Putting the FREE into Freelance; Fame & The Opportunity to Pay Us to Write
Here are our contestants for the exposure contest this week. Professional writers know that people die of exposure and so do writing businesses that don’t insist on a fair wage. We can only hope that these businesses that insist on not paying a fair wage will too. (Disclaimer: These partial ads in quotes were taken as they were posted on online job sites, including grammar and spelling mistakes.) Go to comments to vote for your favorite!
1). “We are hiring columnists for the interviewing Columnists will also be able to do celebrity interview features. First published piece will be freelance then $25 per article and $50 per feature.”
2). “Company is seeking people to write advertisments for them...you can do it when you're bored online. Pays commission...if the ad you write makes a sale, then you make the cash!! You generally make about $30 per advertisment that creates a sale. Probably not a full time job, but hey, i guess if you sell enough you can make it....”
3). “We need stories, editorials, photos, and research, and in exchange we offer you fame and publication (and $10) if we publish you. If you give us exclusive rights to publish the work for one year, and we publish it, we'll give you $10.”
4). “I am in need of a couple of dependable article writers IMMEDIATELY. The pay on these articles is $3 each. Listen, I need dependable writers, not those who will take a large chunk of work and then dump it back on me a day before the deadline.”
And my personal favorite this week:
5). “We publish erotic literature with a continental twist! There’s a reading fee and we only respond and accept writers (both up-and-coming and established), who are serious about writing and are willing to market their work. This is a start-up venture with potential as awesome as you are!”
posted by Kerri Fivecoat-Campbell at 7:21 AM
8 Comments:
And so where do I go to apply? ;)
Perhaps the distinction needs to be drawn between the motivation for writing and the reward anticipated! As a veteran free-lancer, I have determined that the reason I write (for the reader) is to inform and entertain . . the reason I write (for me) is to satisfy my desire to express myself through an established and respected art form . . of which I believe creative writing to be at or near the pinnacle of expressionism! I have never viewed my writing to be a venue for life-sustaining income. For me, it is a gift that I enjoy to its fullest by sharing it with others through both fact and fiction! I cannot imagine it, but should I someday choose to exchange the gift for monetray reimbursement, I think I would fully understand and support the concept that I must earn and sustain credibility as a highly-sought author . . from which point I could negotiate a reasonable level of compensation! I feel comfortable in stating, for the record, that I would NEVER respond to any of the ads that Kerri has listed. My work is a "present" to those who would enjoy it, and it is not for sale to some "sweat shop" publisher who could then take credit for something I enjoy so much! This is all about the story! It is about taking the reader to a place and time they have not yet been . . whether to satisfy some curiosity, or perhaps just to dream!
You make some very good comments, Kerri.
The worst Craigslist writing ad I saw was one that was blatantly ethically challenged, and wanted writers to mention product names in exchange for money.
Don't forget that there are also some very, very funny ads for writers at newspapers and magazines who are expected to work 60 hours a week, produce three stories a day, paginate and edit three pages a day, take award-winning photographs, be available for two night meetings a week, and be on call constantly -- all for the salary of $18,000 a year.
Thank you for reading and for your comments, anonymous. I think what you're describing is a hobbyist, rather than a 'freelancer,' right? By definition, a freelancer or independent contractor is an "artist or writer who sells their services to different employers without a long term contract with any of them." - Answers.com
And, yes, Mary, I know those ads well as I worked in one of those newsrooms once upon a time!
I like the porno one. Do you think the writer is building a porno site and wishes to give it a "literary" twist?
Bertie
“We publish erotic literature with a continental twist! There’s a reading fee and we only respond and accept writers (both up-and-coming and established), who are serious about writing and are willing to market their work. This is a start-up venture with potential as awesome as you are!”
So wait, I get to pay them for the privilege of writing something for free and doing my own marketing? Where do I sign?
Kristen
hahaha
Hi
I would like to take the assignment of writing rewriting articles as well as serious writing assignment.
I am a writer and would like to write on some intersting projects.
kindly send me details at simransodhi99@yahoo.com
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