Donna Ferguson, who is head of the Freelance Chapter of Women in Journalism, is inviting top editors who regularly commission articles from freelancers they don’t know to talk to her about their regular slots and opportunities for freelancers, and explain how to write the best possible pitch for their section. Each session will last for 30 minutes and include time for questions and answers.
Pricing
Members: Five sessions for £35
Non-members: Five sessions for £100
You can become a Women in Journalism member today and save up to £65
You can buy her five-session bundle which contains recordings and crib sheets from her masterclasses. This includes:
Starting out in freelancing with Donna Ferguson
This is an introductory masterclass where award-winning freelance journalist Donna Ferguson shares her tips and tricks about starting out in freelancing.
In this session you will learn:
- How Donna Ferguson became a successful and award-winning freelancer
- The mistakes and lessons she made along the way
- How to navigate the difficulties of freelancing
- Donna Ferguson answers FAQ’s
How to pitch features to The Guardian with Leah Harper
The first session is with Leah Harper, the assistant editor on Guardian Features, who commissions ‘A Moment that Changed Me’ slot. She previously worked as acting assistant editor on the Guardian’s Fashion desk and Features commissioning editor, having started out as a Researcher for the Observer New Review.
In this session you will learn:
- How to tailor your pitches to this publication
- What stories The Guardian is looking for
- Best practice when pitching to The Guardian
- Leah Harper answers FAQ’s
How to pitch features to The Sunday Times Magazine with Liz Edwards
The second session is with Liz Edwards, the senior commissioning editor for The Sunday Times Magazine where she has particular responsibility for the health and fitness pieces (plus beer for balance), and previously commissioned the Life in the Day and Relative Values interviews. She also writes features, reviews and comment pieces across the paper. She is on secondment from her role as assistant editor on the travel desk.
In this session you will learn:
- How to tailor your pitches to this publication
- What stories The Sunday Times Magazine is looking for
- Best practice when pitching to The Sunday Times Magazine
- Liz Edwards answers FAQ’s
How to pitch features to The New Statesman with Emily Lawford
The third session will is with Emily Lawford, the online editor at the New Statesman. She was previously commissioning editor at Prospect magazine, where she worked for nearly five years. She edits a mix of politics and culture for the NS website and writes across all sections.
She commissions reported features and profiles of interesting people on any topic and online-only culture analysis: this could be essays pegged to films, books etc, or features about wider societal trends. She also commissions online-only book reviews.
In this session you will learn:
- How to tailor your pitches to this publication
- What stories The New Statesman is looking for
- Best practice when pitching to The New Statesman
- Emily Lawford answers FAQ’s
How to pitch features to The Telegraph with Lebby Eyres
The fourth session is with Lebby Eyres, the Deputy head of Lifestyle and Head of Health at The Telegraph. She commissions features on health, first person, family dynamics and relationships. Lifestyle topics including food and drink, cars, interiors etc, she can pass to the right person in Lifestyle.
She commissions features on health, first-person, family dynamics, and relationships. Lifestyle topics, including food and drink, cars, interiors etc, she can pass to the right person in Lifestyle.
The Telegraph is all digital first, so everything is commissioned for online, but Lebby’s commissions typically then appear in Weekend, Sunday features section or occasionally Daily Features in the paper. She’s keen on celebrity interviews with a health focus and she can pass on celebrity ideas for the ‘My Saturday’ and ‘Best and Worst’ interviews.
In this session you will learn:
- How to tailor your pitches to this publication
- What stories The Telegraph is looking for
- Best practice when pitching to The Telegraph
- Lebby Eyres answers FAQ’s
