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Mine Gold from Your
Backyard:
Finding Writing Opportunities No Matter Where You Live
By Larry M. Lynch
“Here? There’s nothing worth writing about around here," you might say about your hometown. With the right focus on where to look, virtually any locale can yield multiple gems suitable for articles and stories. Research is the key. Here are offbeat and practical sources for generating new ideas no matter how small or dull you feel your hometown is. York, Pennsylvania has a population of less than 50,000 – "Smallsville” compared to other cities. Still, I’ve found numerous gems just waiting to be dug up, polished and marketed. Here are topics, techniques and resources to help stimulate your thinking, in even the tiniest towns.
Starting off: If there’s one indispensable resource it’s the telephone book. These pages contain enough starting information for you to produce reams of articles, if you know where to look. The front pages contain maps, contact data for government agencies, museums, libraries, other reference sites and key organizations. Listings under clubs, fraternities, and organizations yield special interest groups just clamoring for a promotional or human interest piece. Thumb through your directory, you’ll start generating ideas right away.
Buy postcards related to your area. Key names, dates and pertinent facts are printed on the back. Assemble them into a scrapbook for future reference. Use the Internet by entering your town name and local key words into several search engines, ruthlessly following up on the results. Points you’d never imagine can generate article ideas.
You’ll doubtless be spending a TON of time at the library, so get to know the
reference department staff. They’ll be invaluable allies in your quest for knowledge of all types. Rich rewards can be reaped for the price of a cup of coffee. Don’t have a library card? Get one – and use it. Readers may not be writers, but writers are always readers. If you’re not scanning the daily papers you’re missing out on a treasure trove of idea-starting news pieces.
The TV/radio news and commentary: Local events are often mirrored at broader levels. Never assume that a seemingly “local” problem is only of interest locally. When houseflies became a serious problem in a small Latin American town, I queried European and Asian magazines about possible interest in an article on what the townsfolk did to not only solve the problem, but make money from it too. An international magazine expressed its interest almost immediately. Tune in AM band talk radio broadcasts. Note the issues and contact information. Scrutinize them from different viewpoints. Talk
with the station, friends, and family. Research radio or TV program featured sites, locations or businesses.
Chambers of commerce continually offer such a wealth of information it’s hard to imagine not being affiliated with one. Member contacts often develop into marketable venues. Check for a tourism office in your area. It’s surprising how many tiny burgs are represented by the tourism industry. Visit, chat and pick up copies of all available materials. Ask if there’s an area they’d be interested in having written up. Pick up a guidebook for your area to have basic information on important cultural and historic sites. Expand on them in greater detail and slant to specific markets for
multiple article sales. No guidebook available? Then write one. City maps contain
interesting facts, advertisements and idea-provoking illustrations. Get different versions from tourist
boards, bookstores, stationery or department stores.
Museums: Not a museum buff? Become one. Visit the local museums. Talk to curators about the exhibits. Are there specialized museums like transportation, tools or toys? Visit craft shows and flea markets too. What was transportation like 100 or more years ago? Was there a railway station? Pony Express? A stagecoach stop like the still-standing log cabin Plough House in York? Were streets cobblestone? Brick? Mud? Newspaper archives should be brimming with articles and photos as grist for your idea
mill.
Crime: What was the most publicized, infamous crime committed in town? A robbery? Kidnapping? Arson? Murder? A modern re-telling of the events or a follow-up on the aftermath might be of interest to numerous crime magazines, police gazettes, law enforcement and insurance industry trade publications. Ghost tales can be both fascinating and profitable. Is a local site reputedly haunted? Cemeteries are a veritable cache of interesting ideas. Look for the unique, researching facts by Internet or newspaper archives. Talk to caretakers too. When a noted personality dies, in-depth research into their life and contributions could be queried to their hometown
paper and trade publications or organizations they were affiliated with.
Food: Almost every place has a hometown recipe or concoction they’re proud of. What’s its origin and special significance? How long has it been passed down? Are ingredients only available locally? Hotel, restaurant and bed & breakfast reviews are also marketable. Eighteenth century Pennsylvania Dutch specialties like shoo-fly pie, apple butter, three bean salad, and chicken corn soup grace our tourist- attracting menus.
Celebrity appearances: Maybe Elvis didn’t sleep there (or maybe he did), but if ANYONE of note passed through, stopped or stayed, there are those who’d like to hear about it. The celebrity can be historic or modern, represent any walk of life from Art to Zen,
or be their spouses, family and descendents. With an advance schedule of events, you can profile upcoming concert performers and try for interviews. Public relations and publicity offices carry stock bios on celebrities, which you can use as a
start. Music is of worldwide interest; an unusual type performed in your area could
spiral into specialized pieces on the artists or instruments. Accordion, dulcimer,
harp or zither, anyone?
