Sign in

Amanda Castleman

@amandacastleman.bsky.social
1.7K followers 2.3K following 96 posts

Seattle writer & photog: heath, travel & the environment. Pubbed in BBC, Sierra, Outside, NYT & NatGeo, etc. Founder of the school writelikeahoneybadger.com. ADHDer, geeks over drag, native plants, tiny homes & wild swimming. She/her. amandacastleman.com

PostsRepliesMedia
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 09/01/2026
Leap into freelance writing! Let pitch classes at Write Like A Honey Badger help with strategies and hands-on edits. Join me for Pitch Like a Honey Badger, four weeks from 1/9, or the new Journalism Pitch Master Class, six weeks from 1/14. www.writelikeahoneybadger.com
A breaching humpback covered in barnacles. They're leaping from an azure ocean. In the background: a thin strip of sandy beach and blue sky. Copyright amandacastleman.com
230
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Vanessa Warheit @vwarheit.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
Quick reminder to my American friends that 5calls.org is still here, ready to help channel your grief and rage into three(!) short calls to your elected representatives. It just takes 5 minutes, and it really is healthier (and more effective) than doomscrolling. Plus you'll feel better afterwards.
5calls.org
5 Calls
Spend 5 minutes. Make 5 calls. Make your voice heard.
031
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 17/06/2025
SCHOLARSHIP OPP: Hands down, Travel Classics Media is the best networking conference for travel writing. Apply for this emerging-author aid—honoring my late brother-by-choice—by 7/1 and win a trip to the Quebec session October 13-16, 2025. Get in there, friends!!! travelclassics.com/scholarship
Edward smiles shyly at the camera. He's a middle-aged man with a black-and-white fleece cap, glasses, a calico beard, moss-green waterproof jacket and a paddling life jacket. It's a clear sunny day in SE Alaska and snow-gilded mountains are visible in the background.
173
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 16/06/2025
Photo bombus!!! 😹 #pollinators #bumblebees #bombus #lupine #blossomscrolling #nativeplants
A bumble bee harvests from a purple bigleaf lupine, while another cruises over. In the background are large verdant lupine leaves (kind of like big green daisy petals in shape).
1122
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 14/06/2025
A black cartoon cat with a crown sits on a pillow above flames. The text reads: "No kings! However we do accept tiny in-house monarchs with ticklety tum tums."
040
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 13/06/2025
Getting fired up for No Kings day! (And, yes, Snopes confirmed this story: bit.ly/3ZXOYA8)
Text says '"we interrupted our drag show to shoot at at Nazis' is a truly powerful energy I want to bring back." The image shows men in pale flouncy dresses pushing a gun into position on a foggy day. Its captions reads: British Soldiers (interrupted during drag show rehearsals by a German raid) manning a BL 6-inch Mk VII naval gun at Shornemead Fort, England in 1940. Epic!
261
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Josh Shepperd @joshshepperd.bsky.social · 02/05/2025
Wrote a historical piece that defends funding for NPR and PBS. Whatever their problems, we cannot let Fox News become our default "public sphere." There needs to be alternatives, including imperfect yet aspirational ones.
theconversation.com
Trump and many GOP lawmakers want to end all funding for NPR and PBS − unraveling a US public media system that took a century to build
The precursors of today’s public media programs consisted of professors giving lectures about history and finance.
10328152
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 01/05/2025
✨NIPPED!✨ #Void #Blackcat #Blueskycats #Catsofbluesky
A shiny black cat with moss-green eyes (Manson lamps!) hangs off a dark wood cat tree. Behind him, you can see a vaulted cedar ceiling with dark wood beams, plus art and many plants, including a pony tail palm. Image copyright amandacastleman.com
050
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Alp Beck @alpbeck.com · 19/04/2025
Before I go into today's dystopian nightmare, let's take a minute to bring down your blood pressure. Here is one of my favorite creatures, the #RedPanda. Enjoy. #nature #animals
454145972724
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 01/04/2025
Cinnamon Squirrel and her mate Big Red have become my coffee klatch. They take turns visiting each morning, sometimes companionably devouring nuts as I caffeinate. Eastern grays are an invasive species in Seattle, I know, but they've also invaded my heart, dangnabbit!
