I'm thrilled to announce that the Dow Jones News Fund
@DJNF
has chosen me as one of the 86 students across America for the summer internship program 🥳 I'll be the Audience Engagement intern for
@IndiaCurrents
! So grateful for the opportunity!
Meet the
@DJNF
Class of 2024! Eighty-six talented students from 55 schools selected to intern in 62 newsrooms as multiplatform editors, data journalists, digital producers, business reporters and audience engagement specialists.
I see an upper middle class woman enjoying a bus ride instead of ordering a ride hailing cab service and thus limiting the number of cars on road. she is nothing but a hero in my book!
I recently got accepted to the journalism schools of Columbia, Berkeley, NYU, CUNY, and USC.
But I’m not attending any of these schools this year mainly because I don’t have the funds.
Consoling myself now by saying that maybe it was not in my destiny.
Why do freelancers charge so high?
Because our rate has to account for taxes, retirement, vacation days, sick days, non-billable hours, AND the value of our work.
How many freelance journalists have a spouse with a traditional job? I feel like if we scratch the surface, we will find that very few freelance journos can survive on freelancing alone.
Some personal news:
I'll be attending UC Berkeley for my Master's of Journalism in the Fall of 2023. I'll fund my Master's by working as a GSI for the Department of South and Southeast Asian Studies.
I'm beyond excited for this new chapter in my life!
Everyone wants to be a digital nomad but nobody wants to talk about how much harder or even impossible it is for people from Global South who have a weak passport.
If you point this out to any Brahmin, they will say that they don’t come across any Dalit/other minority person in their circles. But they magically find marginalised people to do their anthropological studies on when it comes time to do their PhDs or journalistic stories.
Today an editor wrote “nice detail” on the Google document which I submitted to her and it made me feel so nice 😊
@ Editors: tell your writers if they have done something right! A nice little compliment always brightens up people’s day 💕
Hi! My new article got published on Vice 🥳 It's a personal essay and I'm glad of how it turned out. Special thanks to
@anixxv
for sharing his experience with me.
Things I don’t understand:
Why companies bury their blog at the bottom of the website when it’s apparent that they spend good money on content marketing.
"Gig workers contend with uncertain working conditions and algorithmic wage discrimination from the platforms they rely on to match with clients."
For
@logic_magazine
, I report on how algorithms are leading gig workers to debt and ruin.
DM me if you are from a marginalized community and are interested in pursuing a Master's in Journalism at UC Berkeley. I would love to help you figure out how to fund yourself + sort out your living situation in the US!
In February, I visited the tiger widows of Sundarbans.
A simple story about environmental conservation gave way to a more heartwrenching account of how these women are conserving the same forests that shelter tigers. Tigers who killed their husbands.
I sent a pitch to the wrong editor and the editor replied back informing me of the right email address and not only that but also gave me advice on how to improve the pitch. this has happened twice to me till date.
Such editors are 💕💕💕
Not a very exciting life update but I’m going through a major depressive episode. Work has been put on the back burner which I’m NOT proud of but these days, I literally eat and sleep. I’ve decided to go back to therapy. Fingers crossed that I see happier days again.
Why should you pay your good freelance writers a fair rate?
— Because they deserve it.
— Because they will be motivated to write and research better thanks to receiving a good pay from you.
This is going to be a controversial opinion but journalists can (and should) donate some % of the money they win from large cash awards to the underprivileged community on which they reported.
Freelance journalism is:
😰 stressing about reply from editors
😰 stressing about reply from sources
😰 stressing about delayed payments
😰 stressing about coming up with another batch of story ideas
Lather, rinse, repeat.
Client: We can offer you X cents per word.
Highly specialised freelancer who is always in demand: My rates are $1 per word because my money don’t jiggle jiggle it folds.
I don’t understand the working from a beach freelancing dream like first of all can you even see the screen from the glare of the sun? second of all, you have to reapply sunscreen a lot and third of all, sand gets everywhere, even inside your laptop so like what’s the point?
2018.
I was broke and depressed. Preparing for UPSC. And failing spectacularly every year.
2022.
Financially independent. Living a life I want. Spending money on loved ones and charity.
A lot can change in years. Trust the process.
30-year-old migrant worker Sanjoy Sardar died on 3rd August 2022 in Jhargram, West Bengal.
Cause of death? Starvation.
I report on the silent cases of starvation deaths in India, which are classified under other diseases such as tuberculosis.
