Writing Magazine Articles

Five Saturdays, Time TBA (this class is not currently scheduled)
$185 members/$215 non-members San Francisco

“I’ve done stories on everything from antique restoration to computers (back when only three companies were making them), and from filmmakers to food stylists,” says Cary Pepper. “But my favorite piece is probably the one I did about a new reading program for kindergartners; the kids pulled me right into the class and I learned more that one day than I ever learned in kindergarten. That’s one of the things I love most about magazine writing — it’s a constant learning process. It gives you a license to probe into how the world — and the people in it — work. It’s also the most accessible way to break into professional writing. Even when you have no publishing credits, if you come up with the right idea, and pitch it to the right editor at the right time, you can get the assignment.”

In this class Cary will provide a nuts-and-bolts workshop on writing a magazine article after you’ve gotten that assignment. You’ll analyze elements of craft such as structure, flow, and language, then write an article on a topic of your choice and bring it in for feedback. “My students have written about everything imaginable — for example, the local effects of fallout from cargo ships and planes, climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, and late-life career changes. They’ve also come up with great pieces about clock making, motorcycles, animal psychics, oyster festivals, and congenital gender ambiguity. Anything that people want to read about is a potential article.”

The main focus of this class will not be how to pitch, market, or sell your work (although these elements will be briefly discussed), but on how to write an article. You’ll leave the workshop equipped with the basic skills of magazine writing, and — especially important for unpublished writers — a writing sample to send to editors.

Cary Pepper has been a freelance writer for 30 years. He has published dozens of articles in such publications as The New York Times, TV Guide, Premiere, Advertising Age, Town and Country, and Mad. He is also an award-winning playwright whose work has been produced throughout the U.S. and in Europe. He has taught writing at Media Alliance, the San Francisco Art Institute, and privately.

“. . . great instruction, thank you, Cary . . .”