The Writing Life: money for nothing
A friend of mine is a therapist and says you should always charge clients. If you don’t, she tells me, they take your work for granted and the sessions are a waste of time. I wish somebody would tell this to the myriad events organisers who think professional writers gain more from speaking gratis at back-of-beyond festivals than festivals gain from having a well known name to draw punters through the door.
But it’s good for your profile, organisers claim. Whose? Certainly not ours. Unless we have a book to sell, there is little to be gained from appearing at events for free. And, even with a book to publicise, serious questions need to be asked about the likelihood of selling enough copies to cover the cost in time and effort. I have lost count of the writers who’ve been told by audience members: ‘I’ll buy your book on Amazon when I get home.’ Well, I’ll let you into a secret: buy it at the event and the author will make some money.
Unless an event is on a par with Cheltenham, Harrogate, Hay or Edinburgh, it is unlikely the presence of a well-known writer will be anything but marketing for the event itself – the bigger the names: the bigger the draw. That is why the best run festivals and conferences recognise that ticket prices should include a percentage to pay speakers.
They should also offer travel expenses. I know, you are wondering who on earth expects speakers to pay for their own travel? You’d be surprised. I know of more than one writer who has agreed to appear at an event hundreds of miles from home only to be told that ‘there is no travel budget’.
The reaction to requests for payment says much about attitudes in our society to professional creativity. When pointed out that no fee or expenses mean guest speakers subsidise events, organisers can react aggressively as if the very mention of money in connection with Art debases the creator and their work.
Well, believe it or not, some of us need the money to pay for those little luxuries in life. You know what I mean: housing, food that sort of thing. Astonishing isn’t it?
Few other professionals encounter such contempt when the issue of payment is raised. Can you imagine offering an electrician ‘great word-of-mouth’ in return for his labour? Or telling a plumber you’ll give them a positive review on Check-a-Trader rather than pay? Even my lively imagination can’t envisage a lawyer or accountant waiving their fee in exchange for publicity on Twitter.
But writers are often coerced into feeling embarrassed about money. The mentality reflects a widespread myth that writing full time is not ‘proper work’, as if everyone else works down a mine. The value of words finely turned has been debased by the freeconomy of the internet – whether by content hungry websites unwilling to share ad revenue or writing wannabes willing to work for free as long as they can say they are published. It has also been encouraged by the myth that we all have a book inside us. Well, we don’t. Most don’t even have a decent short story (present company excepted, obviously). Writing involves skill, effort and talent.
I know, I sound harsh, but the reason professional writers are able to write for a living is that they know how to write, which is why editors and readers are willing to pay for their books and journalism. There is nothing dilettante in their approach to deadlines, copy or research. This is also why unpublished authors are willing to pay money to hear them speak – though I wonder how many audiences realise speakers are the only ones not to get a cut of the ticket price at certain events.
It is not as if authors have nothing else to do. By taking time to share expertise and inside knowledge, professional writers sacrifice potential income from writing books or articles. ‘I ask for a fee for the same reasons anyone expects to be paid to work. I can’t afford not to, I’m a professional, I’m worth it,’ says author and popular speaker Nicola Morgan. She adds: ‘I find that people who pay a fee will (a) put more work into the organisation and (b) value what I do.’
Me? I ask for a fee because I know what I am talking about. I have spent over 15 years writing about the publishing industry and have a proven track record. I also expect to be paid because when I chair an event or run a workshop I spend days preparing: reading panelists’ books; working out appropriate questions with the organisers and panelists; working out timing; writing scripts; researching new developments; and preparing slides and handouts. I don’t just turn up on the day and hope it goes well.
I’ve been to events when it’s clear that those on stage have spent no time considering the audience or preparing. I have had to sit through PR puffs for books or services that teach the audience nothing of value and leave a bitter taste if I paid for my ticket. I have also sat through events where the speakers have clearly spent time and effort trying to understand the needs of the audience and have delivered impressive presentations. Sure such events enhance the speakers’ reputation, but they enhance the event’s reputation even more by creating good word-of-mouth.