An alert grey squirrel with a peachy face and other red markings on her back. She's standing on the arched branch of a weeping atlas cedar with a weeping redwood behind her, as well as a glimpse of eco-lawn and the street. It's a grey winter day in the Pacific Northwest.A chonky grey squirrel stands atop a mason bee chalet with mossy maple bark in the background. His tail curls behind him and is very plumey. He has red markings, especially on his face and elbows. Little dude has kind of a benevolent major domo vibe going here...
380
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 27/03/2025
The blue-booty bees are back! Today I spotted the season's first wild mason bees in action (my cocoons are still slumbering in the fridge). Adorable!
Wild Washington mason bees clamber on a euphorbia blossom. They have blue booties and sort of resemble flies. The two bees are harvesting pollen from a yellow-lime green plant and more plants are visible in the background, including some sedum succulents
0100
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 05/03/2025
My partner @dspaulding.bsky.social went on disability leave last summer & his company—surprise!—cancelled our insurance without warning on 2/28. Something we discovered today by accident. Fun! But, hey, the stress made our aloof girlcat Badger cuddle me: a new trick in her arsenal at age 12. Awww!
A pumpkin, peach and charcoal tortoiseshell cat sleeps on her person's lap, covered in a sage blanket. Her eyes are closed and paws tucked. The pic is very peaceful and features her Main Coon ear tufts nicely!
9160
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Write Like a Honey Badger @honeybadgerwriters.bsky.social · 26/02/2025
An incredible virtual conference starts tomorrow. @indiejournalists.bsky.social supports BIPOC writers, but welcomes allies too. Learn what 40+ top editors are looking for and how to thrive as a freelancer! Feb 27–28, 2025. $79. 10% discount: HONEY10. Recordings available. theiij.com.
A graphic showing five speakers at the IIJ 2025 Freelance Conference for the panel Pitching Stories on Work and Play.
072
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Trans Journalists Association @transjournalists.org · 26/02/2025
📣 Trans journalists! We want to support your career development. We're offering $250-$500 stipends. Who's eligible? 👉 Any journalist who qualifies for TJA membership! We also have stipends specifically for: 👉 students 👉 early-career journos Apply now 👇 airtable.com/appL7bizZ6ai...
airtable.com
Airtable | Everyone's app platform
Airtable is a low-code platform for building collaborative apps. Customize your workflow, collaborate, and achieve ambitious outcomes. Get started for free.
27765
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 25/02/2025
My travel writing course still has three seats open at @honeybadgerwriters.bsky.social. The asynchronous class starts today, 2/25 (open enrollment till day 10). Join us for industry insights and weekly developmental line-edits from expert instructors! www.writelikeahoneybadger.com/classes/trav...
A Zodiac full of travelers is silhouetted against giant blue icebergs. Very majestic vibe.
030
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Jennifer York @druzbasky.bsky.social · 22/02/2025
#resistance
031
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Jennifer York @druzbasky.bsky.social · 22/02/2025
#Resistance
031
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Rebecca Solnit @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social · 22/02/2025
Cheerful round-up of bad news for Tusk/Mump.
337666
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 19/02/2025
Scholarship opp: @honeybadgerwriters.bsky.social is accepting applications from journos and emerging writers from backgrounds underrepresented in the #media. Deadline: midnight on 2/19 for my six-week online #travelwriting class starting 2/25. www.writelikeahoneybadger.com/scholarships
A young Asian woman in a train station with a knapsack and camera. She has dark hair in a bun, a white tank, and blue-and-white striped shirt.
1136
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 14/02/2025
Today, I had a phone interview for a medical article sooooo early that this night owl slept in her clothes. Feeling fierce now! But not so fresh... 😹
050
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Neil Thurman @neilthurman.bsky.social · 11/02/2025
The @niemanlab.org just published this piece on our new paywalls study. @speppered.bsky.social does a great job presenting the findings comprehensively, accurately, and with stylistic flair. Thanks Sophie! www.niemanlab.org/2025/02/less... Full paper: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
niemanlab.org
Less is more, and discounts work: A new study looks at the minutiae of paywall strategy
“Reducing the information density of teaser elements on paywalled articles and offering discounts may help newspapers increase their online subscriber numbers.”
