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Mark Fernquest on Muck Rack

Mark Fernquest

(He/Him)
  • Writer/Photographer/Copy Editor, Weeklys
California, Oakland, Sebastopol
As seen in: Weeklys, Substack, That Was The Week (Podcast), East Bay Express, North Bay Bohemian, Pacific Sun, Smart Meetings, The Oak Leaf, Sebastopol Times
Covers:  Reviews, Opinion, Travel, Column, News, Food, Movies, Entertainment, Arts, Culture, Books, Social Issues, Local Business, Local Interest, Local Personalities, Strange News
Doesn't Cover: Sports

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Mark Fernquest’s Biography

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Mark Fernquest is a Bay Area-based writer and editor who currently resides in Sonoma County. He grew up in the foothills near Silicon Valley, received a bachelor's in Asian History from UC Santa Cruz and lived in Oakland and environs for 20 years. He is widely traveled, having in recent years visited Alaska, Hawaii, Mexico, the UK, France, Sweden, Turkey, Israel, New Zealand, Australia and Peru. He has also spent extensive time in the desert Southwest, including Joshua Tree and the Painted Dese…

Mark Fernquest’s Journalist Portfolio

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The flea market is here to stay

The flea market is here to stay

Despite rumors to the contrary, Midgley's Flea Market is here for the long run

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Residential Renaissance - Alternative architecture in the North Bay | Bohemian | Sonoma & Napa Co...

Residential Renaissance - Alternative architecture in the North Bay | Bohemian | Sonoma & Napa Co...

Zome is where the heart is I'm standing in a Zome, in an empty lot behind a warehouse across the river from d…

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Live from Uranium Springs

Live from Uranium Springs

My fascination with towns that don’t exist began when I hitchhiked to Alaska in 1988 and spent that summer li…

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Sebastopol Urgent Care doctors tirelessly serve West County

Sebastopol Urgent Care doctors tirelessly serve West County

It has been a long year for Sebastopol Urgent Care. Founders Drs. Libby Flower and Kathleen Whisman have work…

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In favor of secession

In favor of secession

I may not surf, smoke pot, be transgender or ride a skateboard, but by Goddess I'm as Californian as you can …

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A Thousand Nights | Bohemian | Sonoma & Napa Counties

A Thousand Nights | Bohemian | Sonoma & Napa Counties

Fluff and other stuff Few things are as sublime as West County in the summer, where the days are so balmy tha…

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Articles

Sunday RoundUp: An extended summer

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By Laura Hagar Rush, Mark Fernquest, Dale Dougherty
| Sebastopol Times
Dancers of all ages rock out on the dance floor on Saturday afternoon. Bands play from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day of the fair. (Photo by Mark Fernquest) Photos by Mark Fernquest It couldn’t have been a more perfect first day at the Gravenstein Apple Fair. Early morning clouds gave way to a bright blue day at Ragle Park, and the Gravenstein apple, West County’s heritage treasure, reigned supreme. The fair continues today, so get on down there.
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Downtown Sebastopol's new soundscape

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By Mark Fernquest
| Sebastopol Times
Wax Poetic co-owner Daniel Spicka in the venue’s colorful new listening lounge, where members and guests enjoy listening to analog vinyl on the high-end, in-house sound system. (Photo by Mark Fernquest) Two new music-centric venues are set to change the face of downtown Sebastopol. Located only a half-block from each other on different sides of Sebastopol Avenue, Wax Poetic and Kindred Sound are poised to complete a “music corridor” linking Hopmonk and Laguna Lab.
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Sebastopol Gallery finds a better home for local art

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By Mark Fernquest
| Sebastopol Times
It’s been a long year for the crew at Sebastopol Gallery, but what began as a disruption turned into their good fortune. Last October the arts collective received notice from their landlord of 20 years that the lease on their location at 150 N. Main St. would expire in seven months. Panic followed. In time, new opportunities emerged and as of Saturday, July 11, the gallery is officially ensconced—and open—at its new location in the Basso Building at 186 N. Main St., Suite 11.
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Interview

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What was your first job as a journalist?

I worked as a student journalist at the Santa Rosa Community College student newspaper, The Oak Leaf, from 2018–2020.

How is social media changing news?

It's limiting it and turning it into a circus of misinformation.

What tools and software do you use to do your job?

Google docs and drive, SLACK, Pages, my iPhone camera and phone, and a pen and paper.

Awards

Journalism Association of Community Colleges 2020 NorCal Publication Award

2020 - Column Writing

This award, conferred by the Journalism Association of Community Colleges (JACC), is a First Place 2020 NorCal Publication Award for Column Writing. It was awarded based on two submitted articles, "In favor of secession" and "Why my 50s are my metal years." I wrote both articles while working at the Santa Rosa Junior College student-run newspaper, the Oak Leaf, as a student journalist.

Journalism Association of Community Colleges 2019 State On-The-Spot Award

2019 - Team Feature

This First Place Team Feature Award was awarded to myself, Jesse Kapakui and Dakota McGranahan, who worked together as a team of SRJC journalism students to write an on-the-spot article from scratch during a 5-hour time-frame at a JACC conference held at Sacramento State University in 2019. We chose to write about the Asian Pacific Islander Desi American (APIDA) Center, which supports SSU APIDA students with a variety of programming.