If organisers want audiences to feel they’ve received value for money, they will have far more control over the quality of presentations if money changes hands. But if they want writers to subsidise their events in exchange for spurious promises of ‘profile building’, they should consider the work involved and that some speakers conflate ‘no fee’ with ‘no accountability’. And if they still think asking for money is cheap, they should remember something else my therapist friend says: ‘You get what you pay for.’
© Danuta Kean 2012
32 Responses to “The Writing Life: money for nothing”
You make a very good point. I always insist on proper payment for gigs at festivals, unless I am promoting a new book and there are copies for sale after the event. When I am not getting paid, the publishers pay for travel and accomodation. Trouble is, as long as a few of us accept to work for free, organisers will not see the light.
I agree with everything you say, Danuta. And then some, as I get this sort of thing all the time too. However, it must be remembered that, with publishers spending less and less on marketing and publicity, as margins get pared away, the author who is prepared to go out and self publicise has a head start on those who don’t or won’t. In fact, being the sort of author who will can often play a part in whether we commission the book or not. Joanna Trollope actually wrote a rather good article article not that long ago (can’t remember where – sorry!) talking about how getting out there and meeting one’s audience helps immeasurably to build your readership and create the hallowed ‘author brand’, which is where the money is. She schlepped around the place for years before her books really started to take off (making her yet another ‘overnight sensation’ who worked her arse off for years unnoticed) and, yes, people do tend to go away and buy the book on Amazon, but they may buy the next one and the one after too… Not to be sniffed at. Still, of course someone should pay for your time and expertise – I do hate that idea that because we don’t do something dreary, like work in a bank, our jobs are glorified hobbies – and some festivals/organisers etc are just trying it on, but it’s sometimes worth weighing up the long-term benefits, if you can possibly square the whole time/expense issue.
I couldn’t agree more. I tell my authors to charge for appearances, and I do so myself (unless the event is benefiting a charity). Just yesterday a trade directory (which promotes itself as an aid to authors) assumed they could use an article of mine that they had commissioned for last year’s directory, again in the next edition. I said sure, if they paid me again. It’s not their policy, they tell me. Well, it’s taking up the same amount of space in their publication as it did last year, and they are charging again for the new edition so … it’s not my policy to write for nothing.
Well said Danuta. It’s odd how often festival organisers (who are usually being paid) seem to think you will come and talk for the sheer pleasure involved. There is a lot of preparation involved, and if tickets are being sold, some of the profit should go to the person without whom there would be no event. To be honest, I think most audiences would be surprised to find out this is not the case.
It’s staggering, isn’t it? I’ve heard universities are also bad for this – either expecting writers to appear for nothing or taking an aeon to pay the agreed fee. Re Hay, we ought also not to forget that certain celebs are offered a BIG fee (I heard it was £10,000 for Bill Clinton) while the rest of us are getting a white rose if we’re lucky. So impoverished writers are being asked to subsidise both the festival and its more expensive and affluent guests. There’s no justice.
My university DOES pay visiting writers. So,I don’t think you can / should generalise. We may not be able to in the future, so we won’t invite them.
However, theatre companies, the BBC and some indie publishers offer free visits and they are very good. These are mostly people who have a wage (but not the indie publishers) and who care passionately about helping our young people. Obviously that could make it harder for a writer to get a gig with us.
Sometimes we academics swap free visits – it’s the only way the univeristy can afford it. It costs the academics invovled time – so more of the marking has to be done at home at the weekend.
There are lots of grey areas, so ti’s not a clear cut argument.
As a writer I now won’t do gigs unless they’re paid, local and / or for a good cause or are pure self-promotion. It’s just too exhausting.
Academics and those working for organisations such as the BBC are paid for the day job freelance writers don’t have an alternative income. I imagine that the BBC will be paying for the writers it uses on a freelance basis, even if it isn’t charging the university/school. Publishers who ask their writers to do free events usually do so as part of a marketing package for an author’s forthcoming book, so it is like paying for advertising. Events that are not selling books or using speakers without a book to promote should pay as they are using those speakers to enhance their programme. I think that is quite clear. No other worker at these events will be expected to work for free.
