Finding a community in journalism TikTok journey is critical. The support I’ve received from the coaches and members of CCA has been UNMATCHED!!

If you stumbled onto this page while searching for freelance journalism communities, you probably already know how isolating it is to pitch articles from your kitchen counter. In this video, I am sitting in my car talking directly to my phone about the CCA coaching group. I was trying to explain how finding other writers who actually understand the chaos of deadlines and toddler tantrums completely shifted my perspective. Working from home sounds glamorous until you realize you have not spoken to another adult in two days.

My honest take is that paying for a professional community feels incredibly intimidating when you are just starting out. I was skeptical. But having access to actual coaches and a private forum of peers saved me from giving up entirely. If you look closely at my glasses during the second frame of this clip, you can see the reflection of a bright blue plastic dinosaur on my dashboard. I was trying so hard to sound like a serious journalist while my minivan was actively outing my current stage of motherhood.

This did not exactly break the internet. It got just over a hundred views total. However, the engagement rate was surprisingly high. The women who saw it really interacted with it because genuine gratitude resonates way better than a canned script. People want to know they are not the only ones struggling in a vacuum. My one note for my future self is to put the text hook on screen way faster. I spent the first two seconds just taking a breath, which is an absolute lifetime in internet seconds.