Eight ways to keep things simple for freelance writers
This article about keeping things simple for freelance writers is by Julie Barlow and Jean-Benoît Nadeau, the authors of Going Solo: Everything You Need to Start Your Business and Succeed as Your Own Boss. Prize-winning authors and journalists, the pair have been running a freelance writing business for over three decades.
Managing a small business means wearing many professional hats. In addition to writing, you are your own sales manager, publicist, contract negotiator, accounts receivable manager, bookkeeper, accountant, president, IT department and more.
Multitasking can become overwhelming. But while some of the challenges writers face—like writer’s block and tough editors—are unique, self-employed writers grapple with many of the same problems common to all freelance workers.
Eight ways to keep things simple for freelance writers
Over three decades as self-employed writers, we have realized that simplifying things is key to keeping our business running smoothly. These eight ideas will help you avoid headaches and keep on top of your ever-growing list of tasks.
Shut the door
It’s amazing how many self-employed workers work in areas of heavy traffic at home. During the pandemic we watched in horror as our editors set up shop on kitchen tables. Self-employed writers need a room with a door that they can shut. It’s more important than having a fancy office, and the only way to make your home office peaceful and productive.
Use folders
We’re not talking about paper folders (although we still do use those). Folders can be digital or physical. We all need these “boxes” to store things, not just bills and receipts, but ideas, reflections, and resources. In our business of creating ideas, we use folders to store newspaper articles, notes about books we want to read, notes on books we have read, but also people we want to meet, events and workshops we want to attend, notes from meetings, and more. Folders make information handy and easy to locate.
File every day
Whether notes or bills or receipts, freelancers should always take a little time out of their day to file. Self-employed workers who don’t do this feel the pain when tax time rolls around. Filing is a fundamental freelance skill, the key to having peace of mind and being productive. To avoid a messy mountain of receipts, bills and deductible expenses, make filing part of your routine and do a little every day.
Clean out your client list
For most small businesses, finding new clients is the name of the game. But for writers, dispensing with bad clients can be just as important. Does a client take you for granted? Ask for special favours, “as a friend”? Pay too slowly? Every small business owner should do some occasional house clearing and purge customers who make life complicated or don’t deserve your business.
Pick one social media platform
There is no easier way to fritter away valuable time than by going down too many social media rabbit holes. With newer, sharper, more interesting platforms popping up all the time, it’s tempting to jump on board. Most social media experts today recommend you concentrate on one (or two) platforms that work.
Hire a freelance IT specialist
If there’s one person who truly helps us breath easier, it’s our computer technician (who is also self-employed). He is the IT department we don’t get as self-employed workers. He assesses our IT needs, recommends tools, delivers hardware to our door, and is on call when our computers break down—or are stolen. When that happened recently, he helped find a replacement and untangle the mess of lost passwords for us in a snap. We don’t need him every day, but he’s always there when disaster strikes.
Get an external webmaster
There is nothing more terrifying and potentially disastrous than a website hack. We pay a modest monthly fee to a skilled and reliable webmaster who solves glitches and answers questions in a snap. He costs less than a housekeeper and helps us avoid serious headaches in the complex world of computer security. Google and YouTube are no substitute for an experienced security professional.
Don’t forget your purpose
This might be the most crucial advice of all. In the thousands of decisions that you make as a small business owner, staying focused on what you really want to do is the most important. Having a clear purpose—defining your goals and interests—is like a compass that guides your decisions and makes managing your business much so much simpler.
Off the Wire: March 2025
We’re revitalizing our series, Off the Wire. Here, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, communications, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus. Who needs a water cooler?
New regulations and industry shifts in Canada are shaping how independent workers operate. From tax reporting changes affecting gig workers to emerging trends in freelance work, staying informed is essential to business success. This month, we’ve rounded up key articles that highlight the latest developments, including new tax rules for digital platform workers, insights into how Canadian gig workers are responding to these changes, and what the future holds for freelancers in 2025.
Freelancing stories from around the web
- How Canada’s Gig Worker Law Is Reshaping Business Compliance [People2.0]
- Canada: Job Gains Fizzle Ahead of Tariff Troubles [Desjardins]
- Around a third (30%) of Canadian gig workers didn’t plan to report all gig income this tax season; 71% had change-of-heart upon learning about new rules mandating gig platforms to share users’ earnings with CRA, reveals new H&R Block Canada survey [Cision]
- Latest Freelance Statistics 2025 – Industry Size & Trends [DemandSage]
Recently published on Story Board
- 16 ways to say no as a freelance writer (and why you would need to) by Julie Barlow: All successful self-employed creators know: sometimes you have push back. It’s a big ask for beginners trying to build a client list. But if the price is wrong, conditions are less than ideal, or timing is off, saying “no” to an assignment or contract can make a sale—on your terms
Spot a story you think we should include in next week’s Off the Wire? Email the link to robyn@robynroste.com.
Navigating the Contract Maze: Expert Strategies for Freelance Success
“The Devil is in the details!” That describes the importance that successful negotiations play in getting contracts that are comprehensible, unambiguous, and mutually beneficial.
That’s the ideal. Reality is often far off the mark.