Moved to a new country completely alone (first international travel), got into a good journalism program (GO BEARS 🐻) and I found a job as a graduate student instructor which helps me to fund my tuition + living expenses 🧿
Close to 220 languages have been lost in India over the years, Ganesh N Devy estimates. As of now, 780 languages have been recorded but there could be more.
I write about lost and endangered languages in my first piece for BBC Future
@BBC_Future
I know several freelance journalists who live with their parents or who have spouses who can provide benefits like on-time payments towards rent/mortgage or health insurance.
Freelance journalism is really for the privileged.
Freelance writing is such a weird profession.
I'm on this Facebook group where someone asked if their rates were low ($1000/article) and now there's a fight in the comment section between people who think her rates are low and people who think her rates are outrageously high 😂
I think I’ll stop applying to every opportunity I see online and instead work on my skills for a while.
I already have too much going on (both in terms of work and mental health) and it’s better to focus on that for now.
There are hustlers who talk big on social media and earn less than $2k per month and there are people who earn six figures but aren’t talking about it online.
Don’t believe everything on social media.
One time, I sent a NYT editor a direct mail with my pitch and she replied that she usually doesn't reply to direct mails but she will put me in touch with the correct editor.
Anyway, my pitch was rejected but I was over the moon that a NYT editor took the time to respond!
I received a lot of support about not being able to afford higher education abroad.
I don’t take the kindness and generosity of strangers lightly, so thank you to each and every one of you!
As to why I applied in the first place knowing my finances is because…
How tf do you cry over not finding good content writers when you’re paying them Rs 0.50 per word?!
Or the Western equivalent of paying $200 for 2000 word post (and this is a famous company too)
Pay 👏 A 👏 Fair 👏 Rate 👏 To 👏 Writers 👏
Honestly, it’s not the materialistic side that I’m happy about (also there’s that) but there’s real happiness in knowing that I’m financially independent and can support both myself and my parents.
It took a long, long time to get here and I couldn’t be happier.
Can y’all stop? Someone on this hellsite celebrates doing something nice for their parents and some people are asking her to check her privilege of caste!! So ridiculous. And I’m LC before anyone comes at me.
I don't have generational wealth. Knowledge capital, yes, as third generation educated. English medium schooling is accidental (I was initially enrolled in Bengali), I work hard. But no door has ever been closed to me bec of my caste, no opportunity denied simply bec of my caste
My cat died on Saturday and it’s the single most devastating thing to have happened to me in recent years.
Returning to Twitter because as cruel as it is, your life doesn’t stop when a loved one passes away.
I wonder if it’s possible to be a successful freelance writer without social media.
I like being online and talking about my life as a writer so I don’t exactly see my time here as a waste. But I would like to know if I can log off forever tomorrow and still get clients.
There are so many stories of publications not paying freelancers on time (or ever) and it’s time to make a list of these pubs and circulate it widely so that others don’t have to go through the same thing. Being a freelancer means owning your business and treating it as such.
@seekingsrishti
I think fundraisers should be limited to marginalised people who come from humble backgrounds. I know I’m SC but it feels wrong somehow.
It’s called content MARKETING.
If you aren’t repurposing your long form content (like blog posts/podcasts) on another channel and in another medium, then you’re missing out.
Content repurposing is in!
My advice to new freelance writers would be to choose your mentors or even people you look up to with a lot of care. There are a lot of grifters in this field. Also, stop spending all your hard earned money on courses/coaching sessions.
Experience >>> everything else.
logging into twitter and finding out other writers already have hundreds of pitches ready for editors and here I am, mind empty no thoughts just vibing
Being a writer/journalist from a minority community means that people will expect you to write only about your community
It's not an unfair expectation by any means but people tend to put you and your work into a box
It means "Oh she's the Dalit writer" and never just a writer
Can someone tell me if the feast and famine cycle of freelancing ever ends?
What do you do during slow seasons when work has dried up and you aren't waking up with new work coming in?
Being a writer/journalist from a minority community means that people will expect you to write only about your community
It's not an unfair expectation by any means but people tend to put you and your work into a box
It means "Oh she's the Dalit writer" and never just a writer
There’s a lack of pay transparency among freelancers in India and I don’t understand why. I once asked someone what they charge for blog posts for a US client and they sent me two paragraphs of nonsense that told me nothing.
I don't have any problem with UC people writing about caste for national/international pubs.
