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Want to write for The Short Fuse?

Because we're thinking about bringing on some more writers. READ ON FOR MORE.

find anyone in there, Aaron?
find anyone in there, Aaron?
David Cannon

Blogs need writers. Nobody can deny this. This blog has several already, and I think they're all quite good. I also think it would be a good idea if this blog had some more writers, to expand the quality and amount of coverage we can provide. There are a few areas that I'd like us to specifically expand. But I'll get to that in a minute.

What's important in a candidate? First and foremost, we want good writers who will fit in with the culture of the blog. If you're coming to this post and you're not a regular, that's okay. It's important to make sure that you'll fit in, and we'll do that. If you are a regular, well, I'm pretty sure you'll fit in. What's more important there is making sure that you're a high-quality long form writer. We know already that you're smart and/or funny and/or witty in a couple sentences, but can you report on news? Can you analyse a game? We'll want to see that.

Also important is availability. Sneaking time at work isn't ideal (believe me, we have enough guys doing that already). We'd rather have people who can be available often to grab a news post, or report on a match, or whatever comes up - when it comes up. This doesn't mean you'll be on call at 3am, but general availability is a must. And just to note: we're looking for people from every walk of life. If you can write, and you can write about Arsenal, you can write for The Short Fuse.

So what exactly are we looking for? Well, there are a couple of areas we'd like to get help with specifically. The main one is news. We'd like to be able to expand our ability to cover relevant news quickly as it happens, and a larger staff will allow us to do that. We pride ourselves on providing relevant analysis alongside reporting events. You'll need to be competent at both.

That's the main thing that we want. But I have a couple of luxury wishes as well. I'd really like to be able to grow our coverage of the reserves and youth teams, because I feel like that's a thing a lot of Arsenal fans have interest in, and it's not something we've had the capacity to cover in the past. We also haven't had the capacity to cover Arsenal Ladies, which is really a crime because they're extremely good and certainly shouldn't be overlooked. If you have a particular interest and/or expertise in either, let's talk.

So to reiterate, we're looking for help with:

  1. News
  2. Reserves/youth
  3. Arsenal Ladies
If you have an interest in any of this, please contact us at theshortfuseblog AT yahoo DOT com. Note in the subject line that you're writing in regards to this post, and also note which of the openings you have an interest in. We'd prefer if you specify one, but if you're interested and capable with all three, that's fine too. We'll talk.

I also ask that you provide some writing samples. These need to be as close to what you'd be doing here as possible - sending me a term paper doesn't help. If you don't already have a blog where you write about Arsenal, first of all congratulations for being the last person to start an Arsenal blog, but more importantly don't worry - here are some fake news stories that you can do sample coverage for.

  • Wayne Rooney has agreed to lower his wages and sign for Arsenal. Report on the transfer, and analyze how he would fit into Arsene Wenger's system.
  • Arsene Wenger has retired. Who should replace him and why?
  • What are Arsenal Ladies' chances of winning the league next season?
  • Who are the five youth prospects in the Arsenal system right now with the best chance of making the first team, and why?
If you do have an Arsenal blog already, send posts from there. If you have any questions at all about this part of the process, let me know and I'll clarify anything you need help with.

Make sure that you also note your availability, and the city in which you live (which helps us determine coverage and availability, time-zone wise) as best as you can. I'm looking forward to hearing from you!