In March 2025, the Canadian Freelance Guild hosted a webinar on Contracts and Negotiations for Freelancers featuring expert panelists Don Genova, donalee Moulton and Paul McLaughlin. They have been negotiating and focusing on the fine print for decades. A summary of this discussion is below. To view the webinar, you can access it here.
Three veteran freelancers share battle-tested advice on negotiating better deals, spotting red flags, and maintaining professional relationships while still getting paid what you’re worth
When it comes to freelancing, your creative skills might get you in the door—but it’s your contract savvy that determines whether you’ll thrive or merely survive. In a recent Canadian Freelance Guild panel on contracts and negotiations, three seasoned experts shared insights from their decades in the trenches, revealing both practical tactics and psychological strategies for navigating what many freelancers find to be the most intimidating aspect of their careers.
The panel, moderated by CFG President George Butters, featured Donna Lee Moulton, an award-winning journalist and corporate communications specialist from Halifax; Paul McLaughlin, a Toronto-based writer, broadcaster and author with more than four decades of experience; and Don Genova, a longtime food and travel journalist from Victoria who has helped freelancers interpret and negotiate contracts for many years.
Their message was clear: understanding contracts isn’t just important—it’s essential to your freelance survival.
The Freelancer’s Mindset: Business Owner First, Creative Second
An audience poll at the start of the session revealed what many might expect—most freelancers feel uncertain about their contract and negotiation skills, with many specifically identifying “fear of talking about money” as a major obstacle.
“I can appreciate the trepidation that we often have when it comes to talking about money,” acknowledged Moulton. “As freelancers and as business people, we want to establish a relationship with our clients, with our editors. And somehow when money gets involved in that process, we worry that it will in some way affect that relationship.”
McLaughlin cut to the heart of the issue: “If you’re going to be a freelancer, you’re a business owner, a small business owner. And you have to understand your business, and you have to learn how to price, and you have to learn how to make a profit.”
He illustrated this with a simple example: “The same way that if you start a painting company, you go door to door and say, ‘I’d like to offer my services.’ And they say, ‘Well, how much?’ You don’t say, ‘Well, I don’t know. What do you want to pay?'”
This mental shift—from thinking of yourself primarily as a creative person to recognizing yourself as the owner of a business—forms the foundation for successful negotiation. As Moulton noted, it requires “wearing the two hats, wearing the hat as writer and what I want to do as a writer and how I want to tell the story as a writer. But then the business hat has to come out.”
The Rate Paradox: Why Today’s Writers Are Making 1970s Money
One of the most eye-opening moments came when the panel discussed the stagnation—or even decline—in freelance writing rates over the decades.
“I started writing for magazines in the late 1970s and I was making a dollar a word,” McLaughlin revealed. “I was also being assigned four and five thousand word articles. That was 45 years ago.”
Genova added: “At one point, you could start at a dollar a word, and now, if you get a dollar a word, that’s still considered to be a good rate if you’re writing for a magazine.”
Butters shared an even more stark example: “My experience with the dollar a word, early, very early 80s to 2010. Same magazine. The father to the son, literally a father was the editor, then the son in the ladder. Same rates. The same rate, exactly the same. And I don’t think it’s changed today.”
The panel attributed this partly to the flood of aspiring writers willing to work for exposure rather than fair compensation. As Genova recounted from a conversation with a magazine editor who was asked why they pay writers so little: “His answer is very simple, because we can. Everybody wants to be in print. They want to see their name on an article, and they’re willing to do almost anything for almost nothing to do it.”
This reality led to unanimous advice: freelancers should look beyond traditional publishing toward corporate clients who often offer more respectful compensation. “The magazine world isn’t [respectful of what you need to earn]. And the newspaper world doesn’t even think about it,” McLaughlin noted. “I really think they’re doing, they think they’re doing you a favor by publishing you.”
The Three Numbers Strategy: Know Your Worth Before You Talk
One of the most practical takeaways came from Genova’s “three numbers” approach to negotiation:
“The first number is the one that’s something you’d really like to make for this. That’s kind of like, you know, almost ridiculous, right? The second number is what you can say is considered to be, well, it’s a fair price. I would make a reasonable profit on it. And the third number is your bottom line. You won’t, you don’t want to go under that, because then you’re in a losing proposition.”
This strategy provides both psychological preparation and practical boundaries. McLaughlin emphasized that knowing your bottom line helps project confidence—a critical element in successful negotiation.
“People kind of smell each other, you know, and sense each other. So if you’re there and you have no idea what you’re going to do, you’re just desperate for the work or desperate for the money… Desperation is one of the least attractive qualities a human being can ever have,” he explained.
“If you can appear at least to be confident, to be self-assured, even if you have to kind of put it on at first, you’ll eventually, I think, take it on.”
Value-Add Strategies: Getting Paid More Without Working More
Rather than simply asking for higher rates, the panel suggested looking for creative ways to add value that costs you little but justifies higher compensation.
Genova shared a personal example: “When I was doing items for CBC… I wanted to negotiate above the minimum, and they didn’t want to do that. And I said, ‘Well, listen, how about if I provide you every Monday night a promo that you can use on Tuesday morning before I come in?’ And then maybe pay me two extra minutes.”
