Freelancers Beware: Pay Cuts Hurt

Amy’s Blog woe about articles that garner pay checks, but never get published, sparked my own bad memories of squelched, portfolio dreams. Most painful, thinking back, was the thoroughly researched, painstakingly written, and -- I thought, and still think! -- poignant story about an Atlanta family who had four children, four different ways. No, it’s not Brangelina’s pack, this couple had major infertility issues, and ultimately had one adopted child, one (as they put it) “turkey-baster method” insemination that led to a child, one child through a surrogate, and one surprise pregnancy following more than one obstetrician’s absolute proclamation that it could never happen.  

More for freelancers at SPJ convention

Do you suspect your queries end up in the slush pile? Got a great idea, but aren't sure how to pitch it? Here's an opportunity to craft a great pitch with an expert fellow freelancer or editor. Sign up to meet with a query mentor at one of our query clinics. Please email Sally Lehrman at slehrman@bestwrit.com to sign up for a 20-minute query conference on Friday or Saturday, 10 a.m. - noon, noon to 2 pm. or 2 to 4 p.m. You can check against the convention schedule at http://www.spj.org/c-schedule.asp.

We also need mentor volunteers. If you are an experienced freelancer, are already attending the convention and would like to help out, please e-mail Amy Green at amybgreen@earthlink.net. Thank you!

For freelance legal reporters

Syracuse University’ S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications will award four Carnegie/Newhouse School Legal Reporting Fellowships to support freelance journalists reporting on legal issues.

The $3,000 awards include paid student research assistants for each reporting fellow, which will give Newhouse studentspractical experience covering law and the courts.The fellowships are open to freelance journalists working in any medium with the intent of helping them pay out-of-pocket expenses.

“As a freelance writer and former editor, I know that it takes a lot of resources just to put a story or a book at the starting line,” says Mark Obbie, director of the Newhouse School’s Carnegie Legal Reporting Program; associate director of the Institute for the Study of the Judiciary, Politics and the Media (IJPM); and an associate professor.

“Journalists on staff in news organizations often have the resources to invest in prospective stories. But freelancers are taking a personal financial risk when they invest in an early-stage story. With our help, they might be more willing to take that risk.”

Fellowship applications are available online at http://newhouse.syr.edu/legal. Application deadline is September 8. A panel of faculty members from the Newhouse School will choose the winners. Fellowship money and student research assistants will be available for the 2008-2009 academic year.

Newhouse students will be invited to compete for the four research assistant positions, which carry a stipend. “We exist to teach our students journalism—and, more to the point here, good legal reporting,” Obbie says. “By working alongside professionals, our students will learn about the legal system in new, practical ways.”

The Carnegie/Newhouse School Legal Reporting Fellowships are part of the Newhouse School’s Carnegie Legal Reporting Program. Supported by a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York and its Carnegie Journalism Initiative, the program provides a number of services designed to teach students about the workings of the American legal system and the role of the news media in covering the law. Additional funding for this year’s fellowships is provided by IJPM.

For more information, contact Obbie at (315) 443-2848 or mjobbie@syr.edu; or see http://newhouse.syr.edu/legal.

Going to the SPJ conference?

The SPJ conference is only a few weeks away, Sept. 4-7 in Atlanta, Ga. Here is what is planned for freelancers. Hope to see you there!

Friday, Sept. 5

Freelance committee meeting. 2 p.m. in the hotel's Auburn, Atlanta conference room, center level. This meeting is open for anyone who is interested in freelancing. Please come!

Saturday, Sept. 6

The freelance magazine article. From idea to published clip, this session takes you through the freelance magazine article. Hear from editors and professional freelancers about how to shape an idea, pitch it, report it, write the article and get paid. 11 a.m. to noon.
_ Kathy Ehrich Dowd, PEOPLE, USA Today, Brides.com
_ Hope Winsborough, ESPN The Magazine, Redbook, Self
_ Laura Helmuth, senior science editor, Smithsonian magazine

Sunday, Sept. 7

Freelancing in today's journalism industry. Today's changing industry is driving many to consider freelancing either as a moonlight job or career. Hear from professional freelancers about the pros and cons of freelancing amid budget cuts and layoffs. Learn how to launch a business, pitch, market and network. Listen to successful freelancers share their experiences in newspaper, magazine and book writing. 9 a.m. to noon.
_ Michael Fitzgerald, The New York Times, Economist, Wired
_ Julie Kay, PEOPLE, New York Post
_ Kristin Harmel, PEOPLE, Glamour, Women's Day, author of four novels including "How to Sleep with a Movie Star"

Get paid -- and get published

It's the second time it's happened to me -- I've sold a story, written it, worked with the editor on the edits, been paid -- and then the story never gets published.

