The Born Freelancer on the Canadian Broadcast Museum Foundation, Part 3
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? Your input is welcome in the comments.
Recently The Born Freelancer sat down with CBMF Executive Director and lifelong freelancer Kealy Wilkinson to discuss a number of important issues relevant to freelancers in Canada today as seen in the context of our broadcasting heritage. Today in the third and final part of our three part wide-ranging conversation Ms. Wilkinson expresses her conviction that if there is still hope for the CBC (and continuing work opportunities there for freelancers), it may well be as a result of public input at the most recent CRTC hearings just wrapped up entitled “Let’s Talk TV”. Part One of our conversation is here; Part Two is here.
Does it really make any difference to get involved in a public forum like “Let’s Talk TV”?
It’s all we’ve got. And if we don’t make our views known, if we don’t play a role, then we can’t blame anybody but ourselves for what happens. The CBC isn’t solely to blame for the mess we’re in. It’s been functioning in an environment that’s almost 30 years old under legislation that is completely inapplicable today. Successive governments of Canada have completely failed to grasp the need for updating that legislation.
And what is the single most important element to update?
I think you have to start by looking at the CBC’s mandate to determine if the mandate of a contemporary national public broadcaster would be identical to the mandate detailed in 1991. Times have changed. We have the web. There’s a whole lot of different ways now that people use media. It may well be that certain of the CBC’s delivery systems could be changed over time, to eventually be transferred from transmitters to web-based delivery systems. But we have to be really careful about that.
Without transmitters we have no emergency broadcasting back-up. When the power goes out, if it wasn’t for radio nobody would know what is going on without “over the air” radio. We know the weather is getting worse, a little bit more threatening perhaps and I think the availability of emergency radio has never been more critical. You can’t do that on the web. It would be folly for the CBC to think about transferring all of its radio services to internet only systems. Doing that would put the nation at risk [in times of emergency].
Humber College Print Humour Workshop coming up in New York
Got jokes? Dream of publishing your humour writing? Humber College is gearing up for a two-day humour writing workshop in New York City later this month.
Humber Comedy Program director Andrew Clark says the workshop will be a very practical event for people who want to get their work published — or those who’ve already been published but are looking to branch out into humour.
The event’s organizer Mike Sacks is a humourist, critic and an editor at Vanity Fair. He says this is the first writing seminar of its kind because of its focus on humour writing specifically geared to print.
“It will be a very nuts and bolts seminar. Usually these types of seminars are taught by writers who don’t make a career in comedy writing. Everyone involved in this seminar–from agents to editors to the writers–have all made a living, often a great living, in the realm of comedy writing. So the information will be very applicable to a young writer: how to get published, how to get an agent, how to sell a comedy piece to a magazine,” Sacks told Story Board via email this week.
Top level names in writing, editing and agenting will be participating in the workshop, including Larry Doyle (Simpsons, New Yorker), Teddy Wayne (Vanity Fair, New Yorker, The Love Song of Jonny Valentine), Sam Lipsyte (Home Land, The Ask), Sloane Crosley (I Was Told There’d Be Cake), and others.
The event is scheduled for October 18th and 19th. It will run from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. each day and costs $255CAD to attend. To find out more or to register, check out Humber College’s event page.
Off The Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer Sept 23-29
Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, publishing, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?
From Canada:
- Maggies Awards Finalists Announced [Canadian Magazines]
- Why undervaluing young journalists is a big mistake [J-Source]
- Memo: Postmedia announces four-platform launch date for Herald, Gazette [J-Source]
- After Foley: supporting international freelancers [CMG Freelance]
From the U.S. and beyond:
- 10 Money-Making Tasks Successful Freelance Writers Do Every Day [The Write Life]
- Words journalists write that no one ever says [Poynter]
- Common Cents: A Review Of ’101 Tips To Become A $100,000 A Year Freelance Writer’ [Contently]
- 8 Writer Tips to Keep Your Butt in the Chair [Kill Zone Authors] (via @thewritelife)
- Amtrak Announces Writers’ Residency Winners, Keeps Romantic Sentiment Rolling [Mediabistro]
- Ask A Freelancer: Should I Make Sure My Sources Are Available Before I Pitch? [Contently]
- 9 online tools to help journalists monitor their beat [Journalism News]
- Strategies: 11 tips for freelance success [USA Today] (via @freelancersu)
- Failure, Writing’s Constant Companion [New York Times] (via @LuigiBenetton)
Last week on Story Board:
- 5 Rules for Napping Like a Work-From-Home Pro: You’re working from home, sitting at your computer, slaying deadlines left and right, firing off emails like nobody’s business. Then you hit that time of the day. Your eyelids suddenly get droopy. Your brain seems to replace its matter with cotton candy. You hit that crossroad that all work-from-homers face: to nap, or not to nap…
- Freelancer meet-up in Halifax this week: We here at Story Board would like to send some freelancer high fives out to a new freelance group in Halifax this week. The group is planning to hold regular monthly get-togethers and build a casual network for support and freelance camaraderie…
- Time management tips for freelancers: The Toggl timer is ticking, and while you spend precious time here, I’ll share with you some of the useful nuggets about time management that I recently learned at Courage Camp for freelancers…
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.
