I am unable to respond to all requests for career advice, due to a busy work schedule. My best (and admittedly biased) recommendation? Take one of my classes or independent study programs. But if budget woes prevail, here are some resources.

 

ONLINE COURSES

I’ve taught since 2004 through various programs, including Writers.com and Seattle’s Hugo House, and have guest-lectured at Oregon State University and the Inspired Writer Community. In 2015, I went independent and four years later founded the online academy Write Like a Honey Badger, which employs instructors across an array of journalistic and literary genres.

But I still teach! My courses include:

 

WRITING COACHING

Even deeply experienced authors sometimes need support, an external eye or some accountability. I work with writers on voice, plot structure, grammar and rhetoric, interviewing, reporting, data mining, marketing, pitching, photography, portfolio reviews and — often the greatest hurdle of all — just getting started. 

  • Independent study — take any Write Like a Honey Badger class that I teach with one-on-one instruction. $140/week consecutive, $175/week at your own pace
  • Developmental line-edit — 12 cents a word for the first draft and 8 cents a word for additional edits (discounts available for longer, on-going projects). The feedback includes copyediting and fact checking suggestions, and can be done in Word or Google Docs. Please reserve a date in advance or expect a turnaround in five business days. This service includes one email exchange of follow-up questions.
  • Condensing documents — $2 for each percent of trimming
  • Portfolio review — A critique of your biography and website. Advice on tactics and your authorial persona. This includes two rounds of questions by email or a half-hour call, $200
  • Phone or teleconference coaching — $270 for 90 continuous minutes

Potential topics for individual sessions include:

  • Help identifying story ideas and angles
  • Goal setting for the short and long term
  • Pep talks in the face of tough rejections
  • Managing a successful freelance business
  • Perfecting pitches (up to three max. Together they should be less than 1,000 words)
  • How to choose the best outlets for your beats or specific pieces (and guidance on finding submission guidelines and editorial contacts)

I will generate PayPal invoices for any services that don’t have enrollment links above.

Please reach out  with any questions: amanda@writelikeahoneybadger.com.

MANUSCRIPT CONSULTATION

I devise a three- to five-page report, outlining suggestions for improved clarity, style and marketability. Most effectively, this is paired with a line-critique: a detailed edit, which reveals a writer’s unconscious patterns and explains the rationale behind changing them.

Fee: $1 per double-spaced page by arrangement with the instructor. Please note, this service is only available for longer projects, 50 pages or more.

PAYMENT

I accept Paypal, SquareCash, Venmo, Zelle, bank transfers and personal checks in US dollars. Students are responsible for any transfer fees.

REVIEWS FROM STUDENTS AND COACHING CLIENTS

“Amanda is a phenomenal editor and a patient teacher; precise but not nitpicky, critical but not harsh. My writing is clearer and more focused than ever before. I spent eight semesters in creative writing classes at UC Berkeley, and Amanda offered more guidance and carefully directed help than any professor I took there.” — Jenny Williams

“Amanda Castleman is the best teacher I’ve ever worked with. Her feedback was exceptional in terms of quality, detail, extent, and sheer usefulness. Her generosity with her time and expertise is astonishing. I learned a huge amount, have had four pieces published and paid for (including my very first assignment, in The Guardian) and have completed the course with a sense of expanded possibilities. Thank you so much – this is the most rewarding educational experience I’ve had.” — Rachael Davey

“Consider me a success story. I’ve already sold three ideas I explored in the workshop. Two pieces touching on personally important topics like racism, misogyny and bias against Asian-American women; and an interview with an emerging poet who writes about grief and loss through the experience of miscarriage. These are obviously very niche topics! Amanda walked me through how to write concise and effective pitches for a range of publications, opening the doors to new opportunities that I lacked the confidence to previously pursue.” — Shin Yu Pai

“I absolutely loved Amanda’s class. Not only did she give the most specific and constructive writing feedback I’ve ever received (and I spent 6+ years in graduate school), she showed us how to transfer specific comments to future projects. As a former academic, I found the class especially useful for recognizing and letting go of jargon and distilling complicated ideas into something interesting and palatable. As I work the tools I learned, I’m starting to get more takes on my queries and recently had an editor refer to one of my pitches as “one of the best” she’s seen. What a great day!” — Stacey McKenna

