Last call: Meet NYT, Crain's, Catchlight, and PBS editors at our Chicago workshop at NAHJ's convention
Plus: How Adriana Lacy built a content agency in one year (NEW podcast)
We’re often told that we need to treat our freelancing “like a business.” But what does that mean?
For me, it means knowing two things: my numbers and my worth.
Knowing my numbers means having concrete answers for three variables:
the dollar amount I need to make to cover life’s expenses (and have some left over).
the number of hours I can feasibly work.
the hourly rate I need to charge based on the above.
Knowing my worth means recognizing my talents and accomplishments so that I can:
aim for big projects and payouts.
charge adequate rates.
negotiate with confidence.
Conventional wisdom about freelancers says we’re not “good” at either of these things.
But the reality is you don’t need to know the difference between simple and compound interest or have the ego of [insert megalomaniac here] to start treating your freelance career like a business.
You just need three things:
Self-compassion for your money trauma.
As I learned when reporting on financial trauma for Shondaland, financial literacy does not guarantee healthy money habits. Most of us have financial trauma, or money-related emotional wounds. In my case, money was the main cause of my parents’ divorce.
Recognizing that I avoided money because my psyche associated it with screaming and family separation was a relief, because it meant I didn’t need to be a financial whiz. From financial therapists to courses, and templates to groups like the Riqueza Collective or Savvy Ladies, there are many resources for healing money trauma.
Speaking of groups, the second thing you need is:
Supportive accountability.
I took the IIJ’s Business of Freelancing Course this past spring because it promised – and delivered! – concrete systems for how to calculate and track my numbers, as well as the support of a talented cohort.
I can’t recommend the course enough: it’s by far the most affordable and helpful I’ve taken as a freelancer.
But you can also create your own effective accountability partnerships or groups.
To do that, you just need:
A system that not only works but inspires.
In the class, IIJ Founder Katherine Lewis shared the basic spreadsheets she uses, which make figuring out the numbers quick, easy, and inspiring. With those Google Sheets, she’s made six figures annually, won multiple fellowships, and written a book. Talk about #moneygoals and #careergoals!
Seeing someone as successful as Katherine rely on such simple methods motivated me to face my fears and crunch my numbers.
There are plenty of free or low-cost financial templates out there. If you can, choose one from someone whose career you admire.
And that’s it!
I never thought it would be so simple to start my journey toward being the badass boss my freelance career deserves.
But if I can do it, dear freelancer, you can, too – even as soon as July 12 at the National Association for Hispanic Journalists’ Conference and Expo in Chicago!
-Sara Murphy
LAST CHANCE for $69 rate on IIJ’s Business of Freelancing workshop in Chicago!
Get the best of our eight-week course in one day at our popular in-person Business of Freelancing workshop in Chicago during the National Association of Hispanic Journalists annual conference!
We’re offering our early bird pricing of $69 for one more week. (Conference attendees can register for free but must claim a spot.)
Don’t miss this chance for face time with a panel of editors sharing insights on the stories they’re looking for, pay rates, contract information, and more! Panelists include:
Cassandra West, assistant managing editor, Crain’s Chicago Business
Nestor Ramos, metro editor, the New York Times (invited)
Danielle A. Scruggs, visual editor, Catchlight
Ricardo Sandoval Palos, public editor, PBS
In the workshop, IIJ founder Katherine Reynolds Lewis and Valeria Fernández, freelance investigative journalist and founder of Altavoz Lab, will show you how to build a sustainable and successful freelance business, including:
The balancing act of finding anchor clients and structuring a portfolio to balance passion and pay
Effective strategies for networking, negotiating, and self-care as an independent journalist
A range of tools to help you stay organized, efficient, and confident!
NEW FJP: How Adriana Lacy built a content agency in one year
Adriana Lacy is a multi-talented journalist and consultant, as well as the founder of Adriana Lacy Consulting, Journalism Mentors, and, most recently, Influencer Journalism. In this wide-ranging conversation with IIJ leader Shernay Williams, Lacy lays out how to build a freelance business around content strategy, engagement, and social media – and how she generates enough consulting work for her whole team.
Shernay Williams is a freelance video journalist based in Baltimore focused on health and entrepreneurship. She's the founder of a national directory called The Black Mompreneur as well as The StorySuite, a content agency.
Pitch Calls and Other Opportunities
⛪ Pitches wanted: queerness and Christianity
Tyler Huckabee, managing editor at Sojourners, says he’s “looking for some good, thoughtful pitches on queerness + Christianity” for Pride month and beyond. 💰 According to Study Hall, rates are $150 to $300 for opinion pieces and reviews, and $300 to $500 for reported pieces, depending on complexity. Check out Sojourners’ submissions guidelines for more information and pitch Tyler at huckabee@sojo.net.
