Breaking into freelancing

Goooner1886

Hi,

I don't really know if I'm in the right place to be asking this, but I'll go for it.

Basically, I write sports news for a few different websites but I'm looking to branch out and earn more money through freelance work. I'm already lying, because it's actually about the prestige of being published by a big-name newspaper or magazine than it is about the money.

However, I have got absolutely no idea how to take this next step in my career. And I do need to take it, because I'm on the verge of madness. It's very disheartening to see someone younger than you with "published by ESPN, Sky Sports and the Telegraph" in his or her Twitter profile. It's like one massive secret that you're not in on.

I've only been doing the whole journalism thing in a professional capacity for a little over a year, which isn't that long in the grand scheme of things so maybe I should let things take their course naturally. But another part of me does want to force it because, as I said, I feel like I'm playing catch-up to those d*ckheads on Twitter.

So, how do these people manage to score such decent freelance work? Obviously they produce a decent quality of work, but that's after they have been commissioned. What is the very first step?

Cheers.

Green Giant

There's no easy way about it, unfortunately. All I can think of is to ring around the national papers a few days before a match to see if they've got anyone assigned to it. More likely than not they will, but you may just be lucky enough to pick the one that's free. It's a bit of a long shot but there's a small possibility that it will work out.

I know someone who, like you, has been writing steadily with a local paper for about three years and regularly covers football matches, but only for that paper. He says that he's always at games with lads who are in with the national papers and, like I said above, he has phoned the nationals to see if he could get 'in the loop', to no avail thus far. He has scooped the occasional piece with The Score and a couple of other websites for a few quid, though.

Don't be disheartened. Stick at it because I've no doubt you're good enough to make it. The Twitter boasters merely have the advantage of knowing the right person in the right place. If you persevere and build up your contacts, it becomes more likely that you too will get in touch with the right person for that big-time publication.

Good luck with it!

CentimoSal

Pay little attention to people who mention previous gigs in their profile. It could be a sign that's all they have to their name - and they have little knowledge to import from those gigs into the next one. It's not a good yardstick of experience or breath of knowledge.