Off the Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer Nov 20-26
Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, communications, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?
From Canada:
- What does the feds’ $595M journalism package mean for news innovation? [The Discourse]
- Here’s what the journalism industry has to say about Morneau’s $600-million bailout [J-Source]
- Remuneration models for artists and creative industries [TWUC]
- Media union welcomes federal aid for news industry, but ‘devil is in the details’ [CWA Canada]
- Morneau’s update bolsters struggling media with $600 million in tax measures [CBC]
- Well established but not well-off: Canada’s authors struggle to make ends meet [CBC]
From The U.S. and beyond:
- IFJ global survey shows massive impact of online abuse on women journalists [IFJ]
- 11 creatives on working through Imposter Syndrome [Working Not Working]
- Why covering the environment is one of the most dangerous beats in journalism [Nieman Lab]
- A Stanford professor says working from home makes you happier and more efficient. There’s just one catch [Inc.]
- How to avoid the fake experts who manipulate freelancers [The Freelancer]
Recently on Story Board:
- Story Board is eight today: Happy birthday to us! Eight years ago today, CMG Freelance and the Canadian Writers Group launched this blog with the intention of sharing information and building a sense of community among Canadian freelancers…
- 2019 Dalton Camp Award deadline December 1: The deadline for the 2019 Dalton Camp Award is fast approaching. The competition offers prizes for the best essay or essays about the link between democracy and the media in Canada…
- “A Very Merry Class Action Christmas” Holiday Party: If you’re a Toronto-area factual TV worker, you’re invited to a holiday party hosted by the Canadian Media Guild’s Fairness in Factual TV campaign…
Spot a story you think we should include in next week’s Off the Wire? Email the link to editor@thestoryboard.ca or tweet us at @storyboard_ca.
Story Board is eight today!
Happy birthday to us! 
Eight years ago today, CMG Freelance and the Canadian Writers Group launched this blog with the intention of sharing information and building a sense of community among Canadian freelancers.
Since then, we’ve published nearly 1300 posts that serve as a resource for independent creators across Canada.
Story Board’s first post was a list of tips for negotiating with a client, which included advice on contracts and copyright. Eight years later, we’re still covering these kinds of topics with in-depth posts, public campaigns and informational webinars.
We have also commissioned a wide range of freelancers to write and comment on all aspects of freelance life and continue to encourage idea submissions.
Freelance branch anniversary
This year is also an important one for our freelance union itself: it’s the twentieth anniversary of the creation of the freelance branch of the Canadian Media Guild.
Errol Salamon, a postdoctoral associate at the University of Minnesota, says the freelance branch was created during the first few months of 1998. Salamon, who is currently researching a book about media labour, says that according to the first freelance branch newsletter in May 1998, the branch was launched to provide freelancers who contribute their works and talents to CBC/Radio Canada with contractual protection and access to insurance and retirement benefits. A CMG bylaw amendment formalized the Freelance Branch in March 1999.
This inclusion of self-employed workers into a labour agreement is an anomaly in Canadian labour law, and is an exceptional case for a labour union. Since its creation, branch executives and CMG staff have consistently worked to improve conditions — including rates and intellectual property ownership — for freelancers at CBC/Radio Canada.
Although the branch only represented CBC freelancers for the first decade and a half of its existence, CMG Freelance has since expanded to offer independent membership to freelancers who work in all types of media, creative, knowledge, IT and communications fields. You can find out more about membership in the union right here.
We’re taking a moment today to celebrate how far we’ve come… and we hope you’ll join us as we build momentum and continue to advocate for the rights of independent workers in Canada. We’re stronger together.
2019 Dalton Camp Award deadline December 1
The deadline for the 2019 Dalton Camp Award is fast approaching. The annual essay competition is open to submissions until Friday, December 1 at 8 p.m. EST. The competition offers prizes for the best essay or essays about the link between democracy and the media in Canada.
The competition is open to Canadian citizens and permanent residents. Essays must be written in English and not exceed 2000 words in length.
The Dalton Camp Award was founded by the Friends of Canadian Broadcasting in 2002. Last year, a prize of $10,000 was awarded to the winning essay. A second prize of $2500 was also awarded to a student submission.
For more information or to submit an entry for the Dalton Camp Award, check out this page on the Friends of Canadian Broadcasting’s website.
‘A Very Merry Class Action Christmas’ Holiday Party
If you’re a Toronto-area factual TV worker, you’re invited to a holiday party hosted by the Canadian Media Guild’s Fairness in Factual TV campaign.
Join your factual TV colleagues for an evening to celebrate the class action launched by Cavalluzzo LLP, an important step towards fairness in the industry. Come and raise a glass to Anna Bourque, the woman who has stepped up to represent workers in the lawsuit.
