Teaching  

I teach classes for aspiring writers and editors through mediabistro.com and have run career workshops for college seniors and recent graduates at Harvard and Columbia Universities. My students have been published in WIRED, The Economist, The Washington Post, ESPN The Magazine, Men’s Fitness, Women’s Health, The New York Post, The New York Daily News, Cosmopolitan, Woman’s Day, Men’s Health, WeightWatchers.com, The Sporting Life, Ok!, Town & Country Weddings, The Bond Trader, Craft, Knit Vogue and BRAIN, CHILD.

Learn more about my classes:

INTRODUCTION TO MAGAZINE WRITING
BOOT CAMP FOR JOURNALISTS
BREAKING INTO SPORTS JOURNALISM

 
What people are saying about Alison Overholt’s classes:

“I couldn't have wished for a better instructor than Alison. I've submitted two of the pieces I wrote in her Boot camp for Journalists class. My art review has been accepted and my Op-Ed is pending. I'm very happy I signed up for the class and would highly recommend it!”
-Gabrielle Selz, freelance writer (published in The New York Times and Art News)

“Without a doubt, this was the best advice I've received since getting
out of college. Not only that, your enthusiasm is so infectious. I'm really
pumped to start generating new ideas and honing my pitches!”
–Jim Weber, freelance writer (published in ESPN The Magazine)

“I took Alison’s Intro to Magazine Writing course and it was fantastic. As a teacher, Alison was engaged, upbeat, encouraging and informative. Best of all, both of the articles I wrote for the class wound up in national publications!"
–Johanna Bailey, freelance writer (published in The Washington Post and BRAIN, CHILD)

“I just finished the Intro to Magazine Editing class with Alison Overholt and thought it was great. The class was full of practical advice and assignments that really helped me look at magazines through an editor's eyes. The tone was positive and can-do, which is no small thing in a world where everyone loves to tell you how impossible it is to break in."
–Leslie Koren, freelance writer (published in The Record)

“Boot Camp for Magazine Editors was a fantastic class, and Alison a superb instructor. I looked forward to our class activities and discussions, and the weekly homework was challenging without being overwhelming. Alison's can-do spirit was infectious. I learned more in these eight weeks than I did in my first job.”
–Michelle Wiener, associate editor, SoHo Publishing

INTRODUCTION TO MAGAZINE WRITING (8-week online class)
Next class begins Feb. 10 online – register here.
Part lecture, part workshop, this class will give you a professional understanding of both the editing and writing sides of the magazine business. If you're looking to get your start as a journalist, this class will take your writing to the next level. Each week, students receive a lecture on topics like the editing process, journalism ethics, what makes something newsworthy, note taking, fact checking, reporting and more. Over the course of eight weeks, you will fully workshop two pieces, including a perfectly polished, no-fail pitch letter. Your work can range from personal essays to profiles, from news stories to business or travel features. You'll also learn how to query a publication, who to call there, and to which part of the publication you should pitch.

In this class, you will learn:

  • How to create captivating stories that editors will buy and readers will love
  • How to write compelling pitch letters
  • Which magazines will be interested in your story
  • How to approach editors
  • How to network

By the end of class, you will have: Two salable pieces, pitch letters to match, and knowledge enough to survive in the world of journalism.


BOOT CAMP FOR JOURNALISTS (8-week online class)
Next class begins spring/summer 2009 — check back soon for more details.
Congratulations! You've got a clip or two — now you want more, in bigger, better publications, with bigger, better paychecks. You're ready for Boot Camp for Journalists. Each week, you'll push yourself to research, write and pitch a new piece. Lectures, handouts, reporting and writing tips, and examples will guide you. By the end of eight weeks, you'll have a new portfolio of work and a new set of skills.

Assignments include a service/how-to piece, an arts & culture review, a profile, a metro section piece, an editorial, a business/news article, a personal essay and two pitch letters.

In this class, you will learn:

  • How to write a pitch an editor can't turn down
  • Which magazines are most freelancer-friendly
  • How to edit yourself and manage tight deadlines
  • How to work with editors

By the end of class, you will have: A complete portfolio of seven publishable articles that will impress any magazine editor, the ability to work under tight deadlines and an understanding of how to achieve the career you want.

BREAKING INTO SPORTS JOURNALISM (Online Video Course)
Download the video here.
Alison moderates a panel of sports reporters, editors, bloggers and authors who hold no punches in their dissection of sports media and what it takes to break in and get ahead. Sportswriting is a genre that can easily go from rote reporting to epic narrative. By homing in on a compelling human-interest story or a larger cultural or political issue, you can go from being the stats guy to becoming a top reporter. But with the rise of fan sites, blogs, and podcasts, is it even necessary to work your way up through established channels? And if you are already working in another area of the media, how do you establish your sports cred and get in the game? Our panelists get to the bottom of these questions.