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:

• Off the Page with Marta Iwanek [Magazine Awards]
• Short Prose Competition call for submissions [TWUC]
• Entries are open for Digital Publishing Awards 2017; deadline Jan 31 [Canadian Magazines]

From The U.S. and beyond:

• Why Medium failed to disrupt the media [Bloomberg]
• Tip: Use these worksheets to plan your next story [Journalism.co.uk]
• 40 things I learned about the writing craft in 40 years [Poynter]
• How The Gig Economy Will Change In 2017 [Fast Company]
• The Freelancer’s Guide to Money [Mediabistro]
• Foundations and the foundation of a new way of funding journalism [Journalism.co.uk]
• Medium lays off dozens as it tries to find a publishing model that may not actually exist yet [Nieman Lab]
• Want me to write for free? I’ve got two one-syllable words for you. [CJR]
• These Gmail Add-Ons Keep You Organized So You Have More Time to Write [The Write Life]
• Where are workers less likely to have a permanent contract? [ILO]

Recently on Story Board:

• Writers' Rights event in Toronto January 28: An optimistic view of the state of freelance journalism is a rare thing these days. But author and University of Toronto professor Nicole Cohen has one. She says that although it can be hard to stay positive in the face of challenging conditions for freelance workers, her research has demonstrated that there are some reasons to be hopeful...

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.