No, I’m not talking about my exercise program. I’m talking about short deadlines that are made shorter by lack of contracts or lack of something on the client side. Currently I’m sitting on two projects, both of which have an end-of-the-month deadline, both of which are at this moment uncontracted. I have notes to both parties reminding them of the current status. Why? Because I don’t press forward without written confirmation. And I can’t guarantee delivery dates if these clients choose to wait until a few days before the delivery date to send the contracts.
That’s not being stubborn. That’s sound business practice. Too often writers will think “Well gee, she’s nice and she really needs this now, so I’ll go ahead without the contract.” If you’re tempted to do that, don’t. See, without the contract or even email confirmation of the terms you’ve both agreed to, it quickly becomes your word against your client’s. Without proof of fees, proof of scope, or proof of any kind of arrangement, you’re pretty much dropped on your backside should the work be completed and the client not pay.
If that’s too hard to wrap your mind around, pretend the job is a 9-to-5 for a minute. If you were interviewed but no one said outright “You’re hired”, would you show up at that office and work? If you said yes, there’s no hope of helping you here. But if you said no, then consider that your contract is the “You’re hired” part of your business relationship – because it is. Without it, you shouldn’t assume or be prodded into completing anything. And while the majority of clients understand and respect contracts, there are a few bad seeds who’d love to guilt you into getting their work done and then not pay you.
Have you ever been expected to, or coerced into working sans contract? Did you? How did it turn out? Did anyone ever burn you on payment because there was no contract in place?
I recall very early in my freelance career doing this once or twice. "I put the contract in the mail; go ahead and get started," etc. I don't remember the details, but those few instances didn't end well. There's another little trick to beware of, too: clients who send the deposit, but not the signed contract. If you proceed without it, it will come back to bite you.
Hear hear, Eileen. I've had the same situations, and I've been burned. NEVER start without the contract!
Early on, yes, and I was burned, and that's how I learned. Now, I don't write without a SIGNED contract — signed by both parties — in place. Because sometimes they send you the contract, you sign it, but they never send back the copy with their signature on it. And I don't consider it a signed deal until the contract is signed by both parties.
When I was freelancing writing, I always worked on the "gentleman's agreement" basis. Only once was I screwed. I took the jerk to Small Claims Court and won, but still he didn't pay. That's when I learned that I had no other recourse.
Now, as an editor, I make people agree that our email stands as a contract (but I still offer a more formal one if they wish).
And I quit working without a down payment after doing rush jobs for a couple of local companies last year or so. One delayed payment for three months. The other flat out refused to pay unless I delivered his white paper first and he approved–after I'd spent four hours editing his poor grammar! He said he'd never worked with a "creative" before that did not operate the way he wanted. I curtly informed him that editing was not "creative" writing.
No more Ms. Nice Girl here.
The one time I was burned (the magazine folded owing me for two feature articles) I had a contract. It didn't help, since there was such a long line of other creditors in front of me who got what little was left.
With one of my major clients – one I've been working for without any problems for over 13 years – had writers sign an initial contract (amended several years ago to account for electronic reprint rights, but they almost never put articles on their site). They only buy one-time rights, and after a short period of time, you're allowed to resell your stories elsewhere. In 2009 they decided to try a new contract for each article, but it got so cumbersome with some of us doing three, four, or more articles in a single issue. So they're revising it now, hoping to get an annual contract lined up. So I guess, officially, we're working without contracts now.
The funny thing is one editor will assign stories with the word count and specific payment fees. The other editor will give a wider word count range, and usually says, "I trust your judgment, and we'll negotiate the fee once it's done." Call me strange, but that's what I prefer. And – as was the case last week – doing things her way often results in higher pay because she knows when certain articles were more difficult than we'd expected, and kicks in a little more to make up for the extra effort.
I don't work so casually with any other publications, but this one has a great track record with me, and things usually work out in my favor. I know the magazine backwards and forwards, and they know my work well enough to know they've never had to make major changes or heavy edits. They know I won't leave them hanging, and I know they'll pay fairly – and fast. So it's mutually beneficial. It doesn't hurt that it's an award-winning glossy that's not easy to break into.
I'd rather trust those editors than newer clients with detailed contracts. Contracts aren't really worth anything if the company fails and there's no one left to take to court. And that's definitely a point to consider in this economy.
Thanks Lori. This is especially prudent advice for "newbie" freelancers like me. I will heed it.
Best wishes
Andrea, it's taken a few burn marks to bring you that advice. 😉 It's not foolproof, but it's legal recourse should the client not pay or refuse using some excuse.
Likewise, Devon. I can trust the client all I like – my attorney doesn't. That's my reason. 🙂
Georganna, I love when you show up. It's always good stuff. 🙂 I've done a handful of gentlemen's agreements without issue, but on lower-paying items and usually with email backup, such as articles or press releases. Not the big stuff, however.
Paula, I agree. Magazines – the first time, a contract. Once you've both proven yourselves, an email agreemnt should be enough. Should be – not a guarantee. Nothing in life is guaranteed, is it?
Back in the old days (i.e., late 1980s, early 1990s), I used to write for rock magazines sans contract all the time. I'm not sure any of them actually had contracts! Did I get burned? Less often than you might think, and only because the magazine went out of business. Am I sorry I wrote the stories? No, because they were for Creem, which is still a great writing credit to have. Plus one of the articles ranks among the best pieces I ever wrote, and it was about a band I adored (a little known grunge group called Tad).
That said, these days, I require a contract. And I've found most established, professional magazines, publishers and companies give you one without question.
Janiss, I find that more common in magazines these days. It's rare that I do get a contract for magazine work. The difference between now and the 80s-90s (I remember Creem very well!) is we have emails to back up any verbal agreements. But there was a sense then that one's word was golden. Nowadays, one's word is interchangable with one's latest thoughts, depending on the person.