Pay Question

[NINE]

I've got a quick question.

Believe it or not, I've never done freelance work. But I was recently offered a freelancing job to write for a new website, and I just want to ask about the payment they are offering. They've offered a pay scale based on words..... all based around the idea of $100 for a 1,000 word piece. They said average pieces will run about 1,000 words (800-1200) and will require 2-3 sources to be interviewed/quoted. They would pay $100 for such a piece.

How is that in comparison to "industry standard"? In your experience, is that an average pay? I just wanted to check....

Thank you all so much.

 

[flexmaster33]

I typically charge $50 for a typical gamer, but assuming these are feature-style pieces you'd be putting out, I think you're in the ballpark. Seems to be fair compensation.

 

[playthrough]

Standard is a hard thing to quantify, of course, but 10 cents a word is lousy for freelancing -- especially given the sourcing they want. I'd like to see that kind of legwork come in at 25 cents a word at the very, very least.

But I'll be curious to read what others think.

 

[trifectarich]

That's dirt cheap by a few hundred dollars. I'd be embarrassed to offer that kind of assignment to someone and offer that pay.

 

[JimmyHoward33]

Depends on the depth of the stories, but it doesn't sound so bad to me, for a Web site anyways. Personally, I've had freelance assignmenrs range from $30 to $75, typically less than 1000 words and 2 voices.

 

[sgreenwell]

Seems OK to me, provided that you're doing mostly profile work, you have a decent amount of experience in the field and they're giving you assignments as opposed to you having to provide your own. If it's investigative / news work though, it does seem a little light.

 

[Flip Wilson]

If you can knock out 1,000 words and talk to two or three people without leaving your desk, $100 is almost fair. I freelance for three outlets regularly. Two pay around $50 for a game story, which is actually a little low for the amount of time I invest in getting to the game early, sending in score updates throughout and then writing the story.

Third place, however, pays $300 a story. Some are pretty easy where I make a couple of calls and write 500 words. Others are a lot more complicated, with several sources I interview in person and then write 1,000 to 2,000 words. Yeah, those should pay more, but those easy ones should actually pay less, so it all evens out. It's pretty good money when I have two or three stories a month, and I write at least one a month and have for several years. I'm good with it.

 

[Versatile]

I think it really depends on the situation. For someone just getting into the business writing for a Patch.com site, that $100 is more than fair. For someone with 20 years in the industry and a personal brand and a few thousand Twitter followers and all that who is writing for Slate or Salon.com, $300-$500 would be more reasonable to expect.

The subject matter and reporting level are also up for debate. And, more over, I'd be more inclined to take a story for a cheaper price if I knew it could lead to more, better-paying gigs with that publication in the future. If it's a one-time thing, I'd probably see if I could squeeze every dime out for that one story.

 

[apeman33]

For as much legwork as it sounds like they want you to do, it sounds like they're being cheap. However, I work at a place that would probably try to pay you even less for the same story.

 

[sgreenwell]

For as much legwork as it sounds like they want you to do, it sounds like they're being cheap. However, I work at a place that would probably try to pay you even less for the same story.

Yes, this was my other thought. When one of my buddies was in college, he got hired to do a freelance piece on irregularities in the budget office in a town for a local small daily. He gave them 2,000 words that probably could have won an award, had it been eligible for it (freelancers can't nominate their own work to the panel). The paper paid him $75 for his efforts.

If you're a freelancer though, you don't really have much leverage, unfortunately.

 

[playthrough]

For as much legwork as it sounds like they want you to do, it sounds like they're being cheap. However, I work at a place that would probably try to pay you even less for the same story.

Yes, this was my other thought. When one of my buddies was in college, he got hired to do a freelance piece on irregularities in the budget office in a town for a local small daily. He gave them 2,000 words that probably could have won an award, had it been eligible for it (freelancers can't nominate their own work to the panel). The paper paid him $75 for his efforts.

If you're a freelancer though, you don't really have much leverage, unfortunately.

Not necessarily. It's a business transaction like anything else, and writers too often are just "happy to get the work" and don't blink at the price. The guy on the other side of the phone is running a business too, trying to get maximum product at minimal cost. How do you know he can't pay you more? If he values your work, perhaps he can. But you gotta ask, and ask early.

 

[Jake_Taylor]

That's dirt cheap by a few hundred dollars. I'd be embarrassed to offer that kind of assignment to someone and offer that pay.

Please tell me where I write a 1,000 word feature for $300-$400. I'm not being sarcastic, I'd really like to know. I'm sure SI and GQ pay at least that much, but even features I've done for big, national sites haven't paid that well, so if there are places the average poster on this board could work for pay like that I'd be pleasantly surprised.

 

[Versatile]

That's dirt cheap by a few hundred dollars. I'd be embarrassed to offer that kind of assignment to someone and offer that pay.

