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Topic: What would you do if ...
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| writesonwater | Posted – 10/18/2006 4:21:34 AM | show profile | email poster What would you do if a start-up magazine hired you to do articles. You got the contracts and everything, and completed oh, say about $4,000 worth of work. A first issue comes out, and you expect your first payment within 30 days. No such luck. Startup is delayed, and your pay is delayed. Then they start up, and still fail to pay you. All is chaos; the editor who gave you the contract is so disorganized and unprofessional that surely it's only a matter of time until either the whole thing folds or he gets fired. 120 days in, you are asked to rewrite one of the stories. Busy with work that actually pays, do you do the rewrite if you haven't gotten a nickel yet? Four months later, still not a nickel. They prepare to put out a second edition, and seem to have stabilized. At this point, as might be predicted, the first editor is fired. On his way out the door, he tells you the company is good, and that he needs to resubmit the contracts because the publishers lost them. The publishers say he never submitted them. Whatever. You have re-submitted them, with growing irritation. However, the assistant and gatekeeper assures you the invoices will be paid. Two questions: Time for an attorney? And if asked for a rewrite/additional sidebar material, what would you do? |
| Thabit | Posted – 10/18/2006 8:50:58 AM | show profile Had a similar situation, I would say it's time to step up trying to get paid (you may not necessarily need a lawyer) but make that your focus because that's a lot of outstanding money. No way would I re-work the material, that's one of those emails I would feign got caught in the spam filter. Repeatedly, if necessary. If they actually phone you, blame email then say you've been meaning to get in touch but you're swamped. And, by the way, do they know anything about the payment? You could try the "I'll rewrite once you've paid me" tack, but I've found editors don't respond well to strongarming. If the start-up is in chaos, it's unlikely they'll take on one more task, eg getting you paid just for a rewrite. HTH and let us know what happens... |
| pleiades | Posted – 10/18/2006 9:02:36 AM | show profile Rewrites are part of the deal. Insist on being paid additional money if you're adding a good chunk of additional words (such as a sidebar) but don't ignore the new editor's request for a rewrite. He or she has no control over what the old editor did. At the mag I work for, even though we pay on acceptance, I don't pay a writer until I'm happy with the product and that includes any rewrites. In other words, as a writer, I wouldn't expect any money until I completed the rewrite. It just sucks that it took them so long to tell you they wanted a rewrite. And it sucks that it's taking so long for you to get paid but I can see how this would happen with a start-up, especially if the powers-that-be keep changing. I'd give it 45 days with the new editor. If you still haven't been paid, then I'd take real action. At least, that's what I would do. |
| Village Gal | Posted – 10/18/2006 9:23:43 AM | show profile sorry this happened but this points out the risk of working for start ups, esp to that amout of money. |
| nellie bly | Posted – 10/18/2006 9:57:07 AM | show profile It's amazing how many excuses people/companies come up with for not writing a check! I think any writer who has had a similiar experience would probably say don't do any more work for them, even a rewrite, until they pay you what they owe. It sounds like the first piece was already published and payment is overdue, so I'd tell them they should meet their contractual obligations and pay you that amount RIGHT NOW! TODAY! If they do, you should consider doing the rewrite. After all, you did agree to payment on publication. If the magazine folds before they publish the other pieces, you can always market them elsewhere. Also, if you don't do the rewrite, they may butcher it, and use it as an excuse not to pay you. Yes, the situation sucks. As the above poster pointed out, this is the risk writing for start-ups. After one experience with a start-up (I did finally get paid, though many others didn't) that published about 5 issues, then died, I'm very, very leery. I wouldn't write for a start-up unless it was bankrolled by a somebody with big bucks and payment was on acceptance. The other time I dealt with a mag in chaos, it was a much beloved regional in its last days. When my editor left abruptly, I managed to collect my writing fee from the publisher, but I found out years later they reconfigured my piece and published it in the last issue. Never got a copy, not even sure if they used my byline. Good luck. I'm sorry you have to go through this, but everyone has at least one similar story. Let us know what happens... |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 10/18/2006 11:00:22 AM | show profile I would tell them that they are long behind on payment and I can't do any additional work for them until they are caught up. Then I would ask for a definitive time when payment will come and sue them in small claims court if it didn't arrive. For the future, if you deal with startups, it's wise to work on a one at a time basis -- meaning, never start on a second story for them until they've paid for the first. |
| mkelly | Posted – 10/18/2006 2:18:46 PM | show profile Actually, if you can afford to lose their business, insist on an advance payment of, say, 25 percent of the money. Or half the fee wired to you the day you deliver the draft, with the rest due upon final publication, or something like that. |
| Angela Dobbs | Posted – 10/18/2006 2:47:46 PM | show profile Hmmm. Had similar experience with a start-up... care to share the name? |
| scribechick | Posted – 10/18/2006 3:46:45 PM | show profile start-up is a red flag Some time ago, I fell into a new mag. I thought how great it was that I could make a lot of the editorial decisions. I was so enthusiastic. Guess what? The mag had one issue and flopped. Pay was low and I had to fight the editor for it. My advice: Stay clear of start-ups unless you have the time and don't need to eat. |
| writesonwater | Posted – 10/18/2006 9:30:24 PM | show profile | email poster Appreciating the input. As i recall, one issue was printed and another was on the presses when they asked for the rewrite. I said I was too covered up, and asked for money. Time proves I would have been throwing good effort after bad to do the rewrite -- seven months in, I haven't seen a dime. I am going to try the lawyer route -- but will be happy to out them if that doesn't take. |
| nellie bly | Posted – 10/19/2006 12:21:04 PM | show profile hey wow--you do realize the acronym for your screenname is wow, don't you:-) how cool--sorry, I didnt get the timeline. I assumed they were asking you to do the rewrite now, not weeks ago. probably best to go the attorney route. Once a deadbeat co. realizes they're not going get any more free work out of you, they have even less imotivation to pay up. If they had zero motivation to begin with, well...time to bring in the collection agents |
| writesonwater | Posted – 10/19/2006 2:49:30 PM | show profile | email poster wow, nellie -- that's not whoa, nellie ... your screen name's pretty significant there, too. Never notice that but it makes perfect sense ... Wow. Thanks for the input. Yes, it's probably time to go the lawyer route. |
