Before I begin, I'll caveat this by saying I've only worked on narrative, series-based podcasts. Usually 8 episode shows that follow a single storyline.
Oct 11, 2021 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
I don’t mean to sound bitchy but something needs to be said due to the volume of requests I get on this: please don’t ask me for help with late fees! My advice on how to handle them has not changed for the last few years and you can find everything that will ever help in 2 places
1. @TWC_pod season 1, episode 7: FU, Pay Me:
🧵 A few weeks ago, I was excited to be in conversation with @lonelyplanet about a story. They would have been able to pay a reasonable rate, $1200 for a ~1200 wd story.
I soon learned that they paid other freelance writers in the ballpark of $290-300 as a "standard rate." And when I received their contract, I was dismayed to see a confidentiality clause that prohibits freelancers from sharing the terms of the contract (pay and rights)
Aug 13, 2021 • 5 tweets • 1 min read
I am honestly not sure how much of journalism’s bullshit I can put up with anymore.
Already, the publishers who can pay me enough are dwindling and compound it with whacky payment schedules, bad contracts, and long editing processes that prolong when I’m getting paid?
Aug 12, 2021 • 17 tweets • 2 min read
Over a year ago, I began seeing a therapist for the first time in my life because I was so, so, so insanely burned out. I learned so much about myself through my sessions and it took me a moment today that I realized... I’ve broken the cycle? 1/n
I can’t say how many months it took me to get unbroken because the progress was incremental, as was the mindset shift that I needed rest. 2/n
Jul 24, 2020 • 10 tweets • 2 min read
Let me tell ya. There a lot of mediocre white men with no relevant experience running for Governor in the state of Washington.
Apr 24, 2020 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
I think one of the more valuable bits of advice that I've mentioned on both @TWC_pod and yesterday's great @ScienceWriters Q&A about freelancing is: SEND OUT A SOFT PITCH so you're not initially sinking so much time in developing a full pitch. [thread]
Here's a skeleton of a soft pitch I sent yesterday on a walk (where my best ideas come from, IMO)
Subject line: offhand story idea
[salutations!]
I saw [SOMETHING INTERESTING, while being as specific as possible]. I'm interested in doing a story about [MY ANGLE.]
Oct 16, 2019 • 12 tweets • 3 min read
I recently realized that I am somehow able to write reported features quite fast? (e.g.: I just banged out 3600 words of a story over the last three days and 6.5 hours or so) So I thought I'd share some tips because writing is often painful.
Organizing my reporting is super important. On big reporting trips, I type up all my handwritten notes into a Google drive folder *every single night* There's something about reading my notes over and typing them again that really helps cement what's important
Jul 22, 2019 • 6 tweets • 1 min read
THREAD: A few months ago, three publications owed me a total of $5000. Everyone was late to paying me. I tried to hold them all accountable. Here's the story of what happened.
medium.com/@wudanyan/i-wa…
The real take home message here is that freelancing is difficult when others don’t respect us as small businesses. It comes from both sides: if freelancers don’t think of themselves as a business, they can’t expect others to treat them as such.
