Being Freelance

Zoe East has never had a proper job. A work experience placement at a big TV channel that felt old-fashioned and sexist put her off the traditional route before she'd even graduated, so she went freelance instead and never really looked back. That was over ten years ago.
She started with whatever work came along. The niche found her gradually: charities doing meaningful work, heritage and culture projects, things that will matter just as much when someone watches them in ten years' time.
This episode of the Being Freelance podcast with Steve Folland covers:
Getting started by networking and taking whatever came along
Winning six months of free studio space in a creative co-working community, and why staying there for ten years shaped the career around it
Building a niche in charity and heritage filmmaking - and why charity budgets are often better than people assume
Putting "win an award" on a vision board in January, and winning by April
The adventure filmmaking strand: films about running adventures across Iceland, Tajikistan and Patagonia, and getting into Kendal Mountain Festival and the London Mountain Film Festival
Why cold outreach has never worked for her, but word of mouth has - and how sharing only the work she wants more of has quietly shaped her client list
Dropping Instagram and going all-in on LinkedIn as the one social platform where her clients actually are
Monthly goal-setting sessions with a freelancer friend: yearly goals, monthly focus, and the accountability that comes from having to report back
The rate spreadsheet that makes quoting consistent and takes the stress out of pricing decisions
Buying almost everything secondhand, having all her kit stolen as her biggest low point, and using a post-COVID grant to buy her first ever brand new camera
Moving into the She Who Dares Wins studio with Michelle, and the documentary series and production company they're building together 
---

EPISODE SPONSORED BY ECAMM
For years people have asked how Being Freelance live shows look so good. Well, this is the secret.

Ecamm is a video studio for your Mac. 
Give anything you do with video, a pro look in real time.
Presentations, screen shares, webinars, video calls, demos. Plus livestream/record in landscape & vertical at the same time, perfectly designed for both formats.
Try Ecamm for free. 
Use code BEINGFREELANCE to save 15% on your first payment.
JOIN THE COMMUNITY
You're not alone being freelance.
Come and hang out with your BFFs (Being Freelance Friends).
beingfreelance.com/community
 
NEW TO FREELANCING? THERE'S A COURSE FOR YOU!
The Being Freelance course is made for you!
Take the course and you'll also get 6 months FREE community membership.
 
FREELANCER MERCH
Get Being Freelance merchandise at beingfreelance.com/shop
Like VIDEO? - Check out the Being Freelance on:
Instagram - Instagram.com/beingfreelance
YouTube - YouTube.com/SteveFolland

Being Freelance is hosted and created by freelance podcast editor Steve Folland.

French creative Émilie Chen had what she calls her dream job: senior designer at The National Theatre in London, working on posters she'd dreamed about since university. Years later though, it had turned sour in the studio, her mental health took a hit, and she gave herself 8 months to start saving money and figure out her next Act. 
What got her there wasn't a clever strategy. It was people. Co-founding the London chapter of Ladies, Wine & Design gave her the confidence to start asking the freelancers she was meeting, how they'd done it. Someone she cold emailed, handed her a contact sheet of art directors across publishing. And the recipe, she says, never changed: reach out, follow up, and keep doing it even when nothing happens for months.
This episode of the Being Freelance podcast with Steve Folland covers:
Co-founding the London chapter of Ladies, Wine & Design - starting with eight women in a theatre lobby - and how it built the confidence to ask near-strangers for advice, and to end up on speaking on stages (that got bigger and bigger over time)
Pushing back on a client who wanted her to create pitch work for free - and how that one conversation led to every freelancer being offered a fee from then on
Building a niche almost entirely from her old National Theatre colleagues, who took her name with them to new venues 
Waiting after a talk for the room to empty, then walking up to introduce herself 
Mailing a physical pack of postcards to The Guardian's creative directors and the years-later payoff
Surviving lockdown eleven months into freelancing, when her entire theatre client base vanished overnight, and the online directories that kept her busy until theatres reopened
The WhatsApp group of independent theatre poster designers who share contract terms, rates, and overflow work
Why the hardest part of freelancing isn't finding clients - it's learning to be a good boss to yourself
This episode is available to watch in video on Apple Podcasts, YouTube and Spotify.
The generosity of others shines through in this conversation. And how Émilie herself is passing that kindness on. 
You can hear how important having a community around her has been for Émilie - you can have that kind of thing too - if you’re freelancing solo, come join us in the Being Freelance Community. You’re not alone being freelance.

