Seekers Media is a travel guide that spans online, mobile and social media channels and is dedicated to inspiring people to discover the joys of Alberta, British Columbia and Montana – year round. SnowSeekers.ca and FestivalSeekers.com act as “base camp” for our efforts.
Seekers Media exists to help people get more out of life by seeking incredible places and doing amazing things. We do this by providing locals' knowledge of where to go and what to do.
We harness the power of digital media to connect our partners to our community.
In winter, we focus on all things snow, turning our attention to the most fun you can have with layers of winter clothing on: skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, dog-sledding, cross-country skiing and festivals that celebrate everything from arts and culture to food and drink. In summer, we experience the West’s prolific festival scene, suggesting to our readers why they should go to. For example, The Billy Barker Days Festival in Quesnel B.C., to Drumheller’s DinoFest in Drumheller, AB.
Read on if you’re still interested:
Writers we love: We are looking for stories from writers who make it their mission to get people excited about an experience or destination.
We like to mix up our storytelling. We are open-minded about how stories should be told: narratives, experiential writing; profiles of the people you meet in your travels, and offbeat tales of the characters who define a destination – or stories told in pictures or videos. Where applicable, we want you to provide engaging insider information and details, such as which ski run is best in the early morning, where to eat in Jasper, Whitefish or Whistler, where to play a game of pool at the end of an epic day on the slopes, or which ski resort has the best daycare.
We have standards: “Fast is fine, but accuracy is everything.” - Wyatt Earp
- We expect you to know your stuff. Don’t just tell us how fantastic the place is; give us intimate details of what makes it so. We want to know that you were really there.
- Talk to people other than a resort’s marketing and public relations professional while on assignment. Also talk to the person waiting to get on the gondola or chairlift. We want accurate quotes from real people to give a sense of place and experience.
- We love first-person story telling: What did it feel like after that run with mogul the size of Volkswagen Beetles?; what you had for lunch at the mid-mountain lodge; the insider info the liftie gave you about where to ski this afternoon;
- Photos that capture a moment in time; a photo slideshow that allows the reader to explore
- Testimonial “YouTube” style videos that brings us deeper into a story or a place.
Freelance queries: Please send story ideas and queries to Lisa Monforton lisa@seekers-media. If this is your first query, be sure to send some bragging rights - links to stories, photos, blogs and or videos.
Professionalism:
If you are on assignment for SnowSeekers please respect our rules of engagement while on assignment:
- If you are skiing/snowboarding, obey all the rules from the host resort. In particular, refrain from hopping ropes into out-of-bounds territories – this infraction will end your time with us.
- Obey all of the resorts’ safety regulations;
- As a representative of SnowSeekers, we expect our correspondents to be courteous and not abuse their affiliation with the company to gain favours from their hosts;
- Use professional language; avoid conflicts and never engage in profanities;
- Never, ever steal someone else’s copy. Plagiarism is a career-killing offence.
Style:
Seekers Media uses Canadian Press Style. This means, for example, words such as colour, neighbour are spelled the Canadian way (with an “ou”). We defer to the metric system where it makes the most sense, which is in most instances. There are some exceptions where we use Imperial system (i.e.: ski industry standards) such as vertical feet for skiing or skiable acres when referring to a resort’s terrain. When quoting or mentioning people in a story, first reference is the full name and subsequent references are by surname only. (i.e.: “Smith says,” not “Bill says.”)
Deadlines:
The ultimate inspiration is a deadline, said entrepreneur Nolan Bushnell. So please adhere to them. If you are unable to meet the deadline, please give the editor ample time to make other arrangements. If, for some reason, your story angle is not coming together the way you promised, also please tell the editor or discuss another approach – also with plenty of lead time.
Rates: We offer rates that are competitive in online snow journalism. Stories from 500 to 700 words in length generally pay around $150, including photos/video.