Work — Brendan Clarey

Michigan Enjoyer / Reported Feature

Reported Feature Oct. 21, 2025

No One Leaves Michigan's Second-Smallest Town

"There's no reason to be here unless you call it home or you're running away from something."

Copper City has everything you need: a post office, old homes, and a view of the Milky Way. A dispatch from the UP on smallness, belonging, and what keeps people in a place the rest of the world has never heard of.

Read at Michigan Enjoyer →

Published in Michigan Enjoyer

The Daily Wire / Feature

Feature Feb. 20, 2026

The Old-School Gadget Making a Quiet Comeback in American Homes

"Before we picked up calls from our pockets or our earbuds, entire families were put on edge by the raucous ringing of the telephone."

The wall-mounted, hardwired landline is back — and its return says something about what we've lost in the smartphone era and what we're quietly trying to get back.

Read at The Daily Wire →

Published in The Daily Wire

Reported Feature Dec. 10, 2025

A Former President's Home Is Rotting in Detroit

A piece of presidential history sits deteriorating in a Detroit neighborhood. Who owns it, what it means, and why no one seems to be doing anything about it.

Read → Dec. 10, 2025

Opinion Feb. 16, 2026

Detroit's RoboCop Statue Should Be Downtown

The case for moving Detroit's most unlikely landmark to where it belongs — and what its current location says about how the city treats its own mythology.

Read → Feb. 16, 2026

Feature Feb. 12, 2026

Detroit's Top Steamroom Isn't a Swingers Club Anymore

The Schvitz has a reputation that precedes it by decades. Here's what it actually is now, and why the story people tell about it is more interesting than the truth.

Read → Feb. 12, 2026

Analysis Jan. 23, 2026

You Think Climate Change Is Making the Weather Crazier?

On extreme weather, attribution science, and why the argument people are having is rarely the argument that's actually worth having.

Read → Jan. 23, 2026

Food & Culture Dec. 1, 2025

Great Lakes Caviar Is a Luxury You Can Afford

Michigan's most unexpected delicacy, explained. Why Great Lakes caviar is better than it has any right to be, and where to find it.

Read → Dec. 1, 2025

Feature Dec. 5, 2025

Why Michigan Tech Students Built an Underground Classroom

What happens when engineering students have a problem that needs solving and enough ambition to solve it below grade. A dispatch from the UP.

Read → Dec. 5, 2025

Editing.

Structural editing, line editing, and editorial consulting. Clarey has worked across formats and publication types — from web-native outlets to long-form magazine work. He reads closely, marks honestly, and respects the writer's voice.

Currently serving as Deputy Editor at Michigan Enjoyer. Clips and references available on request.

Inquire about editing work →

Photography.

Documentary and editorial photography, shot primarily on 35mm film. A journalist's eye with a photographer's patience. Portfolio available on request.