---

EPISODE SPONSORED BY ECAMM
For years people have asked how Being Freelance live shows look so good. Well, this is the secret.

Ecamm is a video studio for your Mac. 
Give anything you do with video, a pro look in real time.
Presentations, screen shares, webinars, video calls, demos. Plus livestream/record in landscape & vertical at the same time, perfectly designed for both formats.
Try Ecamm for free. 
Use code BEINGFREELANCE to save 15% on your first payment.
JOIN THE COMMUNITY
You're not alone being freelance.
Come and hang out with your BFFs (Being Freelance Friends).
beingfreelance.com/community
 
NEW TO FREELANCING? THERE'S A COURSE FOR YOU!
The Being Freelance course is made for you!
Take the course and you'll also get 6 months FREE community membership.
 
FREELANCER MERCH
Get Being Freelance merchandise at beingfreelance.com/shop
Like VIDEO? - Check out the Being Freelance on:
Instagram - Instagram.com/beingfreelance
YouTube - YouTube.com/SteveFolland

Being Freelance is hosted and created by freelance podcast editor Steve Folland.

Adrian’s been a successful freelancer for 21 years. But in the past 7, his definition of framing success has changed.
For the last seven years, Adrian has also been an unpaid carer for three immediate family members. He talks honestly about what that's meant for his business - the travel he's had to give up, the networking events he can't get to, the inquiries he's had to turn away, and why he deliberately caps how much work he takes on (and how much money he can make).
But he also talks about the bigger picture. Seven years ago, he went looking for support and found nothing. Half a million freelancers were in the same boat - and nobody was talking about it. So he stepped up and opened up.
In this episode of the Being Freelance podcast with Steve Folland, we cover:
Why Adrian chose to make his caring role a "first date disclosure" with every new client - and how it's actually strengthened client relationships
Planning marketing around your worst week, not your best
The theory of constraints - and why having less can unlock more creativity and enjoyment
His annual impact report: a 20-year habit that's never won him work directly, but keeps him accountable, sane, and focused
The impending crisis for the UK as the numbers of freelancers with unpaid caring responsibilities increases
How we can make a difference and a change
The impact freelancers have in the world - yep, you included
This episode is available to watch in video on Apple Podcasts, YouTube and Spotify.
Adrian is a member of the Being Freelance Community - come join us, you’re not alone being freelance.
Find Adrian at adrianashton.co.uk
And his Impact Reports are available too.

---
LINKS FOR CARERS MENTIONED
IPSE
Carers UK
Number 18, In The Corner Blog
Citizens Advice - Carers
Benefits & Financial Support for Carers (UK)
---

EPISODE SPONSORED BY ECAMM
For years people have asked how Being Freelance live shows look so good. Well, this is the secret.

Ecamm is a video studio for your Mac. 
Give anything you do with video, a pro look in real time.
Presentations, screen shares, webinars, video calls, demos. Plus livestream/record in landscape & vertical at the same time, perfectly designed for both formats.
Try Ecamm for free. 
Use code BEINGFREELANCE to save 15% on your first payment.
JOIN THE COMMUNITY
You're not alone being freelance.
Come and hang out with your BFFs (Being Freelance Friends).
beingfreelance.com/community
 
NEW TO FREELANCING? THERE'S A COURSE FOR YOU!
The Being Freelance course is made for you!
Take the course and you'll also get 6 months FREE community membership.
 
FREELANCER MERCH
Get Being Freelance merchandise at beingfreelance.com/shop
Like VIDEO? - Check out the Being Freelance on:
Instagram - Instagram.com/beingfreelance
YouTube - YouTube.com/SteveFolland

Being Freelance is hosted and created by freelance podcast editor Steve Folland.

Melissa  spent over a decade in PR & Comms. She was good at it but she was drawn to the ocean.
So she started pitching dive magazines on the side, moved to Mozambique to volunteer with a marine conservation charity, and when the pandemic sent her home, decided to go all-in as a freelancer rather than look for another job.
Still it was PR work she was picking up but frustrated by. 
“I just want to write about fish” she told her mastermind friends in the Being Freelance Community.
They encouraged her. And she went for it.
Three years ago Melissa became The Ocean Writer. Now her work appears in National Geographic, BBC Wildlife, and a growing list of major publications around the world. Editors come to her when something pees in the ocean.
This episode of the Being Freelance podcast with Steve Folland we take a deep diver into the life of The Ocean Writer:
Pitching editors constantly - and dealing with rejection
Turning down work that doesn't fit the niche - even when it's hard - and why that's what made the niche work
Using LinkedIn actively and how it keeps sending opportunities anyway
How Ocean Writer branded clothing sparks recognition and conversations
Building financial resilience - even six weeks off sick this year didn't derail her
Hiring a VA to handle the bitty stuff so she can focus on writing
Stop getting in your own way - why you should pitch sooner than you think you're ready
--
EPISODE SPONSOR
This episode of the Being Freelance podcast is supported by Ecamm.