Please tell me where I write a 1,000 word feature for $300-$400. I'm not being sarcastic, I'd really like to know. I'm sure SI and GQ pay at least that much, but even features I've done for big, national sites haven't paid that well, so if there are places the average poster on this board could work for pay like that I'd be pleasantly surprised.

The answer is printed magazines. I know the local Metro Mag pays $1/word for a lot of freelance work. I've heard of some national mags paying more. A very talented friend who freelances for major magazines told me he got $4/word from (I think it was) Vanity Fair for a 5,000-word feature. Drinks were on him.

 

[jemaz]

Before technology took over, I used to do specialty stats for the on-air guys during ESPN hockey and baseball broadcasts. I would get $200 per game for work that was much, much easier than writing a game story. I think you ought to get $100 minimum or you might as well be doing it for free. Ask for that and see what happens.

 

[flexmaster33]

I find a $20,000 story a bit hard to believe...but who knows...I do know mags seem to be able to pay somewhat more than newspapers.

@ jemaz...yes, this logic makes sense...I charge $50 when going to an event that I'm going to be covering anyway...pretty simple to get some extra quotes and alter the slant a bit.

But if I'm going specially to an event for freelance I'd charge double (or close to it), plus some sort of expense allowance.

 

[Versatile]

I find a $20,000 story a bit hard to believe...but who knows...I do know mags seem to be able to pay somewhat more than newspapers.

@ jemaz...yes, this logic makes sense...I charge $50 when going to an event that I'm going to be covering anyway...pretty simple to get some extra quotes and alter the slant a bit.

But if I'm going specially to an event for freelance I'd charge double (or close to it), plus some sort of expense allowance.

He had to travel on his own dime for the assignment and spent at least three weeks working on it, for what it's worth (which, incidentally, was apparently $20,000).

Also, I found this: http://www.foliomag.com/2010/demand-media-can-go-hell

In the magazine industry, somewhere around $1 per word has been the going rate for most magazines for at least 20 years. Write a 1,500-word story, get paid $1,500. Large consumer magazines pay significantly better, going as high as $4 per word for the large magazines. There’s been no increase in fees in 20 years, but you can make a living.

Newspapers traditionally were much worse, paying $250 or so for that same 1,500-word story.

 

[trifectarich]

That's dirt cheap by a few hundred dollars. I'd be embarrassed to offer that kind of assignment to someone and offer that pay.

Please tell me where I write a 1,000 word feature for $300-$400. I'm not being sarcastic, I'd really like to know. I'm sure SI and GQ pay at least that much, but even features I've done for big, national sites haven't paid that well, so if there are places the average poster on this board could work for pay like that I'd be pleasantly surprised.

1,000 words on one of my assignments gets a minimum of $400 and usually it's higher than that. Only if you're not doing any actual writing (transcribing a taped interview for a Q&A, for instance) might the pay be lower.

 

[joe]

These days, I have a fairly steady gig as a magazine freelancer. I've been paid $200 for a 1,000-word story, and I've been paid $750 for a 5,000-word story. I recently turned in three stories, for which I'll be paid $800, $600 and $100. I also get mileage and meals when I'm on the road.

For what it's worth, the $800 story was about 3,000 words, the $600 about 1,700 and the $100 was less than 200 words (but also with a photo I took).

 

[playthrough]

That's dirt cheap by a few hundred dollars. I'd be embarrassed to offer that kind of assignment to someone and offer that pay.

Please tell me where I write a 1,000 word feature for $300-$400. I'm not being sarcastic, I'd really like to know. I'm sure SI and GQ pay at least that much, but even features I've done for big, national sites haven't paid that well, so if there are places the average poster on this board could work for pay like that I'd be pleasantly surprised.

The answer is printed magazines. I know the local Metro Mag pays $1/word for a lot of freelance work. I've heard of some national mags paying more. A very talented friend who freelances for major magazines told me he got $4/word from (I think it was) Vanity Fair for a 5,000-word feature. Drinks were on him.

There's a ton of magazines out there that pay 30-50 cents per word. $1 a word is the gold standard...not terribly easy to find but it does exist, and not just at the Big Time Mags. My wife used to be an editor at a regional magazine (one notch below the likes of Texas Monthly or New York Magazine) and the freelance pay was very respectable.

Websites are a different beast because the real estate is so different and not really valued on a per-word basis. 5,000 words in a magazine, you're one of the top features and eating several pages. On a website, that's just more scrolling.

 

[SixToe]

Good God. Fair is $100 for the work required to interview three people, compile notes and craft a 1,000-word feature?

THEY are asking YOU for YOUR experience and talent. Do not settle for something that sounds fair or the market will continue to be trampled.

For 1,000 words, you should be getting at least $250 if not $300.

If people think $7 a story is bull**** for a 350-worder on a rinky website, then why is $100 "fair" for 1,000 words? It's not. It's still the same ****ty pay but only on a larger scale.

Don't settle. Your time, experience and talent is valuable. Be compensated well for it.