Off The Wire: News for the Canadian media freelancer Feb 2-8

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:

• Nominees for the 2016 Alberta Magazine Awards [Alberta Magazines]
• Above the Fold: An inside look at the damage being done to Canada’s newspapers [The Walrus]
• How to Manage Your Money on a Variable Income [The Abundant Artist]
• What union drive at Vice Canada means for the future of journalism [Now Toronto]
• Paper Cuts: Does the dark cloud hanging over Canadian newspapers have a silver lining? [The Walrus]
• Striking Chronicle Herald journalists start their own news website [J-Source]
• The first conversation with a client [Luigi Benetton]
• Chronicle Herald dispute ‘an assault against journalism’ [East Coast Post]

From The U.S. and beyond:

• 12 Ways I Want to Respond to Editors vs. How I Actually Respond [The Freelancer]
• 6 Ways to Track Down a Magazine Editor [Mediabistro]
• How a Documentary on Slain Freelance Journalist James Foley Reclaims His Legacy [Rolling Stone]
• Bustle and the Industrialization of Confession [Gawker]
• 7 finance mistakes freelancers make (and the tools to fix them) [Freelancers Union]
• Stay Focused: 4 Ways to Delete Writing Distractions From Your Life [The Write Life]

Last week on Story Board:

• Greg Clark Award for early career journalists: The Canadian Journalism Foundation has an award for early-career journalists and freelancers are invited to apply for it. If you’ve got between one and five years of experience in the industry, you can apply for the Greg Clark Award...
• New Beats journalism job loss survey: Two Canadian university professors are conducting a survey that aims to find out more about what happens to journalists in Canada when they lose their jobs...
• On Story Board: Students could be key in Halifax journalists’ strike: Journalism students and recent graduates are well placed to support Chronicle Herald newsroom workers in Halifax, who have been on strike since Jan. 23...

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.