Off the Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer June 24-July 2
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 Canada:
- Can women’s media ever be “authentically” feminist? [J-Source]
- Jesse Wente on the mainstream media’s media’s odious defence of genocide [Now Toronto]
- Canadian news site The Post Millennial blurs line between journalism and conservative “pamphleteering” [CBC]
- Margaret Wente leaving the Globe and Mail, 5 layoffs following May buyout offer [J-Source]
From The U.S. and beyond:
- Survival tips for a summer slowdown [Freelancers Union]
- The Washington Post is reinventing travel writing [Poynter]
- Telltale signs that you’re overworked [Freelancers Union]
- Five ways to beat the stress of freelance journalism [Journalism.co.uk]
- How to Deal With Copyright Infringements [Freelance Writing Jobs]
- The 6 best countries for digital nomads [Freelancers Union]
- Some of your skills and talents can cause burnout. Here’s how to identify them [Fast Company]
- How women can get what they want in a negotiation [HBR]
Recently on Story Board:
- Freelance Skill Share Extraordinaire — Pitfalls and Pitching for Freelancers: How can we write the best pitches? How do we negotiate contracts? And for some: How do I get started? Navigating freelance challenges to survive and thrive in the gig economy was the focus of a highly interactive workshop held recently in Winnipeg, Manitoba…
- The Expert Panel on Modern Federal Labour Standards: In early May I was asked, in my role as president of the Canadian Media Guild Freelance Branch, to participate a panel sponsored by the federal government aimed at reviewing and updating working conditions within any federally-regulated workforce…
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.
Freelance Skill Share Extraordinaire – Pitfalls and Pitching for Freelancers
by Lesley Evans Ogden
Assemble any group of freelancers at a networking event, or Google “freelance challenges,” and a common set of discussion topics tends to emerge.
How can we write the best pitches? How do we negotiate contracts? And for some: How do I get started?
Navigating freelance challenges to survive and thrive in the gig economy was the focus of a highly interactive workshop held recently in Winnipeg, Manitoba on Treaty 1 lands, the original lands of Anishinaabeg, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota, and Dene peoples, and homeland of the Métis Nation.
Though part of the Science Writers and Communicators of Canada 2019 conference, the tips that emerged are relevant to freelancers more broadly.
Freelancers of all experience levels worked in small groups, prompted with a series of discussion questions, and shared experiences, challenges, and solutions. Small groups then shared key tips with the wider group.
Topics summarized here are common pitfalls of freelancing, and pitching. The session was conceived and facilitated by Canadian freelancers Lesley Evans Ogden and Niki Wilson. Big thanks to all attendees of Freelance Skill Share Extraordinaire on May 25, 2019. Our crowd-sourced words of wisdom are captured below.
Pitfalls of freelancing
The Expert Panel on Modern Federal Labour Standards
by Don Genova
In early May I was asked, in my role as president of the Canadian Media Guild Freelance Branch, to participate in an exercise called ‘The Expert Panel on Modern Federal Labour Standards’, a panel sponsored by the federal government aimed at reviewing and updating working conditions within any federally-regulated workforce. The panel will collate all the information they gather and come up with a series of recommendations for the Liberal government by June 30th.
My session with the panel took place in Vancouver with most of the panel members in a downtown hotel and one of them on the phone from the Maritimes. Besides me, there were only two other participants — a representative from a union representing food service industry workers, and a labour lawyer with broad worldwide experience in different governmental jurisdictions.
As the session began, I soon realized that, as usual, media freelancers are odd ducks when it comes to the way we work. First of all, only six percent (about 900,000) of all employees in Canada work in federally regulated workplaces. For media freelancers, this means radio and television stations, as well as telephone and internet providers. All those other companies that commonly use media freelancers such as magazines, newspapers, and other content producers aren’t federally regulated. So any changes in labour standards that may benefit freelancers would affect a small fraction of the people who use the services of freelancers.
I gave a short presentation to the panel members about the kind of work that members of our union provide and the types of services CMG Freelance provides to help them in their careers. The panel members also wanted to hear our answers to a series of issues and questions they were posing as they traveled across the country.
This gave me another opportunity to point out how different the way most freelancers work is compared to more traditional employees.
Here’s a sampling of the issues and questions:
- Minimum Wage:
Off the Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer June 18-24
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 Canada:
- Canadian media had the tools to to cover the MMIWG report with the respect it deserved. They botched it anyway [J-Source]
- Cheers with Peers June 24 [PWAC]
- How newspapers are using podcasts to grow their audiences and revenue [J-Source]
From The U.S. and beyond:
- Make sure you have these skills if you want to work from home [Market Watch]
- Dutch to act on freelancer pay, set minimum rate of €16 per hour [Dutch News]
- Covering Indigenous Communities with Respect and Sensitivity [Open Notebook]
- 5 plan-ahead tips to make digital client meetings more effective [Freelancers Union]
- Top 5 Productivity Hacks for Freelancers [crissibeth]
- How to Write a Professional Twitter Bio [Lifehacker]
- 10 must-join Facebook groups for journalists [Journalism.co.uk]
- No male editor has ever accepted my pitches on abortion [CJR]
- Why making a living as a freelance journalist is so difficult [Medium]
- A ‘disappointed’ BuzzFeed newsroom walks off the job [CJR]
Recently on Story Board:
- Five Things Freelancers Should Know About Conferences… And Why You Should Attend a Few: For freelancers, conferences are a double whammy: attend the right conference and you’ll get the ideas and the contacts for interviews at the same time…
- Toronto Worker Rights in the Gig Economy forum: Workers of all kinds are invited to a forum called “Worker Rights in the Gig Economy” on Wednesday, June 26 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at New Horizons…
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.