0165
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 21/01/2025
How to purge Copilot's intrusive, unethical, resource-guzzling trash for anyone else suffering! (Only works for Word & Powerpoint so far...😿) I canceled my subscription & bought Office from Digital Licensing instead for $25! Especially nice since Microsoft is jacking rates 30% on renewal now...
support.microsoft.com
How to turn off Copilot in Microsoft 365 Family and Personal subscriptions - Microsoft SupportYour Privacy Choices Opt-Out Icon
270
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 15/01/2025
Registration opened for the fall @travelclassics.bsky.social conference. Interested? Apply immediately, as it usually sells out in a day or two. Another avenue: a scholarship honoring my late brother-by-choice, which includes the fee, accommodation & $350 towards airfare. bit.ly/travelclassics
A white man in his 40s with thin wire glasses, a calico beard and outdoor gear. Snowcapped SE Alaskan peaks and blue sky are visible behind him. Photo copyright amandacastleman.com
140
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 07/01/2025
It's teaching time again! Writers, learn how to perfect your pitches to get the work you want this year!
140
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 18/12/2024
How fun that our Jeep achieved Peak Northwest by spouting baby blue mini-mushrooms, right as my soul sister Stephanie Oswald rocked up in Seattle! (Pic of a previous rainy hangout together, back when Kalaloch Lodge allowed beach bonfires.)
A rainy Pacific Northwest beach bonfire at night with people huddled around in raincoats and others sitting on logs with an umbrella.
170
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 05/12/2024
Last call for a nifty free webinar on December 5, starting at 7am PST/10am EST. Come talk #travelwriting with @charukesi.bsky.social, @jenrosesmith.bsky.social, Meera Dattani and myself! #writingtips #narrativenonfiction #journalism #pitching bit.ly/travelmediaw...
A promotional image for a travel writing webinar, December 5, 2024, featuring Amanda Castleman, Charukesi Ramadurai, Jen Rose Smith and Meera Dattani, 3pm GMT on Zoom
3121
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Write Like a Honey Badger @honeybadgerwriters.bsky.social · 03/12/2024
#Writingtip 1.6: Avoid an attack of the unnecessary initial-caps when writing about food. In most style guides, menu items don't count as proper names, so you can lower-cap 'em. Otherwise it can go a bit A.A. Milne with The Portentous Pooh-Bear-style Capitalizations. #NarrativeNonfiction #Journalism
A public domain illustration by Ernest Howard Shepard from Winnie-the-Pooh (1926), by A. A. Milne. It's a b&w sketch of Pooh leaning his back against Christopher Robin's, as his boy pulls on galoshes.
0123
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 25/11/2024
Yep, here's me, exploiting my late kitty to teach #writing over @honeybadgerwriters.bsky.social! (And, yes, he really would plunder unattended salads. Weird little dude... But he loved me and @dspaulding.bsky.social with the force of a thousand suns.) #journalism #narrativenonfiction #writingtips
0120
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 23/11/2024
A #journalism superpower unmasked! 😹
0131
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 21/11/2024
Here's my fave #stetpet shot: our tortoiseshell Badger rolling around on my desk as a spicy baby. Though I also like this snap of Bailey stealing my home office's comfy chair. (STET = proofreading mark for "let it stand," as in "ignore a suggested change.") #journalism @dspaulding.bsky.social
A pumpkin and charcoal kitten rolling around on a desk with a misty PNW yard visible out the window. She has gold eyes and an open mouth, and is in motion, making her look extra zany! Image copyright amandacastleman.com
1150
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Write Like a Honey Badger @honeybadgerwriters.bsky.social · 21/11/2024
#Writingtip 1.4: Inclusive person-first language is steadily on the rise now and emphasizes humanity over conditions, whether those are having a disability, an addiction, a mental illness, etc. #journalism #narrativenonfiction #writing
counseling.northwestern.edu
Inclusive Language Guide
The way we use language shows respect and understanding or a lack thereof. This guide offers inclusive language recommendations for various areas of life.