This arrangement meant he earned about $100 more per column for work that only took him 10-15 minutes to complete—a win-win situation.
Similarly, if you have a substantial social media following that could help promote published work, that’s a negotiating point worth mentioning. While this might seem like giving away more of your labor, the panel emphasized that strategic value-adds can lead to better long-term relationships and compensation.
Corporate vs. Media: A Tale of Two Worlds
A recurring theme throughout the discussion was the stark contrast between negotiating with traditional media outlets versus corporate clients.
McLaughlin didn’t mince words: “With corporate people, I find it’s a very professional, healthy experience… they expect you to charge them professional rates and then produce, of course, professional product.” By contrast, he described dealing with magazine editors “who try to make you feel that every penny they’re giving you is coming out of their children’s educational fund.”
Moulton noted that in the corporate and government world, the negotiation process itself is often more structured: “A lot of corporate work you have to bid on or government work you have to bid on… Well, then you set your own rate. You say this is what I would do the work for. Here’s the work that I would do and you either win the contract or you don’t.”
This approach eliminates some of the uncomfortable back-and-forth that many freelancers dread. However, she cautioned that corporate and government contracts often have inflexible elements beyond just pricing: “You might be able to negotiate your rate… But there are things like hotels. You don’t get to upgrade your hotel, right? Because there’s a list of hotels and you have to pick from the list of hotels.”
Red Flags That Should Send You Running
All three panelists had encountered problematic contract clauses that freelancers should watch for—with several unanimous “deal-breakers” identified:
Payment on publication topped the list. “You just don’t sign that because if they don’t publish it, you don’t get paid or if they wait two or three years, or if the editors change,” McLaughlin warned. Genova agreed, noting that if a magazine goes under before publishing your piece, writers are “very low on the list of payees that deserve to get paid in a bankruptcy.”
Moral rights clauses were another universal concern. As McLaughlin explained: “If you sign away your moral rights, they can do anything they want with what you wrote. If you are like anti-Trump in your writing, you could become pro-Trump if they change it. They can change, they can put someone else’s name on it. They can do anything they want.”
Genova shared a powerful example: “Anne Douglas, who is a longtime PWAC and CFG member, she actually quit the Toronto Star rather than give up her moral rights because she wrote parenting columns. And she was concerned that suddenly her parenting columns could have been reworded to put her in favor of some sort of parenting style that she was not in favor of.”
Indemnity clauses were flagged by Genova as particularly dangerous: “Basically you’re saying, if I do anything wrong, it’s all on me. And I will pay all the damages that you may negotiate.” He warned these clauses often ask writers to guarantee things they can’t possibly verify, especially regarding third-party rights like photos.
Inadequate kill fees also made the list. “They’re saying that, well, at some point we may kill the story. We don’t want to publish it anymore. And we’ll give you 25%,” Genova explained. “Excuse me, I did all the work.” His rule of thumb: if all the work has been done, you should get 100%; if you’re halfway through, you should get 50%.
Book Contracts: A Special Case
When audience member Sharon Bird asked about book publisher agreements, the panel offered specific insights for authors navigating this distinct territory.
McLaughlin described his “protracted negotiations” with Dundurn Press: “First of all, they didn’t want to give me an advance. And I just refused. I said, I’m not doing it if you don’t give me an advance…Then they said, well, we’re going to dole it out in three payments. The third one after the book is published. No, not doing it. It’s not fair.”
He encouraged authors to review contracts line by line: “I think I got 10, 15% of the clauses removed.” However, he advised strategic flexibility: “If you’re in a protracted negotiation, you’ve got to give them something. I think maybe if you want to win eight, you’ve got to lose two.”
Moulton pointed out the different approaches required for fiction versus nonfiction: “If you’re writing fiction, you write the manuscript before you get the publisher… You’re just waiting now for Steven Spielberg to come along and turn it into a movie.” By contrast, “nonfiction is a little different because you tend to sell the idea, you submit a proposal and then you write the book.”
She also highlighted a valuable resource for Canadian authors: “There’s an organization in Halifax and it may exist in other provinces as well called ALICE. And it’s a legal clinic…that will actually take your contract and read it and come back to you and say, ‘Donalee, I think these clauses are just fine. You’re giving a little here, you’re getting a little there. These are the three we think you can’t live with.'”
The Impact of AI: The New Frontier
When Butters raised the topic of artificial intelligence in contracts, the panel acknowledged this emerging area.
Genova noted that while he hadn’t yet seen specific AI clauses in contracts he’s reviewed, “most contracts traditionally say that this must be your work, your creation.” He predicted: “I suspect that it will be coming… to say, it will mention AI, that your content should not be generated by artificial intelligence in any way, shape, or form.”
Moulton had already encountered these clauses in her fiction work: “The AI clause is in all of it… And it’s like the floodgates open. So it wasn’t there on Monday. And on Tuesday, everybody and their dog was including it.” However, she noted these clauses often lack clarity: “There’s no attempt to explain what AI generated means, or why it can’t be AI generated, or if my grammar check is a form of AI.”
McLaughlin approached the issue from an educator’s perspective: “My university writing students, I have a clause in the syllabus, where they have to tell me if they’ve used AI, and for what a part of their work, because there’s no way around the fact that people are going to use it, including freelance writers.”
