[Wamvan] Freelance Journalism tips

[Joanna Chiu]

Hey Dharra! Glad you like the notes. The UBC Writing Centre is actually part
of UBC's Continuing Ed Department so they're open to any adult.

And Columbia is...to be honest...not the comfiest place for a super liberal
feminist like me cause some of the profs and some of the students aren't
very open to critical, status quo-challenging thinking. I expected as much
from the profs cause I've found that a lot of the top media people in New
York tend to act elitist, but I didn't expect some of my fellow classmates
to be such doofuses.

BUT. I'm still learning a ton, and living and practicing reporting in New
York is pretty much the best journalism education i can get for myself I
think. The profs are very attentive, and give detailed feedback on every
single piece of writing I do for them, so I still think I made the right
decision. I'm also looking forward to my electives this fall: investigative
journalism and foreign reporting. I wouldn't discourage you from applying to
Columbia, but I'd encourage you to learn about all the different programs
available to see what you might like best. I've heard good things about
Berkeley. Columbia still probably has the best worldwide reputation, and
that's important to me cause I want to do foreign reporting.

So yeah, if any fellow j-school students here or people who have gone to
American colleges can give me any advice on how to stay sane, let me know!
I'm deriving lots of comfort/community in NY from getting involved with
SlutWalk New york and being a part of the WAM! US listserv. And of course,
from staying involved in WAM! Vancouver!

Hugs,

Joanna






On Mon, Sep 26, 2011 at 5:35 PM, Dharra Budicha <dbudicha at sfu.ca> wrote:

