Hello writers,
Welcome to another edition of your friendly freelancing newsletter.
Any clue on what’s happening in the world? I confess I’ve been wrapped in my privileged bubble and haven’t peeked out of it. I get most of my news from Twitter and I have studiously avoided the app for most of the month as everything I read depresses me. The side effect of this decision is that I now have more time to read — am currently midway through this hauntingly beautiful book called Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane that a friend gifted me.
Tell me, how are you all coping with the chaos around you? I could do with some pointers. Work provides good distraction, but occasionally.
The paid edition of this newsletter, out tomorrow, has a Pitch Clinic — I share two pitches of mine — they ideally shouldn’t have been accepted because of the errors in them, but they were! There’s the new section I introduced last edition called Pocket Guide that has free sample pitches + guide to freelancing newsletters + a helpful spreadsheet to track payments; a list of grants and scholarships, pitch calls and more.
This is the free version.
Ready? Let’s begin.
MISCELLANY
(News you can use)
WORKSHOP: British Council in India, Nepal and Sri Lanka invites emerging mid-career artists from all three countries interested in gender narratives to apply for a week-long online workshop series in March 2021 led by award-winning British graphic novelist and comic scholar Dr Nicola Streeten. Deadline: 24 February. Open to artists who identify as female-identifying, women-identifying, queer, trans, intersex and/or non-binary. More details, here.
JOB: Otter Studios is looking for a storyboard artist for their pre-production stage of their animated feature film Heirloom. Prior experience with storyboards and animatics for animated/live action films is crucial. Remote position, from March to July. Apply here.
GRANT: Rama Mehta Trust is offering a new writing grant open to women writers working in Hindi, English, Urdu and Mewari. Amount: Rs 25,000. Deadline: March 31. Apply, here.
VOLUNTEER: Kalap Afterschool is an after-school project in Uttarakhand whose purpose is to have skilled teaching professionals assess the gaps in the government education system and fill them. They are seeking volunteers to join from March 1. More details, here.
SUBSCRIBER SPEAK
This is where I invite you, my subscribers, to share your bylines, offer suggestions and feedback, ask questions and say good things about IAW and me!
Raunak Sarawat says, “It was sheer coincidence that my piece was published in News18 Buzz around the same time Chapter 30 came out – Feb 14. I had written to Adrija a couple of weeks prior to that, and fortunately, caught her eye. That said, many thanks for running this newsletter. It is a boon to be privy to it while stepping into the world of freelancing.”
This is Raunaq’s first byline and he’s written about Bollywood movies and how they share disparate ideas of love.
Note: As of this year, IAW is NO LONGER accepting yearly subscriptions. It will still show up in Substack, but do read the notes underneath. At Rs 399, you will only get two months’ editions. Those who are paying monthly, nothing changes for you. If you would like to discuss three-month or six-month plans, please email me on itsallwrite@outlook.in
I asked this question last time. Would you be interested in a one-on-one session with me where we discuss anything related to freelancing for 15 minutes? It is going to be paid, but affordable. You could give me a pitch to review or we could discuss and condense a story from an idea, or work on finding the right publication for your story and more. If interested, reply to this newsletter please.
I end with some advice.
Until next time, then.
Adios.