Meet Outdoor Writers Association of America member Kris Millgate
The Outdoor Writers Association of America (OWAA) provides resources to help our members flourish as outdoor communicators and establish themselves as industry leaders. We create opportunities to make valuable industry and personal connections, sharpen professional skills, showcase work and gain access to in-demand educational resources and mentorship opportunities. There are many Individual member benefits.
Award-winning journalist, Kris Millgate, is the CEO of Tight Line Media. With a quarter century of storytelling, Millgate traverses the country in search of dynamic and engaging topics. She researches issues thoroughly then translates core elements via video, photo and words with credibility that demands audience. Follow Millgate’s work on Facebook and Instagram @krismillgate. “The most valuable thing I’ve gained from OWAA is relationships,” writes Millgate.
What are your areas of Outdoor Communication?
My outdoor communication style is built around stories that feature environment and natural resources, hike and bike, hook and bullet.
What drew you to the field?
I always knew I would be a storyteller, despite being painfully shy and afraid of beards when I was little. I graduated with a BS in broadcast journalism then spent 10 years in TV news before starting Tight Line Media as a freelancer in 2006. I produce stories with several cameras across several platforms for several media outlets. The challenge of that juggling act intrigues me. Engaging audiences in outdoor issues fulfills me.
What enticed you to join the Outdoor Writers Association of America?
I joined OWAA as a freelancer. I wanted to grow my audience and my outlets from local reach to national reach. I did that through relationships established at OWAA conference year after year.
What is your favorite outdoor activity?
My favorite outdoor activity is anything done without a roof over my head including trail running, fly fishing, whitewater rafting and bird hunting. All those activities require me to also hike, bike, row, hide and sit in the dirt.
What are you currently working on?
Close on the heels of following salmon migration for the Emmy-nominated film Ocean to Idaho, I’m on the road now for an animal that devours fish. Grizzly bears. I’m following grizzlies through the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem to reveal what helps and hurts their population recovery in the West.
The featured picture above is the morning of a cattle drive through bear country in Montana. I waited at the wrong corral for 90 minutes and collected more than 30 mosquito bites on each arm. The bugs were way worse than the bears.
What have you gained from being a member of the Outdoor Writers Association of America?
The most valuable thing I’ve gained from OWAA is relationships. There are many editors in this organization who I am honored to write and shoot photos/footage for. There are also many members in this organization who are much more than people I work with. They are dear friends who I laugh with, struggle with, lead with and learn from.
What is one piece of advice you’d give to someone thinking of joining the Outdoor Writers Association of America?
The best piece of advice I can offer new members is easier said than done. Get out there. The new skills and new contacts don’t drop in your lap just because you paid annual dues. Maximizing your membership requires you to mingle among other members whether it be on screen or in person. You have to interact to milk this membership for all it’s worth. You’re not paying to avoid events and hide from faces. Make the most of what you’re paying for by putting yourself out there.
Are you thinking of becoming a member of the Outdoor Writers Association of America?
Learn more today and see which membership level is right for you.
We aim to offer world-class resources, support, and inspiration for our members as they inform the public about outdoor activities, issues and the responsible use of our natural resources. Through OWAA membership and adherence to its creed and code of ethics, members are commissioned to provide honest, thorough, informed, responsible and unbiased outdoor coverage.
Save the date for the Outdoor Writers Association of America 2023 conference in Gulf Shores, Alabama, September 9-11.