Freelancer Magazine has appointed Joanna Cummings as editor. Sophie Cross, a marketing professional, launched Freelancer Magazine five years ago for freelancers and self-employed professionals. She says she is now stepping aside from editorial to focus on community connection and to make room for fresh editorial energy.
Previously, Cummings launched The Grub Street Journal, a magazine about the magazine industry, worked in bookshops and libraries and now works as a fractional editor, editorial strategist and bespoke magazine maker. Her past publishing career spans chemistry, cannabis science, crafts, and kids’ content – a portfolio she describes as emblematic of magazine work itself.
"That's the absolute joy of working in magazines," Cummings said. "The crazy variety."
Cummings has been making magazines since childhood but didn't recognise it as a career until her early thirties. "It took my friend saying, 'You should do a Publishing Masters' at the age of 32 for the penny to drop," she recalled. "I moved to Edinburgh, fell in love with the frenetic pace of magazines, and here I am."
For Cummings, the Freelancer Magazine appointment represents the convergence of her core conviction: that magazines create community in ways nothing else can. "Magazines bring people together around a common purpose," Cummings said. "In magazines, community is everything.”
She says she’s drawn to Freelancer Magazine specifically because of what it has already built. “Freelancer Magazine is well-known in the indie magazine industry for having the most incredible community around it. I love the focus, the tone, the contributors – everything that makes it the powerhouse that it is."
Cummings is joining a fully freelance team that includes Creative Lead Angela Lyons, Features Writer Penny Brazier, Illustrator Amy Nolan, and regular expert columnists including Divya Agrawal, Siân Pelleschi, Steve Folland, Jess Bruno, and Emma Truscott. Sophie Cross continues as chief connector, overseeing community strategy while Joanna leads editorial direction.
Cummings' first issue as editor-in-chief – Issue #21, themed Creating Connections: Marketing & Messaging – launches April 2026.