181
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 20/11/2024
I'm gearing up for a free #travelwriting webinar with superstars Meera Dattani and @jenrosesmith.bsky.social. Join me in getting heavily caffeinated and talking shop on December 5, 10am EST/7am PST! Grab a ticket here: bit.ly/travelmediaw... #journalism #narrativenonfiction #writingtips #travel
Promo for a free webinar on pitching, follow-ups, ghosting, working in travel media now and how to feel 2025-ready. Panelists include Amanda Castleman, Jen Rose Smith and Meera Dattani. The event will be held online December 5, 2024, at 3pm CMT/10am EST/7am PST
33413
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Write Like a Honey Badger @honeybadgerwriters.bsky.social · 20/11/2024
#Writingtip 1.3: As Chip Scanlan says, a story should represent the tip of an iceberg: most of the material should remain submerged in your notebook. Check out his classic advice column pubbed @poynterinstitute.bsky.social! #journalism #narrativenonfiction www.poynter.org/reporting-ed...
A horizontal image of an iceberg with a mountain-esque profile floating in front of an actual brown rock crag. The ice is mostly white with hints of aquamarine near the waterline. The sky is cerulean and clear, without clouds. Image copyright amandacastleman.com
0103
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Write Like a Honey Badger @honeybadgerwriters.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
#Writing tip 1.2: Strong verbs create action, save space and reveal the players. Use passives VERY sparingly for rhetorical effect or to emphasize oppression or victimization. Choose that voice only for its meaning or music! #journalism #writingtips #creativenonfiction
Licensed stock art depicting a slender person with a brunette bun stabbing a sword at a dragon-shaped shadow with glowing yellow eyes. They are wearing a grey long-sleeved shirt with a white top underneath, black pants and white sneakers.The background is manatee grey.
0121
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Write Like a Honey Badger @honeybadgerwriters.bsky.social · 18/11/2024
Writing tip 1.1: As George Orwell said, never use passive verbs where you can use active ones (unless you need to convey victimization or oppression, or are restricted by other syntactical elements).
#journalism #writing #writingtips
051
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
I'm dishing up insights from 21 years of teaching #writing, #journalism and #creativenonfiction over @honeybadgerwriters.bsky.social, the online school I founded.
071
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Alt National Park Service @altnps.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
“Bluesky is an echo chamber!” Our Reply: Echo chamber? Nah, we prefer to call it surround sound for facts.
662354834754
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 17/11/2024
I started a feed of #journalism and creative non-fiction resources. #journalists #writers #reporters #creativenonfiction #CNF #literarynonfiction #narrative #essays #articles
0150
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Zack Labe @zacklabe.com · 17/11/2024
Rough week. So let me fill your @bsky.app feeds with one of my favorite data visualizations... Enjoy! 🙂 Seasonal migration patterns of birds varying with air temperature using community science observations (eBird). Animation created by: sos.noaa.gov/catalog/data...
25851188
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 16/11/2024
Got haircut masked > Got Covid anyway > Immune-compromised partner sleeping in unplumbed outbuilding gets food poisoning (tiny home problems!) > Got adept at hosing vom off deck > Got five journalism deadlines met somehow > Got *super* relieved this stupid week is over
A headshot of a middle-aged white woman with long straight dirty blonde hair, partially lit by the sunset. She's wearing big black Jackie O sunglasses and a black v-neck, and is standing in front of a Mexican restaurant's neon signs.
6240
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Mother Jones @motherjones.com · 15/11/2024
The Trump campaign knew that men were his ticket back to power, and it targeted them—pointedly young men, and men of color—with a sophisticated campaign of grievance and disinformation. And in that, they were massively aided by the manosphere and its billionaire mascot: Elon Musk.
motherjones.com
Of misogyny, Musk, and men
Women are not okay. We're furious.
