Tips on freelancing abroad from NASH 75

 

by H.G. Watson

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Everyone has the image in their head of the glamorous foreign correspondent, working out of busy bureau and going for after work drinks at a smoke filled expat club. But as international news agencies close or make deep cuts to their international bureaus, working internationally has become more difficult for Canadians.

But for freelancers, this change could in fact be an opportunity. This was the case for Rita Devlin Marier, a Montreal based journalist who found herself freelance reporting on the murder of Chinese student Lin Jun and the subsequent search and capture of his murderer, Luka Magnotta, for Reuters.

“The fact that [Reuters] didn’t have a bureau here and I was able to cover that kind of breaking news made me an asset for them,” she said. Earlier this year at the Canadian University Press’s 75th national conference (NASH 75), Marier laid out her own career path – which included a stint reporting for AFP in Stockholm – for aspiring young journalists.

Her message was clear; while freelancing for an international market is a lot of work, it is entirely possible to break into the market whether you’re working for your hometown or you’re travelling abroad.

Marier recommended that freelancers consider these points:

Marier is quick to point out that acting as a freelance correspondent without a bureau comes with its own challenges. “[You] need discipline to an excessive level,” she said, adding that you have to have the reflexes to look at every news story and think of how you could relate that to an international audience. But that discipline could pay off with amazing bylines on stories that will get read by an audience that stretches beyond Canada’s borders. Which is pretty glamorous, when you think about it.

 

H.G. Watson is the Editor-in-Chief of the Cord Community Edition in Waterloo, On.

 
Posted on March 7, 2013 at 9:15 am by editor · · Tagged with: , , , ,

One Response

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  1. Written by Copywriter Collective
    on September 24, 2013 at 8:29 am
    Reply · Permalink

    Hi, Thanks for sharing

    While most of us hanker after a foreign holiday now and then, the opportunity to work abroad might just be the best way to kill two birds with one stone.

    More of my thoughts on this link…
    http://copywritercollective.com/howtobeacopywriter/5-reasons-to-freelance-abroad/

    Keep rocking!

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