Erin Strout: Journalist, author, writer, and editor.

the Story of a Journalism career

On one Thanksgiving Day in the early 1980s, I ran around the house, spiral notebook and No. 2 pencil in hand, asking everybody what they were thankful for that year. I scribbled out an article—direct quotes and all—and passed it around the dinner table. No corrections were requested, just some proud grownups heaping praise over mashed potatoes, who eventually cheered me on right through a journalism degree at Penn State University (truth be told, I really majored in the Daily Collegian).

THE Easton Express Times

After graduation, I started out at the Easton Express Times, covering city council meetings, late-night fires, and the crime beat (back when you were relegated to the desk with the police scanner screeching at you all day long). I eventually ended up taking the education beat, reporting on the region’s school districts, as well as many colleges and universities.

Sales & Marketing Management

The city had always beckoned and a year later I was New York-bound to take an associate editor position at a trade business magazine: Sales & Marketing Management (coined "the Vanity Fair of business trades" back in the day, I swear). I lived above a Chinese restaurant on Second Avenue first, then eventually five flights of stairs above a dry cleaner off of First Avenue, after I was promoted to senior editor. It was at this small-but-mighty business magazine where I thrived, writing long-form and service features, learning about Corporate America, editing departments, collaborating with the art department, and hiring freelancers. We won prestigious journalism awards and celebrated. We celebrated a lot. It was that job—the one you did not appreciate enough at the time, fully ignorant of the fact that all those elements so rarely come together in a single workplace. Mentors, creative and fun colleagues, opportunities to advance, healthy dot-com-fueled expense accounts, and a lot of laughter.

The Chronicle of higher education

After six years, I moved to Washington, D.C., and started as a reporter for The Chronicle of Higher Education. At the Chronicle, I covered the business of higher education, focusing on fundraising, philanthropy, and endowment management. It was a weekly newspaper and daily digital news source with high standards for deeply researched and thoroughly edited pieces that met the needs and expectations of a discerning audience.

Health, Fitness, Sports + the move west

At the Chronicle I started periodically taking on assignments concerning athletics and campus health, as well as freelance projects for Runner's World on the side. A budding triathlete and evolving running nerd, I became interested in health, fitness, and endurance sports. I knew I had hit a breaking point when I volunteered to write a piece on MRSA outbreaks in NCAA locker rooms. Eventually, I became a full-time freelance journalist and moved to Flagstaff, Arizona, where, rumor had it, all the fastest endurance athletes trained. I began pitching my proximity to the world's best pro runners to any editor who would listen.

Running times + Runner's world

The assignments trickled in from Runner's World, Running Times (rest in peace), ESPN-W, and a few other media outlets. A full-time senior editor position opened up at Running Times, which was glorious while it lasted—we produced quality service journalism for an audience of serious runners. Alas, at the end of 2015, Running Times ceased publication. On the upside, I landed at Runner's World as a contributing editor for the RW Newswire team, covering professional running. I contributed live coverage of the premiere races including the Boston, Chicago, and New York City marathons, as well as the Olympic Trials and the Olympics. I profiled country's top distance runners, who are based in Flagstaff while training for world championships and the Olympics. I also co-authored Runner’s World Race Everything: How to Conquer Any Race at Any Distance in Any Environment and Have Fun Doing It (Rodale Books, October 2017), with Bart Yasso.

Women’s Running + Outside Inc.

Eventually I landed at Women’s Running, a title of Outside Inc., first as a digital editor responsible for daily news and updates on the website, then as senior writer for the website and the monthly print issue of the magazine. I collaborated with the editor-in-chief to lead editorial lineups and calendar creation for online daily news and print. I led strategy for live coverage of the Tokyo Games, including the marathon and track and field events. I also helped build a network of freelance writers who helped serve an audience of women of ages, with varying fitness goals and skill levels. My features focused heavily on the intersections between sports and climate change, social justice, gender equality, abuse in sports, and how these issues connect to our well-being and a healthier, safer, and more inclusive fitness community.