Nicola Slawson, a freelance journalist and the creator of The Single Supplement newsletter, shares her inspiring journey of building a writing career on her own terms. She discusses the challenges of transitioning from journalism to authoring a book, emphasizing the importance of personal storytelling and audience engagement. Nicola reveals effective strategies for growing a newsletter and the emotional complexities of the publishing process. She also highlights the vital role of community in supporting writers through their creative endeavors.
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Unconventional Journey into Journalism
Nicola Slawson's non-traditional path to journalism involved student newspapers, a PR job, and teaching English abroad.
She strategically pursued the Scott Trust bursary to break into the industry.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Breaking into Journalism
To break into journalism, analyze publications for freelance opportunities and tailor pitches to fill editors' needs.
Networking is crucial: build genuine relationships with editors through coffee chats (virtual or in-person).
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Networking as Friendship
Build genuine networks by making friends, not just contacts.
Approach networking as making friends and helping each other, rather than a purely transactional exchange.
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In 'How to Fail', Elizabeth Day shares her personal experiences and insights on failure, drawing from her popular podcast. The book explores various aspects of life, including dating, work, and family, highlighting how understanding and learning from failures can make us stronger. It offers a compelling blend of memoir and self-help, encouraging readers to view failure as a stepping stone to success.
Single: Living a Complete Life on Your Own Terms
Nicola Slawson
Coming Home
Sean Kelly
1984
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George Orwell
Published in 1949, '1984' is a cautionary tale by George Orwell that explores the dangers of totalitarianism. The novel is set in a dystopian future where the world is divided into three super-states, with the protagonist Winston Smith living in Oceania, ruled by the mysterious and omnipotent leader Big Brother. Winston works at the Ministry of Truth, where he rewrites historical records to conform to the Party's ever-changing narrative. He begins an illicit love affair with Julia and starts to rebel against the Party, but they are eventually caught and subjected to brutal torture and indoctrination. The novel highlights themes of government surveillance, manipulation of language and history, and the suppression of individual freedom and independent thought.
Nicola Slawson, creator of the award-winning newsletter The Single Supplement, shares her journey of building a creative career on her own terms. From launching her newsletter with zero subscribers to securing a book deal, Nicola offers insights into embracing your unique story, building an authentic community, and navigating the realities of freelance journalism and book writing.
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ABOUT NICOLA SLAWSON
Nicola Slawson is a freelance journalist, writer, and public speaker. She is the creator of The Single Supplement newsletter and author of Single: Living a Complete Life on Your Own Terms. Nicola is passionate about telling human stories and empowering others to embrace their own.
This episode is brought to you by our friends at Lulu. If you're interested in self-publishing, Lulu has free resources such as helpful tutorials, templates to help you layout a book, design for print, and they have a very watchable YouTube University channel. Our community anthology is in fact published using Lulu. Check them out at lulu.com.
London Writers' Salon 
