Joiner, Whitney

I’m a freelance journalist based in Marfa, Texas and New York City. Most of my stories focus on women and girls; they’re usually magazine features, profiles, and cultural trend pieces. In one way or another, my work often involves social justice, human rights, positive psychology and relationships – the ways we connect to each other, the things we need to fix and fight for, and the ways we cope.

Last spring, my first book was released by Free Press/Simon & Schuster: The Drama Years: Real Girls Talk About Surviving Middle School, Bullies, Brands, Body Image and More. It’s a collaboration with Haley Kilpatrick, founder and CEO of the peer-to-peer mentoring organization Girl Talk, a non-profit involving over 40,000 girls. I interviewed over 50 middle school and high school girls for The Drama Years about everything from stress to body image to getting along with their friends and families; the book is packed with real girls, voices, telling adults what it’s like to be a middle school girl today and how to help them deal.

I’ve edited at Seventeen magazine and Salon.com, and have written for a variety of publications: ELLE, Glamour,Marie Claire, Teen Vogue, the New York Times, TIME, Whole Living, and others.