I met Lifestyle journalist Aly Walansky many years ago through a Facebook Group we were both in. I was impressed with her pivot from beauty to other lifestyle subjects like food, travel, and cocktails, and knew she would be a great person to have on the podcast, with lots of useful advice for journalists as well as public relations professionals.

In This Episode

• How Aly Walansky found her niche.
• The gift of Substack when it comes to time management
• Secrets of building sustainable relationships with editors
• How Aly created content during the pandemic 
• Her experience writing for almost 10,000 substack subscribers and what she offers paid subscribers.
• How she structures her AMAs
• The new wave of AI in Journalism 
• Adding yourself into the story
• The importance of a social media footprint for writers, even if you’re an introvert

Watch on YouTube 

About Aly Walansky

Aly Walansky has been covering lifestyle topics, with a focus on food, travel, and cocktails, for two decades. She’s done all of this living and working (and eating!) from a tiny New York City studio apartment — so she knows a thing or two about cooking and eating well on a budget, in small spaces — and sharing it with her audience. Her daily Substack newsletter goes out to close to 10,000 people each day.

Connect with  Aly 

Her Substack

Connect with Estelle

Watch Estelle’s episode #88 with Former HARO Founder, Peter Shankman

Estelle’s Episodes with Other Media Experts/Journalists

Episode #98 Insights on ASJA and the 2024 Virtual Conference

Episode #90 Estelle’s Edge from the U.S. Book Show

Episode #83 Showcasing Your Writer’s Voice Through Video to Make an Impact

Episode #74 How to Write and Structure a Health/Wellness Book

Episode #67 How to Be a Media-Friendly Author

Episode #29 Getting the Sound Bite: A Media Expert Speaks About Interviews

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Sign up for her Memoir, Essays and Articles Class at NYU

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Sign up for her Substack (with craft advice and writing opportunities). Paid subscribers receive opportunities for pitch reviews, plus bonus clips from Freelance Writing Direct guests.

Estelle’s latest Substack post on Micro Memoir (plus an offer for paid subscribers)

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Thank you to Bianca Marais

In the May bonus episode of The Shit No One Tells You About Writing, guest author Courtney Preiss (an author and pr pro) gives a shout-out to Writing That Gets Noticed and so does Bianca. Listen to it here (my mention comes at the 26.31 minute mark).

Listen to my episode Finding Your Voice on The Shit No One Tells You About Writing,