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Upod Academy
Two-Day Workshop for Freelancers
A creative, supportive, information-packed weekend
to plot your next career moves
January 13 and 14, 2018
9:30 am - 4:30 pm
In person in Los Angeles
With VIP Guest Speakers
Here's what people say about their Upod Academy experience
It's 2018. What's next?
That's the question we'll explore.
Maybe you want to write for bigger, better publications. You might be shifting from a staff gig to full-time freelance, or trying to find your place in the print media world in uncertain times. Books might be your goal. Or blogging, podcasting, radio, travel writing, science writing, environmental reporting. Some people are straight-up looking for higher paying work. That could mean branching into content marketing, storytelling for brands or P.R. Whatever your writing goal is, you'll have the space to figure out your next move with a group of supportive, attentive peers with guidance from our wise guest speakers, including Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and feature writer Christopher Goffard.
From Upod Academy's 2016 content marketing session
distinguished Speakers
(via livestream)
Susan Dominus
Staff Writer, New York Times Magazine
Read her recent nytm cover stories
Susan Dominus has been a staff writer at The New York Times Magazine since 2011. In 2009, as a columnist, she was a member of a team that won the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News for its coverage of the scandal that resulted in the resignation of Governor Eliot Spitzer. She is also the recipient of the Newswomen's Club of New York Front Page Award, and the Mychal Judge Heart of New York award, from the National Press Club. She studied as a fellow at the National Institutes of Health and Yale Law School.
Christopher Goffard
Los Angeles Times
Pulitzer Winner
Read his acclaimed 2017 "dirty john" series
Christopher Goffard is an author and a staff writer for the Los Angeles Times. His recent story, Dirty John, was among the top 10 Longreads of 2017. Goffard shared in the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for the paper’s Bell coverage and has twice been a Pulitzer finalist for feature writing, in 2007 and 2014. His novel "Snitch Jacket" was a finalist for the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best First Novel. His book "You Will See Fire: A Search for Justice in Kenya," based on his Times series, was published in 2011.
Sari Botton
Writer, editor, essayist & More
SARI BOTTON is a journalist, essayist, new york times bestselling ghostwriter and the editor of the award-winning anthology Goodbye to All That: Writers on Loving and Leaving New York. She runs the Moth-style storytelling non-profit TMI Project. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, New York Magazine, The Village Voice, Harper’s Bazaar, Marie Claire, and The Rumpus,
Darby Seyward
Executive Editor at The Atavist
Seyward Darby is executive editor at The Atavist. She was previously story editor at Foreign Policy, and, before that, an editor for the New Republic. She has written for the Atlantic, Vanity Fair, and elsewhere, and worked for Freedom House and Human Rights Watch. She holds a B.A. in English from Duke University and an M.A. in international relations with a concentration in human rights from Yale University, where she was a fellow with the Yale Global Health Justice Partnership, researching South Africa’s failure to compensate generations of gold miners suffering from tuberculosis, silicosis, and other occupational diseases. A native of eastern North Carolina, her peculiar name comes from this book.
In addition to hearing from our talented A-list speakers, you'll also have a chance to test out, fine-tune and pitch your ideas. In the spaces between sessions, we'll talk about projects you're neglecting and what needs to be back-burnered so you can carry out the real work you need to do. Above all, you will learn to get out of your own way.
My wife, Ruth, is a professional pastry chef and chocolatier. She makes lunches, snacks and desserts on these weekends that are every bit as memorable as the tips and techniques you'll pick up; which is to say, they are unforgettable.
These are really beautiful weekends with people you'll likely have in your circle for years to come. Join us. Here's how:
Upod Academy
In person at Upod HQ:
12820 Bonaparte Avenue, LA, CA 90066
About Your instructor: David Hochman
Enrollment
$425
Two-For-One Pricing
Bring a friend and EACH pay $375
Speakers subject to change, CANCELLATION, etc.
To enroll, send payment
via paypal or venmo (David-Hochman-1)
Questions: davidhochman@mac.com
Watch Upod Academy's Most recent Speaker sessions
Upod Academy's workshops and webinars give you the support and direction to make beautiful things happen in your freelance life.
About | Coaching + Strategy | Speakers | Listen + Watch | Podblog
Selected Past Workshops
2016
21-Day Freelancer Accountability Challenge - Live webinar
Daylong Branded Content Workshop - Playa Vista, California
2015
"Meet the editors" Weekend Workshop in Los Angeles.
Boston summer workshop at Brandeis University with writers from New York Magazine, Conde Nast and more.
Weekend writing and nature retreat in Los Angeles.
"So You Wanna Be a Ghostwriter?" workshop in Los Angeles.
Pitch clinic webinar with editors from Marie Claire, Vice, Oprah and more.
"Breakthrough to the A-list" workshop with editors from The New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker and more.
2014
Online writing for superstars with BuzzFeed features director Steve Kandell, GOOD's Josh Neuman, TakePart's Paul Tullis and New York Times Motherlode editor K.J. Dell'Antonia.
Boston summer workshop at Brandeis University with Malcolm Gladwell, David Grann and Steve Almond.
Weekend pitch clinic in Los Angeles with New Yorker features editor Daniel Zalewski.
The "Total Freelancer" workshop with author Gretchen Rubin, Brainpickings' Maria Popova and journalist Karl Taro Greenfeld.
"Your Best Writing Year Ever" with author A.J. Jacobs, Esquire's Tom Junod and Virginia Heffernan of The New York Times Magazine.
2013
"Upod Office Hours" - an open door afternoon for questions about freelancing and pitching.
PodNights: A weekly series of evening Q&As with editors from Los Angeles Magazine, The New York Times, Rolling Stone and more.
2012
Pitch the Editors Weekend with editors from Playboy, Wired, Dwell and more.
"Your Freelance Sweet Spot" with editors from Los Angeles Magazine, NPR, and Medium.com.
2011
Weekend workshops with editors from InStyle, Sunset and Modern Luxury.