Butters, who serves on an AI committee with the News Guild-CWA in the U.S., observed that major publishers are “being particularly vague about their use of AI” while creators are pushing for “protectionist clauses” to safeguard their work from being replicated or repurposed through AI.
The Power of “No” and When to Use It
Perhaps the most empowering message throughout the session was the importance of being willing to walk away when terms aren’t acceptable.
As Butters noted in his closing remarks: “You said the magic word for freelancers. No. It’s the most powerful word you have—use it carefully. But sometimes you’ve just got to say no.”
This sentiment was echoed by McLaughlin’s experience: “We went through every single clause. And I think I got 10, 15% of the clauses removed. And the person I dealt with was very professional, very polite, very difficult. But I won most.”
Genova referenced a Canadian Media Guild freelance branch brochure titled “Draw Your Line in the Sand,” emphasizing: “At a certain point, you have to, you say, I can’t sign this. It’s not going to work for me the way it is.”
While this may seem intimidating, especially for freelancers worried about losing opportunities, McLaughlin offered an encouraging counterpoint: “Over the many, many decades, when I’ve asked for more money, I’ve almost always got it. Not every time, but almost always.”
The key, according to Moulton, is understanding that professional negotiations are “not going to affect your relationship with 99% of the people you work with, they are going to see this as routine and ordinary and to be expected. And so don’t feel like you’re jeopardizing your livelihood. In fact, you’re doing just the reverse.”
Practical Steps You Can Take Today
Throughout the discussion, several actionable tips emerged for freelancers looking to strengthen their negotiation skills:
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- Know your three numbers before any negotiation: dream rate, fair rate, and absolute minimum
- Create your own simple contract when none is offered. As Moulton suggested: “The onus is on us almost to create the contract, to say, you know, ‘My rate is 50 cents a word, and I sell only these rights.'”
- Use the phrase “what is your proposed rate?” McLaughlin recommended this specific wording because “that word ‘proposed’ opens the door to negotiation.”
- Look for creative value-adds that cost you little time but justify higher compensation
- Read contracts thoroughly, especially before final signing. As Butters cautioned: “Look for the stuff that’s changed. Because there are people that will do that to you. And the thicker the contract, the more likely that is to happen”
- Remember that informal agreements are still contracts. Emails and text messages where you agree to terms constitute legally binding agreements
- Consider the book angle. As McLaughlin noted, “My first [book] that I wrote—it was published in 1986—has made me a huge amount of money from everything but the royalties.” Being published enhances your credibility and can lead to speaking engagements, training opportunities, and higher-paying client work
For freelancers navigating the often-murky waters of contracts and negotiations, the panel offered both tactical advice and psychological reassurance. Perhaps most importantly, they emphasized that advocating for fair compensation and terms isn’t just about the immediate transaction—it’s about building a sustainable career that allows you to continue doing the creative work you love.
As McLaughlin pointed out from his teaching experience, when editors visited his class, they consistently said they valued the freelancer who “delivers what they said they were going to deliver and delivers it on time. And if they do that, they’re gold.” The quality of writing, while important, often came secondary to reliability and professionalism—exactly the qualities that successful contract negotiation demonstrates.
16 ways to say no as a freelance writer (and why you would need to)
This article about ways to say no is by Julie Barlow and Jean-Benoît Nadeau, authors of Going Solo: Everything You Need to Start Your Business and Succeed as Your Own Boss.
Why would any freelancer ever want to say “no”?
All successful self-employed creators know: sometimes you have push back. It’s a big ask for beginners trying to build a client list. But if the price is wrong, conditions are less than ideal, or timing is off, saying “no” to an assignment or contract can make a sale—on your terms.
As self-employed writers who have been negotiating contracts for over three decades, we have come up with 16 ways to say no without closing the door.
16 ways to say no
- I don’t have time
- This is not my specialty/I don’t do this type of work
- I don’t understand the order
- The order is not realistic
- The project is not interesting enough/I’m not interested
- The deadline is too short
- The deadline is too long
- The job doesn’t pay enough
- The job involves more work than I’m being paid for
- The terms are not good
- There were problems with the last order
- My partner won’t let me work at that price
- The expenses are too high for me
- I know of three other buyers/sellers who would be interested
- I can’t start working on it until next month
- And, finally, the bomb: I don’t like the way you are treating me
You’ll notice each “no” on the list invites a counteroffer. You are not closing the door, just asking for a higher fee or better conditions.
But before you decide which No to use, there are a few things to consider.
Be ready to explain why you’re saying no
No matter how you say no, you must be able to back it up. The more specific you are, the better. For example, we explain to some clients that we have minimum rates and won’t take on any work for less.
Make sure it’s the right no
If the previous job for a client didn’t go well or a customer isn’t paying enough, it won’t help to say their order is too small, or you don’t have time. You might end up with a bigger order that you have to deliver to an unreliable customer. It’s better to be honest from the outset.
Expand if there are several nos
There could be more than one problem with an offer from a client. If that’s the case, make sure you spell them all out from the outset. If you keep coming up with new reasons to say No as negotiations go along, you will lose credibility.
