Off the Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer Oct 22-28
Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, communications, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?
From around the web:
- How to keep freelance work from eating up your life [Freelancers Union]
- Four steps that make writing less overwhelming [Fast Company]
- What I’ve Learned From Starting a Business for Freelancers—While Freelancing [The Freelancer]
- Podcast producers are worried about being screwed over by sketchy contracts [Nieman Lab]
- “Everybody Is Freaking Out”: Freelance Writers Scramble to Make Sense of New California Law [Hollywood Reporter]
- Meet the Faces of Freelance [Freelancers Union]
- Freelance journalists are mad about a new California law. Here’s what’s missing from the debate [Vox]
- Why freelancers should ask for more money [The Writer]
Recently on Story Board:
- 3 social media posting strategies for service-based freelancers: Regardless of its positive or negative impact, social media is one of the main ways we connect with each other. And it can be a significant business tool for freelancers…
- Vocal Fry Studios hosts podcast events in Toronto: Vocal Fry has a busy couple of weeks ahead with several community and educational events on their calendar, and CMG Freelance is proud to be playing a part in some of them…
Spot a story you think we should include in next week’s Off the Wire? Email the link to editor@thestoryboard.ca or tweet us at @storyboard_ca.
Vocal Fry Studios hosts podcast events in Toronto
Podcasting is here to stay. All you need as evidence of that is the success of independent podcasting companies such as Toronto’s Vocal Fry Studios.
Vocal Fry has a busy couple of weeks ahead with several community and educational events on their calendar, and CMG Freelance is proud to be playing a part in some of them.
Cavern of Secrets
This week the studio is re-launching the podcast Cavern of Secrets. Every day from October 21 to 26, they’re dropping a new episode of this popular podcast.
On October 27, Vocal Fry will be hosting a live show of Cavern of Secrets. Guests at the live taping include Thirst Aid Kit’s Nichole Perkins and Bim Adewunmi, BAFTA-winning screenwriter Kyrell Grant, author Marlowe Granados, writer and author Anne T. Donahue, and New York Times best-selling author Mary H.K. Choi.
You can buy tickets to that event right here.
Podcast Night School
Vocal Fry is also working with several partners, including CMG Freelance, to teach the art of podcasting this month at Podcast Night School, Canada’s first podcast accelerator and pitch competition.
Starting on October 27, a full class of 20 students will hear from speakers such as Dan Misener and Jenna Misener-Zuschlag of the podcast Grown-ups Read Things They Wrote As Kids, Fatima Zaidi of Quill Marketplace, Jeff Ulster of TPX, and others. It wraps up with a pitch competition at the Hot Docs Podcast Festival on November 6 where students will pitch their podcasts to an expert panel of judges.
“At Vocal Fry Studios, we’re committed to being a part of the podcast creator community and Podcast Night School is part of that effort,” said Vocal Fry Studios’ Vicky Mochama via email last week.
Whether you’re registered for Podcast Night School or not, you’re invited to attend their masterclass on Friday November 1. It will be a night to network and talk podcasting with Pineapple Street Media’s co-founder Jenna Weiss-Berman, Takara Small of The Globe and Mail’s I’ll Go First, and Piya Chattopadhyay of CBC’s Out In The Open.
You can find tickets to that event right here.
Off the Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer Oct 16-21
Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, communications, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?
From around the web:
- How to Avoid Problem Clients [Inc.]
- This freelancer threw herself a company party of one (and you should too) [Freelancers Union]
- Ditching “monkey mind” to find joy while writing [Nieman Reports]
- Tips To Navigate Employment In a Gig Economy [Freelance Writing Jobs]
- How to Become an Editor: A Comprehensive Guide for Writers [The Write Life]
- Riding the Emotional Roller Coaster of Being a Science Writer [Open Notebook]
- 4 strategies for freelance success [Next Avenue]
- How to escape the freelance busy trap [Freelancers Union]
- When the Check Isn’t in the Mail [Medium]
Recently on Story Board:
- PWAC and CMG Freelance together again!: CMG Freelance President Don Genova and PWAC President Doreen Pendgracs cordially invite all members of both associations in the Greater Toronto Area to join them at a ‘cross-pollination’ mixer on Wednesday, October 30th…
Spot a story you think we should include in next week’s Off the Wire? Email the link to editor@thestoryboard.ca or tweet us at @storyboard_ca.
TORONTO: PWAC and CMG Freelance Together Again!
CMG Freelance President Don Genova and PWAC President Doreen Pendgracs cordially invite all members of both associations in the Greater Toronto Area to join them at a ‘cross-pollination’ mixer on Wednesday, October 30th.
Where: Pogue Mahone Pub and Kitchen, 777 Bay St., Toronto (use the College Street entrance for the pub, just a short walk west of Yonge Street)
When: 6-9 pm, Wednesday. October 30th
Why: Meet the leaders of your respective organizations and mingle with friends and new friends. Compare notes on today’s issues facing freelancers and offer your own rants and raves…and pick up some cool swag.
Who…is paying? CMG Freelance will pick up your first beverage and supply some tasty snacks as well.
How: Please email Don to let him know you’re coming at freelance@cmg.ca.
Off the Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer Oct 9-15
Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, communications, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?
