Dear writers,
Welcome back to IAW!
‘I hope you are well’ seems to be a frivolous thing to write to people, and yet I find myself putting it in every correspondence. I genuinely wish the recipient, is doing well in these continuing terrible pandemic times. And I now extend this greeting to you.
It’s been a two month break for the newsletter, which helped me focus and reduce my anxiety (about everything, not just writing). It also gave me time to conduct a few Ask Jo discounted sessions — the money will be (I have some pending sessions) donated to COVID relief efforts. Want to donate too? Here is a list of trusts, charities and organisations.
Two freelancers won a Pulitzer this year, which bodes well for freelance writing, don’t you think? Canadian journalist Nadia Drost won it for her “brave and gripping” piece, When can we really rest?, and columnist Mitchell S. Jackson for his personal essay, Twelve Minutes and a Life.
This edition’s newsletter has an interview with Suno India about how to pitch podcast ideas, an example of a successful pitch from the Goya Journal, pitch calls, job postings, writing resources, news about grants and funding, and more.
As I’ve mentioned earlier, I have closed yearly subscriptions to IAW (I am unable to change that on Substack). If interested, I can offer one month, three months or six months only. If you want any of these, reply here.
Want to subscribe? Email itsallwrite@outlook.in or reply here.
The free version of the newsletter is below.
POCKET GUIDE
(Writing resources and more)
To pitch:
Slate’s pitching guide is one of the most comprehensive I have come across. They mention do’s and don’t’s and have listed all editors’ contacts. Link
To learn:
Thomson foundation offers free journalism courses — data journalism, environmental journalism, social media news gathering, etc. Link
To write better:
I recently chanced on this, and it is very handy! Lose the Very gives you synonyms help you avoid using the word ‘very’.
An English teacher created a WordCounter.net to help users meet word requirements. It also does grammar and spell-check, the average speaking and reading time, keyword density and more.
JOB BOARD
Mayank at FinBox SaaS is looking to engage a couple of exceptional writers who understand the fintech space well. Open for both freelance and full-time roles.
Get in touch, here.The New Indian Express is hiring for positions. Their Edex supplement seeks a full-time reporter and sub-editor for Kerala, and a full time journalist in Chennai.
Email edex.chief@gmail.comNews 18 Business seeks a desk writer with basic knowledge of economy, market and start-up. Experience of 3-4 years. A #WFH opportunity.
Email anulekha.ray2021@gmail.com
MISCELLANY
(News you can use)
Fellowship: Independent media platform Behan Box seeks five journalists keen on investigating violence against women and trans persons with disabilities. The fellowship is in association with Rising Flame Now. Amount: Rs 30,000. Last date: 30 June 2021. More details, here.
Fellowship: Navayana’s Dalit History Fellowship is for two writers who get Rs 1 lakh each, to work on their manuscript. Email alex@navayana.org with subject line <Navayana Dalit History Fellowship 2021> More details, here.
Collaboration: Illustrator The Big Fat Bao (on Instagram) is looking to collaborate with people from the DBA community from states outside of Maharashtra and Goa. Get in touch with them on Instagram or email thebigfatbao@gmail.com
Campaign: Human Solidarity Foundation India’s Campaign Iqra offers digital device and internet support to deserving students from marginalised backgrounds. Call Rehan Manzar 8860708840
Essay: CSMVS is accepting essays (of 1500 words) for their Children’s Museum Memory Project. Prompt: celebrating childhood. Any language. Supporting photos are welcome. Deadline: June 31. Email memoryproject@csmvs.in
Before concluding, I want to thank you for staying with me on this newsletter journey, through all the breaks, and confusion about payments.
I recently read a newsletter where freelancer Meehika Barua talks about the importance of clean copy. This bit stood out for me, so sharing it here.
“Clean copy doesn’t mean your draft won’t be edited — of course, every editor would tweak things — but it means your draft has no grammatical errors, typos, awkward sentences, colour that isn’t the publication’s style/tone, or mundane/repetitive quotes that are endlessly adding to word count. I edit my draft at least twice before filing. I make sure my quotes are crisp and paraphrase instead of putting everything in interview format.”
One of the most common questions I get asked is about rejection. Here’s a reminder about that painful subject.
Until next time, stay safe and wear your masks.
Joanna.