For years people have asked how Being Freelance live shows look so good. Well, this is the secret.

Ecamm is a video studio for your Mac. 
Give anything you do with video, a pro look in real time.
Presentations, screen shares, webinars, video calls, demos. Plus livestream/record in landscape & vertical at the same time, perfectly designed for both formats.
Visit beingfreelance.com/ecamm to try Ecamm for free and use the code BEINGFREELANCE on that link to save 15% on your first payment.
JOIN THE COMMUNITY
You're not alone being freelance.
Come and hang out with your BFFs (Being Freelance Friends).
beingfreelance.com/community
 
NEW TO FREELANCING? THERE'S A COURSE FOR YOU!
The Being Freelance course is made for you!
Take the course and you'll also get 6 months FREE community membership.
 
FREELANCER MERCH
Get Being Freelance merchandise at beingfreelance.com/shop
Like VIDEO? - Check out the Being Freelance on:
Instagram - Instagram.com/beingfreelance
YouTube - YouTube.com/SteveFolland

Being Freelance is hosted and created by freelance podcast editor Steve Folland.

How does a creative side project turn into a decade long freelancing business working with the biggest names in pop culture, like Disney, Pixar, Marvel, DC Comics, Lucasfilm, Warner Bros and Sony Pictures?
All good super-heroes have an origin story. And this interview tells the series of events that took Doaly from working for a company in Birmingham, England, to the front page of comic covers seen all over the world. Signing at Comic-con events. It's quite the transformation.
Tarlochan Doal, AKA Doaly, spent 15 years as a full time in-house web and UX designer. Illustration was the side hustle he did to scratch a creative itch, designing movie posters for films he loved.
Then one Saturday morning, Doaly woke to an email from a movie studio. And his whole script changed.
This episode of the Being Freelance podcast with Steve Folland covers:
- Why he filled his portfolio with the work he wanted to be hired for, and how design blogs and social media got it in front of the right people
- The passion projects that catapulted his career — including a Wonder Woman piece that sold 1,500 posters in a weekend and let him quit his day job
- Using UX contracting to bridge the financial gap in his first year of full-time freelancing
- Building a garden office to separate work from home - because when you love what you do, you'll work all day and night if you let yourself
- How a random 45-minute conversation at a New York convention led to his first Marvel Comics cover
- Multiple income streams across movies, comics, book covers and advertising - so no single client base can sink you
- The weekly phone calls with a fellow designer that serve as his informal co-mentoring
It's one hell of a story. And you might think - well, I'm not trying to work with Marvel, how will this freelancer's story relate to me? But there's so much relatable freelance advice and business tips to be drawn from his experiences.

--
EPISODE SPONSOR
This episode of the Being Freelance podcast is supported by Ecamm.

For years people have asked how Being Freelance live shows look so good. Well, this is the secret.

Ecamm is a video studio for your Mac. 
Give anything you do with video, a pro look in real time.
Presentations, screen shares, webinars, video calls, demos. Plus livestream/record in landscape & vertical at the same time, perfectly designed for both formats.
Visit beingfreelance.com/ecamm to try Ecamm for free and use the code BEINGFREELANCE on that link to save 15% on your first payment.

JOIN THE COMMUNITY
You're not alone being freelance.
Come and hang out with your BFFs (Being Freelance Friends).
beingfreelance.com/community
 
NEW TO FREELANCING? THERE'S A COURSE FOR YOU!
The Being Freelance course is made for you!
Take the course and you'll also get 6 months FREE community membership.
 
FREELANCER MERCH
Get Being Freelance merchandise at beingfreelance.com/shop
Like VIDEO? - Check out the Being Freelance on:
Instagram - Instagram.com/beingfreelance
YouTube - YouTube.com/SteveFolland

Being Freelance is hosted and created by freelance podcast editor Steve Folland.