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Topic: How to find good freelancers to send pitches?
| Author | Message |
| nycwriter1 | Posted – 4/24/2008 1:00:03 PM | show profile | email poster So, I have a stable of pretty good freelancers, but I need to add to that group now that the section I edit is expanding (more small features and larger features in general). There is one caveat: I work at a (very large) newspaper and like most papers, our rates don't match those of magazines. I'm constantly trying to change that, but change is slow and I have only so much power! The freelancers I knew before taking this position mostly wrote for magazines, but wanted to continue working with me and felt the byline in the publication was worth the lower rate; not all of the freelancers I wanted to continue with me agreed, but many did. I'm not sure if that feeling will extend beyond those relationships I'd already established -- but, I still need the new freelancers to have ample experience. I've tried to sell it as a byline in a great publication and as working with an editor who is easy to work with and generally responsive (say those who work with me) and always fights for people's stories (and increased rates). Any advice on where to look or how to approach this big caveat? |
| Canadiana | Posted – 4/24/2008 1:37:35 PM | show profile What are your rates? Do the writers need to be based in NYC? I don't think you need to sell anything: if you can't control the rates, you just need to find the best freelancers you can (whether that's here on MB, on Craig's List, on JournalismJobs.com, etc.). Once found, you can let the writers know you appreciate their work, respond in a timely manner to their queries and perhaps don't insist on a great many edits to compensate for the lower rates. |
| Thabit | Posted – 4/24/2008 1:43:46 PM | show profile not to worry Most freelancers would be interested in developing ongoing an relationship with the kind of editor who cares enough to go out recruiting -- it's a newspaper, they probably expect newspaper rates. I've worked happily for not stellar rates when there's the possibility of working frequently and decently...One can make up a certain amount in volume and hassle free gigs... Just be sure to place an ad on MB so the appropriate scribes can send you pitches! |
| wineaux | Posted – 4/24/2008 2:37:27 PM | show profile I agree with the above posters. The last paper I freelanced for did not pay well, but I was happy to have consistant work with a wonderful editor. If I still lived in the area, I would still be writing for them, even though now I mostly freelance in the private sector. Have you posted an ad here on MB? I know that there are a great deal of very talented freelancers on here. |
| nycwriter1 | Posted – 4/24/2008 2:46:56 PM | show profile | email poster thanks I suppose it's me who's not too happy about our low rates--and I've just presumed well-qualified folks will immediately balk. But sounds like folks with experience working for papers know the drill. The work is very steady. I'll look into putting an ad on the site (I've not been at the paper terribly long, so I've got to figure out the policy). Thanks for the advice/thoughts on this. |
| caitlinkelly | Posted – 4/24/2008 2:49:33 PM | show profile This is the cost of small budgets -- good writers who can get 2 or 3 or 4 times the money for the same amount of work (1,000 words,say) -- are going to move to higher-paying work because, in the end, this is a business and we are out to make a good living, which with ample experience is more likely. Once you've got that Big Name Clip, how many more do you need? You're fighting the law of diminishing returns. The beancounters who keep paying freelancers poorly (relative to others competing for their skills) ensure a steady churn of those who may indeed really love our editors but -- with $4/gallon gas and groceries through the roof -- say "enough." Personal loyalty isn't going to fund the IRA. Like other writers I know, I happily work with editors for lower rates when they assign lots of work, don't need lots of (maybe any) revisions and the work itself is interesting. But when business takes off and other people pay double or triple for the same hours, all bets come off. I'd look for busy writers making lots of dough -- who, like everyone, inevitably hit slower periods when they don't mind picking up other work to keep cash flow flowing. You'll have to see them as supplementary to your stable, not your regular weekly go-to's...And they will also be able to refer you to other skilled writers who, if they're busy that week, their colleagues might not be. If you added 6 writers like that, and used each of them once a month, would that help? |
| caitlinkelly | Posted – 4/24/2008 2:52:24 PM | show profile It's the word "pitches" that is the catch, I think. The faster the turnaround, the more interest you'll get...if you can, for example, assign 4 stories to someone at once, you'll attract good writers by knowing they can count on work for a few weeks ahead. Pitching can take up a lot of time and energy -- think of it as a sunk cost your writers have already had to assume. |
| snuffleupagus | Posted – 4/24/2008 5:02:03 PM | show profile I write for low-paying pubs all the time, but I'm not in the game to develop ideas for them or send them pitches. If they come to me, that's fine, and if I happen to see something of interest I might pass on a one or two sentence "pitch." The great thing about newspaper work -- and one reason why it is worthwhile -- is you can often leverage it into a subsequent magazine article. |
| ISR | Posted – 4/24/2008 5:42:32 PM | show profile It depends how low the rate is. the NYT pays .60/word. Most writers, including me, would balk at less than .50/word. |
| DQ102 | Posted – 4/24/2008 6:03:45 PM | show profile In this economy, I don't know how much you have to worry about your rates. There are a lot of great writers out there hungry for work. I regularly write for publications that pay anywhere from $1 to $3 a word, but I also write for publications that pay significantly less if the assignment is interesting and the editor is fun to work with. |
| eriksherman | Posted – 4/24/2008 6:50:50 PM | show profile | email poster You might also consider whether you could use either articles that have previously run in magazines or reslants that let the writer reuse mateial already on hand. If the writer can relatively easily see more money from the same basic work, then it might be easier to catch interest. Also, what rights are you looking for? Many newspapers want to own content, and combining that with low rates can be the kiss of death. I know a lot of wriers, including myself, who have simply walked away from newspaper work because you're expected to jump through hoops for next to nothing and turn over the copyright to the work. ------ Free writer resources: http://www.eriksherman.com/WriterBiz |
