OWAA OUTDOOR VOICES
Use Your Outdoor Voices
-
This one thing: How to use a read-aloud feature to help edit your work
I have a confession to make: whenever I read a book by Ken Keffer, Matt Miller, or Kris Millgate — or any book, for that matter — I speed read. You might have used the word “the” or “and” but I didn’t read it. I tend to skip words with less than three-letters. My brain…
-
Youth writing and photography contests aim to inspire the next generation 
OWAA leadership, staff, and outdoor media professionals continue to be inspired by the quality of outdoor writing and photography submitted by budding outdoor communicators. And it’s more than just words and images on a page. “The contest isn’t just about the writing or photography,” said OWAA’s Executive Director Chez Chesak. “It’s about inspiration. It’s about…
-
What you may not know about sustainable writing and inclusive outdoor language
Language is alive. All humans depend on ever-evolving languages and their ability to grow and change to better reflect our cultural contexts. Language, like our natural world, has been tended to and curated by people for millennia. Much like natural resources, there are sustainable and unsustainable practices. Knowing the histories of the words and terms…
-
Three tips for students stepping into the outdoor communication space
The world of journalism and outdoor communication is intimidating. It’s a competitive field where you are forced to make a name for yourself, and your job opportunities mostly rely on who you know. Making connections is daunting enough, and for those who want to go into a specific niche of journalism, the challenges seem even…
-
Meet OWAA member Karuna Eberl
Karuna Eberl writes about conservation, nature, history and travel from the high country of Colorado, or wherever else her and her husband, Steve, are living in their van. Some of her regular outlets include National Parks magazine, the National Wildlife Refuges and Family Handyman, where she also writes a column about women in the trades. She’s produced and directed a number of independent films and documentaries, co-authored an award-winning guidebook to the Florida…
-
7 picturesque nature spots on the Alabama gulf coast
Alabama’s Gulf Coast is full of picture-perfect scenes for nature lovers to revel in the unbeatable beauty of the area, explorers can reconnect with nature and discover local history, while finding adventure along the way. From parks and trails to lakes and beaches, Alabama’s coast offers incredible natural settings perfect for unique outdoor experiences. Here…
-
Three common grammar mistakes (and how to avoid them)
When I served as copy editor of my school newspaper, I saw a LOT of grammar mistakes. I did love getting to know the freshman, but editing their first ever news stories was … time consuming to say the least. I constantly made notes about buried leads, improperly attributed quotes and of course, bad grammar. …
-
How to jumpstart (or shift) your outdoor communication career through mentorship
It can be tough starting out as an outdoor writer. Networking with other professional writers, pitching story ideas to editors, and learning to navigate the outdoor media industry can be intimidating. And it can also be tough to break into an entirely new field of outdoor communication like wildlife photography, podcasting, or video production —…
-
Light your basecamp with MPOWERD portable solar lights
As an outdoor communicator — writer, photographer, video producer, podcaster, content creator or artist — you probably spend a fair amount of your time outside in the field reporting while experiencing and exploring the great outdoors first-hand. Solar lights are a great option when you’re camping, so you can see in the dark and don’t…
-
Meet OWAA member Howard Fox
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. Howard Fox…
-
Three resources for building your environmental beat as a journalist
I didn’t love working at my local NPR radio station for the first few months. Writing one-minute stories covering Abilene, Texas city council lawn mowing contracts and library fundraisers wasn’t the high-impact journalism I had in mind when I became a journalism major. And worse than not feeling like I wasn’t making an impact –…
-
So you want to be a gear tester? What it’s really like when you’re paid to play
Tips on how to become a gear tester with Dan Nelson, Gear Institute editor and long-time member of the Outdoor Writers Association of America. Sitting inside a leaky tent, wrapped in a bag seemingly stuffed with turkey quills rather than goose down, I had an epiphany: Gear testing really is work. It was the mid-1990s…
