The Onion Fellowship for Writers/ How to Apply ($35,000 + More)
The Onion Fellowship for Writers is now open!
America’s Finest News Source, The Onion, is seeking talented writers and creators to join The Onion Writing Fellowship. The Fellowship is a six-month-long intensive and esteemed program beginning Late August.
It has produced the majority of The Onion’s current writers and numerous former writers and editors. For the duration of a Fellow’s time with the staff, they participate in The Onion’s entire editorial process. And are treated as a staff writer in terms of workload and the opportunity to frequently write a wide range of content types. The publication of a Fellow’s material is always contingent on quality. All Fellows are salaried and receive benefits.
Eligibility for the Onion Fellowship
- Candidates must be located in, or willing to relocate to, Chicago, IL for the duration of the Fellowship.
- This is a full-time, in-office position.
- More so, Fellows are fully dedicated to writing Onion content.
- In addition , they may also produce written content across all verticals including but not limited to The Onion, Onion Sports, editorial video, features, and any special projects (books, live events, etc.).
Responsibilities
- Headline, features, and draft writing for prose and multimedia
- Special projects by request
- Meeting participation — attend all required timely, issue picking, evergreen, sports, and read-through meetings
- Additional duties as assigned
Qualifications for the Onion Fellowship
- Familiarity with The Onion’s style and unique voice
- Strong headline, draft, feature, and video script writing skills
- Aptitude for thoughtfully satirizing cultural the zeitgeist and society at large
- Ability to identify weakness in others’ written pieces and give tactful notes to help them improve
- Participation in group-oriented idea generation
- Capacity to work under and meet tight deadlines
Compensation And Benefits:
- $35,000, paid on a semi-monthly payroll schedule (or the equivalent to $70,000 per year)
- Full eligibility for our benefits offering, including Medical, Vision, Dental, Disability, and Life Insurance. (They fully cover the cost of our base medical insurance for the employee.) We also offer Unlimited PTO, in consultation with your Manager.
There are two fellowship positions available this session.
In your Cover Letter, please include:
- A brief, one-paragraph cover letter touching on your experience and the diverse viewpoint you would bring to the position
- Writing samples in a single PDF attachment as part of your cover letter that must include following items:
- A list of exactly 15 Onion-style headlines (no copy, just headlines)
- Two (2) written-out News In Brief articles. Choose two headlines from your list of 15 and write them out in the traditional Onion NIB length and structure. Use short-form articles on theonion.com for reference.
- One (1) one- to two-page script for the one of the following videos: either “Ex-Pastor Explains How He Was Turned Off From Religion After Sexual Abuse Charges Were Brought Against Him” or “Expectant Mother Reveals Heartbreaking Moment Doctor Told Her Baby Wouldn’t Make It Big In Hollywood.” Scripts should be formatted like this example. Use Now: Focus videos on Application Deadline: July 15, 2024
Salary
$5,833 – $5,833 per month
Apply for The Onion Fellowship
