How To Write For Living In Israel
A Collective And Voluntary Effort To Disseminate Practical Information About Aliyah And Life in Israel
Want To Get Involved? Write For Us!
V1–Updated: 17/01/21
I (@danielrosehill) created this Medium publication in order to share practical how-to information about living in Israel. My aspiration is that the collection of information here will one day grow into an informational website.
This publication is targeted at olim, those contemplating aliyah, and other groups living in Israel who want practical information about navigating daily life here.
Some of the topics that have been covered so far include:
- A glossary for making aliyah
- A guide to Israel-centric Facebook groups
- Information about setting up shop as an atsmai (self employed individual) in Israel
Some topics that I would like to see covered (a very non-exhaustive list) include:
Financial
- Negotiating a salary in Israel
- Signing up for a keren hishtalmut
- How to choose a reliable pension agent
Careers
- How to hunt for a job in Israel
- Opportunities in Israel’s “high tech” scene
- Understanding an Israeli tlush (pay stub)
If you’re interested in sharing your views about how to make Israel work for you on Medium, then I’d be grateful to receive your authorship (see below for how to get in touch).
Just note that this is a voluntary effort written by (and largely for) olim. Think of it as passing on the torch of hard-won knowledge from your aliyah to those who have yet to touch down at NatBag (that’s Ben Gurion Airport for those who haven’t mastered the art of kitsurim yet). Nobody (including me) is getting paid for writing here, although you’re welcome to meter your stories to monetize them.
Target Languages
This publication welcomes submissions in the following languages:
- English
- French
- Russian
- Amharic
Living In Israel’s Style Guide
In lieu of a fancy style guide, here are a few bullet points and paragraphs which I hope will set out the overall direction I envision this Medium publication taking.
1. Content should be about living in Israel
This publication is about the practical details of living in Israel — think the tachlis and often unglamorous actual nuts and bolts of actually making a life here.
The focus of every submission should be on providing a valuable viewpoint about how to live in Israel.
This doesn’t mean that your article has to be a dry how-to about opening a bank account (although that type of information would certainly be useful if it hasn’t been covered before).
You could, for instance, share how you managed to carve out a new career for yourself in UX design (coming from graphic design). Or about how you leveraged Facebook groups to find a great and welcoming community for your family.
Try to keep this question front and center: Would this perspective provide useful guidance to somebody already living in Israel or just contemplating it? If yes, Living in Israel could be a great home for your article.
What kind of submissions would be bad-fits? Broadly speaking any article that doesn’t match the above terms. But here are a couple of specific examples:
- Hasbara. Hasbara-style pieces often come with a built-in agenda and try to downplay the negatives of life in Israel (or ignore mentioning them). This publication aims to be a balanced and in-your-face type of resource. Living in Israel isn’t shy about telling it like it is. I believe that honest information helps make informed choices. (This doesn’t mean that you have to mention negatives where you don’t think they merit mention or exist. Just try to write with an objective rather than persuasive motivation).
- Airing your political views. There are so many places in the Jewish and Israeli blogosphere to share your political views about Israel in English. This isn’t one of them.
2. This isn’t about cheerleading for aliyah
I believe that, in order to be taken seriously, information about aliyah needs to be presented credibly and without an obvious slant.
Feel free to tell your readers that Israel is the greatest place in the world. Or why you regret moving here if you want to share that perspective. But leave the decision of whether to move here up to the reader. This publication is about sharing experiences, perspectives, and information. Refrain from directly encouraging (or discouraging) moving to Israel.
3. Content doesn’t have to be neutral. Opinions are welcome
I’ve used this platform to criticize Israel’s cost of living and to argue that all Israel-based freelancers should consider working with international freelance clients.
Taking a stand for or against an issue is perfectly fine. It should just relate in some way to making a life in Israel.
4. Syndicated content is welcome — assuming it adheres to the style guide
If you have a Times of Israel blog that would also be a great fit for Living in Israel then feel free to submit it for consideration.
Just make sure to use the Import functionality in Medium so that the piece is entered into the CMS with the appropriate canonical tags and Google doesn’t penalize you for authoring duplicate content.
https://help.medium.com/hc/en-us/articles/214550207-Importing-a-post-to-Medium
Needless to say, imported/syndicated content should adhere to the above points.
5. Please caption your images and cite the license they are used under
By submitting article(s) to Living in Israel you assume responsibility for the image(s) included in your article(s) and warrant that you have sourced them legally and are reproducing them in compliance with their terms of use.
To help establish that fact, please include a caption with every image pointing to its source and usage license.
How To Write For Living in Israel
If you’re interested in writing for Living in Israel please complete the following form.
You can also send an email to the following address:
Thank you for your interest in contributing to the publication!