Make sure the conditions are right for you
Sometimes the conditions for saying no are just not there. If you are financially tight or don’t have much work, you might not be able to turn down a specific project. If you are just starting out in your field, you may not have the reputation you need to do the kind of work you want. So be realistic in your negotiations. Just don’t shy away from having frank discussions with clients and pushing back. This will let you figure out how much the client is willing to buy, how much they are willing to pay, what their other options are and how quickly they need your project or service—all factors that could push up your price.
Stick to your guns
Jean-Benoît once refused a writing project with a friend because the conditions were all wrong: the idea wasn’t very good, and the deadline was impossible. The friend responded by pushing Jean-Benoît even harder, saying “I’ll be stuck if you don’t do it,” and “you’re the only person who can do it.” Jean-Benoît relented. He regretted it. Everything went wrong and the project ended up taking too much of his valuable time. Jean-Benoît should have heeded his instinct and stuck to his hard no.
Sometimes the answer is “yes”
When you start out, you will probably end up saying yes to terms that you know are not ideal. That’s normal. There’s a price to pay for building your reputation. But you shouldn’t say “yes” without at trying to turn things to your advantage first. Go back through the list of “nos” and see if there’s one that fits the circumstances. And don’t forget, there are better offers out there, things will get easier, and knowing your nos will make you a better negotiator.
Off the Wire: February 2025
We’re revitalizing our series, Off the Wire. Here, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, communications, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus. Who needs a water cooler?
Freelancing stories from around the web
- Canadian news publishers sue OpenAI over alleged copyright infringement [AP]
- Freelance Trends 2025 [Freelancer Club]
- These Writing Trends Are Reshaping Freelance Success [Freelance Writing Canada]
- The Rise of Gig Economy Work in Canada | Freelance & Contract Jobs [Kassen Recruitment]
- Freelancing Trends, Market Size & Statistics for 2025 [ClientManager]
- The Future of Freelancing: Trends to Watch in 2025 [Freelance.ca]
Recently published on Story Board
- 4 Pitch Templates for Freelance Writers by Robyn Roste: Learn what makes a good pitch, how to pitch, and grab four pitch templates to get started
- Forget time, try these 3 tips for working on energy management by Suzanne Bowness: With New Year’s Resolutions solidly in the rear-view mirror, consider adding “energy management” to your goals list instead
Spot a story you think we should include in next week’s Off the Wire? Email the link to robyn@robynroste.com.
Finding Money in Unexpected Places: A Freelancer’s Guide to Grants
In March 2025, the Canadian Freelance Guild gathered three grant writing experts to talk about Finding and Getting Grants. Michelle Muir (Proposal Specialist), Virginia McGowan, PhD (Writer/Researcher/Entrepreneur) and Kelly Henderson (Grant Writer) did a wonderful job of sharing how to make the most of this opportunity.
Below is a summary of the webinar. If you would like to view the webinar, you can access it here.
Don’t let the complex world of grants intimidate you—two expert grant writers reveal insider secrets to securing funding for your creative projects
Picture this: Free money. No, not the kind that comes with sketchy phone calls from overseas “princes,” but legitimate funding from reputable sources that could help launch your creative project, grow your freelance business, or simply keep you afloat while you complete that book you’ve been dreaming about.
The mystical realm of grants—government, foundation, and private—remains largely untapped by many freelancers who assume the process is too complex, too competitive, or simply not meant for them. But as the Canadian Freelance Guild’s expert panel on “Finding and Getting Grants” revealed, there’s funding hiding in plain sight for those who know where to look.
“There are a lot of grants out there, so it takes time to sift through the information and find the best fit,” explained Michelle Muir, a grant and proposal specialist with more than 20 years of experience who has successfully secured highly competitive grants including the Ontario Trillium Foundation Grant and numerous private foundation grants.
Fellow panelist Kelly Henderson, who has written six and seven-figure competitive funding proposals totalling $115 million, emphasized that finding the right fit is crucial: “A lot of people sort of skip that step, and then find themselves doing a lot of work for no good reason.”
Know What You Need Before You Look for Money
When moderator George Butters asked the ultimate beginner’s question—”Where do I start?”—both experts zeroed in on a common mistake many first-time grant seekers make: looking for grants before determining exactly what they need.
“You need to figure out the kind of funding you’re looking for first,” Henderson advised. “Is it seed funding? Are you just trying to figure something out? Is it startup? Is it sustain? Or is it sort of continuing on funding?”
Rather than diving into grant databases without direction, Henderson recommends first answering some fundamental questions: “What is your project? What’s your budget? Sketch it out…What are the outcomes that you want to achieve?”
The amount you’re seeking should guide your search. “I say to people, ‘How much are you looking for?’ And they’re like, ‘We don’t know.’ And I’m like, ‘Well, is it $50,000 or $50 million?’ Because those are different funders,” Henderson explained with the weary wisdom of someone who’s had this conversation many times.
For creative professionals specifically, Muir suggested an additional layer of self-reflection: “You need to look at your business and what you do and say, is this for a project? Is this for an arts project? I want to get off a book, a play, a script, anything like that. Or is this for the workings of my business and things that I need as a creative business?”
