🧵THREAD 🧵As it's the start of a new year, there seems to be a lot more calls for freelance pitches about. If you're thinking of pitching for the first time, or wanted a refresher, here are some of the things I find useful. /1

First up, finding work – here's what I use to find calls for pitches each week. But you can easily search these yourself or set them up as columns in your TweetDeck. Use quote marks so it searches for the exact phrasing. /2 https://t.co/NyYcXLZ59R
I also try to keep a note of places making call outs that I don't immediately have ideas for – they're probably going to be swamped fairly quickly, but now you know they have budget – and they'll be less swamped if you come back to them in a month with a belter of an idea. /3
In weird Covid times, this is also a really helpful spreadsheet from @studyhallxyz on who is and isn't accepting pitches atm. This kind of stuff is often just useful to give you ideas of places you didn't realise you could pitch. /4 https://t.co/sRcuevWgBw
If you can't find an editor's email address, my favourite tool is @EmailHunter which shows you the format of an email address at any organisation, so you can take a best guess. 50 free searches a month. /5 https://t.co/JFxew4x4ca
Also, off this hellscape of a website, I'd recommend joining some Facebook groups. Yes, really. @asyiaiftikhar's Young Journalist Community is absolutely one of the best. They have a spreadsheet of editors happy to work with new writers, examples of successful pitches + opps /6
Other good groups I use include @freelancingfor, No 1 Freelance Media Women (who have a pitching hour for pitch feedback + loads of opps), gals in journalism, Women in Journalism, and our own Journo Resources one! /7
I would also heavily recommend the wonderful Slack community from @freelancesoc – as well as a channel of work opportunities, it's just a generally really nice community to be part of! /8
In terms of actually nailing your pitch, we've got this guide here which has a few real examples. Watch this space, as we're hoping to make an interactive library of these by next month! /9 https://t.co/hUMtlqa8t2
This is no longer running, but I always link to it as it's still a great resource – @GuardianJessica ran a series where she ranked pitches she received with grades and gave feedback (and also commissioned some) /10 https://t.co/2JFcwLtzRP
It's also worth subscribing to @MissedPitches to see what other people's look like – they send out a selection of them every week, and you can also submit any of yours which didn't quite land to try and find it a home. /11 https://t.co/8jNc695ANh
This is also a decent database of successful pitches too, and also includes info on the exchange with the editor and how the story turned out. /12 https://t.co/el5mzBY0gP
From an editor's perspective, we have this big old guide here, which is just a huge list of pitching guidelines from publications across the globe. Good for advice, and to see where you could pitch too. Props to @sianabradley for updating this weekly! /13 https://t.co/xOvxtJJnIf
There are thousands of pieces out there about how to write the perfect pitch, so I'm going to recommend just two – this is a really practical one from @TimHerrera that spells out all the common mistakes. /14 https://t.co/k1aHK8E7Lj
And, secondly, this one from @RobynVinter is very accessible and practical as well. /15 https://t.co/zXIKyfG98u
Okay, so rates! A couple of databases out there – we have one, so does @NUJ_LFB, and @WhoPaysWriters. All of these are also good places to look for inspiration too.

1️⃣ https://t.co/1otlK6UJQj
2️⃣ https://t.co/qk9hmC7V7h
3️⃣ https://t.co/vGvh3Q9OT2
That's basically all my oomph for now pals – I'll add more bits and bobs as I find them in future 🤓
Just realised I should probably say that my (free) newsletter goes out today. It has 50+ opps in it and goes out at about 5pm, depending on when I finally get out of bed and stop tweeting. https://t.co/tDR61ptMPJ

More from Economy

What do a Tory Peer, Selwyn Gummer (Lord Chadlington), David Sumner ( Sumner Group Holdings) and the Sanchez Perez family (drugs money, laundered through Gold mines) have in common?

It’s another company-saving a £50 million PPE contract shaggy dog story

Connections, connections


What a start to the story

“A bulletproof truck trundled down the road in downtown Lima, guarded by 18 policeman
They were wearing body armour & wielding high velocity rifles

No-one was taking any chances
This was a Special delivery for Peruvian Prosecutor for an anti drug trial


That was in 2011, the same year that Lord Chadlington’s daughter got married in Chadlington to Henry Allsopp.

Who was there?
Yes Kirstie Allsopp of Location, location, location and all this Covid nonsense fame) is his sister

Camilla, his Godmother

Jeremy Hunt

Cameron


Well. Come on. Lord Chadlington had been chair of the local Witney Conservative Association. It’s only fair.

Hang on. Julian Wheatland, Director of SCL Group/ Cambridge Analytica had also been chair of Witney Conservative Association...and campaigned for his mate Cameron

Are we sure Julian Wheatland and his side kick Alexander Nix were not there too @JolyonMaugham ?

I mean. They move in the same North Oxford circles.

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THE MEANING, SIGNIFICANCE AND HISTORY OF SWASTIK

The Swastik is a geometrical figure and an ancient religious icon. Swastik has been Sanatan Dharma’s symbol of auspiciousness – mangalya since time immemorial.


The name swastika comes from Sanskrit (Devanagari: स्वस्तिक, pronounced: swastik) &denotes “conducive to wellbeing or auspicious”.
The word Swastik has a definite etymological origin in Sanskrit. It is derived from the roots su – meaning “well or auspicious” & as meaning “being”.


"सु अस्ति येन तत स्वस्तिकं"
Swastik is de symbol through which everything auspicios occurs

Scholars believe word’s origin in Vedas,known as Swasti mantra;

"🕉स्वस्ति ना इन्द्रो वृधश्रवाहा
स्वस्ति ना पूषा विश्ववेदाहा
स्वस्तिनास्तरक्ष्यो अरिश्तनेमिही
स्वस्तिनो बृहस्पतिर्दधातु"


It translates to," O famed Indra, redeem us. O Pusha, the beholder of all knowledge, redeem us. Redeem us O Garudji, of limitless speed and O Bruhaspati, redeem us".

SWASTIK’s COSMIC ORIGIN

The Swastika represents the living creation in the whole Cosmos.


Hindu astronomers divide the ecliptic circle of cosmos in 27 divisions called
https://t.co/sLeuV1R2eQ this manner a cross forms in 4 directions in the celestial sky. At centre of this cross is Dhruva(Polestar). In a line from Dhruva, the stars known as Saptarishi can be observed.