A few years ago I wrote a mini-essay, “Doing It for Pleasure.” This post is about doing it for money–writing, that is.
It’s only the beginning of May but so far this year I’ve had a score of requests for essays, introductions, invitations to speak and so on. (I don’t even bother keeping track of the ‘my daughter/husband/gerbil wrote a book/story/poem, will you look at it and tell me how to sell it?’ emails. They get deleted without a response.)
The answer is no. Unless you’re willing to pay.
I used to accept all kinds of appearance invitations, especially for schools and colleges. I didn’t mind paying a little out of pocket to make the experience pleasant: upgrading the flight to first class, adding a night to the hotel stay, paying for K to travel with me, and so on. After all I love meeting readers, talking to students and teachers. But I’m not a charity. I’ve reached a tipping point. So now, no. No more. If you want me to come to your college and impart wisdom (or wickedness) to your students, you will have to pay the full freight. Plus a reasonable fee.
What is ‘reasonable’? Well, imagine you’re paying me by the hour for every hour I’m out of my house–including travel time. Remember I’m a professional, an expert at what I do; I don’t work for $10 an hour.
This applies with a vengeance to actual writing. If you ask for an article, an essay, a story, expect to pay. If you ask for an interview, I’ll need to know who has agreed to publish the piece. Nothing pisses me off more quickly than finding out the whole thing’s being done on spec; it’s a waste of my time.
If you want my opinion on your manuscript, expect to pay a per-page fee, with a hefty minimum.
The world has spent years taking advantage of artists. We’re expected to donate to charities, rally to causes, give our time freely in exchange for publicity or for the greater good. Why? Because we’re perceived as needy and neurotic; our kindness and generosity is mistaken for desperation–and pathetic gratitude–for attention. Here’s some news: I’m not needy or neurotic; I’m a professional, an expert. I know my worth. Frankly, I wish more writers did.
If you’re a writer, stop and think for a minute: who is profiting from the time you’re donating? From your name? You can bet someone is. Make sure it’s you.
I write fiction for the art, for free, for love. For myself. Anyone else who wants access pays. Except, of course, readers of this blog, who can send in questions and have them answered in public for free. Because I like you. You lucky dogs.
Nicola Griffith 
<>I write fiction for the art, for free, for love. For myself. Anyone else who wants access pays. <>That says it all, right there.
On the flipside, though, I think many writers don’t understand the worth of “paying their dues” at the start of their careers. I know people with no credits who would never consider submitting to anything less than a pro-paying market–and so they never sell anything. A lot of people don’t understand why I talk at so many conferences–well, for me, it’s a resume-building thing because I’d eventually like to go back to teaching adult writing classes.
I also volunteer with two organizations: one is my own magazine and one is a local writers organization. The contacts I’ve made through both have been invaluable.
Publishing is an entertainment industry, and it’s as tough as any other for creatives to break through.
Amen.
<>What is ‘reasonable’? Well, imagine you’re paying me by the hour for every hour I’m out of my house–including travel time. Remember I’m a professional, an expert at what I do; I don’t work for $10 an hour.<>Vancouver's elementary school teachers and librarians budget $300 an hour plus travel expenses (gas, parking, lunch, etc.) to have local authors or illustrators come to their school. There's this one author they all seem to worship—he charges $5,000 per visit, so schools get together to come up with the cash. I like such practices; these people understand how valuable a writer's time and energy is.
I think that, as an audience, we need to be educated about/understand the fact that our artists pay rent and go grocery shopping and would love to raise a family and plan for retirement just like any other professional. In hard times, we should also have enough sense to actively support those artists who make our lives richer. Buying their books, IMO, is not enough. I look at it this way: if it takes me 8-24 hours to read a novel, and the experience blows me away, I should at least feel moved to pay minimum wage for it–>that's $80-$250 going straight to the author's tip jar, along with a 'thanks for writing this' note.
Damn Karina that is hardcore.
why is it lucky dogs and never lucky cats…cats would rather be cool, I suppose…ah to be paid for your actual value of your time and experience, what a nice thought — I’d envy you, but it would cut into my tea time…I’ve just recently been grappling with the vaguely annoying realization that I could charge more for a minute of freelance animation than I make for directing Shakespeare for eight weeks…this is why I don’t have an accountant; I’ve never liked tears.
<>mordicai,<> I know. In <>The World According to Karina<>, art is king, and writers top the hierarchy.
I’ve never been able to charge what I’m worth — as a locksmith, photographer, writer, bookseller, whatever — which is why I’ll probably always work (for someone else) in retail. I applaud individuals who are able to see the worth in themselves and their work and refuse to settle for less.
As for $80-$250 going into the authors’ tip jar, nice sentiment, but real people can’t afford that. My 2008 Adjusted Gross Income was $253, so even purchasing a book is a luxury. I have no problem, however, encouraging other people to spend THEIR money on good books.
Oh, encouraging other people to spend money on books counts as money in the author’s tip jar. ;-) As long as there’s some sort of active support on the reader’s part, then we’re good.
<>ssas<>, yes. More people need to understand this concept of give and take, of starting at the bottom and working (emphasis on working) one’s way up.
<>karina<>, I like those rates :)
<>mordicai<>, oh, Karina is hardcore, no doubt about it.
<>dianneordi<>, I feel for you on the adjusted income. Doing taxes this spring was an…interesting experience. One thing that intrigues me, though–your notion of ‘real’ people. Does one have to be living hand to mouth to qualify?
nicola —
Does one have to be living hand to mouth to not be able to support an $80-$250 a book habit? Of course not. But one does have to have a certain amount of disposable income and a certain skew to one’s priorities.
