Comments on: Freelance Writing Jobs for Thursday, July 3, 2008

By: Jodee

Jodee — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 10:53:52 +0000

@ Vanessa: That’s great news!
@ M, violetteb, and Robert: Thank you for the positive feedback. It’s always appreciated.

By: Leigh

Leigh — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 16:31:21 +0000

@TLeigh. Hi, I’ve had a similar problem, but the contest was not as respected and wasn’t updated in more than a year (during which time I’d tried contacting the administrators twice, to no avail. Then I asked a well-known writer to intervene on my behalf, because it was listed on her online deadline calendar; her clout got a response and resolved that “problem”). I can’t speculate as to what’s delayed the contest you entered–could be anything from the contest judge(s) being ill to the magazine/market/newsletter going kaput (hope that’s not the case, but in this economy, who knows?!). If it’s just a month, I wouldn’t be terribly concerned, unless you’re thinking in terms of simsubs (does the contest allow for simultaneous submission of your story/poem to other markets in the meantime; if it does, I’d go ahead and do that if you have another market lined up). On that point, I make sure to always save a pdf copy of contest guidelines in case a Web site goes belly-up between the time I’ve submitted my work and the time they are supposed to have posted contest results. Also, some well-respected contests have flexible deadlines, which complicates things, too.

Maybe I’m being too laissez-faire, but as it is a free contest–and you’ve presumably not “lost” anything (money, that is) entering it–if it were me, I would not begin to get worried until a few months after the announcement fails to get announced. You can also try contacting the administrators of the contest (again, check the rules; some particularly difficult editors are persnickety about anyone impinging upon their time and don’t allow questions, perhaps–though I think this is the rare exception rather than the rule) privately. Best of luck getting the answers you seek!

Regards,
L.A. Ramsey

By: Stacie Connerty

Stacie Connerty — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 05:33:05 +0000

Seriously this list rocks. Thank you so much Jodee for all of your time and effort. This is always my first and many times my only stop.

By: Robert M.D. Minto

Robert M.D. Minto — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 23:12:24 +0000

Just wanted to say thanks for all the great postings that show up here all the time! I’ve gotten three of my five first jobs from this place!

By: M

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 20:53:39 +0000

Thanks!

By: violetteb

violetteb — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 20:50:53 +0000

@ M, contact Writers Weekly, they have a Recent Whispers & Warnings complaint page. Here is the link: http://www.writersweekly.com/whispers_and_warnings.php

I’ve heard a few writers say they’ve gotten paid after they received help from Writers Weekly.

By: Fiona

Fiona — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 20:50:41 +0000

M – do a Google search for Angela Hoy. Her newsletter has a deadbeat section and some useful advice about going after those who owe you money.

By: M

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 20:17:37 +0000

Great list.

I’m not sure that this is the place to ask this, but I was wondering if anyone has experience not being paid by a publication after they’ve done work for them? I was writing for a magazine and they were paying me regularly. I moved away and they said that I could continue to write for them. I wrote approximately six more articles for them and they continuously put off paying me. They’ve since ignored my email requests for payment. I realize that I’ll never see that money, but I just want to prevent any other writers from getting screwed over the way I’ve been screwed over. Is there anywhere I can go to get the word out about not working for these people should they post an open call for writers?

Many thanks,

By: violetteb

violetteb — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 17:45:15 +0000

The person wanting 200 pages edited very quickly has noted in his ad that he anticipates it taking .5 – 1 hr per page to edit…doesn’t sound very quick to me.

By the way, I’ve been busy and haven’t popped over in a while and I have to say…love, love, love the new look. I can smell the coffee ladies. Thanks for shaking it up over here!

By: Vanessa

Vanessa — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 17:42:48 +0000

Just picked up a travel writing gig via your job list…