From around the web:
- How Freelance Travel Bloggers Can Increase Earnings and Volume [Freelance Writing Jobs]
- Tried and true strategies to make the most of every workday [Freelancers Union]
- Freelance Writing 101 [The Writer Magazine]
- What’s your freelance superpower? [Freelancers Union]
- A Networking Hater’s Guide to Networking [Mediabistro]
- Canada: Good at Bureaucracy, Bad at Transparency [The Walrus]
Recently on Story Board:
- The Born Freelancer on Clients Who Are Slow to Pay: This is a familiar scenario most freelancers will repeatedly face throughout their careers. It requires a well thought-out decision on how to proceed and deal with the situation…
Spot a story you think we should include in next week’s Off the Wire? Email the link to editor@thestoryboard.ca or tweet us at @storyboard_ca.
The Born Freelancer on Clients Who Are Slow to Pay
This series of posts by the Born Freelancer shares personal experiences and thoughts on issues relevant to freelancers. Have something to add to the conversation? We’d love to hear from you in the comments.
A couple regular clients of mine recently have been slow to pay.
This is a familiar scenario most freelancers will repeatedly face throughout their careers.
It requires a well thought-out decision on how to proceed and deal with the situation.
This is not always an easy thing to figure out. Especially if it is a returning client (or potentially returning client) for whom you do regular work.
Back in the day when I was starting out, an old freelancing mentor told me about the “STOP AND GO” system with which to consider what to do about returning clients who are slow to pay. I’ve never seen it in print before and so have no idea as to its origins.
The point is to think of your situation and client and most appropriate response all categorized symbolically by the lights of a traffic light – red (stop), yellow (proceed with caution) and green (go ahead). Its name is also a memorable acronym that all freelancers should come to know, love and take to heart. STOP AND GO stands for Still Talking? Onwards, Probably. Anticipating No Dough? Get Out!
Good, solid, pithy advice already, right? But there’s more…
Read the rest of this post »
Off the Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer Oct 1-7
Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, communications, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?
From around the web:
- An Online Portfolio Can Change Your Career: 11 Writer Websites We Love [The Write Life]
- 57 million people worked as freelancers this year [Fast Company]
- The New Realities of Freelancing After 50 [Next Avenue]
- My best advice for new freelancers [The Professional Freelancer]
- This Study Shows Freelancers Are Stressed Over A Lack Of Safety Net [Trupo]
- The Freelancing In America study shows that the U.S. independent workforce is a political force to be reckoned with [Freelancers Union]
- 13 Secrets of Successful Online Freelance Writers [Freelance Writing Jobs]
- How to Level Up Your Freelance Income This Year [Lifehacker]
- One Freelance Experience [Mike Tatarski]
Recently on Story Board:
- Vancouver freelancer fall social night October 23: Summer’s over and the days are getting shorter and chillier, so come and warm up your week with a drink and some freelance camaraderie. Freelancers in the Vancouver area are invited to a social evening onWednesday, October 23 at Red Racer Taphouse…
Spot a story you think we should include in next week’s Off the Wire? Email the link to editor@thestoryboard.ca or tweet us at @storyboard_ca.
Vancouver freelancer fall social night October 23
Summer’s over and the days are getting shorter and chillier, so come and warm up your week with a drink and some freelance camaraderie. Freelancers in the Vancouver area are invited to a social evening on Wednesday, October 23 at Red Racer Taphouse (871 Beatty St.) from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
CMG Freelance president Don Genova will be in town so if you have questions about pitching, freelance contracts or other aspects of freelance life, he’ll be happy to answer them. It’s also a chance to catch up with your freelance friends and meet some new ones.
Drop Don a line at freelance@cmg.ca and let us know if you can join us for drinks, snacks and conversation. Hope to see you there!
Off the Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer Sept 24-30
Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, communications, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?
From around the web:
- Photojournalists’ last shots [CJR}
- Net 90 payment is a policy that freelancers can’t afford [Freelancers Union]
- “Indigenous women don’t need a voice. We need more microphones.” [Canadian Women’s Foundation]
- Over 50 and Freelancing to Fill the Gaps in Retirement Funds [New York Times]
- California’s new 35-story limit for freelancers [CJR]
- 9 tips for getting people to share or republish your content [Journalist’s Resource]
- How to get your next podcast commissioned [Journalism.co.uk]
Recently on Story Board:
- The 5-Minute Freelancer Q&A #42 — Nicholas Hune-Brown: Nicholas took the time to speak with Story Board recently about long-form magazine writing, building your reputation as a writer, and developing your freelance superpower…
Spot a story you think we should include in next week’s Off the Wire? Email the link to editor@thestoryboard.ca or tweet us at @storyboard_ca.
The 5-Minute Freelancer Q&A #42 — Nicholas Hune-Brown
In this regular feature, Story Board asks Canadian freelancers to share a few details about their work habits and their strategies for navigating the ups and downs of freelance life.
Nicholas Hune-Brown is a Toronto-based magazine writer whose long-form journalism has been published in such outlets as Toronto Life, The Walrus, The Guardian, and The Globe and Mail.
His Toronto Life feature “No Fixed Address,” an exploration of Toronto’s homelessness problem and its causes, is the winner of the 2019 Dave Greber Freelance Writers Award.
Nicholas took the time to speak with Story Board recently about long-form magazine writing, building your reputation as a writer, and developing your freelance superpower.
How did your Greber Award-winning piece come about?
My editor came to me with that story. For those sort of broad subject stories, Toronto Life is usually doing the assigning.
It had just been a rough winter in Toronto and they thought “how about we start thinking about this now so that we’re not just reacting to the predictable thing that happens every January when people are outside in the cold. Let’s think about this all summer and have something smart to say about it when it gets cold again.”
So they brought me the story. And I think it was as broad as “homelessness.” It became my job to figure out what that story actually looked like and try to find an angle.
It’s a massive piece. What were the biggest challenges in writing it?
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