Two years of replenishment - and joyful rage - at The D*List

This moment in time two years ago, I was nervously refreshing our domain website name to see it go live.

I’d spent the last month and a half pulling together a range of stories to share with the world that felt replenishing and validating for disabled people. A space just for us to revel in being unapologetically disabled. Although sometimes messy and uncomfortable, we wanted a place to read stories that make you want to yell: ‘Ah, finally!’ 

As soon as we went live, I went into ‘newsroom mode’, publishing as many stories as we could. At the time, we were just experimenting to see which ones resonated with our audiences, which formats were sustainable for us to continue and which ones we felt were our communities’ duty to tell. It was fun and exciting - but also unrealistic to be publishing so many stories with the capacity and resources we had at the time. All this pressure was self-imposed, of course!

It took me at least six months to properly slow down and unlearn a lot of the habits I’d picked up at other corporate and capitalist-minded organisations. And while I’m still learning (and unlearning), I’m really proud of the growth our entire D*List team has made to create this place on the internet - and now in person! - that we dreamed of two years ago. So here are three things I’ve learnt being the editor at The D*List.

Always put forward what you can offer first

After a few months of working outside a mainstream media organisation, I was confronted with the uncomfortable realisation of the transactional nature of working there. I was cold calling people everyday asking them to share often personal stories for a news article, interviewing them for the most headline-worthy quote and then, most often than not, never contacting them again. Now that’s not to say I was doing anything particularly harmful, and I know my reporting made a positive, real-life impact on some people. But after working in partnership with community and seeing different ways of doing things, I saw the value of making an offer first before ‘extracting’ a story. 

What the ‘offer’ is looks different for everyone. It might look like a Prezzy card koha or commissioning fee. It might look like participating in one of our free creative workshops. Or it could be supporting people to develop their writing skills alongside our D*List kaimahi. I think one of the most valuable things that we can offer at The D*List that I couldn’t do elsewhere is an ongoing relationship beyond an article - whether it was further opportunities for collaboration or an invitation for a cup of tea and biscuit at our community hub.

Good relationships are the most important thing in authentic storytelling

Often when we get an email from a community member with a pitch idea, the first thing I suggest is to meet up in-person or over Zoom to have whakawhanaungatanga. We love meeting new people but also we want our contributors to feel comfortable that The D*List is the right platform for them to share their story. By getting to know each other and building relationships, our storytelling is richer because we’re on the same page and there’s a level of trust with how their story is told. Often as disabled people, our stories in the past have been - and continue to be - sensationalised and resort to stereotypes to sell the story.  Sometimes a relationship won’t lead to a published story, which would frustrate past-Olivia. But we see stories as a taonga whether they are published or not; it is an honour to hear them anyway. 

The trickiest situations I’ve had to navigate in my time as editor is when I haven’t had an established relationship with a potential contributor. Perhaps I hadn’t met with someone first and the way I gave feedback hadn’t landed well. So I learnt very quickly that hard conversations are easier to have when you know someone - at least better than as a distant acquaintance over email. And when someone feels they know you, they often share more transparently what they need support with, which helps the overall quality of the work but the authenticity of the storytelling too.

Soaking up the wisdom

One of the first things I learnt - ironically - is that I have a lot to learn. Coming to the realisation that I didn’t know everything was humbling and uncomfortable at first, but I learnt to lean into the discomfort. Being stretched was painful, but growing into this role became easier with time. 

Over the last two years, I’ve been lucky to work with many people who have generously passed on their wisdom to me. I learnt the importance of nurturing people and working at the pace of community from Tania. A whole new Gen Z language from Beth. Being patient with a creative process from Keke. How strong visual storytelling can give you shivers from Will. How to sing a mean waiata and the stories behind them from Eda. The importance of adjusting the way you work depending on the need from Von. The importance of a good breakfast and chat before starting the week with Ella. How working from a bean bag can positively impact productivity from Joegen. And how a friendly follow up call doesn't automatically translate into nagging from working with Kim.

I have so much gratitude towards Red and The D*List Trust Board who believed I was the right person for this job. And finally a big thank you to our contributors who have trusted us with their stories. It’s the disability communities in Aotearoa that make The D*List.

In June 2023, we promised readers we would “publish new content that will surprise you and leave you feeling hopeful, replenished and a bit feisty”. And I think we have done that together, so happy two year anniversary to all of us! 

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