This is
probably it for me and writing. I've had enough. I've had enough of
being asked to give my time, experience and - yes Goddamnit – my
talent away for free. I've had enough of being told that my writing
is valued, just not in a monetary sense. Enough is enough.
Don't
get me wrong; I'm not one of those people driven solely by money. I
actually loathe people obsessed with money. They bore me senseless. A
friend recently asked me point blank how much money I make a year,
and man did she cop an earful. She was almost dropped on the spot,
because who fucking cares? Of all the stupid, pointless questions to
ask someone... I believe you should respect what a person does (or
not, in the case of advertising people, sales people, advertising
gurus and criminal lawyers), not how much they earn.
But money
is a necessary evil. Few of us have much choice but to work at a job
we may or may not like but have to do each day to pay the bills. If
you've got a job you love doing, you are one of the lucky ones. There
are a lot of you around, but you're also pretty rare. I reckon 99% of
the people you encounter during the day are just doing their job
because it's all they can do. Except for the career drones mentioned
above who are just leeches with money coursing through their
veins.
People generally end up doing something that they have
a little bit of aptitude for or something they have a bit of an
interest in. Or maybe they don't have any interest in what they do
for a living but they've somehow ended up there and what the hell,
you have to do something. Gotta pay the bills somehow. And in any
case, maybe driving a bus all day long is mind-numbing, but at least
I don't have to deal with people and be nice to them. Or sure,
dealing with idiots all day sucks the life out of me, but at least
it's better than digging ditches. Or sure, digging ditches all day
long is ruining my back, but at least working outside is better than
working in an office. Or sure, crunching numbers all day long in
front of a computer screen in an office is making me go slowly
insane, but at least I can live with my conscience, unlike criminal
defence lawyers. Or sure, defending criminals I know are guilty poses
a few moral dilemmas and basically I am breathing scum, but fuck me
the money is soooo good.
But at least all these people
get paid for their efforts. Sometimes it's not a lot, but if it's not
enough you work more hours or take on another job, you do whatever
you have to do to make ends meet. Employers, generally, understand
that they need an employee's efforts. They understand that the
contract is basically swapping hours for dollars. They need your
thinking or your hands, your time and effort and in return they give
you the stuff you need to make the wheels turn.
So why... why
do so many publishers expect writers to give their time and effort
for free? Not just writers but most creatives are expected to donate
for free because... well why? Why the fuck should we keep saying yeah
sure, I'll do it for free because it will be good for my portfolio?
My
portfolio is in reasonably healthy shape, so basically, fuck off. You
want me to sit down and put time and effort and care into writing
something that you need? Show me the money! I won't even ask a lot,
but something would be nice.
I
recently had a music mag approach me and tell me that they really
like my writing and that they'd love to have me on board. Great, I
said, what are your rates? Rates will be discussed after your first
two on-spec articles. With new writers, they said, we ask that they
contribute the first two stories for free, then if we take them on on
a regular basis we discuss payment. It's kind of a probation period –
if you don't stuff up the first two stories, then we can talk about
payment.
The thing is, at times I've made my living from
making words. I've interviewed countless performing artists. I've
been doing this job for quite some time now. The chances of me
stuffing up the first two stories is pretty damned slim. In fact, I
told the music mag, how about this: I'll do the first two stories on
spec, but if they are good enough for you to use, you pay me for
them.
I haven't heard from the music mag since. Am I just
being cynical in thinking that they get an awful lot of first two
stories for free and don't follow up with ongoing stories for
payment?
The same principle applies everywhere. As print media
goes the way of dinosaurs, online mags are springing up every day
with the promise of giving new writing talent the opportunity to be
published. Just don't expect payment for it because the real pay-off
is in “how good it's going to look in your portfolio.”
And they
get away with it because new writers come along every day and go hey
yeah, this will
look good in my portfolio; finally I really am
going to be a published writer.
I know online mags are
start-ups and they have costs to meet which make budgets tight. But
so does any small business. As we speak, I'm starting up a cafe. Can
I ask any of my suppliers – the coffee guy or the milk guy - to
donate their time and services because it will look good on their
resume? Can I ask them to donate their time and money because they
love what they are doing? The coffee guy might be passionate about
his coffee but I still don't expect him to deliver it for free. Would
I expect staff to work for free so they can get a foot in the door?
It wouldn't occur to me to ask someone to work for free.
So
why should writers write for free? Sure, for most writers it's in
your blood. It's just what we do. We can't stop doing it. Best
response to someone being asked why they write that I ever read was,
why do you have dark hair? Some things just are.
But writing,
it's still a thing of value, no matter how much it's a part of our
nature or how much we love doing it. Online magazines may have
budgets, but I bet they don't ask their other suppliers to work for
free. I bet they pay their tech support. I bet they pay their rent. I
bet they pay their fucking coffee guy.
Then why don't they pay
their story suppliers? Magazines would be nothing without written
contributions, so why do they expect written content to be delivered
for free?
Furthermore, why do writers agree to this shitty
contract? Just stop doing it. Stop bending over and taking it from
behind. Tell them no, I am worth something. I care about what I do.
Sometimes I care so much about what I am writing that I cry tears of
blood. In my down times, I definitely care more about this copy than
the cleaners care about cleaning your office, so if you pay them why
don't you pay me?