Comments on: Shop Talk: A Few Words On Writing For Free

By: marielynn11

marielynn11 — Sun, 24 Jun 2012 20:20:52 +0000

Thanks for your advice. It is much appreciated. I have noticed that many publications do this… not just gaming ones. It’s sad that they think our time and energy, as well as our knowledge, is worth nothing. What I have also seen, and I am sure you have to, is that many publications will offer to pay but it is a very low amount like a cent a word or ten dollars for an article. We as writers have to value ourselves and our work even more than we do, so that when we see these kinds of things we won’t give them a second glance.

By: nmeunier

nmeunier — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 19:31:43 +0000

Also: This blog post NEEDS more SWORD!

By: brianfishman

brianfishman — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 19:15:29 +0000

When I was still trying to decide between careers in games journalism and medicine, I wrote for some Australian site for free. I didn’t realize it at the time, but your description here is exactly what that site was doing.

But I agree with Andrew. Looking back on the stuff I wrote for them, I can’t imagine ever showing that to a professional organization. I enjoyed doing it at the time, partly because I was promised exposure and partly because I just liked having an outlet to write about what I loved.

Luckily, the folks over at GameSpot rescued me and allowed me to test my mettle in the real freelance world. I enjoyed writing for them because it let me work with people I’d known for years and looked up to. My acceptance into medical school quickly changed my plans, but I’d love to write again when I have more time.

By: nmeunier

nmeunier — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 19:09:58 +0000

Thanks for weighing in! Additional perspectives are always welcome, and some folks on twitter have made some interesting points/counterpoints to this too.

I’ll definitely be writing more on this subject down the road, as there’s plenty more to say about it.

By: Andrew Groen

Andrew Groen — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 18:58:29 +0000

I agree wholeheartedly that you shouldn’t write for free…but with the caveat “if you’re ready.” It’s all well and good for an experienced newspaperman like Nathan saying that your work is worth payment, but some people’s work is not worth payment.

I started doing this when I was maybe 20 years old. First year of journalism school. Never wrote anything else in my life besides essays. When I look back on my old work, it’s not utterly terrible, but I’m glad I didn’t approach magazine editors with it. I needed a couple years in the farm leagues (volunteer sites) to hone my writing, build up ideas, develop a style, and understand the industry (both gaming and publishing) better.

I would simply urge writers to be honest with themselves about their skill level. If you think you’re ready. Stop writing for free. This INSTANT. Nobody is ever going to notice your work if you keep working on low profile sites. Put all of your energy into networking and developing ideas. Not some tiny site’s news regurgitation.

You should work for free if you need it, but make sure you’re working a job that benefits you. Find yourself an editor who will work with you and make your writing better. And the second that job isn’t benefitting you: leave. You don’t owe them anything. I worked for free and it was a good choice. My only mistake was lingering too long and wasting time.