This distinction matters because it determines which funding streams you should target. Business-oriented needs like hiring might qualify for different grants than creative projects.
The Fatal Mistake: Bending Your Business to Fit a Grant
When Butters asked about the temptation to bend one’s business to fit available funding—something many desperate freelancers have considered—both experts delivered a resounding “no.”
“The likelihood of you actually being successful in that grant application is very slim because they will spot that you’re bending to fit,” Muir warned. “90% of the time it’s crystal clear even to grant, those of us in the grant writing industry, when a client comes and they’ve taken, ‘I want to apply for this grant’ and they built the project around that grant.”
Henderson added that funders are far more sophisticated than many applicants realize: “The funders are savvy… This is one thing I want everybody to get. Like they know, they just know what they want to fund, they know what things cost, they’ve done a ton of research.”
Instead of warping your business to match funding criteria, both experts emphasized finding grants that naturally align with your work and goals. As Muir noted, “The funder needs to want to fund your business or your creative project that you’re working on. They need to be in the same space and appreciate that.”
No Grant History? No Problem (Usually)
Many first-time applicants worry that their lack of previous grant success will count against them. Henderson dismisses this concern with refreshing directness: “It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter.”
What matters far more is understanding your project, your needs, and finding the right fit. “It’s not about not having the grant history. It’s about really understanding why you need the money, why you need it now, what you need it for, what you’re going to do with it and making that case,” Henderson explained.
However, Muir added an important caveat: some larger funding bodies do have minimum requirements regarding how long an organization has been in existence or certain financial thresholds. “If you’re brand new, it is important to look at what their requirements are because if they’re a government funder, they won’t change those requirements.”
For those just starting out, she recommends looking to “something in the private sector or something for small businesses that is more open where you can talk to the funder and ask them questions.”
Both experts stressed the importance of starting small and working your way up. “If it’s just you on your own, it’s okay to, like, you don’t always have to get millions of dollars. It’s okay to be like, ‘I got a $5,000 grant. That’s amazing,'” Henderson noted with enthusiasm. “Somebody believed in you enough to give you money. That’s amazing. And then that five can turn into 25, can turn into 250.”
The Not-So-Secret Canada Summer Jobs Program
For freelancers looking for that first “win” in the grant world, Muir highlighted a surprisingly accessible opportunity that many overlook: the Canada Summer Jobs Program.
“You go online, you fill out the application, you put some key words in there and you answer all of their questions… And if there’s enough funding in your area, you get that funding,” she explained. While competition can be stiffer in major urban centers, “most of the people I know that apply, if they have a solid opportunity for the person to gain valid work experience, they win that funding.”
This program not only provides funding to hire summer help—potentially freeing you up to focus on other aspects of your business or even take a vacation—but also gives you that valuable first grant success to list on future applications.
“That’s $5,000 I didn’t have to spend,” Muir pointed out, noting that freelancers can use this program to hire someone to handle websites, content development, or other specialized tasks.
The Reality of Grant Payments (Spoiler: No Up-Front Checks)
Perhaps one of the most important reality checks both experts offered concerned the timing of grant payments—something that trips up many first-time recipients.
“If you win, they do not come back and say, ‘Congratulations, here’s your check for the project,'” Muir emphasized. “They come back with a contract based on the timeline for the project you submitted.”
Payment structures vary widely, with some grants disbursing funds based on completed milestones, others paying quarterly or twice yearly, and some only releasing money at the project’s end. “That’s why you need to look at your budget because you need to know that you can cover all of those expenses while you wait for that cash,” she added.
Henderson reinforced this point: “There’s no miracle funder that’s gonna give you a million upfront and now you don’t have to worry for the next two years.” She and Muir shared a laugh at this common fantasy: “Then Michelle and I could retire, right? Never have to work again.”
Finding the Right Grant: Start at the Library?
When attendee Jerry asked the deceptively simple question—”How do you start the process of finding a grant that is the right fit?”—Muir offered a surprisingly old-school but effective approach: “Go to your local library.”
She explained that many public libraries maintain electronic databases of grants that patrons can search. “You can sit down and surf through the database to see where you might be a fit.”
The downside? “It lists everything under the sun and then your job is to find out if that funder or foundation still exists and still has money to spend.” This can mean considerable legwork that a professional grant writer might help you avoid.
For business-specific grants, Muir suggested checking Industry Canada’s website, which has a searchable database of government grants, though she cautioned it’s “very business oriented, so you won’t get all of the arts grants.”
Henderson emphasized the importance of research and preparation: “I would do prep work. Like what’s your project? What’s your budget? Sketch it out… Just so that you know, okay. And add 10, 15, 20%, because you’re always below. And then search within there and figure, okay, who’s paying for that stuff right now?”
Her logic? “Funders just keep on funding usually the same things.” Identifying who’s already funding projects similar to yours provides valuable clues about potential sources for your own work.
Writer-Specific Funding: The Dream and the Reality
When Leslie Taylor asked about finding grants for individual writers from private sources in Canada, Henderson couldn’t suppress a laugh. “I’m not laughing at the question, but I’m like, this is a dream, a dream.”
