Articles like this one are dead.
Long-form ski writing is on life support.
Outside is buying up all of the outlets to keep as cute little cash cows.
Or something else equally dire.
So sayeth the prophets of doom at least.
In some ways its a terrible time to be a person who wants to tell stories about skiing.
I was young and optimistic then.
Since then of course, some things have changed.
Fewer people are getting paid to write articles with fewer words.
I used to know exactly who’s jobs I aspired to have.
If I was coming onto the scene today, Im not sure it would feel so simple.
There are fewer folks in those aspirational positions, and the paths to getting there are less clear.
Writing requires more than a throwaway clip on the gram, accompanied by a tired caption.
And it requires more of your audience too.
Its easier to just watch the clip than to read and engage with an article.
Reading isnt going anywhere.
Good writing will always exist.
We can be better.
Even if that film does happen to feature one more woman than they did last year.
I want to read your stories.
Skiing needs to read your stories.
Maybe you wont get herds of groupies hanging on your every word.
But telling your stories will make skiing better, and it will make you a better writer.
There are fewer magazines to mail your manuscripts to (althoughMountain Gazetteis there to aspire to).
Your photos will probably get buried in the floods of good-enough content on social media.
Thats a big part of why I still write for NS.
If skiing makes you feel some sort of way, tell us about it.
If theres a kid at your home hill whos killing it, write them up.
Want to try your hand at satire?
This is the place.
Do a decent job, and theyll pay you.
Do a terrible job and at least its easy to hit it one more time.
Everything is broken,and nobody cares, the pessimist inside me complains.
Why are you skiing?
What makes it worth it?
We want to know, we want to read your words.
