Rejection is an inevitable part of freelancing. But it doesn’t matter how many times you’re told “don’t take it personally”, when you see an email from an editor that says “thanks but no thanks”, your heart will sink.
While there is lots of practical advice you can follow to get better at pitching, I’m going to assume you already put as much effort as you possibly could into articulating your idea. Hopefully you spent a considerable chunk of time writing your pitch. Maybe you sent it to one or more journalist friends to check for typos. Given the effort you put in, it’s totally reasonable to feel deflated when your idea doesn’t land.
A few weeks ago, hot on the heels of a rejection of an idea I’d been assured was amazing by some journalist pals, I asked Twitter what their least favourite rejection line is to get from an editor. Personally, I hate “I’m not sure that this is that interesting” because obviously if I didn’t think the idea was interesting then I wouldn’t have pitched it. “This wouldn’t interest our audience” feels like a less personal way of saying the same thing. Here are some of the worst responses:
The thing that struck me about these responses is that they are either straight up rude, or just really unhelpful. If you’re going to take the time to reply (and, to be clear, a rejection email is much better than being aired), then why not add in a justification so that the writer can improve with their next pitch? It can even be a stock template “this doesn’t fit our publication” or “we’ve commissioned something similar recently”. Replying with a one or two-word response doesn’t do anything other than making the person who receives it feel crappy.
I appreciate that editors are busy people—I myself am an editor, and Monday morning email dread is real—but at the end of the day, if someone has taken the time to seek you out with a personalised well-thought-out pitch specific to your publication (as opposed to a generic copy and paste job), the least you can do is dignify it with some constructive feedback. Maybe that’s naive of me—what do you think? Hit reply and let me know.
Then again, some Twitter users replied saying that they didn’t feel the majority of the rejections shared in the thread were that bad. Ella Glover (@ellajglover) reminded us that:
People like Ella are clearly better at detaching their ideas from their self-worth. But if you’re more like me and you get upset when someone says your idea isn’t very interesting, then feel free to wallow. After that, though, make sure you pitch it to someone else who will hopefully think it’s interesting. That’s what I did, and this week a *dream* publication came back to me with a positive reaction to the idea (it’s not technically been commissioned yet, but it’s still exciting to get a response from a place I’d never have dreamed of pitching to six months ago).
My week
… in editing
I edited this interview with Still Corners, who spoke to Alastair Lockhart about their new album The Last Exit, as well as this great rebuff to the terrible Caitlin Moran article about Harry Styles: Hana Kelly said ‘Harry Styles is standing on the shoulders of chiffon’.
… in writing
Pitches: 4 (1 follow-up, 3 repitches)
Commissions: 0.5 (still negotiating terms)
Articles written: 1
I wrote a first draft of the big commission I secured before Christmas, how exciting!
Articles published: 0
… in listening/watching
The Indiependent launched a brand new podcast ‘Indiependent Thinking’, headed up by the brilliant Opinion editors Jacob, Tara and Olly. Give it a listen.
I liked ‘A Year of Misinformation’ on BBC Radio 4, which was a look back at false stories that went viral online last year and the real-life harm they caused.
I also recorded an episode of a podcast with Jobs Bored — make sure you’re following them on Twitter for when the episode drops next week.
… in reading
Isabelle Jani-Friend’s ‘My life expectancy is 44. This is how I’m dealing with losing a year to Covid’ was super poignant
Niamh Ingram’s piece for MixMag ‘Will music festivals actually happen this year?’ was an informative albeit depressing read
Esther Newman’s ‘Women are cosplaying their favourite fashion eras on TikTok & we love it’ for Refinery29 was absolutely fabulous, darling
Like many Brits I have very fond childhood memories of watching Dick & Dom in da Bungalow in front of the telly on Saturday morning, so Amelia Tait’s piece on the history of gunge for VICE was amazing
Kaiya Shunyata’s Lithium Magazine piece ‘We need to talk about the “Good for her” genre’ was a thought-provoking read about problematic white female protagonists in cinema
This piece in The Economist about tech and democracy is important: “The world must seek a better way of dealing with speech online that allowing tech oligopolies to take control of fundamental liberties.”
There’s a gorgeous structure to Rafael Behr’s The Guardian article ‘I thrived on the tension and drama of British politics. Then I had a heart attack’
Jonathan Nunn’s longread for 1843 ‘Gulp! The secret economics of food delivery: How DoorDash and Deliveroo are changing the way we eat’ was incredible
Events
I’m hosting this panel event with the Student Publication Association at 5.00 pm tomorrow — if you’re a student journalist or recent grad in the North, you can register here.
Diyora Shadijanova is also chatting to Gals in Journalism tomorrow at 7.00 about ‘How to be a freelance journalist’.
On Thursday 4 February at 6.30 pm, Dan Wakeford is going to be speaking about ‘Editing People magazine’—these free masterclasses run by Terri White (Empire) have been incredible, and they’re totally free.
On Sunday 7 February at 8.00 pm I’m going to be chatting to author Dominic Stevenson (Get Your Head In The Game) and Jordan Florit (Red Wine & Arepas) about all things football, mental health, travel and tapas — so do register for a free ticket here.
Opportunities
Aberdeen: DC Thomson Media is looking for a live news journalist, a social media manager, a picture editor and an audio producer
Birmingham: Global Radio is looking for a show producer
Birmingham: The University of Birmingham is looking for a social media editor
Birmingham: The BBC is looking for an assistant script editor for Doctors
Birmingham: University College Birmingham is looking for a social media and digital marketing officer
Birmingham (currently remote): Aidem Digital is looking for a features editor and writer
Bristol: BBC West is looking for a digital sports journalist
Bristol: IOP Publishing is on the hunt for a communications manager
Canterbury: The University of Kent is looking for a social media coordinator
Cambridge: Velocity Outlet is in need of a digital content creator
Colchester: Adia PR is looking for a senior PR account manager
Coventry: SF Recruitment is looking for a social media and content manager
Doncaster: Redline Assured Security is looking for a copy editor and proofreader
Dundee: DC Thomson Media is looking for an impact journalist, a sports reporter, and a crime & courts reporter
Edinburgh: Stop Climate Chaos Scotland is looking for a communications and campaigns officer
Howden: Press Association is looking for a racing and betting editorial manager
Kingston-upon-Hull: Hull Live is looking for a senior reporter
Leicester: SF Recruitment is looking for a PR account executive
Leicester: seventy nine is looking for a social media executive
Liverpool: Reach is still looking for a regional content editor to work 4pm-12am
Manchester: boohoo.com is looking for a French copywriter for Nasty Gal
Manchester: MCR Property Group is looking for a social media executive/content creative
Manchester: Global Radio is looking for a media executive
Manchester: Dandy Marketing Agency is looking for an outreach and content executive
Manchester: The Orchard Agency is looking for a senior content copywriter
Milton Keynes: World Vision UK is looking for an evidence communications officer
Newcastle: MuseumNext is looking for a staff writer
Newcastle: ChronicleLive need a part-time photographer
Newcastle: Curtis Gabriel is looking for an overnight social media manager
Nottingham: Red Tree Public Relations is looking for a digital PR specialist
Salford: The BBC is looking for assistant producers and journalists to join their freelance pool
Salford: That’s TV is looking for TV news reporters/video journalists on a contract basis
Sheffield: Evolution Power Tools is looking for a freelance junior video editor
Sussex: SussexLive and KentLive are in need of a photojournalist
Warrington: Horizon is looking for a PR and content manager
York: Castle Employment are recruiting for a company looking for a communications specialist
PS) If you like this newsletter feel free to let me know—@BettyKirkers or @DistrictPeaked