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This is the first in a planned series of articles about the “Image Effect.” Over the past 20+ years Image Comics has grown from a vanity publisher for the top talents of the 90s into a trendsetter and home to a diverse range of popular titles and creators. How did they accomplish that? Image’s well-known […]

Ethics is in the air!

(I can see you right now saying, “Um, what?”)

By that I mean Carol Tice’s and my 4-Week J-School Audit is on sale until July 30 (a BIG welcome to the 80 of you who have signed on so far!) — and we have a whole lesson on journalism ethics. And because we’re talking so much about ethics in our marketing materials, we’ve been getting a lot of questions from readers.

One awesome writer sent in this question:

I was surprised to read, in your post about mistakes you have made, that it is not okay to reuse ANYTHING from a previous article, not even a phrase or a quote. I’ve never heard that before. In fact, I seem to remember you or Carol encouraging us to reslant and resell our stories as a way to get double duty from our work. If we can’t reuse our quotes, that doesn’t seem like it saves us anything. I’ve been planning to try and spin a couple of my stories in different ways for different markets. Comments?

Great question!

Stealing from your own previously published work is called self-plagiarism, and it is a big problem. In fact, as you’ll see in the post I linked to above, I was once fired for it before I knew any better.

While it’s not technically illegal to reuse portions of your own work (unless you signed a contract forbidding it), and some debate whether or not it is unethical, according to this article on Slate, it’s all about the expectations of the audience. So, for example, when I compile blog posts into a book and make it clear in the subtitle that the book is made up of previously-run blog posts, no one seems to mind. As long as the information is new and helpful to the audience, it is likely not a problem.

But when you write for magazines or online publications, your first audience is your editor. You need to ask yourself: How would your editor feel if she saw another article that had the same quotes or phrases as the one you just turned in — especially when she bought first rights or all rights to your piece? I’d wager she wouldn’t like it very much.

And that’s all that matters if you want to keep getting freelance writing jobs. You can debate the ethics of self-plagiarism with her until your face turns a lovely shade of blue…but if she thinks it’s unacceptable — which I assure you she will — then it’s a no-no for you. (And with Copyscape, you certainly won’t get away with it.)

But take heart! When developing a new pitch/article, you can still reuse:

• Your idea (Reslanted for a non-competing publication; for example, I once wrote a diet article for Oxygen and then reslanted it for Men’s Fitness.)
• The knowledge you gained writing the original article, which will make your research much faster.
• Your sources. (Though you would need to re-interview them or use quotes you didn’t use in the original article.)

Journalism ethics is a sticky topic — you need to know not only about self-plagiarism but also libel, using proper citations, quoting sources, fair use laws, and other practices that can keep you from getting sued (or at the very least, in trouble with your editor).

If you’re not up to speed on these topics, consider joining the 4-Week J-School Audit today. You’ll not only learn the ins and outs of journalism ethics, but also get the scoop on generating salable ideas, writing pitches that sell, and crafting compelling articles. The class is self-paced, and you get access to the materials (including the tasty bonuses) forever. And we offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee! Go to the class page to check out the testimonials from happy students who have gotten freelance writing jobs after taking our class.

Mediabistro is running its first workshop to help writers craft the perfect pitch and query letter to send to agents and editors. In the Query Letter and First Pages Workshop, students will work with Kate McKean, a top literary agent and Vice President at the Howard Morhaim Literary Agency, to improve their writing and pitches.

The query letter and first pages of a novel are a writer’s best opportunities to make a good impression on an agent or editor. In this brand new, one-day workshop, students will learn how to draft a query letter and get real-time reader feedback on the first 1,000 words of their novels. Students will be given examples of both good and bad query letters so that they can become familiar with how to write a successful query for their own writing. The workshop will take place in New York City, on Saturday, June 20.

Mediabistro’s courses help students add skills to their resumes through portfolio-building courses led by media professionals. Class sizes are kept small to allow for individual feedback and interaction from industry thought leaders.

This workshop is designed for writers aiming to write and submit full-length novels of any genre. Are you ready to pitch your novel to agents? Register for the Query Letter and First Pages Workshop today before the course sells out!

A number of staff changes have been made at Dark Horse Comics.

One new assistant editor has been hired and eight members of the editorial team have received promotions.

Here’s the full list of editors and their newly acquired titles: senior editor Dave Marshall, senior editor Philip Simon, editor Daniel Chabon, editor Jim Gibbons, editor Brendan Wright, editor Patrick Thorpe, associate editor Shantel LaRocque, associate editor Aaron Walker, and assistant editor Katii O’Brien.