The first time was with a well-established, widely read news and lifestyle Web site. In every other way it was a happy experience. I generously was paid for all rights. The editor was pleasant, and her edits insightful. My check came within weeks of acceptance. And then the story never got published.

It was their mistake. They assigned the same story to two different writers (I don't get it, either), and mine was the unlucky version that got forgotten about. The editor was apologetic about it and agreed hand back all rights to me. I ended up rewriting it for a news wire service. The biggest disappointment was that it would have been a portfolio piece with a major Web site.

Now it's happened again. Last year I wrote a personal essay for a well-established trade magazine. Again, in every other way it was a happy experience. The editor said the piece was scheduled for last October, but it got held. She then said it probably would run early this year, but it never did. Eventually she stopped returning my e-mails, and when I called the magazine I learned she no longer worked there. Another editor was apologetic and agreed to hold on to the piece for a future issue or hand back the rights to me.

I chose to let the magazine hold on to the piece, at least for now. If I end up selling it elsewhere I'll let the editor know. It would be another portfolio piece.

The lesson, as I see it, is that our job as freelance journalists doesn't end once an editor approves a final edit and we get our check in the mail. It is our responsibility to see a story through all the way to publication.

The freelance challenge: A recap

The hot markets today for freelance journalists are online.

That was the consensus today of participants in a teleconference hosted by the Society of American Business Editors and Writers, entitled The Freelance Challenge. The hour-long teleconference explored the advantages and challenges of freelancing in today's fast-changing journalism industry.

The panelists suggested exploring blogging both as a personal marketing tool and a paying journalism medium. One panelist, Marci Alboher, became a blogger for The New York Times after establishing a writing relationship with Times editors and then impressing them with her blogging and marketing skills. Another panelist, Ann Marsh, who writes a column for The Los Angeles Times, said she knew a friend who lives abroad and started out decades ago freelancing for newspapers. The friend now makes her living writing for several blogs.

Greg Daugherty, who has been a full-time magazine editor and part-time freelance writer for nearly 30 years, offered his advice on pitching.

• Understand the publication. Editors are so inundated, often they look for excuses to discard a pitch. Pitches from writers who don't understand a publication quickly are trashed.
  
• Emphasize your credentials. Perhaps more important than selling the story is selling yourself as the writer, he said. Why should you write the story?
  
• Emphasize the story's timeliness. Why do the story now?
  

The freelance challenge

The following announcement comes from the Society of American Business Editors and Writers. This teleconference looked pretty good, so I thought I'd tell you guys about it. If you'd like to join, please send an e-mail or contact them to let them know, so they know how many people will be participating.

THE FREELANCE CHALLENGE

Whether driven by economic necessity, industry conditions or the desire for a more flexible schedule, more journalists are contemplating the freelancing life. Many succeed, but it’s not easy. SABEW has a panel of experts to help explore:

·        How to develop story ideas

·        Where and how to offer them

·        Rules of the game and best practices

·        Life as a journalistic entrepreneur

·        And more…

WHEN: Tuesday, August 5, 11:00 a.m. EDT. Mark your calendars!

WHO:
Marci Alboher, columnist and blogger for The New York Times, is the author of One Person/Multiple Careers: A New Model for Work/Life Success. Her articles have appeared in Time Out New York, Travel and Leisure, Marie Claire, The Chronicle of Philanthropy, Legal Affairs, The International Herald Tribune and More Magazine, covering such topics as workplace issues, entrepreneurship and travel.

Greg Daugherty has been a full-time magazine editor and part-time freelance writer for nearly 30 years. He has held senior-level editing positions Money, Success, Reader’s Digest, and Consumer Reports, where he is currently executive editor. He has written for The New York Times, Smithsonian, Parenting, Good Housekeeping, National Geographic Traveler and other publications. His books include You Can Write for Magazines.

 

Maya Payne Smart has written hundreds of articles for newspapers, magazines and websites. Her work has appeared in Black Enterprise, Black MBA, Crain’s Cleveland Business, GSA Business Journal and numerous trade and custom publications. She is the author of several how-to guides on topics ranging from business writing to cutting everyday expenses.

