by feet are firmly planted in Vermont at the moment and I imagine relocation would be necessary. Not to mention I'm probably not the most qualified as of yet.

[Nathan Meunier]

Congrats Stew! My greatest accomplishment this weekend was pimping out my work desk with a second monitor (an HDTV for my gaming rigs) and organizing the piles of crap/old review games/misc paperwork that accumulated into evil piles in my office space.

Work-wise, I recently started doing some print gigs, which is exciting. One of which seems pretty solid/steady. I'm scoping out some new online gigs, while tackling a steady supply of assignments this month, so things are going full steam ahead.

For the folks who are having a tough time breaking in and getting steady work, I've been there. It's tough, but stick with it, always continue to improve your writing, and be diligent in sending pitches and seeking out new potential gigs. Eventually you'll get a few breaks which may lead to others which lead to others.

[Troy Goodfellow]

The piles are never evil. They are integral to the job.

Right up until the moment you find a paper sleeve with a code on it and you have no idea which disc it is for.

[Nathan Meunier]

Hahaha. Mine eventually sprout glowing eyes. They also like to consume paycheck I've yet to deposit, and spit them back out at random times.

[Jared Newman]

Opportunity to stroke our own egos? Hell yeah.

I've been doing a lot of tech writing lately, most notably for PC World. It's not game journalism but it's a well-paid, widely read gig. Some of my writing for Technologizer also shows up there, as they have a syndication deal going.

On the games front, I recently started up a site called GamerCrave, under the wing of a blog network that I've been with for some time. We just got indexed by Google News, so hopefully we'll start seeing a little bit of traffic in the coming weeks. Depending on how that goes, I may be looking to sacrifice some of my budget for another writer or two, in which case I'll post back here.

I've also had a couple reviews and a feature in The Escapist over the last few months. I'm expecting that to pick up in greater frequency now that there are actually some games coming out.

Stew and Nathan, you guys are rockstars when it comes to sending blind queries. After corresponding with you guys, I'm always inspired to do more of that, but then I get bogged down in my seemingly endless daily obligations. Hats off, though.

[Nathan Meunier]

Thanks dude. I did some steady daily stuff for a while and found that it was very rewarding and fulfilling writing-wise but extremely time consuming. I've steered clear from blogging-like gigs since, as they tend to require a lot of time/energy for limited pay per word, though I'm sure there are some that are quite reasonable. Kudos on the PC World stuff. That's rad.

Cold-pitching is rough business, but it's how I've landed a few of my best gigs and hopefully will land a few more in the near future. Presenting a well-written feature idea is a great way to get your foot in the door, since it's easy for editors to ignore general requests to take on review work. Mainly because who doesn't want to take on review work for their outlet? Right? If they like the idea, even if they don't bite on the feature, it opens the door just enough to start the conversation that might lead to something good.

I know what you mean though, Jared. Once you get into a steady rhythm of being busy, it's hard to take the time to bark up new trees.

[Adam]

Well I don't have anything too crazy to report, but I was recently promoted to an editor at PlayStation Universe. It keeps me very busy and opens the door to do it all - news, reviews, features, interviews.

However, I'm probably most proud of my connections with PR folks as of late. I worked in PR a few years ago, along with the daily newspaper reporter grind, so I can relate to their jobs pretty easily. It's amazing what a quick phone call will do, and what it will get you.

I'm currently working on getting a test 'debugged' PS3 from Sony. It would be an incredible tool.

As always, I'm looking for additional freelance work to earn some extra money - but, who isn't?

[Jordan Minor]

I think this my first post

I'm just starting out (age 17) and just got my first pay check in the mail today for my articles on vpgameslive.com. I feel very excited

[Stew Shearer]

Congrats on this! It's a nice feeling. I hope there are more to come for you! :)