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Topic: Freelance Expenses (Life After an Expense Acct)
| Author | Message |
| a.s. | Posted – 2/8/2008 1:33:48 PM | show profile | email poster How does a freelance writer deal with the expenses associated with writing a piece? If you take a source or flak out to lunch -- thereby maintaining the facade of journalistic integrity by not letting him pay for you -- do you just have to eat the cost along with the meal? Are there certain costs that you can get reimbursed for if/when you sell a story? |
| mkelly | Posted – 2/8/2008 2:59:22 PM | show profile That depends on how the editor answers your question: 'What about any expenses I might incur for writing this story, such as taking someone out to lunch?' Which, of course, you asked the editor before starting the assignment. |
| caitlinkelly | Posted – 2/8/2008 4:04:52 PM | show profile I think it also depends on the fee you're getting relative to your costs to produce it. I don't bill for phone expenses, very rarely ask for gas/tolls and rarely take anyone out to eat. If the fee is $5,000, I'd suck up a $50 or $100 lunch. Maybe if you're getting $500 or $1,000 I would be sure to ask if they will cover such an expense, in advance of incurring it. If someone is a major repeat client (i.e. providing me with five figures a year in income) I'm unlikely to ask them for expense money. |