 

Ann Marsh, former staff writer for Forbes, writes the Money Makeover column for The Los Angeles Times and co-authored the autobiography of Kinko’s founder Paul Orfalea, Copy This!. Her work has appeared in The Boston Globe, Business 2.0, Business Central Europe, BusinessWeek online, Fortune Small Business, The Prague Post, Red Herring and Salon. She has also written for Adobe, Cisco Systems, The Gap, Hewlett-Packard and Symantec. Her work includes book projects, co-authoring, ghosting, editing and project-managing.

 

Moderated by Cliff Cumber, business editor of The Frederick News-Post, a 45,000 circulation, family-owned Maryland daily. He was the paper’s first webcaster and initiated the paper’s first blog. Under his leadership the business section has transformed into a dynamic consumer advocate, emphasizing multimedia. He often works with freelancers.

 

HOW: Those wishing to join the call should dial 1-218-936-7999. You will be prompted for the access code, which is 316748. In order for SABEW to estimate the number of callers, please reply with “Yes” in the subject line if you haven’t done so already. Thanks!

 

To send questions in advance or during the call, please e-mail Josh Mills, joshmills@optonline.net.  

Be your own publicist

Special thanks to freelancer Elyse Glickman for penning the following post. Glickman has been a published writer and editor since 1987, and since 2002 she has been an active member of the press in Los Angeles. Her work as a writer, editor and photographer has appeared in LUCIRE, Harper’s Bazaar Malaysia, Beverage Industry News, WhereLA, NEO, From House to HOME, Wedding Vow, Casa Y Hogar, La Reppublica, Beauty Store Business, Culinary Trends, JWest, Arizona Foothills, SE7EN, NUVO, Audrey, Food & Beverage and New You. Thanks, Elyse!

In 1992, I thought I had everything I needed  to move forward into a writing career.  
 
During college, I earned straight A’s in my communications classes, co-founded a campus  newspaper, freelanced for several local (Chicago) publications, interviewed  dozens of well-known rock musicians and celebrities, did an internship at an  Upstate New York newspaper with the nicest bosses on the planet and got a  master’s in journalism from a university that all but promised me my brilliant  journalism career a silver platter.  
 
Then  “Reality” bit, and I essentially relived the plot of the  infamous Winona Ryder Gen-X weepie, minus the cute guys and the happy ending.   My school employment centers were no help. After a couple of dead end  jobs and humiliating job interviews that really weren’t, I went to Los Angeles  with nothing to lose.
 
So where did I go wrong?  Here I was,  the journalism equivalent of the Heisman Trophy winner who couldn’t get  drafted by the NFL. I thought about that a lot, even as I ended up doing  public relations work.  While I disliked a lot of the office politics, I  found the work enriching. Though I secretly envied the people I pitched to, I  learned a lot more about the ins and outs of the journalism game from writers  and editors I called everyday than I did in the classroom.  Some were  supportive and helpful while others were sadistic and bent on getting me  fired.  But I gained wisdom from all of them.
 
After seven  years of selling other people’s dreams and ambitions to freelancers and  staffers, I got to the point where I decided to rediscover my own. I went to  my first journalism job fair since college in late 2001 and was rejected,  either for “selling out” and going into PR or not having current clips.   However, the day was not a waste, as a guy ahead of me in line suggested  I do some pro-bono articles and rebuild.  
 
Even writing for  somebody for free was a tough sell, but this time, a neighborhood paper  serving the San Fernando Valley listened to me instead of asking loaded  questions like, “If you don’t get this job, will you cry?”   They  asked me, “What do you have to offer us?” Rather than get insulted, I told  them what I had in my corner—more than a decade of solid writing experience in  journalism and public relations, and the power to persuade.  And that  persuaded them.
 
This was the moment I realized I had to be my own  publicist.  Having worked in PR, I knew how to work with publicists and  develop stories out of their pitches that would sell.  Having dealt with  editors and writers, I had an understanding of what to do and what not to do  when delivering a fully realized pitch. Networking is at the core of this  science, and every relationship, good or bad, serves a purpose.  Asking a  lot of questions is also a given, as every answer—sincere or snarky—helps you  refine your approach.  Doing your homework and knowing your subject,  which is a given when writing an actual story, is also a necessity when  presenting yourself to the world.
 
