What is service journalism and how do I do it right? Join me and all-star service journalism reporter Allie Volpe of Vox this Thursday for a Zoom workshop on finding, reporting, writing, and pitching perfect service stories. Click here to register, and remember to use the promo code “subscriber” for 50% off! Hello friends! This week I’m featuring a guest post from fellow freelancer Natasha Khullar Relph. I came across a post from Natasha — now more than 20 years into freelancing — on LinkedIn the other week in which she dashed out a list of the best things she’s done for her freelance career. I loved her super positive outlook and realistic take on the industry, so I asked if she’d be up for expanding on her original post with some additional context and experience. I’m delighted to share her thoughts with y’all. Natasha is a freelance journalist with bylines in The New York Times, TIME, CNN, BBC, ABC News, The CS Monitor, Ms., and more. She’s also the founder of The Wordling, where she publishes free resources for freelance writers, including this list of 200+ publications that pay $1/word or more. Look her up on LinkedIn. Take it away, Natasha! When I first started freelancing, I was a 19-year-old college student in India. I had never written anything for publication, I had no experience, I had no contacts, and I certainly had no clue. But in looking back over my 20+ years as a freelance writer, I can see clearly that the decisions I made in those early years acted as the basic building blocks for what would become a profitable, long-term writing career. Here’s what I did that allowed me to succeed. I went directly to my editors for adviceI stopped listening to advice from struggling writers, and I went directly to my editors for help instead. After pitching Time magazine daily for weeks and getting nowhere, I eventually sent the editor an email that said, “I’m not sure I have a good enough handle on what kind of ideas would work for you. Would you mind if I called you or dropped by your office to discuss how we can make this work?” He said yes, and I ended up becoming a freelance correspondent for the publication for many years. I invested in my careerI joined paid writing groups and professional organizations. I made sure not to just listen to the advice, but implement it constantly, even if — especially if — it challenged my beliefs about the way things should be done. I expected to be treated wellAs a freelancer from India, disrespect from editors was not uncommon. Despite having written for both The New York Times and TIME, a national radio broadcaster offered me a monthly contract that was equivalent to what they paid American reporters based in India for a three-minute audio piece. For both my sanity and my career, I made it a point to walk away from editors who didn’t respect freelancers, and went out of my way to make things easier for those who did. I aimed highI pitched editors at publications I thought were out of my league, and I often ended up with assignments from many who, surprisingly to me, thought I was an excellent fit. If you like what you’re reading, please consider subscribing to the free or paid version of this newsletter. Paid subs get access to all past and future paid-only posts, the archive of recorded Zoom panels, the exact text of a pitch I sold to The Atlantic, a guide on how much pre-reporting you should do for a pitch, a piece on the three questions you should end every interview with, 50% off all Zoom workshops, and more. I stayed in touchI developed long-term relationships with my editors by calling them when in their cities and meeting them whenever possible. Even though it made me incredibly uncomfortable in the beginning, I got on video calls and tried to forge personal connections so I wouldn’t be easily forgotten. I took risksI experimented with the style, subjects, and variety of my work to give myself a chance to discover where I excelled. I learned about new technologies and built experience in different industries to avoid becoming bored or complacent. I asked for honest criticismI learned to take honest feedback from people I respected. I was grateful for the criticism, but I also learned to recognize people with hidden agendas. I constantly strived to get better at both writing and pitching — and still do! I submitted only my best workI gave it my best, whether I was being paid $200 or $2,000. Doing excellent work for small publications helped me show high-quality clips to editors at better-paying publications who were able to spot good writing even when they didn’t recognize the publication. I gave backI helped fellow writers and photographers break into publications I was already writing for. Sometimes, when they were able, they helped me back, too. Eventually, I put everything I know into a website called The Wordling, where I’ve published 100+ articles and created dozens of free resources, including a list of 200+ publications that pay $1/word or more. I truly believed in my successI was told I couldn’t do it from India. I was told it was impossible to make a decent living with it. I was told you could chase the awards or the money, but not both. I was told that if you wrote stories about social issues, you wouldn’t get paid for that work. (My highest-paying assignments have covered human rights issues.) I learned to trust my gut and to allow myself to follow my own path, even if that meant I had falls along the way. I proved to myself that it didn’t have to be love or money. For me, it has been both.
Oh, a few other things …• I have some workshops coming up in September, hope to see you in a few of them!
• Interested in one-on-one coaching? I’m your editor! This can include anything you need help with: pitch feedback, writing and/or editing coaching, story development, story editing, social strategy, and anything else. Book a timeslot here. • How much were you paid for your last assignment? I'm putting together an anonymous database of rates freelancers have been paid recently. If you wanna throw in a rate or two you’ve gotten lately, I would love for you to fill out this quick little survey! I'll publish a regularly updated database weekly so we can all get a little more insight into who pays what and what we should be asking for. Click here to share your money talk. • Psst … I’m soft-launching the beta version of the FWT Slack. It’s still very much in the planning and iteration process, but I would love for you to join and start participating! Click here to join. (And I’d love any and all feedback you might have!) Okay bye ily! -Tim ❤️ You're currently a free subscriber to Freelancing With Tim. For the full experience, upgrade your subscription.
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