A magnetic writer includes a write pole configured such that the easy magnetic axis is parallel to the vertical length direction of the write pole tip and to the ABS of the recording media. The write pole tip can be a multilayer structure comprising alternating magnetic and nonmagnetic layers with a planar orientation substantially perpendicular to the ABS and with magnetic anisotropy parallel to the vertical length direction of the write pole tip. The alternating magnetic and nonmagnetic layers may be formed by electroplating on a conformal seedlayer in a trench, or by static off axis physical vapor deposition.