🗽 Grant for covering NYC immigrants
Applications are open for Documented’s Isaac Rauch Fellowship, which awards one reporter 💰$10,000 to pursue a story of their choice focused on immigrant communities in New York City. Documented is open to proposals for video, audio, and multimedia stories – previous fellows have produced single stories or short series. More details can be found here, including links to stories by previous fellows. Apply by July 9.
📜 Pitches wanted: “carefully crafted” longform
Atavist Magazine editor-in-chief Seyward Darby is back from baby leave and looking for pitches! Atavist accepts pitches on a rolling basis, and they are keen on stories that are “deeply researched and carefully crafted,” so take your breaking news elsewhere. 💰Rates start at $6,000 and can include a budget for expenses and royalties. Check out their submission guidelines for more information, and pitch Seyward at seyward@atavist.com or Articles Editor Jonah Ogles at jonah@atavist.com (or both).
Attendees of the 2024 IIJ conference, check your notes for Seyward’s session there.
🧭 Free webinar: a freelancer’s guide to conferences
Catch a free replay of this webinar presented by the Entrepreneurship Task Force for the National Association of Black Journalists. Speakers include entrepreneurship expert Melinda Emerson, Bankrate Lead Writer Benét Wilson, and Shana Black, founder and CEO of Black Girl Media. There is a lot of wisdom in this webinar, including this gem from Emerson: “I believe that every small business owner should have what I call a kitchen cabinet of advisors.” Find out who you should have in your cabinet by watching the full playback here. Join the NABJ Entrepreneurship Task Force mailing list here. (IIJ Leader Shernay Williams is the Task Force chair.)
🔏 Free digital security course for journalists
Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas and the Global Investigative Journalism Network are offering a free online course on how to lock down your digital security. Learn how to secure your logins, adopt safe browsing practices to avoid tracking, use encryption tools, and more. The course is also available in Spanish! More information available here.
Interesting Reads
📖 Last week, the Reuters Institute at Oxford University released their annual Digital News report. For the first time ever, the report finds that social media has overtaken TV as Americans’ primary news source. NeimanLab breaks down the biggest takeaways from the report, which also indicates “the pivot to video is happening, whether you like it or not.”
📖 Are you still figuring out how to pay your tax bill? No judgment here. Freelancer’s Union put out this helpful guide for navigating your options with the IRS.
📖 As some media organizations rush to embrace AI tools, Minnesota’s Sahan Journal is taking a more skeptical approach. Lev Gringauz writes for NeimanLab about the newsroom’s trial and error with AI tools that are meant to be assets for Sahan Journal’s staff, rather than publicly facing widgets. The result is an illuminating look at how newsrooms can – or can’t – integrate AI into their processes.
Calendar
🗓️ July 8 to July 12 - IIJ leaders will speak on a panel at the 2025 National Association of Hispanic Journalists Conference and Expo in Chicago, host a freelance meetup, and present our popular full-day Business of Freelancing Workshop. Register for the workshop before the June 30 early bird deadline; space is limited. Don’t forget to RSVP for our freelance meetup hosted by IIJ leaders Valeria Fernández and Katherine Lewis.
🗓️ July 30 to August 3 - Join IIJ founder Katherine Lewis for a freelance meetup during the Asian American Journalists Association's annual convention and look for her panels during the conference. RSVP to receive details as soon as we announce them!
🗓️ August 6 to 10 - IIJ leaders Shernay Williams, Benét Wilson, and Katherine Lewis will host a freelance meetup at the National Association of Black Journalists Conference and speak on multiple panels. RSVP for details!
🗓️ August 13 to 15 - IIJ founder Katherine Lewis will speak on a panel at the Indigenous Media Conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and host a freelance meetup. RSVP for details!
🗓️ September 4 to 7 - The IIJ is presenting a panel at NLGJA: the Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists’ convention in Atlanta, Georgia, with IIJ Editorial Director Ann Marie Awad, and Atlanta-based freelancers Christina Lee and Faybeo’n Mickens. Ann will also be hosting a freelance meetup during the conference. RSVP for details!
🗓️ September 5 to 7 - IIJ leaders Katherine Lewis and Shernay Williams will host a freelance meetup at the Journalism and Women Symposium Camp in Washington, D.C. – RSVP for details!
ICYMI
Want more of the Freelance Journalism Podcast? Check out these recent episodes!
🎧 How Adriana Lacy Built a Content Agency in One Year
🎧 Sex, relationships, and work: pitching Isabelle Kohn at Slate
🎧 Wudan Yan on adding new services to your freelance business
🎧 Pitching Alan Henry at PCMag your cybersecurity stories
🎧 Finding your niche with freelance journalist Gil Asakawa
🎧 Can you make $3k a month on a newsletter? Lex Roman explains how
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app, and please leave us a five-star review!