Every Saturday morning, we invite a publishing pro to put together their top media links. This week’s guest editors are Lily Canter and Emma Wilkinson.

Lily and Emma are directors of Freelancing for Journalists, a series of educational resources which aim to lift the lid on freelance life. The pair, who are both freelance journalists themselves, co-host a podcast series as well as running a remote work experience scheme and webinar series. They have an upcoming training course, 'How to become a successful freelance journalist'.

You can find them on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Lily and Emma say:

“We know what a secretive world freelance journalism can be but we want to make it as accessible as possible. Freelancing should be viewed as a positive lifestyle choice rather than something negative that people turn to when they are made redundant. These resources aim to help people on their freelance journey and cover topics we are asked about time and again.”

Record ALCS Distribution — www.alcs.co.uk

One thing we both wished we’d known about sooner as freelance journalists is the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS). In March, they paid a record £26 million to more than 90,000 members - the highest number of payments to date in a single distribution. Their job is to make sure you receive what you are entitled to as a writer when someone copies or uses your work.

What training and qualifications do I need to work as a freelance journalist? — freelancing-for-journalists.captivate.fm

We tackled this topic in series 4 of the FFJ podcast, speaking to two guests - one with undergraduate NCTJ training and the other with no formal journalism training at all. It was our most popular episode to date and remains a contentious issue.

NUJ rate for the Job — www.londonfreelance.org

One of the most frequently asked questions we receive is ‘how much should I be paid for an article?’. The answer is always ‘it depends’ but also ‘make sure you are well informed’. The NUJ London Freelance Branch has the most comprehensive list of rates across all sectors and was updated just last month.

Perfecting that pitch — www.journoresources.org.uk

One of our roles as freelance journalism trainers is to provide feedback on what makes a good pitch. A good place to start is to check whether the publication has a guide on what they are looking for and make sure you do your research. Our friends at Journo Resources have compiled a fantastic list of pitching guidelines to get you started.

A year in lockdown as told via TikTok sea shanty — www.tiktok.com

Innovative freelance journalists are breaking new ground and reaching new audiences on TikTok. One of these is Neve Gordon-Farleigh who put together this impressive Covid-19 ditty. Neve also spoke to us on our recent Demystifying TikTok podcast episode.

If you would like to guest edit a future edition of My Media Roundup, simply reply to this email.