Enjoy free drinks and snacks as you talk to your colleagues about the changes you’d like to work on to improve the industry. If you bring a copy of your current or a former contract (personal information can be blacked out) and get an extra drink ticket. These contracts are really useful for Cavalluzzo LLP lawyers and will be kept confidential.
The party is scheduled for Wednesday, November 28 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at Hotel Ocho (195 Spadina Ave). This event is free to attend, but please register for your ticket on this Eventbrite page.
And if you’ve been wondering about the class action lawsuit against Cineflix Canada, you can now stream the informational webinar that Fairness in Factual held last week. In this webinar, you’ll hear details about the case from ‘representative plaintiff’ Anna Bourque and Tassia Poynter, the lawyer at Cavalluzzo LLP who is heading up this lawsuit. Just enter your email address at this link and you’ll be able to access the recording.
Off the Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer Nov 13-19
Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, communications, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?
From Canada:
- Canada’s authors struggle to make ends meet, says study [CBC]
- Crucial “catch-up” round of contract talks underway at CBC [CWA Canada]
- How The Discourse is reinventing the local newspaper to fight polarization [J-Source]
- Non-fiction book panel recap [PWAC Toronto]
- A guide to Canadian literary magazines and journals open to submissions [CBC]
From The U.S. and beyond:
- 9 tips to make working from home work for you [Working Not Working]
- I found the best burger place in America. And then I killed it [Thrillist]
- The freelancer’s guide to handling the holidays with grace [Freelancers Union]
- Top five qualities clients look for in a freelance writer [Freelance Writing Jobs]
- It’s Time to Nominate the Best Writing Websites for 2019 [The Write Life]
Recently on Story Board:
- Working from home during personal chaos: How can you keep your freelance career on track during times of change? Here are some ways to cope when the boundaries between your professional workspace and personal life become blurred…
- November media mixer in Toronto: Toronto-area freelancers, media workers and students, it’s getting darker and chillier out there, but CWA Canada is holding a social event that will brighten up your November…
Spot a story you think we should include in next week’s Off the Wire? Email the link to editor@thestoryboard.ca or tweet us at @storyboard_ca.
Working from home during personal chaos
by Meagan Gillmore
I pursued a writing career hoping it would allow me a more flexible home life, perhaps the possibility of staying home to raise any future children. Freelancing was, I believed, a buffer against the financial instabilities that seemed guaranteed for those who entered adulthood during the Great Recession of the mid-2000s.
But for much of 2017, some of the most-productive months of my young freelancing career coincided with a period of near-constant change and relational instability. I quickly learned that working from home, at times, seems more of an invitation to chaos than an inoculation against it.
A part-time contract job allowed me to report on national labour affairs while continuing with previous freelance gigs. But with the increasing number of bylines came growing chaos in the workplace: my home.
In eight months, the two women with whom I had shared a two-bedroom apartment for the better part of four years both got engaged – and married. It was a busy time that meant neither was readily available for household chores and companionship. After the second wedding, I spent nearly two months crashing on friends’ couches before securing a place to live with two other women. One married a few months later, and the search for another housemate began. The changes continued. So did the deadlines.
The struggle to maintain a proper balance when working from home and dealing with life transitions is a “normal, expected conundrum,” says Sharon Ramsay, a registered psychotherapist and registered marriage and family therapist in Toronto.
Read the rest of this post »
November media mixer in Toronto
Toronto-area freelancers, media workers and students, it’s getting darker and chillier out there, but CWA Canada is holding a social event that will brighten up your November.
Come out to Craft Kitchen (410 Adelaide St W, just west of Spadina) on Tuesday, November 20 from 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm for a free media mixer with complimentary snacks and drinks.
Mix and mingle with your colleagues working in the media, meet old friends and make some new ones. There will also be mentors from several media outlets, including VICE, CBC, and the Canadian Press.
Register for your free ticket to this event on this Eventbrite page.
This event is hosted by CWA Canada, the country’s only all media union, with 6,000 members at media companies and newspapers coast to coast. CWA Canada has a free membership for student, volunteer, precarious and emerging media workers through its Associate Member program. CWA Canada is the parent union of the Canadian Media Guild, which represents members at media outlets such as VICE Canada, CBC, and The Canadian Press, as well as freelancers through its voluntary membership program.
This venue is wheelchair accessible and has gender-neutral washrooms.
Off the Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer Nov 6-12
Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, communications, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?