“A fine-toothed-comb edit like this is hard to find. I can’t wait to get started revising: it’s like being told the cheat to a Sonic the Hedgehog game at school and rushing home to test it out!” — Simon Willis

“Amanda’s class is the best investment I’ve made in my writing career. A former newspaper and magazine staffer, I had an inkling I could have some success with freelancing, but felt super intimidated by pitching and breaking into bigger name outlets. The course was a wealth of information, beyond just pitching, really, with resources on imposter syndrome, sourcing, the business side of freelancing, etc. And though the personalized feedback was invaluable, it was also really illuminating to learn from other students’ pitches and writing interests and Amanda’s years of experience.The Write Like a Honey Badger logo: a turquoise circle with a cartoon honey badger inside, typing on a gold laptop. The badger's adorable.

“She was able to edit and push us to grow while being incredibly supportive and boosting the group’s confidence. Back to that great investment: Not only did some of the pitches I worked on in class lead to bylines at some of my dream outlets, such as Bon Appétit and CNN Travel, but the class also paid for itself a few times over with those commissions. I’ve continued to take the lessons learned with me, Amanda is still cheering me on and I will very likely take another course soon. Thank you! ” — Sophia Gottfried 

“I am an Amanda groupie. After three classes with her, my confidence as a writer has grown thanks to her encouragement and mentoring. I started to believe in my voice through her generosity, thoughtfulness and constructive feedback. Her  confidence in my abilities helped me persevere and create a framework for a query that is garnering responses like “great pitching here” from editors (and also a series of assigned stories!).” — Elena Sonnino

“This isn’t just another pitch feedback class; the lessons are thorough and Amanda’s dedication to helping writers takes it to a whole new level.  She answers all your questions in detail and never leaves you feeling lost in the middle of this big bad freelancing world. If you’re struggling to get started or find yourself in a pitching rut, this might be the push you need. Thanks, Amanda!” — Sakshi Udavant

“Writing for several years, it was never something I made a living off of but more a hobby. Determined to change that, I took Amanda Castleman’s class. Her critiques are thorough, with insightful edits. Plus she’s kind and considerate in her critiques while helping writers get closer to landing an assignment. In the midst of the class, I even landed an assignment with Fodor’s, something I don’t think I could have done without the skill and confidence I got from Pitch Like a Honey Badger. Another excellent thing about the class is the exhaustive resources of where to pitch stories.”  — Malika Bowling

“What an amazing gift you’ve given us: personalized attention plus huge generosity in sharing practical knowledge from the trenches. Far better than courses at traditional institutions.” — Anne Anderson

“The lessons were just what I needed and filled in a lot of gaps, besides boosting my confidence as a writer.  Now I want to run with what I learned, sell a bunch of stories and come back for some one-on-one coaching.” — Ines Wynn

“Amanda is an amazing line editor and quick to provide excellent answers to questions. She’s very supportive and encouraging, and I consider her not only my teacher, but a mentor as well.” — Audrey Medina

“At the end of 10 weeks, I had arrived in the Blogosphere, made new friends and even bagged a job as a writer at a magazine – all thanks to this course!” — Nidhi Nayer

“With the confidence and skills Amanda gave me, I was able to approach highly regarded publications, like The Washington Post and the Toronto Star, and succeed in getting published. Amanda’s class is a good investment, for beginners, as well as for professionals who need to energize their work and look at it from a different perspective. — Gaston Lacombe

“She encouraged me to work beyond my limitations as a writer to points I’d never before reached, and beyond to new ones. Studying with Amanda will improve your writing, no matter the genre, and you’ll have fun doing it!” — Debra Borchert

“To have my first article accepted by the first publication I approached ?The Christian Science Monitor ? was like rocket fuel for me, and I have Amanda Castleman’s expertise to thank.” — Anne Clippinger, PhD, Adjunct Lecturer, Department of English, Montgomery College, MD

“Amanda is an inspiration, an ideal to aspire to.” — James Polk

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