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Topic: Contract, Negotiations, & Invoices, oh my!
| Author | Message |
| Ronasaurus Rex | Posted – 8/7/2008 3:32:42 PM | show profile I've landed my first freelance writing gig for a big glossy regional magazine. Yay! But here's the trouble: The editor said he'd sent me a contract. No contract yet. Is it true that the contract protects the magazine more than it does me? In our phone conversation, the editor assigned me a 300-400 word article and said he can pay me about $300. Since then, the article has ballooned to more than 700 words (by the editor's request). Should I renegotiate for more? The submission guidelines state I should submit an invoice with my article. When do most freelancers do this? Should I wait until it's accepted and then submit or do it now? |
| candylilacs | Posted – 8/7/2008 9:18:45 PM | show profile Send the invoice after you send the piece over. You can find one in you Microsoft Word templates. As for the contract, typically most mags want first North American rights and many regional publications want to make sure they're the only place in the region to have the story (when I wrote for a mag in SoCal, they had writing that said basically, "This story cannot be printed in any publication in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino or Ventura counties until 30 days after it appears [in this pub.]" Just try not to sign away all rights, you may want to resell in the future. As for pay, I would have a discussion with said editor in a nonjudgmental and convivial way (because they are paying you, after all,) "Hey, XXX, I remember the piece originally being 350 words and now it's double that. Any chance we can renegotiate my fee?" I'd hope the editor would cough up at least another $50 (if not $100.) If s/he says no, you have your answer and you can choose not to work for them again. Good luck! ------ Dealing with being laid off, so you don't have to! www.laidoffjournal.com |
| recorder | Posted – 8/8/2008 12:38:35 PM | show profile Well, the magazine is giving you a contract written by its lawyers, so they're goal is to protect themselves. But, you can always ask for modifications to protect yourself. As for the pay, you should definitely ask for an increase. And try to get them to tell you what rate they're using (i.e. how many dollars per word or some such) so that you know what to expect should the piece change again or if you work for them in the future. Make sure that the word count and the payment amount are included in the contract and since this is a new client, definitely review the contract before starting the work. As for the invoice, I usually e-mail my story and send the invoice immediately after. |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 8/8/2008 1:30:16 PM | show profile Typically, when an editor asks for more information that I see will expand the word count, I always say, "Sure, be happy to. Of course, I based on the fee on a certain word length and amount of work. I am happy to expand it and I assume the rate will increase on a prorated basis?" If they say they can't, then we have a discussion. Let's say they pay $1 a word. I say: "Well, if you had told me from the start you wanted a 700 word article, you would have paid me $700 right? So why do you think you should now pay $300 for a 700 article just because you commissioned it in two steps? I don't understand that. Can you please explain it to me?" |
| Ronasaurus Rex | Posted – 8/11/2008 3:42:53 PM | show profile Thanks! Time to put on my negotiator hat! |
| abqwriter | Posted – 8/11/2008 8:33:23 PM | show profile | email poster Many magazines have standard pay rates - per word, per feature type, etc. Does this one? If so, that will give you a good idea of what, how and when to negotiate changes. If the pay is a standard amount for a certain magazine feature, you'll likely not see any more pay for the piece. If, however, it is based on word-count, it shouldn't be too hard to ask for a higher fee. I just finished a feature that was supposed to be 800 words and blossomed to 2500 due to changes the editor asked me to make due to additional ad sales that would go with the piece. Since the work I do for this magazine is based on a per-word basis, I knew up front that the new word count would be covered with a higher fee, so there was no need to even bring it up. When I was freelancing for a particular editor at our paper a few years ago, he would constantly under-assign a piece and then try to not pay for the additional work he always asked for. How I dealt with him is that I sent him "official bids" even though the paper didn't ask for them. Then he had an official amount of words, time for research and rewrites, etc. that I was stating up front that I would do. When I went over that amount, I'd simply ask him, "Ok, now this will put me over the original amount. Will that still work for you?" He stopped under-assigning my projects, and we worked fine after that. Good luck - and congrats on the assignment! |
| Ronasaurus Rex | Posted – 8/14/2008 1:26:59 PM | show profile Unfortunately, the magazine doesn't state a specific rate but negotiates with each writer based on the article and experience. Ick. Nonetheless, the editor offered another $50 without hesitation, explaining that my 700 words was going to get clipped to 450 anyway and that this was the going rate for this type of FOB work. I accepted, happy for a little more (especially since I know he's now doing more work to trim my story) and told him I'd gladly accept a raise when I have a few more notches in my belt. He responded well to the suggestion and asked for more queries! |
| snappiness | Posted – 8/14/2008 3:02:59 PM | show profile contract I don't start working until I have a contract or assignment letter. I have had work killed that I had already started working on, so now I just don't work until there's a contract protecting me. Just last week I emailed a magazine that gave me an assignment but hasn't sent the contract and said, essentially, "We talked about the piece but I still haven't received the contract. I'm scheduling my fall work, and was wondering if I should factor this in." The editor said she was ironing out a few more issues and would send the contract soon. I told her I would schedule it in and if something else came up I'd let her know -- making it clear that I'd take the other job before hers if I still didn't have a contract. I will say it sounds like you have a great attitude -- flexible, agreeable, happy to work with the magazine. That's a great way to start off. I wouldn't get too hung up on contracts and protecting yourself just yet. I've found that the majority of the time things run smoothly and editors are reliable and straightforward. Contracts are for those very few times when things don't go that way. But in the early stages of your career, it's better not to get nitpicky about that stuff. Once you get some work under your belt and are in demand, then you can be a little less flexible. It sounds like you have started a great relationship with this editor. |
