Want to learn how to start freelance writing?
Want to learn how to start freelance writing?
Plus links to my latest stories and a new review for my book (1 month away!)
Hi friends! Happy Pride month!
I had a wild idea a few weeks ago and now it’s actually going to happen: a live, one-hour Zoom workshop about how to start freelancing writing!
It came about because people ask me all the time how I went from being a TV producer to full-time freelance writer, and whether I think they can do the same thing. The short version to that second question is yes! There’s an enormous number of opportunities out there and our industry needs more diverse voices.
But it can be hard to get started because freelancing is such a black box.
When I started, I thought it would come naturally. After all, I had almost eight years experience in journalism.
That didn't happen. I felt lost without the structure of a newsroom and assignments coming down from on high.
How was I even supposed to figure out what editor to pitch at any given magazine, much less figure out what kind of articles they were looking for?
How could I prove my writing ability if I didn't have freelancing experience or clips?
And once I did get my first assignment, how should I file my story?
How do I get paid?
And how do I pay taxes?
I fumbled my way into answers to these questions, but now I'd love to share what I've learned, plus my unhinged physical copy-and-paste method for drafting thorny stories, pictured here:
When I floated this idea on Instagram and Twitter, people were very enthusiastic! So, we’re doing it! Join us via Zoom on Wednesday, July 12, at 8p ET/ 5p CT.
The session will be recorded and sent out to participants afterwards, so feel free to sign up even if you can’t attend live.
You can find out more information on my (new and improved!) website, including how to sign up.
One thing I’ve learned from freelancing is that time really is money, and given that I want to be able to spend some dedicated time crafting the best possible workshop, I am going to charge a ticket price of $100, which is pretty typical in this space. That said, if you are from a historically marginalized group or on a limited income, please feel free to use this code for 50% off, no questions asked, no proof needed: HALFOFF (creative, right?). And if that’s still out of your budget, please email me at nora.k.neus@gmail.com for a free ticket. I don’t want money to be the reason anyone doesn’t come and this really isn’t meant to be a profit-maximizing thing for me.
I so hope to see you there!
Book News!
We are one! month! away! from the release of 24 Hours in Charlottesville: An Oral History of the Stand Against White Supremacy. You still have time to pre-order, which would help me out because publishers use pre-order numbers to decide things like marketing and publicity budgets.
Or, you can enter my publisher’s Goodreads giveaway for a free copy! As of writing, 1,287 people entered to win one of 25 copies, which I’m honestly shocked and pleased by.
Last week, LitHub included 24 Hours on their list of 25 nonfiction books to read this summer, and wrote this lovely review!
“We seem to live in an era of great forgetting. Events that would have been era-defining 20 years ago now come and go like so many digital headlines, explained away by conspiracy theorists and ideological denialists as just more fake news. That’s why books like Nora Neus’s 24 Hours in Charlottesville are so important, particularly as the very history we teach in public schools is at risk of disappearing altogether. So, a reminder: in August of 2017 a horde (a khaki? a basement? a whine?) of neo-Nazis descended on Charlottesville, Virginia to chant racist slogans and buy out the local tiki torch supplier. But for all their deeply embarrassing posturing, the weekend was no joke: As Neus’s gripping account reminds us, based as it is on multiple first-person accounts, the events of that weekend led up to the tragic murder of anti-racist activist Heather Heyer at the hands of an unhinged white supremacist. This is America, and we cannot forget it.”
We’ll have more information about launch events (in person! in Charlottesville!) very soon.
My latest stories
I’ve also been doing a lot of other writing lately for POLITICO Magazine, Teen Vogue, VICE News, Youth Today, Poynter, and more. There’s two specifically I’d like to highlight:
A year after the shooting at Robb Elementary, I went back to Uvalde to visit 11-year-old Miah Cerrillo and other Room 112 survivors, who survived by smearing her friend's blood all over her body and playing dead. She and other survivors still refuse to go back to school. Here’s that story for POLITICO Magazine.
I was able to share Miah’s story on CNN, which you can watch here:
For Teen Vogue, I spoke to LGBTQ+ college students who face unique challenges in paying for college, especially if they’ve been kicked out by their families. I’m so grateful to these sources, who are anonymous in the final article, for trusting me with their stories.
Thank you so much for supporting my work, whether through reading the pieces or even just reading this newsletter. I’m very grateful.
Nora
P.S. Seriously email me and I’ll give you a free ticket to the workshop! I want you there! Sign-up below.