Historical events tied in any way to your area can be a fountain of opportunities. Government agencies, library and newspaper archives can all lend facts to flesh out your pieces. Check out the parks, monuments, statues, and memorials around town. Who or what do they represent? There’s a story in there somewhere. Dig until you find it. Note inscriptions on plaques to key in on what to research. Are special holidays,
celebrations or festivals observed locally? Our diet-busting “Faschtnacht Day” is held
every spring on Shrove Tuesday. Look into each special event during the course of
the year rounding up particulars photos and background to shape pieces for
multiple marketing. When major construction is underway, chat with supervisors as to any odd finds that may turn
up, like the workmen who were breaking ground recently for a new town hall and stumbled across the 800-year-old remains of a medieval palace in Cyprus, whose exact location had been a mystery for centuries.
Education: Are any unusual courses offered in your area? A renowned teacher? Exceptionally young, exchange, or gifted student? Review school catalogs for ideas. Institutes and continuing education programs can likewise turn up gems ready for polishing. You could always take or teach a writing course, join or start a writer’s group.
Special products: Do well-researched features on special industries or products that dominate the local economy. Manufacturers will likely be forthcoming with loads of facts and figures to assist you, viewing it as promotion, or commission you for a promo piece. Manufacturers and products are included topics in business, trade, economic and regional publications. Look into commercial writing as well as articles for trade rags. My hometown of York has a Harley Davidson motorcycle plant, an AMF sporting goods factory, and the world-famous York Barbell Company, which has been in
business for decades.
Human interest: Long time residents, professionals or other “local characters” are potential candidates for human interest stories. Newspaper archives carry reams of ideas on the types of pieces they’d take and who to follow up on. Who’s the oldest living person on record in your town? When we asked several years ago, my family was stunned to learn that it was our own
grandmother! The city subsequently threw a commemorative bash at the largest city park to celebrate. None of us, including my centenarian
grandmother, could have been happier. Check the multiple births in town – triplets, quads, or (gasp!) litters. If they’re not babies, do a follow-up for
teen or adult magazines.
Nature: Are there seasonal invasions of bees, butterflies, bats, or other critters? Is your area home to an
unusual species? A haven for hummingbirds? A wildlife sanctuary? Wildlife and environmental publications might like the story. Zoos, insect museums, pet shops and university departments are good starting sources. I discovered a family-run business that cultures butterflies then releases them at weddings, parties and other special occasions in addition to giving presentations at
schools, trade shows and environmental conventions. Have you noticed a bizarre or
curiously-shaped tree? Check with neighbors and the city planning commission. See if there’s a tale attached to that trunk. What about other natural wonders nearby?
Architecture: Mills, farms and gardens offer material for historical, cultural or technical articles. Several covered bridges in my region generate articles and fillers to tourism,
general interest, art, crafts, hobby and architectural magazines. Photos may sell well
too if you’re handy with a camera. Regardless of your beliefs, don’t rule out delving
into places of worship, inspirational or religious markets with interviews, historical,
architectural and locally slanted approaches.
Sports or Fairs: Cover city, county or state events with an eye to unique angles and multiple marketing. Look for interesting viewpoints. Talk to category winners. Are they elderly, ethnic, or handicapped? Family secret sharers? View the events in different ways. Take photos. Surely your area proudly hosts some tournament, race, rally or marathon? How contestants prepare, interviews with sponsors, family and fans are possible article generating material. When a backyard row of huge collard greens drew attention to my late grandmother’s fertilizing methods winning her a
mention at the county fair, I wrote it up. (She’d used free elephant dung from
a visiting circus.)
Whatever your writing interests, diamonds-in-the-rough ideas for articles lie all around
you. Continually note ideas, brainstorm, observe, listen, converse and question everyone you can. Keep a calendar of events. Stay abreast of happenings. Then
never again will you say, “Here? There’s nothing worth writing about around
here.”
© Copyright 2002, Larry M. Lynch
Larry M. Lynch is a writer and photographer specializing in travel, adventure, trade, and food-related writing for Blue Frog Media Works. He lives in Cali, Colombia, and has more than 100 magazine articles, stories, papers, and essays published in print and online publications. His work has appeared in Transitions Abroad, South American Explorer, Escape From America, Mexico News and Brazil magazines. He travels and researches articles throughout Mexico and Latin America and teaches at a university in
Colombia. He can be contacted at: bluefrogmedia1@hotmail.com .
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