> Bless you Joanna!!! Ah, that's awesome, thanks so much for sharing! Yeah,
> that course is a bit pricey for me at the moment... but I assumed that was
> open to UBC students only. Considering I go to SFU... not sure how that's
> going to work haha! But thank you for the tips, very informative... I'm
> going to go read them again!
>
> How's Columbia J-school going so far? 'tis my dream school, you know :)
>
> Cheers,
> Dharra
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Joanna Chiu <chiu.joanna5 at gmail.com>
> To: wamvan <wamvan at lists.resist.ca>
> Sent: Sun, 25 Sep 2011 20:42:40 -0700 (PDT)
> Subject: [Wamvan] Freelance Journalism tips
>
> I meant to send this out earlier. They're notes I took from that course on
> Freelance Article Writing Level 1 course I mentioned in my last post. Hope
> fellow freelancers and aspiring writers on this list find some of this
> helpful:
>
> Freelance Journalism Class 1 Notes: INTRO
>
>
>
> About freelance writing:
>
>
>
>    *  Freelance journalists should always be on the lookout for new ideas,
> but do not take it personally if editors reject their ideas
>
>    *  Online writing doesn't pay as much as print (about 1/5th tops)
>
>    * It's a good time to start a career because the industry is in flux.
> New writers can find different niches
>
>    * Magazine content is about 80% freelance, editors need to fill pages
>
>    * Benefit: 'Get paid to go to school'
>
>
>
> Traits of a freelance writer:
>
>
>
>    * has a natural curiosity
>
>    * a reader
>
>    * eye for detail
>
>    * skeptical, questioning (even of own beliefs)
>
>    * fair and balanced
>
>
>
> Freelance Writing Process:
>
>
>
>   1. Think of story idea
>
>   2. Develop idea, research
>
>   3. Convey idea to editor
>
>   4. Write article
>
>
>
> Typical Pay and Word Count:
>
>
>
>    * In Canada, highest pay usually $1/word, in USA, $1.5/word
>
>    * Globe and Mail pays .5/word
>
>    * Articles used to be longer. Now features usually around 2500, and
> front/back of magazines around 200-800
>
>
>
> Developing Story Ideas
>
>
>
>    * Think of different angles on recent news stories
>
>    * Read publications in your field of interest
>
>    * Trade magazines can give insider information, which you can convey to
> the public in a general interest piece
>
>    * University websites often have a lot of information on new research
>
>    * Use personal experience and friends' experiences
>
>    * Develop a strong and focused idea rather than propose a fact or broad
> topic
>
>    * "I would like to write about x focusing on y"
>
>    * Once you have a story idea, think of who you could talk to for further
> information
>
>
>
> Local publications to look into:
>
>
>
>    * Globe and Mail (accepts travel writing)
>
>    * Georgia Straight
>
>    * Vancouver Magazine
> Class 2 Notes: INTERVIEWS, STYLE AND EDITING
>
>
>
> INTERVIEWS
>
>
>
> If interviewees ask to see interview questions beforehand, tell them you
> can’t show them the questions, but could tell them the gist of the article
>
>
>
> Look for experts: people interviewed in similar articles, company profiles,
> google “____association”
>
> Look for people who have written books, articles, research on the topic,
> ask
> friends for contacts
>
>
>
> Politicians: pretty easy to contact at municipal level, tough for
> provincial
> or federal (restrictive speaking policies, only Ministers could speak and
> often unavailable)
>
>
>
> If stuck, could use quotes from other media with credit.
>
> Ex. ___ told the New York Times…
>
>
>
> Keep track of contacts in a file (magazines want contact info) as well as
> research sources
>
>
>
> If you don’t have an assignment yet, let interviewees know it’s an early
> stage for a quick interview
>
>
>
> STYLE NOTES
>
>
>
> 1-9: spell out
>
>
>
> 10 and above: numerals (except if the number starts a sentence)
>
>
>
> Apostrophes
>
>
>
> 1970s and CDs, not 1970’s and CD’s
>
>
>
> but ‘70s and ‘80s okay
>
>
>
> rock ‘n’ roll (because a and d missing)
>
>
>
> ____?” says Smith.
>
>
>
> It is called the “vuvuzela”, and it’s hugely popular
>
>
>
> Don’t use too many square bracket edits, can paraphrase instead
>
>
>
> To leave out parts of a quote:
>
>
>
> 1.    “_____,” says Smith, “________.” (but careful not to change meaning)
>
>
>
> To leave out specific words:
>
>
>
> “The dog bit the man … and it was terrible.” (omitted) (spaces on both
> sides)
>
>
>
> Use exclamation marks sparingly
>
>
>
> “____,” he says excitedly is usually better than including an exclamation
> mark
>
>
>
> He said it was his “worst moment ever.” (don’t need comma before quote”
>
>
>
> Director of Bill Smith says ____
>
>
>
> Cm, ft
>
>
>
> Use cannot, do not instead of can’t and don’t
>
>
>
> Careful of canadian and american spelling
>
>
>
> Canadian Oxford Dictionary has all canadian spelling
>
>
>
> Americans more picky
>
>
>
> Titles of books, movies, etc usually in italics
>
>
>
> CD titles usually italics and song titles in quotes (check pub)
>
>
>
> Every person should have their say is wrong
>
>
>
> Every person should have his or her say
>
>
>
> All people should have their say (way to rephrase to make smoother)
>
>
>
> “The audience” is singular
>
>
>
> The audience members sit in their seats.
>
>
>
> For other languages, only italicize if it’s not in common usage
>
>
>
> Ex. Don’t need for hors d’oeuvres
>
>
>
> General Editing Tips
>
>
>
> Check lead
>
>
>
> Is the article making any assumptions about what people know?
>
>
>
> Covered everything? Anything extraneous? Tangents
>
>
>
> Check that tense is consistent
>
>
>
> Check name spelling, and employment title
>
>
>
> When asking friends for help, best to ask specific questions. Anything
> confusing, missing?
> RESOURCES
>
>
>
> Periodical Writers Association of Canada (PWAC)
>
>
>
> Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ)
>
>
>
> Writers’ Union of Canada
>
>
>
> Journalism school websites
>
>
>
> Research ryerson, carleton, univ. of western ontario
>
>
>
>
>
>
> June 29: MARKETING
>
>
>
>
>
> Even with full rights, a magazine never owns your idea, so you can write
> different articles on same topic (Efficient, but can get boring_
>
>
>
> When working in same market with competing publications, you need to
> disclose stuff that might be of concern to them and say how you would write
> piece differently.
>
>
>
> Careful of conflicts of interest (if you know an interviewee, careful about
> what you say)
>
>
>
> Once your piece is accepted, the contract is sent to you either in email
> (accept by default) or faxed/scanned
>
>
>