832189
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Ben Collins @bencollins.bsky.social · 14/11/2024
Also, part of the reason we did bought InfoWars is because people on Bluesky told us it would be funny to buy InfoWars. And those people were right. This is the funniest thing that has ever happened.
783368446288
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 15/11/2024
Paws up, my fellow travelers! (H/t to @rossanawyatt.bsky.social for organizing!)
151
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 13/11/2024
An intro, as the X-odus continues! I'm a Seattle writer & photographer focusing on travel, medicine & the environment. My work appears in Afar, BBC Travel, Hidden Compass, Sierra, National Geographic & The New York Times. Founder & instructor at www.writelikeahoneybadger.com www.amandacastleman.com
A Guyanese giant river otter glares at the camera with red-rimmed eyes, as it chases a boat. Water droplets hang from its whiskers. The water appears brown from tannins and the bank has small beige-red rocks.
4481
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 13/03/2024
Get your travel writing groove on with Write Like A Honey Badger's six-week online course. I'm teaching with the fabulous Jessica Poitevien and Leslie Hsu Oh again — we give weekly developmental edits, so students accelerate quickly. Our next session starts 3/14 with enrollment open until day 10!
Two women sit on a rocky outcrop over a wide, frothy white waterfall, gushing to the left of the frame. They're overlooking an evergreen-lined lake turned turquoise from glacial silt. A mountain and blue sky with puffy white clouds are visible in the background.
040
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 02/01/2024
Kicking off the new year with salt water and sunshine. Happy 2024!
A Pacific Northwest beach scene with cobblestones, a silhouetted evergreen, beach logs and two walkers, plus pale gold clouds streaming across winter cerulean sky
030
Reposted by Amanda Castleman
Dr. Lucky Tran @luckytran.com · 20/12/2023
We are in the midst of a big COVID surge, caused by a new variant. This is a helpful chart on holiday COVID risk put together by Dr. Michael Hoerger, based on current COVID wastewater levels & modeling. For a Christmas gathering of 10 people, there's a 30% chance at least one person is infectious.
21717476
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 21/12/2023
As a Seattleite, I tend to blast through Olympia, WA, like "make a hole, I'm almost home!" But a magazine assignment convinced me to slow down and explore the area, from grunge nostalgia at Capitol Theater to Cajun-PNW fusion fare at Chicory and The Tenino Stone Carvers' renaissance. Lesson learned!
View of Washington's Capitol Building from across Capitol Lake. The sky's bluebird-colored with faint wisps of clouds, and evergreens and autumn foliage reflect in the mostly still water. The grey-stone dome of the capitol rises in the background.View of Mount Rainier across West Bay in Olympia. Rainier, the most glaciated peak in the contiguous US, rises above an evergreen-fletched hill with orange and gold apartment buildings at its base. Golden-hour light is gilding the mountain's snow and the sky's cerulean.Janus carving by Keith Phillips near the historic quarry in Tenino, WA, a rising epicenter of stonecarving. The image focuses on a column of irregular grey-stone blocks with a circular center piece, showing the two-faced Roman god. To the left, there are evergreens and a cycle path with several bundled-up figures walking on a brisk autumn day.
0140
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 21/12/2023
Seattle-area folks, if anyone needs a headshot update, the photographer who updated mine — Tara Gimmer — is offering a $149, 20-minute deal on January 20th. She's lovely... and excellent at settling down squirmy, lens-shy creatives! taragimmer.com/seattle-head...
Writer and photographer Amanda Castleman's headshot. She's a middle-aged white woman with pale skin, blue eyes and a brown high bun with light grey strands. She's wearing a black V-neck tee and black pearl earrings. The righthand side of the image shows the photographer's logo: the words "tag photo" superimposed over her mobile studio, an Airstream trailer.
010
Amanda Castleman @amandacastleman.bsky.social · 09/12/2023
Early enrollment time for my favorite virtual conference: The Institute for Independent Journalists'! The code "BADGER10" takes the price to US$44 for two days of amazing speakers, 2/29—3/1. Hope to "see" some of you there! (The cost rises after 12/22, but the code still works.) theiij.com
040