The status of my employement (such as it is)
The last time I found myself unemployed (when Chicago Journal) was shuttered, I sent out queries and applications to just about every media company in Chicagoland. I sent pitches to magazines for articles. Not one of those things bore fruit. I got a gig with a certain Northrook-based choir through elka78, but that had as much to do with her friendship with my mom than any qualifications I might have possessed. And I got the stringer job with Pioneer Press because my former Chicago Journal editor got hired over there and brought me on board a few weeks later.
Two and a half years later... as I commented on Twitter, I somehow acquired 3.5 years of journalism experience and barely even noticed. And some of the same people that ignored me before were a lot more willing to respond.
As of last night, I basically have two gigs. One is with the Niles Bugle, one of the Niles Herald-Spectator's competitors. Another is 22nd Century Media - a relatively new company which, so far, has been defying industry-wide trends and actually expanding. It made major headways in North Shore, the chain of wealthy suburbs north of Chicago. At the moment, they have seven newspapers, and rumors persist that they will soon launch on eighth.
At Pioneer Press, my editor and I had an informal agreement. At first, it was that I would write at least one article per week. A few months later, that expanded to two. And, not long before I was diagnosed with cancer, it was changed to, basically "pitch as many things as you want - I'm probably going to approve most of it." There are reasons for that, but I'll probably touch on them in another post.
My current situation is a bit trickier.
Niles Bugle has much fewer pages than Niles Herald-Spectator does, and I'm not the only freelancer there. So far, it looks like I'll mostly be covering meetings, writing 1-2 articles per week.
At 22nd Century Media, I was placed on the list of freelancers for all seven North Shore papers. They would send me potential assignments, and I would be free to take as many as I can.
Because I was never a proper employee at Pioneer Press, I got paid per assignment, and I got paid a bit extra for photos. At the time of my firing, four articles a week was enough to cover all my bills, groceries, internet and transit costs and still have some money for non-essentials. Like movies, or books.
Both the Bugle and 22nd Century media pay the same basic amount for articles - and it's smaller than Pioneer Press' rate. And while Bugle gives some extra money if photos are included, 22nd Century Media has the policy that freelancers don't take pictures.
Last night's conversation with my mom inspired me to do some math. It would take six articles to pay as much as four articles under Pioneer Press did. If I had just the Bugle, I would've been screwed. But having seven newspapers that could potentially offer assignments... That might be doable.
So far, I've done one assignment for the Bugle, and I got two more scheduled for next week. I did two assignments for 22nd Century Media so far, and there's no way to know how many I would do next week.
I also have a potential regular gig with a Chicago community newspaper. That pays even less, but it's still another piece of the puzzle that could lead to a decent paycheck.
I have been looking for other options. One place rejected me outright - because they already filled a position by the time I applied and didn't have time to take the ad down. One promising possibility doesn't, unfortunately, looks like its' going to happen, since I haven't heard anything from them. I'm talking to one magazine, but, even if it pans out, it would be more of a one-time thing. And I'm having discussions that, if they pan out, could improve my financial picture significantly, but it's at such an early stage that I'm afraid to say anything more than that.
We'll see in the next couple of weeks whether Bugle and 22nd Century Media money could potentially add up to Pioneer Press money. And, of course, I'll keep looking for something more reliable. But for now... I still have two months worth of savings that would at least be partially replenished. I'm not in dire straits... so far.
Two and a half years later... as I commented on Twitter, I somehow acquired 3.5 years of journalism experience and barely even noticed. And some of the same people that ignored me before were a lot more willing to respond.
As of last night, I basically have two gigs. One is with the Niles Bugle, one of the Niles Herald-Spectator's competitors. Another is 22nd Century Media - a relatively new company which, so far, has been defying industry-wide trends and actually expanding. It made major headways in North Shore, the chain of wealthy suburbs north of Chicago. At the moment, they have seven newspapers, and rumors persist that they will soon launch on eighth.
At Pioneer Press, my editor and I had an informal agreement. At first, it was that I would write at least one article per week. A few months later, that expanded to two. And, not long before I was diagnosed with cancer, it was changed to, basically "pitch as many things as you want - I'm probably going to approve most of it." There are reasons for that, but I'll probably touch on them in another post.
My current situation is a bit trickier.
Niles Bugle has much fewer pages than Niles Herald-Spectator does, and I'm not the only freelancer there. So far, it looks like I'll mostly be covering meetings, writing 1-2 articles per week.
At 22nd Century Media, I was placed on the list of freelancers for all seven North Shore papers. They would send me potential assignments, and I would be free to take as many as I can.
Because I was never a proper employee at Pioneer Press, I got paid per assignment, and I got paid a bit extra for photos. At the time of my firing, four articles a week was enough to cover all my bills, groceries, internet and transit costs and still have some money for non-essentials. Like movies, or books.
Both the Bugle and 22nd Century media pay the same basic amount for articles - and it's smaller than Pioneer Press' rate. And while Bugle gives some extra money if photos are included, 22nd Century Media has the policy that freelancers don't take pictures.
Last night's conversation with my mom inspired me to do some math. It would take six articles to pay as much as four articles under Pioneer Press did. If I had just the Bugle, I would've been screwed. But having seven newspapers that could potentially offer assignments... That might be doable.
So far, I've done one assignment for the Bugle, and I got two more scheduled for next week. I did two assignments for 22nd Century Media so far, and there's no way to know how many I would do next week.
I also have a potential regular gig with a Chicago community newspaper. That pays even less, but it's still another piece of the puzzle that could lead to a decent paycheck.
I have been looking for other options. One place rejected me outright - because they already filled a position by the time I applied and didn't have time to take the ad down. One promising possibility doesn't, unfortunately, looks like its' going to happen, since I haven't heard anything from them. I'm talking to one magazine, but, even if it pans out, it would be more of a one-time thing. And I'm having discussions that, if they pan out, could improve my financial picture significantly, but it's at such an early stage that I'm afraid to say anything more than that.
We'll see in the next couple of weeks whether Bugle and 22nd Century Media money could potentially add up to Pioneer Press money. And, of course, I'll keep looking for something more reliable. But for now... I still have two months worth of savings that would at least be partially replenished. I'm not in dire straits... so far.