5 Rules for Napping Like a Work-From-Home Pro
Image: “Nap Time” by Laura D’Alessandro
by Alexander Huls
You’re working from home, sitting at your computer, slaying deadlines left and right, firing off emails like nobody’s business. Then you hit that time of the day. Your eyelids suddenly get droopy. Your brain seems to replace its matter with cotton candy. You hit that crossroad that all work-from-homers face: to nap, or not to nap.
Naps are one of the greatest things about being a freelancer working from home. All the money in the world can’t top that feeling of “I can nap right now and NO ONE CAN STOP ME.” (I’d still appreciate you sending me all the money in the world though). Naps do, however, come with dangers. Can it be procrastination? Sure. Can it be disruptive to the flow of your day? Absolutely.
That’s why—with my PhD in Napthropology and years’ worth of scientific research—I’d like to share my hard earned wisdom with you. Here are a few crucial tips on how to make the most of your work-from-home snooze.
Freelancer meet-up in Halifax this week
We here at Story Board would like to send some freelancer high fives out to a new freelance group in Halifax this week. The group is planning to hold regular monthly get-togethers and build a casual network for support and freelance camaraderie.
The idea for the regular event came out of an info session organized by the Halifax Media Co-op earlier this month. Representatives from the Canadian Media Guild and the Canadian Freelance Union were on hand at the session to talk about the benefits of belonging to a union — access to legal advice and extended health plans among them — and to answer questions from the freelancers in the crowd.
Halifax Media Co-op podcast producer and reporter Erica Butler says the info session was focused on spreading the word about freelance unions.
“As hoped, the discussion was lively and wide-ranging,” Butler told Story Board via email this week.
“The best part of the night was the Q&A portion, with lots of specific and challenging questions getting asked and answered.”
The info session also sparked the idea for regular freelance gatherings.
“Several people suggested a regular meet-up to talk shop, something that freelancers don’t get to do in the course of their day, being somewhat solitary workers,” said Butler.
The first meet-up is happening tomorrow night at 7 p.m. at Gus’ Pub n’ Grill in Halifax. Future events will be on the third Thursday of every month (keep the mnemonic Media Freelancers THIRDsdays in mind) at the same time and place.
For more details about the event, or to connect with the group for discussion and networking, you can request to join their Facebook group here.
Time management tips for freelancers
by Lesley Evans Ogden
Freelancer Lesley Evans Ogden at Courage Camp in Colorado last month.
Start the clock. Time management. Blog post. Story Board. Click.
The Toggl timer is ticking, and while you spend precious time here, I’ll share with you some of the useful nuggets about time management that I recently learned at Courage Camp for freelancers.
The camp was led by freelance journalist Christie Aschwanden, with fellow instructors Bruce Barcott (journalist and author), Laura Helmuth (science and health editor at Slate), and Julia Galef, (President and Cofounder of the Center for Applied Rationality).
There was rapt attention from the 23 freelancers in the classroom at the University of Colorado Boulder’s Mountain Research Station for our session on time management. Here are some of the tips that were shared.
Know thyself
Track your time. Or at least note the times of day that you are most productive. There are entire books written about the importance of getting up early to get a productive start on the day.
“That’s great advice for some people, but for others it’s horrible,” suggests instructor and fellow freelance journalist Christie Aschwanden, a self-confessed night owl.
Read the rest of this post »
Off The Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer Sept 16-22
Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, publishing, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?
