Author Archives: DanielleVenton
Limited listening
Our collective ears have swiveled downward, from the sounds of the sky, to the jingling of our coin purse. The SETI Institute halted operations of the radio telescopes in the Allen Telescope Array, the San Jose Mercury News reported Monday. … Continue reading
An Ideal Husband: Lessons on Freelancing
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a freelance writer, embarking on her career, must be in want of health insurance. -Jane Austen Danielle Venton The first time someone tells you that marrying well is key to successful freelancing – … Continue reading
Surf city tsunami
The effects of Japan’s Honshu earthquake reached as far as Santa Cruz on the Californian coast. On March 11 the waves came and left tens of millions of dollars in damage to the harbor. On spring break, I wandered down … Continue reading
The World Through Wired Eyes
If any masthead defines the culture of tech-geek-cool, it’s Wired. For the savvy, info-hungry reader, Wired gives a smart, incisive take on everything . . . with an extra fleck of awesomeness. Last week the folks behind Student Voices, one … Continue reading
A little lemon love
A couple of good lemon recipes One of my favorite cakes to make, containing a few of my favorite things: zucchini, olive oil and lemons. Zucchini Cake with Crunchy Lemon Glaze With eggs, almonds, cream and lemons, this frittata-cum-tart is … Continue reading
Reading Cronin in Santa Cruz
I’ve been reading Cronin in Santa Cruz. It’s less exotic than Lolita in Tehran, but more personal. My grandmother, Dinah Cronin, died 15 years ago. During my childhood I visited her a few times in Arizona, but she passed before … Continue reading
Field trip to our local temple of journalism
“I know that piece of paper is around here somewhere . . .” Getting the newspaper out is sometimes called the “daily miracle.” And while it might not be exactly comparable to walking on water, the daily cycle leaves me … Continue reading
Training to be a cage-fighter, er, writer
Among the lush pickings of memorable lines from the 2004 movie Napoleon Dynamite, one of the best is Kip’s to his brother: “Napoleon, don’t be jealous that I’ve been chatting online with babes all day. Besides, we both know that … Continue reading
Family wisdom: How to write stories that sell
My mother gave me this wonderful old slip of paper hand typed by my grandmother many decades ago. It is a set of guidelines for “Writing Stories that Sell.” The advice proffered is still valid, so I wanted to share. … Continue reading
Of potatoes and pitches: it’s all fair game?
Not much is off limits. In research, if you can quantify it, you can study it. In journalism, if you can justify it, you can do it. Our class stories appeared on mongabay.com this week. I wrote about researchers who … Continue reading
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