Great point raised. I think there’s a belief somewhere, that has people assuming authors get huge advances and are therefore loaded; hence they can afford to speak at events for no fee. But the self-published author is quite the opposite, having to market and promote their book out of their own pocket and find money to get them from post to post in order to make a few sales. I’m pretty sure these days that the traditionally published author finds it just as hard to make ends meet, unless of course they’re a celeb…
CJ x
A great post Danuta, thanks. When I was first published I said, “I’ll do everything – I’ll go anywhere and I’ll try anything once,” and that’s what I did. Some gigs were a great success (fun crowd, lots of books sold, professional PR); others mildly depressing (low turnout, poor book sales, no PR). Most requests started off with ‘no budget’, gradually ramping up to ‘expenses’ if pushed, and rarely stretching to a good honest fee. These days, I try to strike a balance, expecting to charge for literary gigs and workshops, and reserving gratis appearances for local charities and libraries. Of course, this means saying ‘no’ to lots of things, but hey, I need time to write too.
I can draw a parallel here with translators. Either they “just want a few hundred words (for free) that you can turn round in five minutes between jobs” and it turns out to be a complex legal or technical issue, or they are amazed that you charge at all: “It’s all in dictionaries or online these days, isn’t it? And you get paid for it?” they say in incredulous tones.
I trained a long time, specialised and practised for over twenty-five years. No, there are no freebies, nor discounts, nor a free lunch. Period.
Terrific post.
Every writer I know does freebies–appearances at their child’s school, helping out the local library, doing a charity read–but those are choices. Expecting a donation of time and labor is not okay, and as you point out, you can’t eat free publicity.
Completely agree. By working for free under any circumstances other than ‘benevolent’ you are devaluing your profession. I draw parallels with IT – my husband’s profession. When we first came to France we were struggling to get by. My husband designing websites and offering tech support. The number of times he was asked to help fix a broken computer and then offered a cup of tea and a biscuit, or told ‘I can’t afford to pay you to do me a website, but would you like to come for lunch and then teach me how to do one myself?’
You have to keep insisting, because as you rightly say, Danuta, these are the times when people expect things of value for free.
Well said Danuta. Thanks. I will occasionally do a radio “phoner” for a local station for free if I’m in a good mood and have a message I want to get out. But mostly I will not work for free and I do wish other journalists and broadcasters wouldn’t either.
I too have been told, shocked, “but it will raise your profile!” when I’ve turned down yet another golden opportunity to work for free. But just as the best work experience young people can have is getting a wage at the end of the week, so the best way to raise your profile – assuming it’s a professional profile you want – is to be paid.
My partner is a professional musician and he too often faces the “but it’ll raise your profile” argument when asked to do something for nothing. Or someone will want him to play at their wedding and be shocked – and offended! – that he wants paying for this. Imagine asking the caterers, vicar, venue, stationers, photographers, dressmakers, etc, to do it for free? Why are creative people assumed to be able to survive on fresh air and vibes and little else?
You can’t take a raised profile to the bank and it won’t get your far in Sainsbury’s.
Yes! Yes! Yes!
It is astonishing how many times I have been asked by large organisations to take no fee or reduce my (modest) fee. Why should I? This is my living.
Sometimes I will take a small fee or none, if the thing is charitable or I can get there and home quickly.
Great points, well made, Danuta.
Imagine me telling my landlord I’ll be skipping a month’s rent in exchange for telling everyone on Twitter what a great guy he is. A bit of the same thing, I think. It just doesn’t work that way.
Absolutely! And I’m blogging about the same thing tomorrow, after our earlier conversation. Organisers of events must be made to see our side of the story. Too often, we have to listen to stories of no budget, as though we somehow have sufficient budgets to forego income. Most of us simply don’t.
The other issue is new writers/speakers who feel or are made to feel that, because they haven’t done much speaking, for some reason they aren’t worth paying. You are invited for what you have to say, not how many times you’ve already said it.
