Starting out during a pandemic
We speak to one student about how their freelance career is going so far
We start the third run of our four-week online course on How to become a successful freelance journalist in March. Our attendees have been such a diverse group in age, previous experience and their areas of interest as well as coming from all over the world.
One thing we have really enjoyed is the ongoing relationship we have with many of them and it’s great to learn about where freelancing is taking them. It’s one reason we’re going to start offering a premium community for those who have done the course so they can seek ongoing support from us, for example with ideas and pitches, but also have a space to keep chatting with others in the group. Of course it’s completely up to attendees whether they want to subscribe (they will also get access to all our webinars as part of the package) but many have told us they would really value the option.
As we get ready to welcome our new course sign ups, we caught up with one previous attendee, Gabby Willis, to find out how it’s going. We should also say that Gabby makes an appearance in our book to help us make the case for why students need to know more about freelancing.
Tell us a little bit about yourself
I'm a final year journalism student at Sheffield Hallam University. I've loved to write since I was a small child, and have always been extremely inquisitive, so being a journalist is something I've dreamed of for many years.
My career is only just taking off, and really it's all thanks to my degree and the Freelancing For Journalists course. Previously, I had had one paid commission for metro.co.uk and wrote a number of features for Sheffield magazines unLTD and Redbrik on work experience at HRMedia, as well as producing high quality work for my university portfolio (here, and here as part of Emma and Lily's Digital Journalism module last year).
What is it that attracts you to freelancing?
After having to defer a couple of my university modules after struggling during the pandemic, I found myself a part-time student with no student finance funding and I decided to start freelancing so I could earn some money. It's also a really good way to start making a name for myself within the industry when applying for staff jobs, which I hope to do eventually. Until I'm ready for that though, or whilst I'm job hunting, freelancing gives me the confidence that I'm keeping myself involved in the community and that I have a back-up plan.
It's also good to know that I'll have a freelance portfolio and lots of connections if I ever have to go back to it for my health or to fit around my plans to have a family in the future. At this stage in my life, I could go in any direction and live anywhere, but freelancing means I'll always be able to make a living doing something I love, wherever I am.
And how has it been going?
Since doing the course with I've already had three commissions and have been discussing some exciting future projects with other publications. I developed my first pitch as part of the course; it was commissioned just before Christmas and published by The Breakdown last month. Since then, I've had a dream byline in The Guardian, and my second commissioned piece for The Breakdown will come out later this month. I also joined the FFJ Work Experience scheme, and managed to secure some paid work for investigative journalist Charlotte Alfred on a project with Lighthouse Reports.
I've integrated really well into the young freelance journalist community on Twitter - it's wonderful to feel like I've got colleagues and I've made some really useful contacts. Skills and tips from the course have also helped me with branding and marketing myself too.
What is the one bit of freelancing advice that so far has proven the most useful?
It's hard to pick just one! If I have to though, I'd say everything to do with pitching. Learning how to find calls for pitches and how to write a successful pitch has been vital in helping me gain the confidence to start developing my ideas into pitches myself. Getting feedback from you, as well as the other course participants, was invaluable.
For anyone just starting out, do you have any words of wisdom - maybe something you wished you had known or done?
If anything, I wish I'd taken the plunge to start freelancing much earlier. I lacked the confidence, and still struggle with impostor syndrome, but doing the course helped me see that I can be taken seriously as a professional freelance journalist at this early stage in my career. I'd urge anyone to take a leap of faith and try it for themselves, because it can open some amazing doors and lead to such great experiences.
You can find out more about Gabby including her socials and Muck Rack profile at https://linktr.ee/gabbywillisjourno
If you’re interested in finding out more about the four-week online course or would like to book a place, just click here.
Triumph of the week
We finally solved a technical problem that we had been having with our Facebook community. Nothing that anyone is likely to notice but it had been bugging us. Hacking away at those little niggles can be so satisfying.
That feeling when…
You carefully checked the spelling of someone’s name in a piece then got it wrong anyway…
Do keep sending in your Listener Dilemmas for us to answer in the next series of the podcast.
Either post a message in our Facebook Community or contact us at freelancingforjournalists@gmail.com.
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Bye for now!