Every Thursday, we encourage Freelance Jungle members to bring out their freelance writing, content creation activities and more to celebrate it.
Whether working for clients, telling our own stories or exploring the world generally, you can count on members of the Freelance jungle to create up a storm.
Let’s dive into the freelance writing and content creation efforts from mid-July to mid-August 2020
Freelance writing
The Freelance Jungle is full of writers of note. You can always count on new blogs, personal stories and all kinds of freelance writing during the I made this Thursday thread. This month, we use freelance writing to explore race, origins, activism, mental health and where we’ve been written about.
Navigating My Way From Crown Street To Here with Suzi O’Shea
I’ve been writing up a storm. My latest bit looks at growing up in an Egyptian home.
Disability activism and racism with Carly Findlay
I have written a little on disability activism, and also on the racism I’ve experienced in the disability community.
You can read those here https://carlyfindlay.com.au/2020/07/28/things-they-dont-tell-you-about-being-a-disability-activist
and here https://carlyfindlay.com.au/2020/07/22/this-is-when-i-came-out-as-a-person-of-colour/
I am also working on a media guideline pack for contributors of the book I’m editing. I’m currently writing a lot about how to manage vicarious trauma when telling your story.
8 mental health tips with Sophie Al-Bassam
I wrote an article on looking after your mental health, a subject that I really care about. There are so many amazing resources out there
Article in print with Irene Viergever
I received the printed version of the magazine which I wrote my first article for! Yaaaay!
Social media management with Tim Hanslow
I got interviewed for SM Perth about social media management and moderation in the world today.
Freelance writing of the fictional kind
No slouch to dusting off the fiction writing, you’re bound to find some creative endeavours of the freelance writing kind on the IMT thread. This time, we’re even sweeping the prize pool.
I had a MicroFiction piece published in a competition.
Sci-fi fiction with Liam Oakwood
I won first place in a writing comp for the Launceston Freelance Festival! Delightful and unexpected, I almost feel like a real writer now
Whimsical semi sci-fi piece about the cutting edge of automated mapping (don’t tell anyone in the industry though, it’s not quite by the rules and regs. Fiction lets you get away with a bit I think ^_^)
Content creation in other forms
Freelance writing isn’t the only mainstay tool. We’re found online, on the podcast, rocking the recipe writing, and in film format on a regular basis.
I arrived in Coraki (Richmond River NSW) in my motorhome during the first week of lockdown. I’ve now been here 5 months and I spend my days as a volunteer in the little museum, digitising their collection. It’s a lovely little town so I made them a website to help with attracting visitors – a business and community directory. Coming from a city perspective, it has surprised me that country businesses are not as engaged in promoting their own shop/ service. Even though the tourist sites and grey nomads love the site, I’m struggling to get the townsfolk interested. 🤔
How to be kind with Jay Crisp Crow
I was only producer, editor, and general dogsbody for this (including helping him quietly sound out “appreciate” which he wanted to keep in the edit) but my little boy’s lockdown podcast project is still going now he’s back at school.
It’s a lovely thing to see him plan and think about things and confidently talk about them.
Recipe shooting and knife etching with Kylie Archer
I had to reshoot something this week (the photos) for this blog post. And now my family has enough chilli con carne to eat for the next sixty gazillion years. Lucky it tastes good.
And I’ve been etching knives. It’s loads of fun. I have a tutorial for it if anyone wants to give it a go!
Mermaids Cave with Stephen Rogan
My wife and I try to go walking once a week, finding new and different places that are not a massive drive from home is getting harder, but sometimes we still stumble across a gem. Usually I will take photos as break from my work of making videos – but when we came across a place called Mermaids Cave in the Blue Mountains a couple of weeks back I was just blown away, and I had to capture just how lovely and peaceful the place was and make a video instead – and it didn’t feel like work at all. Please enjoy a couple of minutes relaxing in the bush – and turn the sound up, the sounds scape is an integral part.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=HB8qOBYXY4U
Business with Barrie Seppings
I made a vlog post about what I learned from crashing out of a business and starting again. Daughter did camera and lighting, plus I got to hang out with my motorbikes – enjoy. https://youtu.be/AJeFQe3_GMc
Freelance client work
Our content creation and freelance writing skills are often put to the test for our clients. Here are some of the projects in highlight.
Dying to Live with Felicity Blake
A few years ago, I worked as the social impact campaign strategist for the documentary Dying To Live. I was also a field director during the shoot. As fate would have it, I ended up directing some incredible footage involving a heart transplant which didn’t fit into the narrative of the movie but was later used for this social impact short. I’ll never forget that 24 hours as long as I live. Check it out here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4hJJJfwAA4&t=13s
August features DonateLife Week. If you haven’t yet signed up to the official Organ Donor register, please do it now. Unless you’re from SA, it’s not on your driver’s licence anymore, so you should get on the official record (and have the chat with your family and friends!).
Sign up here: http://www.donatelife.gov.au/dyingtolive
The Garvan Institute with Hayley Rollason-Jones
I’ve been doing some work for Garvan Institute recently, the first one is now online.
Suz’s Space with Kathie Holmes
I love is the blog site that I did for Suzie Eisfelder – www.suzs-space.com
– I got the chance to take Suzie’s blog in a whole new direction as a niche old world hangout for book lovers and it’s one of my favourites (Suzie is also a minkie so she’s pretty good value).
Open Stop Close with Donna Blackwood
Sometimes a client gives you free reign on designing a website & you get to build something that you are proud to show to other professionals. And the client loved it.
Lucette’s photos with Gemma Clarke
I worked in darker light for baby portraits instead of the classic ‘perfect’ all over light and I loved it! I also really love At Home Portraits for my clients and will be specialising in this moving forward. Here are some photos with Lucette, a little 9 month old.
Living online with Nicole Leedham
I rarely get the chance to do true sales pages because I am usually neck deep in gov’t/corp work. But I did this sales page for an agency client and the feedback was “exceptional content”. I get some sub-contracting work from them, so hopefully the page also gets me more work! https://www.livingonline.com.au/services/copywriting/
A professional win for me! Was the lead creative behind this tourism campaign for a local council, which has been getting some great exposure.
**HUMBLE BRAG** was able to create, produce and execute this video in 7 days.
Not so Famous with Mariana Pirutti
I designed and animated a logo for my sister’s production business a few months back, but the YouTube series it is on has just launched. My work is usually corporate presentation decks, so branding is not the norm – and I loved pushing my skills. As a bonus, it is an intro to a pretty famous beauty blogger miniseries, and I don’t think my work has ever had that many views! https://vimeo.com/438730513
Lucy Macgill website by Kirstie Wyatt
I recently finished this website for gorgeous stylist Lucy Macgill was such a fun and creative one to do, lucymacgill.com
I discovered that many of my long-term clients often need me for odd jobs (graphic design and website fixes, etc) and I often found myself quoting them for little things (and more than usual under-quoting), then invoicing them and having to wait who knows how long for them to pay. So, I decided to build this page selling hourly blocks of my time. Its working like a dream – I get paid upfront, log my time, send them a report and if I need more time, they purchase more – jobs get done, and everyone’s happy.
Check out more freelance writing on the blog. Want to share your freelance writing and content creation skills? Join us in the Freelance Jungle for I made this Thursday!