If you’re interested in joining The Indiependent contributor team then all you have to do is fill in the application form below.
Please read our FAQ below before applying.
If you’re unsure about anything to do with writing for us then drop us a tweet @indie_pendent or an email – [email protected]
Please note: we get hundreds of applications each month and because we are volunteer-led we are not able to confirm we have received your application. We process applications on a monthly basis so please do not chase us if it’s only been a couple of weeks.
FAQs
If you’ve written for other publications or your own blog before, that’s great, but not something we exclusively look for in applicants. The point of our site is to give aspiring journalists a leg up – we’re here to open doors to people who’ve not written for a site before, therefore it would be pointless if we were to discriminate against applicants depending on their level of experience.
Yes, of course! We currently have writers from Australia, USA and parts of Europe. However, our editorial team is English – please do not submit applications in a language other than English, and bear in mind that we will only accept applicants who comply with our standards of spelling, punctuation and grammar.
No, sadly we can’t commission pieces
Although we do have ads on our site we’re not even covering our hosting costs – the founder Beth Kirkbride pays to maintain the site out of her own pocket so unfortunately this means we are not able to commission pieces.
The Indiependent offers you a chance to practice writing articles – our principal selling point is the fact that we give writers a chance to develop and improve their individual journalistic voice under the guidance of our supportive team of editors who are always available to give feedback and tell you how to improve your work. If you’re in secondary school, sixth form, college or university, or are looking to change career then The Indiependent aims to provide you with that chance to get a leg up into the world of journalism.
Many of our contributors have gone on to study related degrees (journalism, media, film studies, English etc.) at University, and some of our team have gone on to work with national publications which we like to think we helped them to achieve by giving them a platform where they could build a portfolio. If you’re planning on applying to University then writing for The Indiependent is a great personal statement project!
We encourage contributors to create their own portfolio sites to showcase their work – we only ask that you link back to The Indiependent site to encourage maximum traffic for your articles. We discourage contributors from submitting articles they’ve written for us to other sites (or vice versa) as usually they will have strict submission policies which state that they do not want to publish or share content from elsewhere. If you’re ever feeling frustrated by how quickly your piece is put live we would advise you to speak to a member of the senior editorial team before you send the piece to another platform to ensure we’ve done everything possible to publish your work in a timely fashion.
There is no fixed rule e.g. ‘write an article or you’re out’ – although we suggest you try and write at least one article per month to keep your skills fresh.
We have no upper limit regarding how many pieces you can submit. All we ask is you show a continual interest in writing for the site, and we’ll make sure you remain a valued and integral part of our team.
The first thing we will assess is that you have proficient spelling, punctuation and grammar. Make sure you read over your application before you hit send! Then, we’ll look for enthusiasm and flair. If we get lots of applicants for one section, we may be forced to choose between you and someone else (this is especially the case for Music, which is our largest section). Therefore, use this application as an opportunity to sell yourself to us. We don’t want a team of people who are all the same – bring your personality to the fore.
We advertise editorial positions internally to our contributor team, so if you are interested in these roles we recommend you apply as a contributor. Recent contributors are welcome to apply for editorial roles as of when they become available – so the length of time you’ve been writing for the site won’t be an issue. We appoint based on passion for the role, and proven track record of high quality writing.
The Indiependent is a platform for aspiring writers of all ages to showcase their work – including late-stage career changers.
Our team has contributors currently in Y11/sixth form, as well as a combination of university students, recent graduates, and more mature professionals.
The majority of the editorial team are current university students/recent graduates. So long as you are happy with your work being edited by someone who may be younger than you, we encourage you to apply to join our team.