In an ideal world, authors would have a publicist who would mediate these requests for them, but I guess many don’t. Our policy at Transworld is to consider all requests on their merits. If festivals fall at a time when authors are publishing a new book there is likely to be a budget to cover some travel so we would include some events at the time of publication if we felt there was sufficient upside for the author in terms of book sales and/or profile raising. Outside that time, we would probably decline unless the festival is local to the author – no costs involved but still not necessarily any fee for the author who is giving their time. All festivals are different and it is always worth asking what their policy is on paying fees and covering travel and hotel. If they have no budget, say no. No author should be covering these costs themselves.
Patsy – interestingly, two days ago I took on a part-time publicist, and the precipitating factor was a whole load of events which were either poorly organised or where I’d failed, through lack of time, to maximise the benefits of my efforts. One of her main roles is going to be to look ahead at events and avoid the pitfalls and make them work better.
Danuta, you asked for the link to my post: http://helpineedapublisher.blogspot.com/2012/03/simple-guide-to-caring-for-author.html
I’m happy to do some events for nothing – particularly talking to reading groups at libraries etc as I do believe that I’m getting something back for this in terms of getting better known. I also consider events around publication time to be part of the essential selling-factor, though I always get expenses.
But it isn’t only festivals etc that ask writers to work for free. The Sunday Express S magazine used to pay well for their fiction slot but no longer pays for short stories, telling us that the publicity is enough in itself. And yet I can imagine what their journalists would say if they were asked to fill 2 pages for zero pay!
For purposes of full disclosure, while you’d likely never guess it, I am a writer by trade and make a decent living at it…
That being said, clearly there are two things at work here.
First, unless they are rather special in one form or another, most of the folk we encounter on a daily basis can, if forced, write well enough to get at least rudimentary thoughts across, thereby making writing somewhat less easy to identify as high art deserving of excessive reward.
And second, a large part of the problem might be that so many Writers (with a capital W) are quite simply SHIT and don’t deserve to be paid. Apropos your example, if you hired an electrician and he could only make your lights work 50% of the times you threw the switch, would you be eager to pay him your hard-earned money? I think not…
You seem to be operating under the illusion that all writing is inherently valuable, which, while surely kind to the inevitably outsize writer’s ego, is quite simply false.
And don’t for some second think this problem ONLY applies to writers. Try being an actor, artist, baker, or “crafter” of any sort. All of those people are CONSTANTLY expected to create for nothing more than a pat on the back and a hearty thank you.
Hey, I’d love to get paid far more than I do for writing, we all would. But in the world we live in, maybe writing shouldn’t be high on anyone’s list of ways to get rich quick.
First, the analogy that you don’t pay an electrician that sucks at his job is something of a fallacy. If you hire an electrician that does not know his stuff, you pay him for the job that he does (or end up in court), but then you don’t hire him again. As the blog stated, you would never just expect the electrician to labor for you on the hazy promise of some future earnings. Bottom line, if an organization feels that a writer is significant enough to merit an invitation, then the organization should be willing to compensate that author for his/her time.
I am relatively new to the writing world, at least as an author of fiction, but I was particularly struck by this comment:
“The value of words finely turned has been debased by the freeconomy of the internet – whether by content hungry websites unwilling to share ad revenue or writing wannabes willing to work for free as long as they can say they are published. It has also been encouraged by the myth that we all have a book inside us. Well, we don’t. Most don’t even have a decent short story (present company excepted, obviously). Writing involves skill, effort and talent.”
To put it differently, a person doesn’t think she is Da Vinci just because she can apply paint to canvas; however, for some reason, everyone thinks they can write just because they can string together a few words and follow them with some punctuation (sometimes). Not only do I write fiction but I also teach literature. From both vantage points, I can safely say that this is certainly not the case. Even after years and years of writing, I am still working to hone my craft. That is labor and it should require consideration, particularly if someone else is reaping financial rewards from my presence.
Sophie, this discussion isn’t really about whether a writer is, as you so delicately put it, shit or not or about the ‘value’ of the writing. It’s about whether a person who has been booked to entertain an audience that has paid folding money for seats at a gig should expect to be paid out of the proceeds or not. Simple as that.
It’s a really good post, and I agree with it in principle. As I said on Twitter, though, I don’t usually charge fees or expenses for a few different reasons (which I appreciate don’t apply to everyone, but I suspect more people than just me).