From Canada:
- Announcing the NMA: B2B Awards [National Magazine Awards]
- Reporting on Indigenous Issues? Heed Angela Sterritt’s Top Five Tips [Ryerson Review]
- 4 Ontario Postmedia newspapers to publish one less day of the week [J-Source]
From The U.S. and beyond:
- Why Is Writing So Difficult? Here Are 3 Reasons Why [The Write Life]
- 4 ways creative freelancers can generate new business opportunities [Freelancers Union]
- How Freelancers Can Combat Isolation [The Freelancer]
- Top 5 ingenious ways to increase your freelance writing income [Freelance Writing Jobs]
- Why less really is more in your journalism portfolio [Journo Resources]
- Getting new referrals the old fashioned way [Freelancers Union]
- Managing cash flow when the unexpected happens [Freelance Writing Jobs]
Recently on Story Board:
- The Born Freelancer on the Power of Gratitude: These dark days of autumn rapidly turning into even darker days of winter can be especially trying for those of us who work on our own. It is easy to fall prey to negative thoughts and allow ourselves to be put into in a less than optimal mind set for daily tasks ahead…
- Webinar: State Your Worth: how to price your services or an experienced contractor looking to boost your income, CMG Freelance’s next webinar will help you determine what you’re worth…
- Factual TV/Cineflix class action Q&A and webinar: If you work in factual TV and are wondering what’s going on with the class action lawsuit against Cineflix Canada, you’ll have the opportunity to find out more about it and ask questions next week…
- A Freelancer’s Guide to Content Marketing: It’s a job that requires the imagination of an advertising copywriter, the inquisitiveness and writing discipline of a journalist and a bit of an understanding of data science…
Spot a story you think we should include in next week’s Off the Wire? Email the link to editor@thestoryboard.ca or tweet us at @storyboard_ca.
The Born Freelancer on the Power of Gratitude
This series of posts by the Born Freelancer shares personal experiences and thoughts on issues relevant to freelancers. Have something to add to the conversation? We’d love to hear from you in the comments.
I was talking over the importance of mental well-being for freelancers with a fellow writer.
These dark days of autumn rapidly turning into even darker days of winter can be especially trying for those of us who work on our own. It is easy to fall prey to negative thoughts and allow ourselves to be put into in a less than optimal mind set for daily tasks ahead.
Of course, anyone can develop bad psychological attitudes, but for creative workers the potential predisposition seems greater.
And so my colleague brought up the concept of gratitude.
It seems many self-help gurus posit that a sense of gratitude is important for optimal mental health. It can help achieve balance and perspective.
This makes perfect sense to me.
Once upon a time, in my salad days as a freelancer, I used to feel envious of and occasional bitterness towards some colleagues who appeared to be achieving success they didn’t deserve (IMHO) while at the same time I was not (again, IMHO).
Envy can be a great catalyst for creative expression. Many times I’ve read or seen something that I knew I could do better and was whipped into a frenzy of activity to attempt it.
Read the rest of this post »
Webinar: State Your Worth
Whether you’re a new freelancer wondering how to price your services or an experienced contractor looking to boost your income, CMG Freelance’s next webinar will help you determine what you’re worth.
Understanding where to start (or sometimes re-start) when it comes to rate setting can be a painful undertaking–but it doesn’t have to be.
Join us for the webinar “State Your Worth” on Thursday, November 22nd at 6pm ET/3pm PT and learn how to get into the right mindset for negotiating. The webinar will teach you how to figure out what you’re worth, and will explore various popular freelance pricing models. Webinar participants will also gain access to a Freelance Resource Guide, which lists links, books, communities and other useful material.
“State Your Worth” will be led by negotiation and compensation professional Annika Reinhardt, the founder of Talent Collective, an organization focused on supporting individuals on their career journeys. After failing miserably in her first salary negotiation, Reinhardt bounced back and was able to nearly triple her salary in only a few years. She now focuses on helping individuals state their worth and negotiate their compensation and freelance rates with confidence. Annika is also a Certified Compensation Professional and can often be found sharing her thoughts on topics like gender equity and pay transparency on news outlets such as CBC, CTV and the Globe & Mail.
To register for “State Your Worth” click on this link. If you’re a CMG Freelance member, enter the code “CMG-FL” when you are asked for an affiliation code. If you are not a member, you can enter the code “SBoard” to register to participate in this webinar for free.
Live viewings of webinars are open to everyone. Archived webinars are available for viewing by CMG Freelance and CWA Canada Associate Members on this members-only page on the CMG Freelance website. Recent webinars have covered subjects such as legal advice on defamation, tax tips, and social media strategies for freelancers.
Students, volunteers and emerging media workers can sign up for a free CWA Associate Membership right here. And for information about the price and benefits of CMG Freelance membership you can check out the CMG Freelance website.
