How failure can be a sign of success
Plus helpful tax resources for freelancers + the usual stuff
Hi writers and friends! Welcome to the February 2022 newsletter.
Failure: It’s a Sign of Success. Here’s How
I’ve “failed” A LOT this past month.
I didn’t get a job I wanted and worked hard for. Several of my pitches were ignored or flat-out rejected. I had a pretty slow work month, overall.
But you know what else? I pitched multiple of my dream publications — some even several times. I went out of my comfort zone many times (probably more than I ever have).
So despite my rejections, I feel proud of myself. I succeeded in putting myself out there, in practicing pitching, in not letting my fear stop me, in beginning relationships with new editors.
All in all? This month was a success.
I say this not to brag, but to encourage you. Rejections wouldn’t happen if you didn’t try. And if you didn’t try, you’d never get where you want to be. It’s all about having perspective.
So be proud of yourself! Pls! You deserve it.
P.S. These writers tweeted about being willing to give free advice to other writers: Shahid Ezaydi + Hannah Van-de-Peer + Meg Walters + Rachel Thompson. The ones I’ve talked to were super nice. Just sayin’!
Tax Stuff (Ew, I know. But it’s important.)
Helpful resources (disclaimer: I’m not the person to ask about this):
Writing/Freelancing Tips
Pitch Calls
PLEASE NOTE:
Some of these weren’t tweeted super recently, so I would pitch ASAP.
If the story is about a marginalized community, you probably need to be in that community to write the piece.
If the rate is unknown, one site that may help is Who Pays Writers.
Mentioning my name in your pitch won’t help, unfortunately!
I retweet these fairly regularly on Twitter if you want them throughout the month!
Pitch calls:
Reader’s Digest UK — stories for older audiences with Valentine’s theme — rate unknown
Daye — gynecology topics — rate unknown
Elite Daily — timely and thoughtful essays, reported stories, and reactions to shows/movies/albums/influencers/etc affecting you/Gen Z — rate is $250+
HUCK Magazine — LGBTQ+ History stories — rate unknown
SheKnows — Black History Month — rate $150-175
Healthline — introducing yourself if you want to write for them in the future — average rate for an article is $300
Catapult — first-person essays that use the personal as a portal to broader conversations — rate unknown
And: ”5 Websites That Pay Writers $200 to $400 per Article” (I’ve written for all of these & recommend!)
Writer Jobs
Jobs at Hearst (includes publications like Good Housekeeping, Cosmopolitan, etc)
Writing/Freelancing Resources + Workshops
Resources
Some Facebook groups for freelance writers
Workshops/classes
Amber Petty’s workshop on getting a byline (I’m going to one this week!)
Encouragement
Reminder you can struggle with writing + still have success on Twitter
3 truths to remember when you’re comparing yourself on Twitter
My Articles + Successes
A HuffPost article of mine called “This Is Your Brain On Shows Like ‘Euphoria’ and ‘Yellowjackets’” was trending on Twitter!
I negotiated a higher rate for an article (even though that makes me super nervous) and am now getting paid $100 more! Here’s an article that may be able to help you do the same.
I don’t write for PopSugar much anymore, but this one on the true story behind “Single Drunk Female” was fun with meaningful quotes!
Housekeeping
NEW: I started a journo requests newsletter where I share sources I need for upcoming articles. I mostly write about health and relationships. Experts and PR people as great, as well as anyone else who’s interested in sharing their experiences! You can subscribe here.
More of my content: (1) My writing Twitter // (2) my portfolio
Feedback from you: (1) For the newsletter // (2) For the resource set
This newsletter is free, but if you’d like to donate, my Venmo is @AshleyBroadwater, my PayPal is paypal.me/aebroad, and my CashApp is $ashleybroadwater3 :) A huge thanks to donors!
That’s all for now! Thanks for reading this month’s newsletter. As always, feel free to reach out if you have any questions :)