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Want More? Here's
How to Get It
By Shirley
Kawa-Jump
When you sign a contract
for your writing, your first concern might be what you're
getting paid. But then, as you study the legalese closer, you
might start to wonder if there's room to ask for more. Not that
you're a greedy person--it's just that you're beginning to
realize the work you've put in and now you want terms that
reflect that work.
Solution? Negotiate.
In the beginning of your
career, you might not be able to negotiate a contract. That's
okay--your primary goal at this point is to gain experience and
exposure. It isn't necessarily a bad thing to occasionally give
up all rights or accept a little less money if you think the
sale will lead to bigger and better things down the road. But
don't let that stop you from asking for more later--editors
expect some negotiation on certain terms:
RIGHTS: If at all
possible, avoid granting the publisher all rights. If the
article is a long one--say, 3,000 words--you'll want to later
break it into smaller ones or re-use some of the research in a
different piece. You probably can't get the contract switched to
grant one-time rights. But, you CAN ask the editor to insert the
word "print" before the rights clause. In other words,
instead of saying, "This fee purchases all rights,"
the contract would state, "This fee purchases all print
rights." That gives you back your Web rights and gives you
more resale possibilities.
PAYMENT: Early in your
career, you won't have the leverage needed to get additional
money for your work. But this can change. After working with the
editors of two different publications for more than a year, I
wrote a letter to each one explaining why I felt I merited
higher fees. For instance, I'd landed cover interviews with
celebrities like Lillian Vernon, Bob Vila, and Dave Thomas. I'd
been on-time with articles and needed little revision work. In
both cases, the editors agreed my experience, work, and skills
justified a boost in pay. Also, if you have been with a
publication for a long time, you might be able to change
"payment on publication" to "payment on
acceptance."
EXTRAS: Always ask for
additional payment for extras like sidebars or photos.
Sometimes, the publisher does this work in-house; other times
you can do it and make a bit more money.
EXPENSES: While most
small and medium-sized publications won't pay travel expenses,
most are willing to cover phone costs. If you're writing a
national piece requiring numerous interviews, ask for payment of
telephone expenses. Remember, you'll probably have to send in
documentation, like a copy of your phone bill.
KILL FEE: This is the fee that is paid if your article is
"killed"--that is, not used. If you think you could
easily resell it elsewhere, then agreeing to a kill fee might be
fine. If, however, the piece you are writing will work only at
this one publication, try to negotiate full payment whether the
article is used or not.
COPIES: Because copies of
the publication cost the publisher very little, this is an
especially easy item to negotiate even if you're a new writer.
So if you want copies to hand out at the next family gathering,
go ahead and ask for them.
When to Withdraw
Sometimes the terms of a
contract are terrible. You may be asked to write 4,000 words,
relinquish all rights, and settle for less than a hundred
dollars for your work. If the publication is completely
unwilling to negotiate, then you have a choice to make. You can
accept the offer, or you can reject the contract and try to find
another outlet for your piece.
This decision is entirely
up to you. There's no checklist to help you decide when you
should take your writing elsewhere. A smart strategy is to weigh
the amount of work you will be putting into the piece against
the contract. Don't feel you have to walk away from a deal
because it fails to offer everything you want. Rather, judge
what it does offer--clips, a prestigious byline, useful
connections, increased credibility. Once you have a few clips
under your belt or more experience, you'll be able to
request--and receive--the contracts you deserve.
If you decide to withdraw
from a contract, be sure to do so in a professional manner. As
with any business dealing, if you behave courteously and
professionally, you will build a good reputation in the field,
something money can't buy.
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