She clarified that while such funding exists, it’s “slim pickings” and requires diligent research: “If you’re looking for family foundation or anything like that, it’s thin on the ground. It’s not impossible.”
Muir added an important tip: “Don’t focus entirely just on grants… There’s a lot of funding out there that’s under the guise of awards or a contest. There’s not a lot of difference between that and a grant, except that you’re applying in advance.”
She also encouraged persistence and follow-up: “If you submit an application and it’s well-written and it’s well done for a grant and you just aren’t awarded the grant, follow up with them and ask… Ask them for what we call a debrief, ask them why.”
These debriefs can provide valuable insights for future applications, potentially revealing minor issues that can be addressed without changing your core project. However, Henderson noted that sometimes you’ll simply hear “no debrief” and need to move on.
“Don’t forget to reuse that proposal,” she advised. “If it got refused, that doesn’t mean that your project is garbage. It just means that’s not its home… Just put it aside and go to the next funder. Do not take it personally.”
Budget Your Time as Well as Your Project
When considering whether to pursue a particular grant, Muir emphasized the importance of evaluating the time investment required against the potential reward. “I’ve seen five to $10,000 grants where the application process was so cumbersome. I sent clients the other way and said, ‘Don’t, it’s going to cost you more in time and energy to do this than you’re going to win.'”
Henderson was even more direct about her own professional boundaries: “I will not write for less than 25 grand, and I’ll say to my nonprofits, five grand is like, I say, don’t bother because you spent 25 grand in staff time.”
For freelancers considering whether to attempt a grant application themselves or hire professional help, these insights suggest a pragmatic approach: for smaller grants with straightforward applications, do it yourself; for larger, more complex funding opportunities, consider bringing in expertise.
Positive Changes in the Grant World
When asked about recent changes in the grant landscape, both experts noted some welcome improvements. “Funders are getting better at not asking you for a 45-page proposal for $10,000,” Henderson observed with evident relief.
“They’re getting better at understanding it takes a lot of effort to write these things. Some of the things they’re asking for is very onerous… After a while it’s like, everybody’s exhausted. Please stop asking us for like a zillion things.”
Muir highlighted shifts in the types of projects receiving funding, particularly in creative industries: “It used to be very difficult if you were a creative that was using new technology, that people didn’t understand, you couldn’t get funding. Even though you had a beautiful project, you couldn’t get the funding because the funders didn’t understand how that technology worked.”
She also noted increased emphasis on diversity and inclusivity: “Now I tell people, do not be afraid if you are non-white or non-Christian or a woman, don’t be afraid to tell them that because part of their funding is reliant on being able to identify those statistics. And there is grant funding out there that is tronched just for those specific groups.”
Henderson added that many foundations are increasingly focusing on reconciliation and community-level funding: “It doesn’t mean they’re not gonna give you money. It’s just, there’s a recognition, at least within certain sectors that you actually have to put the money to the people, to the communities.”
The Bottom Line: Yes, It’s Work—But Worth It
Throughout the session, both experts acknowledged the effort required to secure grants while maintaining that the potential rewards justify the investment. As Henderson put it, “I wouldn’t get too bogged down in the anxiety that a lot of people have around money… They have to give away the money and that’s kind of it.”
This perspective—that funders actively want to distribute their money to worthy recipients—offers a refreshing counter to the scarcity mindset many freelancers bring to the grant process. The key is matching your needs with the right funding sources and presenting your case effectively.
For creative professionals navigating the often-precarious financial realities of freelance life, grants represent not just potential income but validation and opportunity. While not every application will succeed, and the process requires diligence and persistence, the panel’s expertise revealed a world of possibilities for those willing to learn the system.
As Muir summarized in her advice for first-time applicants: “Don’t be afraid to apply, just know what the expectation is before you apply.” With the right preparation, research, and realistic expectations, freelancers might just find that elusive “free money” isn’t quite so elusive after all.
4 Pitch Templates for Freelance Writers
by Robyn Roste
Although pitching isn’t the only way freelancers find paid work, it’s an important skill to master.
As much as I’ve tried to avoid it over the years, pitching in some way, shape or form is a large component of my freelance business and something I need to continually practice and improve at.
Industry lingo
Pitches, also called queries, are used most-often in journalism and refer to specific story ideas for an individual publication. The freelancer crafts a pitch, which includes a headline, a brief outline and the scope or source ideas if necessary. If the freelancer is unknown to the editor, the pitch also includes samples related to the beat they’re pitching or the writer’s experience.
However, for business writing, copywriting, content marketing and other types of freelance writing, letters of inquiry are more common. This is because writers in these situations are pitching themselves and what they can do for the company, organization or trade magazine on a freelance basis. Rather than sending one-off story ideas, these freelancers look to build relationships with editors and marketing managers as they tend to assign work rather than accept story pitches.
Regardless of whether it’s a journalism story or a copywriting gig, pitching your story or yourself is both an art and a science mixed with a bit of good timing.
What makes a good pitch?
Webinar: It’s Tax Time For Freelancers
What’s changed? What qualifies for expenses? How can you get through this without setting your hair on fire?
Our Presenters
- Sandy Yang is a well-known personal financial writer
- Dr. Nadine Robinson started her career teaching accouning
Come with your questions and we’ll do our best to point you in the right direction.
