I'm very much on the side of contributors of editorial material being paid, unless it's a very low-budget, start-up, out of the mainstream type of magazine. It's hard enough for freelance writers to earn a living without people who are prepared to work for nothing undercutting them.

However ... I might have got this wrong, but you say the piece the newspaper published was a review of a website belonging to a fringe theatre. In that case, the newspaper editor may well have seen your piece as PR and not editorial. The media most definitely don't pay when they run a piece based on a press release: it's up to the organisation the press release is about to pay whoever runs their PR campaign.

The situation where young journalists have to work for nothing or peanuts until they get their foot in the door is nothing new, unfortunately. It's like that for advertising copywriters too, as most need to do an internship or work placement with little pay for a year or so before they land a salaried job.

Absolutely, Daisy. If it was PR of course they wouldn't pay.

The courses I mentioned were taught by practising journalists, and I suppose they felt obliged to prepare us for reality. Or maybe they thought it was an overcrowded profession.

Cornelia, I don't quite understand. Do you mean the journalism courses which you attended advocated working for nothing? I think a few weeks work experience to learn the ropes is fine, but not working gratis for months on end.


I think there's a huge amount of luck and persistance involved. I expect there are a large number of writers in the pool whose work is certainly no better or worse than each others, but being able to pitch appropriate and quirky ideas helps.
I started in Australia which I think was much easier, although it still took me a couple of years- and a heck of a lot of rejections!- to get going. I then had to start all over again when we moved back to the UK and found it very hard. I'm now in El Salvador and trying to pitch travel articles!

I'm sorry about my comment on not having taken a course. It didn't come out right at all

Best,
Antarctic

PS Don't be afraid to aim high. I found it wasn't any harder to get work from national publications than local ones.

Sorry, again I may not have made myself clear.

The teachers weren't saying that we should work for free, just that it took time to get a paying job. Working for free sounds much better if you call it internship. I can't remember they called it that, though. A student on one of the courses was in the offices of a wel-known fashion magazine and not getting paid. On of the lecturers on the film journalism course said she's worked three years for a magazine without getting paid.

I would much prefer to be paid and on some occasions I have been paid - for a book and articles in an encyclopedia. I've also been paid for a couple of articles I wrote when I was in China, for Beijing-based magazine. When I submitted an article on Chinese film for a London-based magazine I foolishly didn't ask the rate and was surprised to receive an email to say they couldn't pay contributors. It was a China/UK business liaison magazine, and they had some pretty distinguished contributors, so I was a bit surprised. However, it did help me get a press pass for the London Film Festival so that was good.

More recently I've written descriptions of furniture some researched pieces on designers for an American website and got paid. After I did the two journalism courses I started writing film and play reviews,unpaid and I was asked to be an 'in-house writer' for a website. My area was 'performance' and I got onto the press list for plays and film previews so could go free. This was the one where the pay was promised 'once the advertising links were established' but it didn't happen. I also write film reviews for a NY film site - no pay but I get to go to the preview screenings.

I write articles for a Chinese website, too, which I know nobody gets paid for -its all voluntary, but again I can get into shows for free.

I don't want a staff job because I'm retired and have a teacher's pension.

Anyway, my plan was to build up a portfolio of work and break into print, which was why I thought I'd contact local papers who might be interested in reviews of local fringe theatres. it wasn't a promotion piece. That was when I got the email to say they'd be happy to receive the review, couldn't guarantee to use it and as I'm freelance couldn't pay me for it.

Should I carry on trying in the hope they will pay eventually? Would it be useful to be able to cite them to get paid, possibly, by another publication?

Meantime I'm cutting down on the reviewing and concentrating on short stories, for radio or magazines.I've collected a couple of rejections slips. Having seen some advice here about entering competitions I made a few enquiries and found that most seem to charge a fee for entering, so I'm not too keen on that.

Interesting about the travel writing. I've also been writing chapters for a book working in China and I've just been asked by a literary agency to send some chapters so I must have pitched it OK. Maybe it's all going to come together at last. In any case I'd thought of offering them to a national newspaper as a series.

Sorry this is so long but thanks for the advice and encouragement.

Sheila

Shelia, I've WW mailed you.