Internet Information Service

Rant of Underpaid Copywriter

Posted in Humor |

I have been so busy doing my job as a writer that I have not had time to write anything. It is a personal conundrum. It is great being busy and making money. However, working as copywriter can jade a writer about being a writer. But since there are so few opportunities for writers to make money, I am not expecting to receive much sympathy or empathy regarding my dilemma. My job is to write about stuff that appeals to an upper scale audience for Web sites that exclusively promotes a luxury lifestyle. I write articles about expensive cars, gadgets, real estate, vacations, jewelry, leather goods, clothes, and just about anything else you could think of that would wreak of snob appeal. I do get to implement humor into my articles. And I also get a byline for each article that I write. If you were to type my name into a search engine, it would appear that I am a celebrity with a real glamorous job. Nothing is further from the truth. And since I started writing today with the intention of building a bitch list of that I find really annoying, the more I thought about it, this issue is at the top of my list.

I write about things that are so expensive that only millionaires can afford to buy these goods or services. My job is to write articles that make it sound like I possess intimate knowledge or know-how of the items or services. I am told that my articles help increase readership, attract prospective advertisers, and provide my employer’s sales staff with invaluable sales or marketing tools. Additionally, my articles are used on at least three websites and various business-related web logs (blogs). I am told that over one-half million people visit this website. My name, which I cannot reveal for obvious reasons, appears in search engines up to 10 pages deep. This month I wrote 26 articles and was paid less than $700. If this doesn’t serve as good fodder that I am either a crummy businessperson or an economically irrational individual to a fault, what does it indicate? I feel that I could nominate myself for some sort of asshole-of-the-year award.

Maybe I could get a second job in a third-world country and glue $250 sneakers together. It is a nice feeling when your friends tell you they enjoyed something you wrote. But honestly, I am embarrassed to admit how little I am paid for how much I do.

How can I be patted on the back and kicked in the ass simultaneously and still hold my ground? It is a simple supply-and-demand formula. Despite the written word appearing in more places than it is possible to list without using up all the memory in my iBook G4, many businesses view writers as a dime-a-dozen commodity. I see ads for writers frequently that offer lowly pay for a lot of work. E-zines, or Internet magazines, seeking talented writers to write 500-word articles for less than $10; and the pay is based upon whether the submission is approved. The most insulting ads for writers are the ones that promise great exposure yet offer zero compensation. They want you to help them make money, but your efforts are worthless to them. The luster of this free exposure wears off real fast when you are paying your own rent. Is this really how Dave Barry, Shakespeare, Stephen King, or Rod Seiger really got started?

People are paid to clean toilets, answer phones, and deliver packages, but writers are asked to work for nothing like charity workers. If an e-zine is too cheap to pay writers, why is appearing in it as a writer good exposure? Unless it offers free pornography to perverts, the likelihood that anyone is clicking on it is nominal at best.

I read somewhere that writers are the best business types for artists. If that’s true, how come we are willing to work so cheaply? I guess our egos exceed our common sense. It feels good to see your name splashed all over the Internet; it really does. It is also cool to tell people that you are a professional writer. I think this is why most of work so cheaply. I have concluded that a writer’s only chance to live the dream, aside from being rich enough to sit around and do nothing but write or have a relative who happens to run a major publishing firm or a movie studio, is to give it away for free and hope that the efforts get noticed. Never write for exposure unless it is something that you wish expose. If some business type wants you to write about products, services, or anything else that makes them money, charge them for your time. The more the better.

One of my cheap clients, who is really a nice lady despite being a miser, wants me to link my blog to her website. If she read what I wrote today, I am betting that she would change her mind.

Write on!

 Articles Source - Free Articles

About the Author

Joe is an ordinary guy with extraordinary dreams.

Courtesy of http://www.articles-hub.com

Posted in Humor |