However, flacking  yourself does not stop with your first major breaks.  A few short months  after writing fashion and human interest stories for the suburban bi-weekly, I  negotiated some paid work (low pay, but still) at two of the city’s better  known lifestyle magazines and found my niche.  I pitched myself as a food  writer to one publisher, and a general lifestyle writer to the other citing my  recent PR accounts as “experience.”  It worked, and when my name became  linked to those magazines, doors continued to fly open on both the PR side  (superb pitches) and in publishing.  By the start of 2003, I was on my  way to becoming an established food & wine writer, but still managed to  effectively market myself as a strong generalist.  
 
Even  with my ups and downs, and the vicissitudes of editors, being my own publicist  continues to work. When I “lose” a publication due to the economy or a new  editor coming in with his/her own “favorite” writers, I don’t take it  personally.  I simply sell myself to another book.  I have a web  site that documents what I have to offer. However, I am ready to go to the  next level—large national newsstand publications—and I am ready to ask  questions and receive answers—snarky and sincere—on sharpening up my “package  deal.”  
 
Let’s trade pitches.

- Elyse Glickman

Improve your skills at the 2008 Convention & National Journalism Conference

Become a Webmaster, learn how to expand your freelance work and improve your networking skills at the 2008 SPJ Conference & National Journalism Convention, Sept. 4-7 in Atlanta, Ga. Listed below is a mere sampling of the development sessions designed to fit your needs! 

 

The Freelance Magazine Article

Description: From idea to published clip, this session takes you through the freelance magazine article process. Hear from editors and professional freelancers about how to shape an idea, pitch it, report it, write the article and then get paid.

Speakers: Kathy Ehrich Dowd, People, USA Today, Brides.com; Hope Winsborough, ESPN the Magazine, Redbook, Self; Laura Helmuth, senior science editor, Smithsonian magazine

 

Dealing with Pesky Sources

Description: Developing them, maintaining them, schmoozing, them and getting them to talk over and over and over again. Mark Felt is not the only person who wants to meet you in a garage. Dave Garlock will tell you how he got a PR source to deliver secret documents to him in a Brooklyn diner at 5 a.m. This will be a hands-on “working source” seminar and the words Internet, Web or CAR will not be brought up!

Speaker: Dave Garlock, senior lecturer, University of Texas

 

Pursuing the Lead: A Study of Persistence and Payoff on the Bigger Story

Description: This is a case study of how larger, more significant news stories can be found in an area previously considered not interesting enough to have a beat reporter devoted to it. There are investigative stories on all beats and subjects, and ways to get to them when others don't want you to have the information. Getting around the obstacles, why it's important to stick with it and a reminder why every government institution that receives taxpayer money needs a watchdog will all be discussed.

Speaker: Brett Blackledge, reporter, Associated Press and former general assignment and special projects reporter, Birmingham (Ala.) News, 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Journalism

 

They’re Everywhere: Finding Great Stories Off the Beaten Path: 20 Tips Your Editor Won't Tell You

Description: Whether you cover a beat, write features or general assignment, the first step for any reporter is coming up with story ideas. In this session, you'll learn ways to unearth compelling tales from your community and your life. And you'll hear tips about how to recast recurring stories. Guaranteed: You'll walk away with something to write about.

Speaker: Lane DeGregory, features writer, St. Petersburg Times

 

Figuring out Blogs and Whatever's Next

Description: Want to know more about the best blogs FOR and BY journalists, how you can join the blogging revolution as a consumer and/or creator of blogs and how to make sense of all the other new technologies changing our business? Topics covered include blog basics, blogs that are changing America and the world, blogs that are over hyped and a waste of time, how to read blogs without drowning in too much info, how to create a blog and raise your Google rankings and why journalists should or should NOT be blogging. What's next? Photoblogging, videoblogging, podcasting, wikis, RSS, XML. All levels of experience are welcome — blog skeptics to blog fanatics. You will go home with plenty of useful ideas and a printed handout that you will use often.

Speaker: Sree Sreenivasan, professor and dean of students, Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, co-founder, South Asian Journalists Association and technology reporter, WNBC-TV

 

For a full list of programs offered at this year’s Convention & National Journalism Conference, visit http://www.spj.org/c-programs.asp.

Wanted: editor

Please contact Susan Lawson at Susan.Lawson@va.gov if you're interested.

I am seeking a professional editor who is skilled in writing dissertations. I am a Ph.D. student with Capella University and have submitted my finished dissertation 2 times. It keeps getting returned to me for APA format, tense issues, and some sentence context issues. Are there any editors who could assist me with this problem? THANKS!