The editor said she was going to assign this idea, and two weeks later I still haven’t heard back about an assignment. Should I ding her?

Will I be a pest if I nag the editor about a payment that’s 30 days past due?

The magazine wants me to write a 1,500-word feature that will require six interviews, tons of research, and photos — but they can only pay $75. I’m afraid if I say no I won’t get any work at all. What should I do?

Should I ask for a First North American Serial Rights contract instead of All Rights? I’m scared!

Freelance writers are always posting to forums and email lists with questions like these. And I find a good way to answer many of them is with this acronym: WWYED?

What Would Your Editor Do?

(You know, kind of like WWJD, except Jesus probably never negotiated terms with a magazine editor.)

• For example, if you’re asking “Should I go ahead and write this article because the deadline is looming near, even though I don’t know yet what the payment is?” — would your editor work even a single day at her job without knowing what she would be getting paid?
• If you want to know, “Will I be a pest if I nag the editor about a payment that’s 30 days past due?” — what do you think your editor would do if his paycheck were even one day late, much less a whole month?
• You’re worried about asking for a FNASR contract? Well, your editor wasn’t afraid to ask YOU to give up all your rights, in all media, in perpetuity, for 25 cents a word.
• You’re offered an assignment for a heavily-researched and interviewed feature, including photos — a week’s worth of work — for $75. Would your editor work for $75 per week?
• You don’t want to be a nag, but the editor told you two weeks ago she was going to assign you this idea, and it’s been radio silence since then. What would the editor do if her boss were interested in an idea of hers and then forgot all about it?

WWYED?

You Are Not a Supplicant

It’s appalling the way writers are treated sometimes, but even more appalling is the way writers often let themselves be treated.

You are not a supplicant. You are providing a valuable service — the very writing people pick up a publication to read! The ideas that give magazines their enticing coverlines! The research that brings credibility to a publication!

Writers assume that because they’re doing work that many perceive as fun, or passion work, they don’t deserve good pay or good treatment. So they’re afraid to ask to be treated with respect.

But as much fun as you may be having as a writer, the publication is profiting from your work. The fact that writing an article is fun doesn’t discount the fact that it brings in clicks (for which the publication is being paid) or readers (who advertisers pay to reach).

Writing is a business. No matter how fun it is, no matter how passionate you are about writing, it is a business. You are an entrepreneur. A business owner.

You’re in a business just like your editor is. So if you’re ever wondering whether you should stand up to shoddy treatment or push for what you need, just as yourself:

WWYED?

P.S. The next Write for Magazines e-course starts on Monday, June 8! Want to join the class that’s helped writers break into magazines like Woman’s Day, Writer’s Digest, and E: The Environmental Magazine? Here’s where you can check it out.

Katy O’Donnell has been brought on to the Nation Books team.

O’Donnell will serve as an associate editor. She will work with editorial director Alessandra Bastagli.

Throughout her career, O’Donnell has held editorial positions at Overlook Press and Basic Books. Some of the books she has edited include Edward Baptist’s The Half Has Never Been Told: Slavery and the Making of American Capitalism, John Merriman’s Massacre: The Life and Death of the Paris Commune, and Eugene Rogan’s The Fall of the Ottomans: The Great War in the Middle East.

The Amazon editorial team has launched a young adult book club. To kick things off, I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson was chosen as the May/June 2015 read.

Participants can submit questions for Nelson from now until May 30th; her responses will be posted on June 15th. Discussions are being held at the club’s Goodreads group page.

The editors have also compiled a list of “100 Young Adult Books to Read in a Lifetime.” Some of the titles that made the cut include American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang, The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, and The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.

Janice Audet will serve as the executive editor of life sciences at Harvard University Press.

Audet gave this statement in the press release: “As both a reader and a publisher, I’ve long admired Harvard University Press’s strong science publishing program. Working outward from my background in cellular and molecular biology, I look forward to growing this program and to broadening my author network across the life sciences”

Audet has devoted more than a decade of her life to a career in publishing. In the past, she has held editorial positions at Jones & Bartlett and Pearson. In 2011, she was named editor of the year for science and technology books at Elsevier.

Kathryn Huck will serve as a senior editor at Simon & Schuster’s North Star Way.

According to the press release, North Star Way is a “a new publishing unit that will offer authors an expanded suite of profile-building, ancillary services that extend beyond the boundaries of traditional publishing.” The company announced the launch of this venture back in January 2015.

Prior to this development, Huck worked as a freelance editor. In the past, she has held editorial positions at St. Martin’s Press and HarperCollins.