I
was reminded recently of how hard it is for a freelance
writer to make it in today’s world. And it made me
realize that I too, had lost site of what is important.
A writer used to be something to be revered. There was a
time when people would dream of becoming an accomplished
writer and winning the acclaim of millions. There was a
time, not so long ago that one would speak of being a writer
and people would be in awe. Today, however, mention you
are a writer and people shrug their shoulders. Why? What
has happened to this great profession?
In honesty, I can sum it up in one phrase, "free content."
With the boom of the Internet, people can write anywhere,
about anything, at any time. While businesses understand
that having "content" on their sites will get
more people to notice them, will have more people coming
back, and will offer more for their "valued" customers,
they are unwilling to pay for such. So they offer promises
of a byline which is supposed to get publishers to take
you seriously or promote one of your products. They may
also state that all your hard work will not be in vain as
they offer you pay on a pay-per-click basis, percentage
of the advertisements, or stock options. Or even worse,
they offer you a "place to be heard."
In time, those that refuse to pay for content have degraded
the value and prestige of being called a "writer."
And those of us, that have been fooled into believing that
we are getting something out of the deal, have lowered the
pay grade and our chances of making a descent living as
a "paid, professional, writer."
Think about it this way, you go to the store and the manager
is offering you a free soda with every purchase of store-brand
chips. You were going to have to purchase the chips and
soda anyway, so you decide that the store-brand would be
just fine, as it is saving you money. Do you understand
what I am trying to say here? It makes it harder to get
publications to pay for our writing, when the publications
can get it for free.
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