A few weeks ago I discovered my "dream job." And I wouldn't even have to quit my real one! At this point, let's just go ahead and assume I didn't get it. So let's also just go ahead and not ask me about it, mmmkay? But just in case their hiring process is even 1/10th as slow as the federal government, I do want to put it out into the universe. I want this position.
When I first saw the job posting for a "part-time parenting writer" at Slate.com, my immediate reaction was pure excitement. And right on the heels, doubt and fear and negative self-talk. Regardless, I committed to hours re-structuring my resume to reflect writing experience (although it's been nearly a decade since I've worked for newspapers or magazines), and crafting a cover letter with the hopes to stand out. I also contacted a family friend who has written for and knows a guy at Slate, and begged him to put in a good word for me.
I haven't heard back from anyone there, and I guess maybe I feel a little bit disappointed. This writing thing is all about getting schooled in rejection. But I'm also trying out optimism and postive thinking for a minute. Like, maybe there's another even better opportunity just around the corner! Or, if this door closes, another one opens! Even, there's a reason for everything! I went to a lecture on resilience and I became aware that I have ZERO of the qualities most highly associated with resilience, optimism and a sense of purpose being two of them. So I'm trying it on for size. I told Alex I don't think it fits.
When I first saw the job posting for a "part-time parenting writer" at Slate.com, my immediate reaction was pure excitement. And right on the heels, doubt and fear and negative self-talk. Regardless, I committed to hours re-structuring my resume to reflect writing experience (although it's been nearly a decade since I've worked for newspapers or magazines), and crafting a cover letter with the hopes to stand out. I also contacted a family friend who has written for and knows a guy at Slate, and begged him to put in a good word for me.
I haven't heard back from anyone there, and I guess maybe I feel a little bit disappointed. This writing thing is all about getting schooled in rejection. But I'm also trying out optimism and postive thinking for a minute. Like, maybe there's another even better opportunity just around the corner! Or, if this door closes, another one opens! Even, there's a reason for everything! I went to a lecture on resilience and I became aware that I have ZERO of the qualities most highly associated with resilience, optimism and a sense of purpose being two of them. So I'm trying it on for size. I told Alex I don't think it fits.
November 5, 2015
To: Slate Magazine
Re: Parenting Writer part-time position
“Hey Mama, does your sparkly pajama shirt make you feel like a motherf#@$er?”
You know, Bean, I’ve never thought about it that way. But yeah, yeah it does. And I think I’ll wear it while I apply for this position, because this job would make me feel like a motherf*$&ing superwoman.
I have been training for this parenting writer job at Slate for the last decade.
I thrived as a newspaper reporter for a small-town daily. I excelled in my Master’s degree program and now work part-time as a devoted speech-language pathologist (SLP) to veterans with brain injury. And I am the proud parent of a precocious preschooler. Between my editors, professors, and my daughter, I’ve had the Dream Team of personal trainers. Like Jillian Michaels meets Dr. McKay Sohlberg meets Richard Simmons meets Michelle Tanner.
And all along the way, I’ve written. News stories. For an entertainment weekly. Local magazines. Thank you cards. A joint travel blog with my now-husband. A Master’s thesis. For a (now defunct) online magazine. Epic family Christmas letters. Chart notes. And a personal blog, chronicling everything from managing my Dead Mom Issues while pregnant, to researching and advocating for family-wide flu vaccinations, to ambivalence about my secondary infertility.
(It practically goes without saying) I love Slate, which along with Salon, The Atlantic, and NPR are my media resources of choice. I aspire to be like many of my favorite writers. I’ve even been known to write them fan-email. Because I’m that kind of eager and enthusiastic. Ayelet Waldman. Nate Jackson. Rebecca Schuman. Sarah Hepola. Anne-Marie Slaughter. Cheryl Strayed. Po Bronson. Anne Lamott. Raffi. But I’m not them, I’m me. And I’ve got ideas, resources, experiences, opinions and words of my own just as ready for publication.
I already read and write about parenting because I love it. I already stay up-to-date on research about early literacy, follow mommy-blogs, laugh at toddlersareassholes on Instagram and pore over the latest parenting books. But you know what I would love even more?!? Continuing to read, research and write about the things I love, but with access to a broader audience and the validation of a regular byline and actual paycheck.
I have an insatiable curiosity. I ask too many questions but listen to the answers. I have been described as “saying what others don’t.” I am open to learning and growing as both a parent and a writer. I have excellent professional references from employers, instructors and supervisors, and also from my daughter (yesterday she told her teacher that her mama is her very best friend), and my blog reader/s (hi, Dad!). In short, this would be a journalistic match made in heaven. The KJ Dell’Antonia to your Motherlode. The Martha Beck to your Oprah. I could be the Parenting Writer peanut butter to your Slate jelly.
Thank you for your time and attention. I look forward to working for you in the very near future (hands clasped in a “manifestation meditation”)!
Warmly,
Joanna Close
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