Five Things Freelancers Should Know About Conferences… and why you should attend a few
By George Butters 
Ever heard of a fishing hole?
That’s a place where fish congregate, and where savvy fishers go with line and hook.
Conferences are where ideas are said to congregate, along with the people who espouse them. So for freelancers, conferences are a double whammy: attend the right conference and you’ll get the ideas and the contacts for interviews at the same time. Fortunately, unlike a good fishing hole, they tend not to be kept secret by the locals.
If you’re an experienced freelancer with one or two specialties, you’re probably already aware of conferences within your areas of expertise. If you are aware, but aren’t taking advantage, you should consider attending at least the most influential conference or two each year.
Keep in mind that sector-based conferences come in five flavours: local, provincial, regional, national, and international. So you’ll have to decide how far you’re willing to travel. More and more, you can find conference material online, but it’s not the same as being there. (And this comes from a guy who makes a chunk of his living live streaming conferences.)
Step one: Making a plan
Toronto: Worker Rights in the Gig Economy forum
Workers of all kinds are invited to a forum called “Worker Rights in the Gig Economy” on Wednesday, June 26 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at New Horizons (1140 Bloor Street at Dufferin).
Andrew Cash of the Urban Worker Project is hosting the event, which will include a panel discussion with:
• Jan Simpson of CUPW
• The Justice for Foodora Couriers campaign
• Stephanie Procyk of the United Way
• Lise Lareau of the Canadian Media Guild’s Fairness in Factual campaign
• Nadira Begum of the Workers’ Action Centre
To RSVP to the event and see full speaker bios and more information about the forum and its organizers, check out the event’s Facebook page.
Off the Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer June 11-17
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 Canada:
- Trudeau’s government continues to fall short on media’s access to information [J-Source]
- Eight social media strategy tips to take into your next job interview [Journalism.co.uk]
- A paltry number of Canadians are paying for online news [The Conversation]
- BuzzFeed News Canada union begins bargaining [J-Source]
From The U.S. and beyond:
- The Professional Freelancer’s Guide to Twitter [The Freelancer]
- How to make an eBook [Freelancers Union]
- Writing Tips: Unlearn Everything You Learned about Writing in School [The Write Life]
- Vox Media, employees come to terms on tentative new labor agreement [Washington Post]
- Six must-have apps for mobile journalists [Journalism.co.uk]
- How to get paid as a freelancer [Nik Jones]
Recently on Story Board:
- Vancouver freelance mixer June 18: Freelancers in the Vancouver area are invited to a “say hello to summer” get together on Tuesday, June 18 at Red Racer Taphouse (871 Beatty St.) from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m…
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 freelance mixer June 18
Freelancers in the Vancouver area are invited to a “say hello to summer” get together on Tuesday, June 18 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 any questions about pitching, freelance contracts or other aspects of freelance life, come down for a drink and a chat.
It’s also a chance to catch up with your freelance friends and make 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!
Webinar: Covering Provincial Politics
Photo by Al_HikesAZ via Flickr.
UPDATE: This webinar has been postponed until fall. Stay tuned for more details in a few weeks’ time.
Provincial policy touches every part of Canadian life. Schools, hospitals and police forces rely on provincial governments for funding; employers and landlords have to follow a provincial government’s laws.
Join us for a webinar that will introduce journalism students and less experienced reporters to the basics of covering provincial politics. You’ll learn who the key players are, which areas of policy are widely covered and which get less attention, how to find information and what it’s like to be part of the press gallery covering Premier Doug Ford.
“Covering Provincial Politics” is scheduled for June 18th at 6 p.m. EST (3 p.m. PST). It will be led by Emma Paling, who took on the Queen’s Park beat for HuffPost Canada in 2018 after three years as one of the site’s news editors. Emma graduated with a Combined Honours degree in journalism and history from Carleton University in 2014.
To register for this webinar click on this link. If you’re a CMG Freelance member, enter the code “CMG-FL” when you are asked for an affiliation code. If you are not a member, you can enter the code “SBoard” to register to participate in this webinar for free.
Live viewings of our webinars are open to everyone. We’ll be making a recorded version available to members of CMG Freelance after the event. For information about the price and benefits of CMG Freelance membership please check out the CMG Freelance website.
Off the Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer June 4-10
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 Canada:
- China bans the Toronto Star [Toronto Star]
- Canada’s writers urge parliament to make real changes on copyright [TWUC]
- Dear journalists of Canada: Start reporting climate change as an emergency [J-Source]
- One of Canada’s most famous journalists is heading to CNN to cover Trump full-time [Daily Hive]
From The U.S. and beyond:
- The 4 hard truths every freelancer needs to hear [Freelancers Union]
- 9 Email Newsletters for Writers (That You’ll Actually Want to Open) [The Write Life]
- Is your plate too full? Strategies for staying sane [Freelancers Union]
- Here are the winners of the 2019 National Magazine Awards [J-Source]
- Artists Need Unions, Too: The Role of Organized Labor in Creative Industries [Union Track]
- Five free proofreading tools that every journalist should know about [Journalism.co.uk]
- The Tools, Tech and ‘Tude You Need to Freelance from Anywhere [The Freelancer]
- Nice niche: How to build and keep up with a beat [Open Notebook]
Recently on Story Board:
- The Born Freelancer on Workplace Injuries: I know most people don’t normally associate the phrase “workplace injuries” with the act of writing. But a non-scientific anecdotal survey among several of my freelancing colleagues recently revealed their following injuries which they definitely associate with their work…
- Toronto game workers mixer June 10: Problems at work? Not sure what to do about it? Come out for an informal get together with colleagues in the industry. Chat with fellow game workers about what’s happening in the Toronto games industry and meet local Game Workers Unite reps to talk about how you can make your work life better…
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.