Blogging for fun and profit

Received this question from Debbie Moose, a freelance food writer in Raleigh, N.C. Moose is the author of the award-winning "Sunday Dinner" column and the new cookbook "Fan Fare: A Playbook of Great Recipes for Tailgating or Watching the Game at Home." Can anyone provide some feedback?

The question I wanted to ask is about blogging for money. I've received an offer from a Web site to do this, and this is new ground for me. How much is fair pay? What questions should I ask? Are there any special aspects of this kind of writing that might raise ethical issues? Have other people found that this is worth it, both financially and for exposure/publicity?

Got ideas?

Hi guys, how's everyone doing?

How are things going? Made a big sale recently? Would you like share how you did it? Perhaps you have a question or problem, and you'd like to share your experience and gain some feedback.

Ideally I'd like this site to become our site, a place where we can gather and exchange ideas on what's working and what's not.

If you've got a few minutes between calls and would like to pen a couple hundred words for the blog, please send me an e-mail at amybgreen@earthlink.net. If it's something that would help other freelancers, I'll put it up.

Thanks so much, guys.

Would you like to write for Quill?

I am looking for a columnist for the next issue of Quill, SPJ's magazine for members. The column would be for freelancers, giving quality how-to advice while sticking with the issue's theme, freedom of information. If you are a freelancer, have experience with public records and freedom of information issues and you have something to say that would help other freelancers, I'd like to hear from you.

I'd need 800 to 850 words, and you'd have a few weeks to work on it. If you're interested please e-mail me at amybgreen@earthlink.net.

Special thanks to David Wheeler, a freelancer in Kentucky, for contributing this month's Quill column for freelancers. Hope everyone is having a good day!

Calling all freelance medical writers

The Greater Chicago Area Chapter of the American Medical Writers Association will offer three workshops and one roundtable discussion at its 2008 conference on July 25 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Abbott Laboratories in Chicago. The workshops are open to both AMWA members and non-members. Courses include "Effective Paragraphing," "Basics of Human Anatomy and Physiology," "Launching a Freelance Medical Writer Career" and the advanced "Critical Appraisal for Writers and Editors of Biomedical Research Articles." The registration form and fees must be received by June 19 for the advanced class and by June 30 for the other course offerings. For more information, contact GCAC Education Chair, Sarah Duban.

Keeping busy when I'm not

A freelancer e-mailed recently for tips on how to avoid slow periods, in other words how to achieve a steady work load without wild highs and lows. When we're busy we don't want to waste time on pitches. When we're slow we've got no way to pay the bills.

It was a problem I struggled with when I first started out, and I still do. Business for me has been dreadfully slow in recent weeks. Here's how I deal with it.

• I rest. In May I went to Tampa about four times in three weeks. I worked six-day weeks and slept in hotels. I was tired. I try to rest up because I never know when someone will send me back to Tampa or anywhere else for that matter.
  
• I get organized. Usually I've got a stack of invoices to file or story ideas to pitch.
  
• I try to enjoy myself. When I'm not under financial pressure and when things are selling I enjoy pitching. I enjoy the creativity that goes into crafting ideas and finding markets for them. Sometimes I'll spend an afternoon at the Barnes & Noble magazine stand. Ideas flare, and that invigorates me. Immersing myself in magazines this way reminds me of why I got into this business in the first place. I toy around with my blog, a book idea or other things I never seem to have time for. I have fun with writing.
  
• Even when I'm busy I make time to pitch. Now that most publications accept queries by e-mail, when an idea is rejected it only takes a few minutes to send the idea to another publication. Some freelancers maintain a quota of queries they send every week. I've never done this because so much of my business comes from breaking news and "right-now" assignments, and sometimes when I'm busy I just go with it because I don't know when the next slow period will be. But I do keep an eye on my calendar and try to make sure I've got at least something lined up for the next week.
  
• I worry, stress and feel depressed. I wouldn't be honest if I didn't admit this. A few weeks into a slow stretch like this I'll start to feel frustrated and discouraged. By now I've sold three stories, and all have been put on hold at least until August. Yuck. I question my abilities as a journalist and my decisions in life.
  
• I try to remember all the other slow times. I remind myself that it's impossible to know when an astronaut will drive from Houston to Orlando with diapers to confront a romantic rival, generating months of work for me. In the news business we never know what's about to happen, what's about to pop up in our e-mail inbox. As long as I've pitched everything I can, as long as I've maintained my Web sites and done everything possible to get my name out, that's all I can do. All that's left is enjoying myself and my free time while I wait for the work to come to me. It always does.