> *Queries*: strike a balance between making them perfect and sending them
> out
>
>
> Important to take the leap to send queries
>
>
>
> Know your customer, editor, readers, what they’re looking for, and writers’
> guidelines
>
>
>
> Can look at information magazines have available for advertisers
>
>
>
> Subscribe to your top choice magazines to get to know the content
>
>
>
> Either start with idea, then pitch or think of magazine, then think of
> ideas, and pitch stories that would interest them
>
>
>
> Keep query simple and to the point
>
>
>
> Don’t forget to follow up!
>
>
>
> Always pitch again to magazine that you wrote for to become a regular
> contributor.
>
>
>
> Ideally, editors will offer you work and you won’t have to keep querying.
>
>
>
> In your last email to editor, can mention your next idea in the last
> paragraph, but you still have to make the idea very compelling. Never get
> to
> stop “selling” ideas.
>
>
> Specializing vs. generalizing
>
>
>
> Being an expert gives you an advantage
>
>
>
> However, it limits you to publications that only want certain articles;
> it’s
> hard to be just a specialist
>
>
>
> Generalists appeal to broader range of editors
>
>
>
> Usually, people are generalists with few different specialties (often
> personal interests)
>
> * *
> WRITING AS BUSINESS
>
>
>
> Home business: important to keep all receipts for things related to writing
> (can write off on taxes).
>
>
>
> Can write off part of home, heating, car, computer, books, supplies (ask
> accountant for help)
>
>
>
> Don’t need to register, just fill out self-employed form
>
> Keep track of invoices/income
>
>
>
> Don’t write off exaggerated expenses when you’ve made little income, has to
> be relative
>
>
>
> Writers’ websites helpful, check charles montgomery website, james
> mackinnon
> for examples
>
>
>
> Can change an article into book proposal
>
>
>
> Tyee a good place to start
>
>
>
> Make a goal of one query per week or something like that
>
>
>
> Break into doable tasks
>
>
>
> Bad to write for: Vancouver View sucks at paying writers
>
>
>
> Careful about schemes online
>
>
>
> Online, scams “you pay us, we’ll publish…”
>
>
>
> Good magazine: http://www.vancouverreview.com/ good, quite smart, literary
>
>
>
> writing competitions at legitimate publications okay with entry fees (some
> come with subscription)
>
>
>
> Writing with a day job very do-able
>
>
>
> A lot of research/interview arrangements can be done through email
>
>
>
> Workday could be very varied, need to be disciplined, try to schedule days,
> block out times, realistic parameters
>
>
>
>
> July 6: Guest Speaker John Ince (Editor at Vancouver Mag)
>
> * *
>
> GENERAL TIPS
>
>
>
> Different ways to deliver stories, tell good stories in an interesting way
>
>
>
> Look for ideas all day, be aware for things that are
> interesting/scary/strange (use own emotions as a clue)
>
>
>
> Stories often have central characters  (either very representative of topic
> or bucks trends. People doing stuff are more interesting than people)
>
>
>
> Writers help people understand the world better, and impose a narrative on
> the world
>
>
>
> QUERY TIPS
>
>
>
> Make it clear why you are sending query to particular editor
>
>
>
> Be concise and supper accurate, explain why the story is suitable for mag.
>
>
>
> Start query with an anecdotal lead
>
>
>
> Okay to not tell all the info in the story, but pitch must deliver its
> promises
>
>
>
> Get a sense of who you’ll talk to
>
>
>
> Give either general word count or indicate which section of mag you piece
> would fit
>
>
>
> Put your contact info again at the end of your letter
>
>
>
> For timely stories, you can say that you could finish at a certain time.
> Otherwise, editors will give you deadlines
>
>
>
> Newspapers: speed is more important
>
>
>
> Some pre-interviews are good and you can include quotes from interviews in
> query
>
>
>
> Show, don’t tell
>
>
>
> Can start query or article at the heart of action then backtrack to explain
>
>
>
> Don’t need a lot of lead up
>
>
>
> Never show interviewees the article before publication. First allegiance to
> readers
>
>
>
> If the content is unflattering, it’s not libel.
>
> Make sure you keep copies of recordings in case interviewees say that they
> didn’t say something.
>
>
>
> If story is about people, good to start with the people (ie. Don’t start by
> describing the location)
>
>
>
> Write as you would speak, read aloud to edit
>
>
>
> Strong voice if you write naturally
>
>
>
> When sending email queries, paste letter in email, and don’t send as an
> attachment.
>
>
>
> *QUERY TIPS: (Jennifer Van Evra) *
>
> * *
>
> Don’t mislead people or be meandering
>
>
>
> Graph means paragraph
>
>
>
> Nutgraph: tells what story is about, gives away the story, should be subtle
>
>
>
> Use characters to confirm facts instead of just stating them
>
>
>
> Transitions should be invisible between characters’ stories and informative
> sections
>
>
>
> Stories usually end with summary or look to the future
>
>
>
> At end of queries, explain what sets you apart from other writers, and what
> may make you particularly qualified to write the story. Editors will expect
> you to be an expert on the topic
>
>
>
> Your query’s writing should reflect the tone of the publication
>
>
>
> Basic Query outline:
>
>
>
> 1st paragraph: Lead, hook interest
>
> 2nd: Spill the beans about what the article’s about
>
> 3rd How you will do it, who you will talk to, etc.
>
>
>
> By end of query, the editor should have a good sense of what the finished
> article will be like, but be careful not to write the article in your query
>
>
>
> Suggest title of article
>
>
>
> Humour’s usually good
>
>
>
> Say whether it will be a short piece, short feature, or full length feature
>
>
>
> It’s worth it to contact interviewees in proposal stage, but sometimes,
> interviews fall through.
>
>
> MISC NOTES
>
>
>
> To get interview contacts, use friends, facebook, forums, list serves,
> google
>
> * *
>
> Vancouver magazine “top stories” profile characters that introduces us to a
> bigger world
>
>
>
> Most people don’t mind meeting for interviews outside of 9-5 hours
>
>
>
> * *
>
> _______________________________________________
> Wamvan mailing list
> Wamvan at lists.resist.ca
> https://lists.resist.ca/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/wamvan
>



-- 
Joanna Chiu

Freelance Writer and Editor
Masters of Journalism candidate
Columbia University
www.joannachiu.com <http://www.joannachiu.com%20>
twitter.com/joannachiu
Ph: 917 767 6145
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