Andrew Huff, the editor and publisher of Gapers Block, shares a few words about the wildly wonderful diversity of Chicago’s culinary scene and the importance of saying ‘yes.’
What do you love about Chicago?
I love it for its diversity, for its cultural institutions, for its traditions. I love it for the fact that you could go to dinner and a different restaurant every night and never run out of new places to try. I love it for its bad weather and those glorious couple weeks in the spring and fall that make up for the worst of summer and winter.
What do you love about (or why do you love) writing in Chicago?
Chicago itself is an endless source of stories to write, but the city also has provided me with a wide range of writing gigs, too. I’ve done everything from write CTA haikus for a free ‘zine to highly paid magazine articles and everything in between.
What non-conventional advice do you have for writers who want to sell or promote their work?
Don’t be afraid to pick up the occasional free gig if it’s something that will gain you access to a paid project down the road — especially if it’s an opportunity to learn something new, be it a writing style or subject matter you’ve not covered before.
Andrew will be speaking about writing for the web at the Chicago Writers Conference on September 15; check out our schedule for more details. You can find out more about Andrew on our speaker bio page, or on his website.