Here at FFJ headquarters, our goal has always been transparency. When you’re working for yourself and things are not going to plan, the temptation is to let that imposter syndrome creep in and worry that you’re somehow doing it wrong.
So to reassure you, that sometimes it is just the way it goes, let us tell you about a really good story that never made it because circumstances got in the way.
In the run up to Christmas, a member of the FFJ community came to Emma with a really strong health story. They didn’t feel in a position to write it themselves and asked Emma if she would be interested in pitching it.
In a nutshell, people living in the UK who for various reasons had received one or two Covid vaccines overseas were struggling to access the system to get those vaccines verified or were being asked to travel hundreds of miles to do so. This meant they couldn't book a booster jab or get a Covid pass.
Emma hunted out a contact and pitched it to The Times newsdesk on a Friday morning. A news editor called back later that day with some questions. They were keen for a piece for Monday but wanted more examples. It was incredibly easy to find many more case studies than she could possibly include, which clearly demonstrated how widespread an issue it was. On Sunday she updated the news editor and they commissioned 700 words which Emma filed an hour later.
All seemed well, the news editor thanked her for the copy, the picture desk called asking for photos. Then at 10pm she got an email to say it hadn’t made it in because there was too much Covid news but would be added to the next days news list. And then the next day, and the next day, etc, etc.
If you cast your minds back to that week leading up to Christmas, the Omicron news was relentless. The news editor who commissioned the piece was now on leave and Emma was also getting the sense that the one now on shift wasn’t that interested. On the third day she was told it would probably make a downpage rather than a lead but then it was dropped again so she decided to pitch it elsewhere. By this point it was the day before Christmas Eve and she was likely hitting more annual leave and the vagaries of the holiday news agenda.
There are so many things that as a freelancer you can’t control, including what other stories come along to bump yours off the agenda. Maybe if Emma had pitched it to a news website, space would not have been so much an issue, maybe a different news editor would have fought for it more, maybe if it hadn’t been Christmas and the whole country focused on whether they would be in lockdown.
Also Emma has not given up on the story and is keeping in touch with her case studies to see if the problem they’re having continues so she can consider an updated angle.
We all have these examples - that a really strong story that for whatever reason didn’t work out. We’d love to hear yours. Come and tell us in the FFJ Facebook Community all about the one (or many) that got away. Be reassured, it happens to us all!
What’s new?
As we discussed in our newsletter before Christmas rounding up our 2021, we are going to shake things up a little this year. There will be no live webinars but we are experimenting with a new system where you can purchase them to download and watch at your leisure. Our first one on How to launch a successful podcast is now on our Payhip site and there is a 30% New Year Sale on this and all our Quick Guides so if you’re interested be quick.
We are also launching 1-2-1 Bespoke Sessions on anything related to freelance journalism that you would like tailored support with.
So whether it’s help polishing up your pitching, or getting your website/portfolio up and running, maybe learning new ways to find work opportunities or even advice on how to start working for yourself in the first place, we can offer 30 min or 1 hour Zoom sessions to get you on the right track. To find our more or book a slot simply email us. All the information you need is on the poster below.
On the podcast this week
Thank you all for listening to series 6 of the podcast which has taken us to 25,000 downloads! In this week’s final Bonus episode, Lily and Emma return to the popular appraisal episode from six months ago to find out whether they met any of the action points they set and how useful the process was. Click below or find us wherever you get your podcasts. We will be back in the Spring with a new series.
Twitter verification
You can still sign up to our campaign to call on Twitter to explain its arbitrary verification of freelance journalists. We have more than 70 signatories from experienced freelance journalists who keep getting rejected for a blue tick. All we want is for the process to be more transparent. You can read all about it in this article on journalism.co.uk and if you want to add your name and experience to our database, you can sign up below.
Triumph of the week
Starting the New Year with a tidy and organised office. How long will it last...
That feeling when
You can’t quite remember how to do your job after some time off. It’ll come back right?
We love to hear your feedback on everything we do, so feel free to drop us an email anytime at freelancingforjournalists@gmail.com
Bye for now!