The first is that I generally only do panels at crime fiction festivals I’d be going to anyway. If I wasn’t on a panel, I’d be paying to attend – but I enjoy doing panels and still feel faintly honoured to be allowed up on a stage at all, so for me it just improves the weekend. I think festivals are generally lousy for book sales and only marginally better for exposure and networking. They’re rarely cost-effective. If I wasn’t having fun, I just wouldn’t do them.
The second is that, really, I have no choice. There are more writers than panel spaces, and I’m not a big name or a big draw. For a great many writers like me, saying “I won’t do it for free” means I won’t be doing it at all. Which is a choice, obviously, but not one that will earn me any more money.
There’s also the question of whether an event can afford to pay, which is probably particular to the event. Take CrimeFest in Bristol, where I’m moderating two panels and paying not only my expenses but the same entrance fee to the festival as everyone else. Which is annoying. But then, there’s 89 panellists. If you estimated £200 for hotel, travel and a speaking fee for each, that’s nearly £18,000. There are 260 attendees, paying anywhere between £12.50 and £130. Take the authors out of that, and pay for them all, factor in hiring the hotel, paying the Big Names, and other costs, and I’m not sure it would add up to a viable event. (Although only the organisers know).
One answer might be to charge enough to be able to pay everybody (the ideal solution), but the next question is: is the market there to support that? Much as with libraries, bookshops and reading groups, I like living in a culture where these festivals exist, so it’s often reward enough for me just to be part of them.
Danuta, well said! Agree with every point you and Nicola Morgan in particular make. Of course we should be paid. I have already blogged about this in the past and those who wish to find out which are the worst-run Lit Fests should look at it. (No doubt there are many more)http://www.amandacraig.com/pages/blog_01/index.asp?offset=54
Wonderfully to the point, Danuta. It needed saying – but sadly it needs repeating by a lot of other people before it sinks in. I have never understood why people expect writers to live without earning money.
Hear,hear, Danuta. So many occasions of embarrassment over payment for work. I think that many people think writers are all minted when in fact,the very people asking you to throw in another session to a bunch of teenagers are making more money than you are.
Absolutely right. We’re professionals as much as doctors, lawyers, bankers (!), gardeners or chefs who may do occasional pro bono work, or moderate fees for charity, but who don’t hesitate to charge for professional services in normal circumstances.
I understand the point that we may often be publicising our work or ourselves, and media interviews are not normally paid for, but too often the poor bloody author is the ONLY person not being paid to contribute to an event such as a newspaper podcast, a radio programme or judging a literary competition.
It’s always worth asking the organiser if anyone else is not being paid. If everyone else is giving their services voluntarily, then I’d probably waive a fee. But if I’m the only person not being paid, I’d politely decline to perform.
To be paid for appearances there has to be a budget, and that money has to be earned somewhere. If publishers are to pay, as one author in here has commented (his publisher pays) then the book must be making enough of a profit to pay for all its other costs, plus having a certain amount left over for this kind of expense. Many don’t. I’m sure Danuta knows the sales figures for the average novel from major publishers. I’ve heard that 1,000-3,000 is to be expected as most likely, and many sell less than that. This wouldn’t cover many expenses.
Alternatively the budget to pay the author would need to come from the event itself. So the ticket price needs to cover expenses, such as venue etc, and pay the author. Of course you need to be a crowd puller to earn enough for that – especially if you’re covering travel from a distance as well as earnings. I get paid to run workshops at festivals as the organisers charge quite a high price per head to pay me and to pay their costs. I don’t set that fee and I’m not entirely sure I’m happy for people to be paying that kind of fee. It excludes many who can’t afford it, and also you can’t really do a massive amount for each person in the limited time. I give written critique individually after the event to each participant as I feel the costs for them are steep relative to what can be done in an hour or two. This means it doesn’t actually pay well.
The maths are simple. In one way or another the writer must be pulling in enough profit somewhere to enable payment for events. If they don’t earn enough through book sales for the publisher to pay for promotional tours and events, or if they don’t pull enough of a crowd at events to get the amount they want from the ticket sales, then they have to decide if there’s a reason for them to do it for free.
