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: 

• Tax changes could take a bite out of local news [J-Source]
• What the Giller Prize means to Michael Redhill [Globe and Mail]
• Meet the journalist behind The Sprawl, Calgary’s newest independent media outlet [J-Source]
• Opinion: Mair on media’s ‘unholiest of alliances’ with energy industry [J-Source]

From The U.S. and beyond:

• 7 people every freelancer should know [Freelancers Union]
• 16 fun gifts for writers [The Write Life]
• How to find and attract editors for pitching articles [Dianne Jacob]
• Revision: how long should it take? [Poynter]
• Are you undercharging? Here's how to price your freelance writing gigs [Freelancers Union]
• This journalist built a tool to help others save their own archives [Poynter]
• The best automatic transcription tools for journalists [Poynter]
• Freelance photojournalist Alexei Wood faces criminal trial [Huffington Post]
• Three years in, Discourse Media looks to membership to power its national expansion [Nieman Lab]

Recently on Story Board:

• Reaping what you sow - Five writers talk about their websites: For most of us, writing is a business. And if you’re a businessperson, you need some kind of online presence where, at the very minimum, you can post your published clips to prove to a prospective editor or client that you are, in fact, a professional...
• Freelancers' concerns highlighted at Democracy Project journalism summit: Journalists from across North America gathered in Banff last month to discuss the importance of deeply researched journalism in the era of alt-facts. And at panel discussions populated by major publishers and established journalists, freelancers made themselves heard...

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.