As a young journalist, the thrill of getting a commission is still very real. I honestly hope it never goes away. I think the joy of having a piece commissioned shows a genuine connection to what I’m writing about, so I hope that never fades.
Sometimes though, this thrill can blind you to some major red flags. Not every editor or freelance client is right for you and some can be downright bad. Last year, I got a commission for a piece that I’d been wanting to write for ages and threw myself in head first - ignoring a gut instinct that something fishy was going on.
At first, all was well. I got my commission, wrote my piece, and sent it to the editor on time. The piece itself was quite sensitive, involving personal information to me, and the emails I’d exchanged so far had been quite cool and distant.
The editor had spelt my name wrong several times and I had a feeling in the back of my mind that something was up. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it and I so wanted to the article to see the light of day. Blinded by commission fever, I ignored my gut instincts and went ahead with the article.
The editor got back to my first submission quickly, saying they would look at my piece that week and I should expect feedback within three days. A full week later, I had heard nothing. Two weeks: still nothing.
I followed up politely, with the age-old “just wondering if you had seen? No worries if not!” that every freelancer knows all too well. Still no response. A further two weeks after that, I followed up once more, still remaining polite, as I knew the publication date for the piece was approaching.
The reply I got shocked me. I was rebuked like a little child and told I was being unprofessional, taking up valuable inbox space, and should wait my turn. Any good writer, apparently, should know how busy editors are.
Forever a teacher’s pet, my heart was hammering at this response. I am terrible at dealing with conflict, cringing when anyone around me raises their voice, even when it’s not at me. With hindsight, I wish I had stood up for myself at least a little, but instead, I apologised profusely, hoping to pacify the editor.
You won’t be surprised to learn that my piece still hasn’t gone out. When I followed up again a full month later, I was told off once more in a three-paragraph long email, citing a typo in my email as evidence that I was a writer that couldn’t be trusted to pay attention to the details.
The power dynamic between editors and freelance writers is always delicate and I see this as a prime example of where it goes wrong. This editor seemed to think they were gracing me with their time and consideration - but at the end of the day, we were both professionals with a job to do.
Looking back, I wish I had listened to my gut instincts a little more. Something smelt wrong to me from the very beginning, and now the rights to a piece that I desperately want to write are locked up in a contract where it’s unlikely to ever see the light of day.
No matter how young or new to freelancing you are, there’s never a reason to let yourself be walked over. Any good editor knows that commissioning a piece is a two-way street, a partnership between the writer and the editor. These kinds of relationships are always where my best work comes from and I put a lot more value in finding these kinds of editors now.
Although it might well be too late for that particular article, at least the death of that piece means that I’m definitely not going to make the same mistake of ignoring editor or client red flags ever again.
Recently, I released a copy-able spreadsheet to help journalists track their pitches. It automatically creates pitching stats for you and has been so helpful for me in knowing when to follow up and create a rhythm for pitching that has boosted my acceptance rate.
If you’d like to try out the spreadsheet for yourself, you can download it by clicking the link below. It is 100% free to use, but if you like, donations are more than welcome through my Ko-Fi. I hope it’s useful!
My biggest aim for this newsletter is for people to get more comfortable with sharing their mistakes and realising that being imperfect is part of being human.
If you’ve got a past Freelancing Fail that you would also like to share, this is your opportunity to share it with the group. You can either write your story as a guest post or simply submit the information to be shared.
It can be anonymous if you prefer and it certainly does not have to have a shining lesson of redemption. Sometimes, we just do stupid things - and that’s okay!
Did you enjoy this newsletter? If so, why not consider buying me a Ko-Fi to show your appreciation. Thank you for reading!