Be Study Hall’s First Staff Writer

Kyle Chayka
3 min readMay 1, 2018

We are a media-focused newsletter publication and digital community for freelance media workers. Subscribe here.

Overview:

Study Hall is looking for its first staff writer. As we expand our weekly newsletters, original stories, and resources for freelancers, we want someone to lead in developing our voice. The role will focus on writing our Digest and Opportunities emails as well as contributing original media reporting and commentary that’s compact, punchy, thoughtful, and informative.

We are building Study Hall into a subscription-funded publication and community. Our inspirations are The Awl, Today in Tabs, and early-days Gawker, focused on the media and looking outward. But we’re also trying to be something new: we want to make vital, fun, stuff that people will read instead of constantly refreshing Twitter. If you were obsessed with those publications, we want to talk to you. Similarly, we want to launch new voices: the role could be perfect for a recent graduate or a writer early in their publishing career.

See a sample of the Digest here and sample of Opportunities here.

Here’s what the Digest sometimes starts out like.

Structure:

The payment is $1500 per month, paid upfront for the first month and then halfway through each month. An initial test contract will run three months and then get renewed. The volume of work is based on tasks not time, but we estimate 15 hours per week.

Since the staff writer will be in charge of developing the newsletters, they will also receive raises and more responsibilities in direct connection with subscriber growth. There is also significant potential for added paid work in the Study Hall ecosystem, working as an in-house researcher for freelancers or developing new publication projects.

This is a contract position, ideal for someone who is developing their own freelance writing career as well. We have no need for pitch exclusivity, only commitment.

Expectations:

  • We very much prefer New York-based applicants for reporting and management, but will consider the right non-NYC applicant.
  • The staff writer should be very fluent in Media Twitter and already keeping up with various individual editors and publications.
  • The staff writer should ideally be familiar with Google Groups, Mailchimp, Basecamp, and Patreon (no in-depth experience needed).
  • The staff writer will submit weekly drafts for the Digest and Opportunities emails before their run dates (Mondays and Tuesdays).
  • For the Digest, the writer will develop Q&A structures for editors and writers, carry out interviews, and report media industry stories. With the help of our staff, they will collate job opportunities and freelance calls as well as scout them out.
  • We want this to be a collaborative process, so responsibilities and areas of focus can vary depending on who you are and what you want to do.

Why you should work for us:

  • Learn about the freelance ecosystem
  • Contact editors and publications in a professional capacity
  • Develop a unique voice in the newsletter arena
  • Report longer features for added fees
  • Develop community with our 500+ members
  • Work for a tiny, sustainable, non-VC media company
  • Infinite room for growth and ambition

Application process:

Send an email to both Study Hall founders Kyle Chayka and Peter Moskowitz, kyle@studyhall.xyz and peter@studyhall.xyz, with the list of information below (applications without this format will not be considered) by the deadline of May 15. We’ll contact selected individuals for meetings within a few weeks.

  1. Subject line “APPLICATION: Your Name”.
  2. One or two paragraphs in the body of the email on why you want to fill the role and what you bring to Study Hall, briefly summarizing your vision for Digest and Opportunities.
  3. Three clips of recently published writing hyperlinked in body of email with the name of the publication.
  4. Updated one-page resume attached.

Email us at kyle@studyhall.xyz and peter@studyhall.xyz with any questions. Thanks for reading, and subscribe to Study Hall here.

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