CFG Experts Panel – It’s Tax Time For Freelancers
- Online: Thursday, February 6, 2025
- 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Time
- $10 for CFG members and affiliate organizations; $25 for members of the general public
You can register for this webinar right here.
Learn more about the cost and benefits of membership in the CFG on this webpage.
The link to the Zoom webinar will be sent to you via email about half an hour before the start time.
Please check your spam or junk folders if you can’t find the email, and contact organizer@canadianfreelanceguild.ca if you haven’t received the link 10 minutes before the scheduled start time. This webinar will be recorded and posted to the CFG Video-On-Demand site. Once posted, all paid registrants will receive a link and instructions on how to view.
Webinar: Author Michelle Waitzman and Be as Happy as Your Dog
If you’ve ever envied your dog’s seemingly ideal life, you’re in luck. In her new book, Be as Happy as Your Dog: 16 Dog-Tested Ways to Be Happier Using Pawsitive Psychology, author Michelle Waitzman shows how we can capture dogs’ joyfulness and their ability to make the most of every day.
Waitzman brings together the latest research on dog behaviour and the leading psychological experts in the growing field of positive psychology to explain how we can ramp up our happiness and make it last by adopting a more dog-like attitude.
All About Canadian Books host Crystal Fletcher talks to Michelle about what drove her to write her book, and how she took it from concept to reality.
Our Presenters
- Crystal Fletcher, president of All About Canadian Books (AACB)
- Michelle Waitzman, author of Be as Happy as Your Dog
CFG Books and AACB Present: Author Michelle Waitzman and ‘Be as Happy as Your Dog’
- Online: Thursday, January 30, 2025
- 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern Time
- Free for CFG members; $5 for members of the general public
You can register for this webinar right here.
Learn more about the cost and benefits of membership in the CFG on this webpage.
The link to the Zoom webinar will be sent to you via email about half an hour before the start time.
Please check your spam or junk folders if you can’t find the email, and contact organizer@canadianfreelanceguild.ca if you haven’t received the link 10 minutes before the scheduled start time. This webinar will be recorded and posted to the CFG Video-On-Demand site. Once posted, all paid registrants will receive a link and instructions on how to view.
Forget time, try these 3 tips for working on energy management
This article about energy management for freelancers is written by Suzanne Bowness, a longtime freelance writer/editor whose book The Feisty Freelancer: A Friendly Guide to Visioning, Planning, and Growing Your Writing Business was published in January 2025 by Dundurn Press. Find out more about the book at www.feistyfreelancer.com
A couple of weeks into the new year’s resolution season and you’ve no doubt read more than a few articles about goal setting, habit forming and time management. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a resolution fan. That’s why I wanted to add a new prescription to the mix: energy management.
How to navigate energy management as a freelancer
For me, managing my energy means paying attention to when my energy levels are strongest, and planning my most focused work for those windows. In doing so, I harness the quality of my time as well as the quantity. After all, if you could get twice as much work done at your peak energy level as you do in your low energy, isn’t that like making time?
Here are a couple of ways to find your flow and go with it:
Use your high energy windows for focused work
Maybe you’re already familiar with the hours when you tend to be most productive. Maybe you’ve been fighting them. As a certified night person, I know that early morning is not my best time despite how virtuous some people make it sound. Late morning is when I hit my stride, and same with mid afternoon. So that’s when I schedule my deep work, from writing an article to editing a report to planning client outreach.
In those important hours between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. (hello from my desk at 3:45 p.m. writing this post!), I’m the strongest version of myself, more impervious to email or social media distraction. So I protect these windows. I even augment them by shutting down distractions entirely, often keeping just writing program open, my notifications on silent.
If you want to confirm what time windows work for you, spend a few days tracking what hours bring the most energy. After you’ve identified your focus time, think about how you can start planning your work around them.
A caveat here: while I’m a night person, I also know I have to live in the world alongside my clients, and most of them are at their desks from 9 to 5. So while I might jive with a workday from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m., I balance what’s realistic for doing a great business. At the same time, I never plan meetings for 9 a.m. unless a client specifically requests it (grrr).
Use your downtime too
Just as you can treat your high energy windows as sacred, you can also make the most of your low energy. Fill them with those boring but necessary tasks that keep your work and life running. To prepare myself for these fallow periods, I keep a list of low-energy tasks that need doing so that I can take them up in these periods. As a freelancer, some regular ones include invoicing, bookkeeping, and planning client outreach. Others that pop up might include research a new tech tool, background reading for an upcoming story assignment, worrying about AI, or learning the new particulars of a style guide update.
Make the most of your breaks
Ironically, another way to build energy is taking time off. I find this works at the macro level as well as in the daily context. While vacations take me away from my work, they also fill me up with fresh energy in the long term. If I’m ever feeling grumpy about overwork, I try to plan a long weekend to give myself the space I need to refill my energy.
Even though I’m self-employed and could work non-stop, I try to build in regular breaks and fill them with something other than work, whether it’s 20 minutes of TV or a walk outside. That bit of space and distraction really helps refresh my mind before returning to my desk, and put it into that higher energy zone I need to do more work.
Speaking of which, it’s time….