As you mentioned, book sales at events used to be a reason, and as such a high percentage of sales came from the events or the promotions about the event, this was important. The problem is, as you noticed, that people no longer buy so many books at events. Often they buy none, and plan to buy on Amazon later – if they remember as books are often an impulse buy at an event where they could be signed and are usually offered at a discount. The drop in book sales at events is part of the rapidly worsening bookselling crisis.
I do sometimes gives talks on publishing for free if they are in London. I wouldn’t be able to do it too much. I don’t give readings of my work and probably should give some as you can vanish as an author if you don’t have regular appearances, paid or unpaid.
You really tell it like it is. I enjoy going to hear people read their work especially if there is a lively question and answer session after. And I fully support people being paid for their work.
The other side of the story-ish – I had applied to do a work shop with a published (very successful) short story author. There was a fee of €30 which was in my budget. The week before the workshop we were told we had to buy 2 books to bring with us, one his own collection and one he had been editor of. Suddenly the cost of the course was beyond my reach and that of any others who are struggling with ‘financial distress’. I was bitterly disappointed. (I know I’m just rantin)
If the world ran on “should” there would be no need to write a blog like this. The world runs on “is” and “does”.
As long as they have existed, artists and authors have subsidized society, not the other way around. Comparing a plumber to an author is similar to comparing a palm-reader to a lumberjack, or shopping mall busker to a dentist. Perceived need is what determines whether payment can be provided for a service. The services authors, artists and entertainers in general provide are not essential, and are the first to suffer when the economy experiences a dip.
Governments understand this and sometimes provide grants. Private industry occasionally (and when times are good) subsidizes art and authorship. Traditionally, however, society thinks little of these occupations and the notion or myth that they pay well is widespread. Everyone thinks all writers are Dan Brown, and all actors are Robert de Niro.
And turning “is” into “should” has been tried as far back as Leonard and Virginia Woolf starting their own press to publish themselves and their friends. Only other authors know how hard it can be.
My library does pay me every time I speak there – but local schools and clubs can’t scrape together the wherewithal every time. They expect ME to subsidize THEM, because they’re the ones without any money, and I’m the mythical rich author selling movie rights for my next blockbuster novel. And I can’t book a speaking engagement every week!
There might be an ideal solution, but it won’t be universal and it won’t happen suddenly – little significant shifts are happening right now. Because everyone has written a book, everyone is starting to realize how hard it is to make anyone read anything you’ve written… whether you have been paid for the effort or not.
[...] stemmed from a recent discussion on twitter, but it’s a discussion that keeps coming back. Here, for [...]
Here’s the answer I posted on Steve Mosby’s blog regarding this issue.
As the co-founder of a new festival (QuebeCrime), I was wondering if we’d need to pay a speaker’s fee to authors. We are a non-profit organisation, meaning that the only money we make is from the sales of books at the festival, which then helps cover hotel accommodation for writers who attend. If we had to pay a speaker’s fee, we’d be losing too much money and it just wouldn’t be worth it.
Only one writer, so far, has refused to attend because we didn’t pay a speaker’s fee.
We are looking into getting sponsors to help cover more expenses (like a per diem for authors, and if possible, flight expenses when the publisher doesn’t cover those).
For our first edition, last October, we had 14 writers and the sales of books during the three-day fest were fairly good. In the end, we lost around 2000$. This year, we’re confident we won’t be in the red. We even increased the number of authors to 22.
If a writer is invited to give a 30-minute (or longer) speech at a conference, I’d expect a fee would be paid. But a 15 or 20-minute talk/reading in a festival is part of the promotion a writer should be expected to do to sell his/her books. If the writer is asked to moderate a panel or conduct an interview with another writer, I would expect a fee to be paid here also.
Bottom line is, not all festival organisers are looking to make money; some of us are really into it to help writers promote their books, simply because we want to support them and because we like the book business (I’m a sales rep for independent publishers and my partner in this owns a bookstore; I think that is proof enough that we aren’t in it for the money!). If we make money this year, it’ll all go into next year’s budget. The festival is a hobby.
And writers can always refuse an invitation if they can’t get paid for it.
Leave a Reply