Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, publishing, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?

From Canada: 

• Remembering Tyler Bieber, the sports journalist who died in Humboldt Broncos bus crash [J-Source]
• After public turmoil, what comes next for Canadian Journalists for Free Expression? [J-Source]
• Statement condemning Israeli ‘massacre’ overstepped CJFE mandate, journalism group says [Toronto Star]

From The U.S. and beyond:

• Advice for staying safe when interviewing dangerous people [Journalism.co.uk]
• 3 steps to connecting to your ideal clients [Freelancers Union]
• From the Chicago Tribune to the LA Times, journalists organize and push back [CJR]
• A new code of conduct: How the media industry can take better responsibility for the work of fixers [Journalism.co.uk]
• When Robot Writers Take Over, Will Freelancers Be Obsolete? [The Freelancer]
• Asking for More: Negotiating Rates for Freelance Assignments [The Open Notebook]

Recently on Story Board:

• The Born Freelancer Interviews Daniel Sugar on Self-Publishing His First Novel: Writing a novel is the dream of many freelance writers, but few of us achieve this formidable goal. A first novel is therefore always an exciting event for a freelancer although the path to being published is often strewn with obstacles and decisions unfamiliar to the unpublished...
• Freelance rates rising at CBC/Radio Canada: The Canadian Media Guild and CBC have agreed to an across-the-board wage increase of 1.5% for 2018-19. This increase is also applicable to all the minimum rates applicable to Freelance Contributors...

Spot a story you think we should include in next week's Off the Wire? Email the link to editor@thestoryboard.ca or tweet us at @storyboard_ca.