But what if all the pulpwood trees were killed by an epidemic, and paper got so expensive that paperback books sold for $80 and hardbacks for $250. Who would buy books?
<>DianneorDi<>, I’d probably stop buying printed books if paper became that scarce and expensive. Instead, I would contact the author and ask them to email me a PDF and offer to PayPal them $80 in return, earning the publisher’s wrath in the process.
<>dianneordi<>, eh, I can’t afford $80 either. But it was the notion of real people vs. unreal people that caught my attention.
Well, I'm impressed by Karina's willingness to support the arts! Using her formula, however, I'd be plonking down $40-50 a day for books…and I don't have $50 a *month* to spend on books currently. Beyond that, though–is it fair that some folks are estimating the value of a novel at $80 because they spend 8 hours reading it, while I'm figuring that, on average, I read a book in 2-3 hours, hence would pay less than half as much? And would I pay again if I reread it?
Puzzled & poor,
–P.
Well, it’s not like you have to support every author out there. If you “adopt” one author a month, I’ll let you live in KarinaLand for sure—hey, Double Truffle Chocolate icecream is free on Fridays, coconut gelato on Sunday, and the espresso machine never shuts down.
Of course I don’t send out PayPals to everyone I read, I’d be living on the streets if I did—know your limit; play within it. I have my chosen four, can’t do more until I win the lottery.
nicola —
I’d say “real” as opposed to “ideal.” (rather than “real” vs “unreal.”) Ideally, people appreciate the arts, and want and do support them.
One of the complaints I’ve heard again and again over the years is that Atlantans don’t support the arts (or their sports teams, as far as that goes). I’m not sure if we’re philistines, or cheap, or have some sense of entitlement — that art is something that should just be given to us.
Where did we ever get the idea that authors don’t or aren’t supposed to write for money? Art is in the realm of the spirit so we don’t have to pay for it? What a load of decaying animal excrement!
<>–p<>,my reading speed is wildly variable. Sometimes I take forever to grind through a page, sometimes I flick through at about 30 secs a page. My payments would be variable.
<>dianneordi<>, I’ll be in Atlanta next spring for a few days (see tomorrow’s blog). I hope we get to meet.
<>barbara<>, I think we’re meant to be like priests or something, sustained by god and community. Personally, I think the government should support the arts more. The NEA grant used to really mean something. Now, especially after tax, eh, it’s not going to support a writer for long.
Art vs. Commodity, what is value, what is the community’s responsibility to the artist and the artist’s responsibility to the community…I think this subject is in the air recently; it keeps meeting me in different locations…I’m copying here most of a comment I left on Alejandro Adams’s blog as it reflects — well, me, a slightly less flippant me — for film festival hunt, you can read agent/publisher hunt. There aren’t shortcuts, it’s a meet and greet, hope you roll a 7 or an 11 grind and the experience from inside the writer/artist/filmmaker is entirely different for everyone, as are their goals. I agree with nicola that there is not enough money put into the arts and not enough respect given to the practitioners of it, but I weep when it becomes mostly a way to make a profit. Apologies for going on, but I tend to steep.
from: http://www.alejandroadams.com/2009/04/i-was-interviewed-at-spout-few-months.html#comments
“The film festival hunt is the worst part of the make a movie process for me and the part I fail at (besides convincing people to give me millions to continue my explorations in the arts.) I object to festivals taking money from the naive and hopeful and the maze that the 1000’s upon 1000s of festivals out there create.
I have also come to the inescapable conclusion that creating a movie or short or book and selling a movie or short or book require two different brains and that the second you commit to selling a movie or short or book you cut off the next project before it even forms. So I get frustrated very easily by that part of the process and as a result you haven’t read In The Bleak December or seen LONELY POND MONSTER (looking for love).
Which leads to the is art in the creating (you) or the reacting (audience) question? And 1000’s upon 1000’s of other questions in 1000s upon 1000s of mazes.
Now, on the film festival plus side. I was once in Toronto and happened across a Gay and Lesbian Short Film Festival at a theatre just outside this great park and down the street from the best of burrito places. Gayle was off meeting colleagues and I just sat alone in the theatre watching a dozen really cool shorts. They were inspiring and educational and a few were a little awful and it is one of my favorite evenings ever. I would love for one of my shorts to find their way into a festival so I (and others) could sit in the audience, watch, learn more about them and have a night like that again, but I find no joy in the hunt…
Lament? Rant? Truth? One of ’em, I’m sure.”
I suspect we are destined to lose, to never have the opportunity to experience, a lot of great artistry (visual or performing art) simply because the artists couldn’t support (or promote) themselves. (Or worse, that they were never encouraged as children to become artists.)
Meanwhile, a lot of horrible “art” is inflicted upon us simply because the “artists” are wealthy or connected or simply know how to promote themselves.
Oh — and one of the great things that came out of the Great Depression was the WPA Art Project and the Treasury Department’s Section of Painting and Sculpture (later known as The Section of Fine Arts).
Maybe someone needs to encourage Obama to spend money on artists instead of bailing out bankers?
<>lonelypond<>, yes, it requires task-switching, and I hate it. The reason bestselling authors can write a book a year is that all they do is write. They have a whole team behind them to organise life details and filthy commerce. That’s my excuse, and I’m sticking to it…
<>dianneordi<>, in the UK the govt. is upping its support for artists during ‘these difficult times’. I wish they’d do the same here. I think a lot is going to be lost.