I just don't like it when these people are casteist in private or who "don't see caste" but choose to profit off of our trauma and identity. that's not fair.
I hate networking. Do I like making friends who have similar professions and interests? Yes, of course. But I hate this logic of networking to increase your net worth. Like, message 5 people everyday shit advice. Yuck.
Hot take but I resent the idea that you need to market yourself as a freelancer on social media to get clients and jobs because,
A) Not everyone can be active on social media or
B) Even want to be active on social media.
I wish people wouldn’t hate on 9-5 jobs just because they found success with freelance journalism. There’s perks of working with others — mentors, better support, etc. And not everyone can crack the code on how to break into international pubs either.
I always get the best sound bites from sources when I ask them, "is there anything you want to add to the [topic] that readers should know about?"
9/10 times they will say something that will add more value to your piece.
I have accepted the fact that my productivity level will not be the same everyday.
It's way more important to me to manage my energy rather than managing my time.
My father lost many opportunities in life because he didn’t know English. He came from a poor family and on top of that, he is from a lower caste community too. Learning English was out of his reach.
So when I was born, he vowed to enrol me in an English medium school.
I’m just gonna say this for the last time but some people with the surname Ghosh in Bengal belong to the lower caste community. STOP asking me why I use a Kayastha surname and pretend to be Dalit online.
Me: This is a great piece of content I just wrote! I can’t wait to see what my client says about it!
Client: This is a good starting point. Here’s my feedback.
Me: 🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲
I upped my prices this week and I ended up losing a long-term client.
They told me they paid their other freelancers less than me and then vanished from my life.
But you know what? That's good. It's not a problem because I'm already in talks with other more lucrative clients 🥳
Adventures in freelancing:
Someone contacted me on LI, asking for my contact number for an "opportunity." I wasn't comfortable sharing my no. with random people. When I asked him to share details by email and told him my rates, he replied, "You just lost a long-term client." LOL
I cannot take Indians seriously when they write sanctimonious takes on American issues. And these are people who never talk about Indian issues on social media!
Look into your own home first.
Nothing is as life-affirming as reading about couples who defy society and parents to live with someone they love. In a polarized country where your caste, class, and religion define your status, choosing who to love is the most radical act there is.
Making friends with other freelancers has been life changing for me!
You will see for yourself that everyone you know is struggling and enjoying the process of freelancing in equal amount.
And there’s no greater joy than seeing your favourite people succeed in life!
Indians love to claim CEOs or Presidents of other countries as Indian origin people even if they migrated from the country years and years ago. But a person living in India for 50 or even since its Independence have to prove their citizenship. What a joke.
I’m not afraid of cold emailing because I see email as less invasive but cold DMing people on social media scares the bejesus out of me.
Do you send cold DMs? What’s your cold DMing approach?
One of my 2022 goal is to break into women's magazines. I came quite close last year but I hope this year, it becomes a reality! I need everyone's good wishes for this ☺
So many people enter into the content writing world hoping to make a quick buck but it doesn’t work that way.
You need:
• A winning portfolio
• Some business acumen
• Cold and warm outreach strategy
• And the strength to persevere in this field
The chronic lung condition silicosis has no cure, but a new kit in India can detect it early.
I visited silicosis-stricken communities in South Bengal to learn how workers got it and their many health issues.
This is my story for
@undarkmag
Gmail scheduled send feature is such a nifty little tool! I schedule emails months in advance when someone tells me to reach out to them later. Just write it out and forget about it.
I really need to work on my website and update my portfolio + write another blog post.
This brings me to my question:
Do you set a time/day aside for your own business?
I have been on antidepressants for 2 years now and I can’t imagine that there are people who are NOT on it?! like people are happy and sane on their own? sounds fake.
It's really surprising how much time goes into doing unpaid work.
I do paid work for maybe 6-8 hours everyday but the unpaid work like pitching, researching, admin tasks, etc, takes 2-4 hours on top of that 🙃
Hi everyone! 👋
Just popping in to announce that I can onboard one client from June.
I specialise in:
• B2B SaaS
• E-commerce
• Sales/Marketing
Retweet to help a fellow freelancer out ♥️
Content refreshing is such an underrated avenue for companies to stay relevant.
You can:
- add new quotes from experts
- change the angle of the piece
- add new statistics
- rework the blog post into a podcast or redistribute it in other ways.
The possibilities are endless.