Takes on Tucson is an open community platform spotlighting the people, places, and scenes that make Tucson worth knowing — especially the ones that rarely get written about. If you have a story to tell, a subject worth featuring, or just a tip about something we should cover, this page is for you.

What is a “Take”?

A Take is a feature article that tells the story of a firsthand experience with a person, place, venue, or scene in or around Tucson. It lives on its own permanent page on this site, with your name on it. Every Take should include photos that capture your experience of the subject. You can also embed video, link to music, or add other media — whatever tells the story best.

A Take isn’t a review. It’s a celebration. The goal is to let readers experience the subject as they read — to give them the inside scoop on something worth knowing about.

What kind of content belongs here?

Takes on Tucson has already covered BMX riders, knitting culture, tattoo artists, local musicians, and more. We want more of that — the Tucson that doesn’t make the evening news. The scenes, subcultures, and people that exist almost entirely on social media, with no Google footprint and no permanent web presence to show for it.

Think lowrider culture. Skateboarders. Street vendors. Drag performers. Youth coaches. Graffiti and mural artists. Lucha libre. Urban farmers. Barbers with a loyal following. People running a nonprofit out of their garage. The quinceañera DJ who’s been working Tucson for twenty years — and the list goes on!

That said, we’re not turning away a great Take on a popular restaurant, hiking trail, or landmark. If you’ve experienced something worth writing about, let’s feature it.

Does my Take have to be about one specific person, community, venue, or place?

No — and this is worth understanding before you pick your subject.

A Take can zoom in on one specific subject: this tattoo artist, that coffee shop, this muralist. But it can also take a wider angle. You could write about the interior design of a place rather than the place itself. You could write about a scene or subculture rather than one person within it — hookah culture in Tucson, where to watch international soccer, the underground chess community, late-night spots that actually stay open. The subject just needs a clear focus and a point of view.

Whatever angle you choose, the subject should be ongoing and publicly accessible — something anyone in Tucson can go experience for themselves.

Do I have to write it myself?

Not necessarily — it depends on what kind of contributor you are.

• If you’re a writer looking to publish and build a portfolio, you’ll research and write the piece yourself. You go experience the subject firsthand, conduct interviews or gather information beyond what’s available online, and write it up in your own voice.
• If you’re the subject — a band, an artist, a business, a community organization — you can write your own Take, or work with someone who will. Either way, you’ll have your own contributor account and direct access to your page.
• If you have a tip — someone or something you think deserves a feature — submit it and we’ll take it from there. You don’t have to be involved in writing it at all.

What’s the writing style?

Informal, conversational, and first-person. Write as if you’re telling a friend about something they absolutely need to check out.

Takes on Tucson is public-facing, so academic language, formal tone, and detached third-person narration are all out. Use “I” and “we.” Show the reader what you experienced — vivid description that puts them in the room — rather than just summarizing facts about the subject.

Aim for around 1,000 words or fewer. Paragraphs should be short (roughly 100–130 words) for readability on screen. Use subheadings to break up the content. Hyperlink to relevant information where it adds value — and in WordPress, set all links to open in a new tab.

What about photos and other media?

Every Take should include photos. They don’t need to be professional, but they should capture your actual experience of the subject — not stock images or anything pulled from the internet. All photos must be your own or used with clear permission from the rights holder.

Beyond photos, you’re encouraged to embed video, audio, social media posts, or any other media that brings the subject to life. Video should be uploaded to YouTube or another video-sharing platform first, then embedded into your post — please don’t upload video files directly to WordPress.

Can I submit a video instead of an article?

Yes. If you have the equipment and editing skills, a short video profile — five minutes or under — is a valid alternative to a written article. It should be skillfully shot and edited, since Takes on Tucson is a public-facing site. Think of it as capturing in five minutes what a 1,000-word article would describe.

That said, please include a short paragraph or two contextualizing what the video covers. This matters for accessibility — not everyone can watch or hear video content.

As with all video on the site, upload your video to YouTube or another sharing platform first and embed it into your post rather than uploading the file directly to WordPress.

Can I use AI to help write my Take?

Yes, with one condition: the content needs to be genuinely tailored to your subject and your voice. A raw AI-generated draft dropped onto the page as-is isn’t acceptable. But using AI as a writing assistant — to help draft, refine, or organize content that you then shape and personalize — is fine.

It this site connected to the social media brand Tucson Takes?

What are the rules?

Takes on Tucson is a celebration of Tucson, not a platform for criticism or controversy. Here’s what that means in practice:

• Ongoing subjects only. Don’t write about a one-time event or something that will be over before the article publishes. Takes should have a shelf life.
• Publicly accessible subjects. Whatever you write about should be something any Tucson resident can go experience themselves.
• Celebrate, don’t critique. Takes are human-interest features, not reviews. The goal is to illuminate what makes a subject worth knowing — not to evaluate, rank, or criticize.
• No inflammatory content. Avoid divisive political ideologies, content that degrades or attacks others, or anything rooted in or promoting violence or discrimination.
• Original content only. All text, photos, and media must be your own or used with clear permission from the rights holder. Don’t pull images from Google.
• Your subject should know. If your Take is about a specific person, they should be aware the piece is being published.
• One clear focus. Each Take should center on one subject, scene, or angle — not a general list or roundup.
• No advertising. A Take can illuminate the purpose, personality, or story behind a business or organization. It shouldn’t read like a promotional ad.

What happens after I submit?

If you’re a writer or subject contributor, I’ll review your draft before it goes live — checking for readability, correctness, and SEO setup (more on that below). I may make minor edits to titles, headings, or metadata to help the page perform better in search. I’ll flag anything significant before publishing.

What’s the SEO piece about?

Every page on Takes on Tucson can be search-engine optimized (SEO) to be found by search engines. That means filling in the right fields — a focus keyphrase, a meta description, image alt text — so Google understands what the page is about.

If you’re comfortable with SEO, you’ll have direct access to those settings through Yoast, the SEO tool built into the site, and I have a guide that walks you through it. If you’d rather not deal with it, I’ll handle the optimization for you. Either way, your page can and will be optimized at your request.

How do I get started?

Send an email to takesontucson@gmail.com or reach me on Instagram at @kev.cassell. Tell me a little about yourself and what you’d like to write about — or who or what you think we should feature.

No contract, no commitment, no deadline pressure. Write one piece or write ten.

— Kevin Cassell, site administrator

Have a subject idea to pitch? Submit it here:
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