From Canada:
- Surprise beneficiary of federal minimum wage: Radio reporters [J-Source]
- Finalists for the 6th annual COPA awards have been announced [Masthead Online]
- Want to write for Ricochet? [Ricochet Media]
From the U.S. and beyond:
- Thrust, Drag and the 10x Effect [Tempo] (via @LuigiBenetton]
- Senate Puts $10 Million Bounty on Journalist Murderers [B&C] (via @Mediabistro)
- 5 Essential Books for Any Freelancer [Contently]
- In New Zealand, bloggers can be journalists in the eyes of the law [Nieman Lab]
- How Getting Rejected Made Me a Better Freelance Writer [Make a Living Writing] (via @thewritelife)
- Ask A Freelancer: How Do I Know If I’m Good Enough to Make a Living? [Contently]
- Hated podcast troll wins $1.3M patent verdict from CBS, but may soon be dead all the same [GigaOM]
- How Bombing an Interview and Working From Starbucks Can Help You Learn Better [Contently]
- Say “no” in a way that gets you more gigs [Freelancers Union]
- Little Magazines Gone Digital: What’s it like to run a little online magazine in 2014? [Nieman Lab]
- So you want to be a freelance writer [Freelancers Union]
Last week on Story Board:
- SABEW Canada to hold first official event for Canadian business writers and editors: The Society of American Business Editors and Writers (SABEW) is launching a Canadian chapter and the organization will hold its first official event on Tuesday, September 30th from 6 pm to 8 pm at theRotman School of Management…
- The Born Freelancer on the Canadian Museum Broadcast Foundation, Part 2: The Born Freelancer recently sat down with CBMF Executive Director and “long time broadcast person” Kealy Wilkinson, a lifelong freelancer, to discuss a wide range of topics of particular relevance to freelancers in Canada seen within the context of our broadcasting heritage…
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.
SABEW Canada to hold first official event for Canadian business writers and editors
The Society of American Business Editors and Writers (SABEW) is launching a Canadian chapter and the organization will hold its first official event on Tuesday, September 30th from 6 pm to 8 pm at the Rotman School of Management.
The event will feature an hour-long talk by Bloomberg Executive Editor John McCorry about the state of business journalism and the lessons that Canadian journalists can learn from what’s been happening at Bloomberg and other U.S. media outlets.
You can register to attend here until registration closes on September 22nd. The event is free and refreshments will be served. A networking reception will follow the talk.
SABEW describes itself as an “independent, not-for-profit organization focused on enhancing business journalism across North America.” The Canadian chapter is developing its own version of the Best in Business contest — an annual awards program focused on excellence in business journalism.
Check out the SABEW Canada Eventbrite page for more information about membership benefits and annual fees.
The Born Freelancer on the Canadian Broadcast Museum Foundation, Part 2
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? Your input is welcome in the comments.
The Born Freelancer recently sat down with CBMF Executive Director and “long time broadcast person” Kealy Wilkinson, a lifelong freelancer, to discuss a wide range of topics of particular relevance to freelancers in Canada seen within the context of our broadcasting heritage. Ms. Wilkinson’s impressive freelance career has included system and service design (with a number of years as Special Advisor, Strategic Planning to the CBC – during which time her assignments included designing the CBC’s Parliamentary Channel and the unsuccessful CBC-II/Tele-II.) This is the second part of our conversation. Part One is here.
You started your professional career in local radio on Baffin Island of all places after you graduated. Is that kind of experience, starting in a small town station somewhere, an experience you’d recommend to freelancers today?
For somebody who was very young, it was a fabulous experience to do all the things you’d never have gotten a chance to do anywhere else… I learned how to produce, how to do offsite recordings, how to develop programs that would interest people. That’s something I would never have had the chance to do so quickly anywhere else.
Do you think that kind of opportunity to break in at a small station somewhere still exists today?
Off The Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer Sept 9-15
Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, publishing, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?
From Canada:
- CRTC points finger at CBC’s funding model for broadcaster’s woes [Financial Post] (via @karenatcmg)
- CBC execs tell CRTC it can no longer afford to be free [Globe and Mail] (via @jembradshaw)
- CBC/Radio-Canada bosses say Canadians ready to pay to get broadcaster [Yahoo]
From the U.S. and beyond:
- How to avoid lots of (unpaid) revisions [Freelancers Union]
- Are you leaving money on the table? [Freelancers Union]
- Failed e-singles startup Byliner acquired by digital publisher Vook [GigaOM]
- Cold-Pitching a Story? The Secret Is in the Subject Line [Contently]
- How to Keep Going When You’re Demotivated at Work [Lifehacker]
- Growing demand for freelance work, survey suggests [Freelancers Union]
- The Art of Seducing Sources [Contently]
- 37 Essential Freelance Writing Terms You Need to Know [Make a Living Writing] (via @jaclynlaw)
- Freelance journalists in war spotlight [Courier-Journal]
- Freelancers in war zones can earn crappy pay [Poynter]
- The problem with the growing freelance economy [Washington Monthly] (via @freelance_hacks)
- 4 Odd yet Effective Ways the Smartest People Prioritize Their Days [Fast Company]
- 5 Quotations That Prove Charles Bukowski Was a Great Freelancer [Contently]
- The dangerous world of freelance journalism [LA Times] (via @journalismnews)
Last week on Story Board:
- Online Q&A for emerging media workers: Journalism students and other emerging media workers should be sure to tune in next Tuesday to an online Q&A session organized by the Canadian University Press and CWA Canada.
- What do student journalists need?: On July 19, student journalists associated with the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and CWA Canada gathered during the Netroots Nation conference to answer one question: what do student journalists need?…
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.
