10,000 wd US history biographies needed...

Work for hire. Flat fee of $1,000. Not a good deal for research and writing - and what is Allegro Music doing commissioning biographies?

I actually sent them a chapter and proposal already. Since there were absolutely no instructions I attached a file to an e-mail. I didn't want to spend too much time on this since I have no idea what style they are looking for, or which historical figures are available. I wonder if they want to make them into books on tape?


Will post if I ever hear back from them.

PS
And thanks for the tip!

Stephanie said:

No, it's not a great amount of money - but for history buffs who can write for kids, it might be worth the experience.

Travel writers, for instance, almost always agree that work-for-hire guide book writing and/or updating is underpaid grunt work: it is that, but it also opens the door to many other opportunities.

I don't know anything about Allegro Music - took a look at the site and see they offer educational dvds and videos to homeschoolers. Perhaps they'll simply use the biographies as added incentives to buy--or perhaps they're branching out...

Click to expand...

This is a terrible deal for the amount of work involved. Don't do it!

I was able to crank out 1000 words in a couple of hours, Nomad. The pay doesn't seem so bad to me considering I've made zero dollars as a writer so far. It will be good to add to my writing credits as well.

True, Maddog, but did you notice that it said TEN thousand? That's an awful lot of hours for that kind of money.

Maddog said:

I was able to crank out 1000 words in a couple of hours, Nomad. The pay doesn't seem so bad to me considering I've made zero dollars as a writer so far. It will be good to add to my writing credits as well.

Click to expand...

Okay, but if you have written 1,000 quality words (I'm assuming you won't need to do any rewrites before you turn in the manuscript, which is HIGHLY unlikely) in a couple of hours, you'll have a minimum of 20 hours to write the first draft/first round of the manuscript (it calls for 10,000 words). (I also don't include any time for researching your subject, and it's very unlikely that even the most qualified historian can write 10,000 words without ever having to check facts, dates, etc.). Then you'll have revisions, edits, proofing, fact checking or whatever else your contract requires, and you retain no rights as a work-for-hire writer, so you'll see no royalties, can't sell any subsidiary rights, etc. etc. What is the per-hour dollar figure then? If it's worth it to you, then go for it, but it seems like a rotten deal to me.

We'll see if it even pans out. Seeing as I've been writing for almost a year now and haven't made a cent, it doesn't seem so bad. 20 hours to write the first draft, then maybe another 20 polishing and editing, that's $1000 for about a 40- hour work week. Lots of people would be glad to make 52K a year!


It seems like you seasoned writers don't think this is a good way to go. What is? How did you guys get writing credits under your belts? I'm starting to think pitching my first novel isn't the right way to go about it. I'd love to know some recommended ways to get credits, which would hopefully lead to an agent or publisher taking a serious look at my work.

Thanks!

Maddog said:

We'll see if it even pans out. Seeing as I've been writing for almost a year now and haven't made a cent, it doesn't seem so bad. 20 hours to write the first draft, then maybe another 20 polishing and editing, that's $1000 for about a 40- hour work week. Lots of people would be glad to make 52K a year!


It seems like you seasoned writers don't think this is a good way to go. What is? How did you guys get writing credits under your belts? I'm starting to think pitching my first novel isn't the right way to go about it. I'd love to know some recommended ways to get credits, which would hopefully lead to an agent or publisher taking a serious look at my work.

Thanks!

Click to expand...

My point is that what seems like an easy 40-hour job for $1,000 is absolutely, positively NOT going to be a 40-hour job. I would (at the very least) double your estimate for a conservative number of hours on this book, especially if you've never written a nonfiction, historical biography for kids before. Are you a historian with expertise on a particular historical figure? Won't you plan on doing some library/reference/internet research? Are you a seasoned children's writer for an 8-12 year old audience? If so, then why on earth would you be willing to sell that expertise so cheaply? And if not, you'll have to add in all the hours doing the above well will take.

So that means you'll spend a bare minimum of 80 hours for $1,000 that you are likely to see anywhere from 3-8 months after you've completed the book (if this publisher is like most, who usually divide payment up into installments).


The best way to get writing credits and some money is to start small (shorter articles, for say, a couple of hundred dollars each) for local publications and regional mags. If you're a good researcher and a solid writer, you can usually get stringer/correspondent jobs at papers, and regional mags of all kinds--they are usually desperate for writers. They don't pay all that well, but you usually can get at least $100 to $200 for articles in them. Then you'll have clips coming in that you can use for other jobs. Is it glamorous? No. Is it fun? Not always, but if writing is your passion and you want to earn a living from it, you will have to start pitching where people are buying--but be smart about it. There's a difference between paying your dues and getting completely screwed.

Maddog said:

It seems like you seasoned writers don't think this is a good way to go. What is? How did you guys get writing credits under your belts?

Click to expand...

Maddog,
Please check out the Freelance Writing forum for more on how to get writing credits under your belt. Short answer is this: write for magazines. This is the wrong forum to discuss this in, but real quick: is there any particular field you have a great interest in, hobby, experience, career, job, etc.? Then, find a magazine at a well-stocked newsstand (which only accounts for a small portion of available magazines, btw) that fits your interest. Read it and figure out what you could write for it. Find Writers Market 2005 or 2006 at the library for information on submission guidelines.

Jenna's book on making a living as a freelance writer would be good for you to check out. There are more books on freelance writing at your bookstore and/or library.

And that's how you do it. Is it easy? No. Overnight success? No. But it is how you can get a good assortment of writing credits in less than a year. And lots of experience, too.

Open up a new thread in Freelance Writing and we can talk more.

underthecity

Nomad said:

So that means you'll spend a bare minimum of 80 hours for $1,000 that you are likely to see anywhere from 3-8 months after you've completed the book (if this publisher is like most, who usually divide payment up into installments).

Click to expand...

Nomad raises excellent points. It may sound easy to write up 10,000 words, but hoooo-boy, are you in for a shock when it comes to the research and rewriting.

Case in point: I completed my third book at the end of July. It was a regional history book whose final word count was 31,000 (text and captions). It took me six months from start to finish. And it was a LOT of research, writing, rewriting, revising, fact checking, etc etc etc.

The topic for this $1,000 work-for-hire job kind of sounds right up my alley. But would I want to do it? Not for $1,000, no. Add $9,000 and we'll talk.

underthecity

I have written 4 books for this age group ranging from 15,000 and 17,000 words plus backmatter. All were royalty arrangements with reputable publishers. I got a $2,500 advance for the first one and $3,000 advances for the others. They were in areas that I have written about before for adults. Conservatively I would say that I spent a minimum of 120 hours on each book - more for the first, possibly fewer for the last, as I became more familiar with the reading level and publisher style.

The books are sold to libraries and schools as part of several series, and I expect them to sell through and eventually get royalties, as one of the series won a legitimate publishing award. My contract also calls for the right of first refusal on any updates or future editions, which might mean more money. However, as a full time freelance writer, these were not particularly good financial deals. I wanted to do them for a variety of personal reasons, and I am glad that I did, but they definitely were hard work and I could have made more money writing other things (textbooks, encyclopedia articles are my bread and butter writing). Do not think that just because they are short and for kids, they will be easier to write. In some ways they will be harder, because you have to hit the proper reading level and write very tight to word length and constantly make decisions about how to accurately simplify and what to leave out.

However long you think it will take you, triple the time. You'll find yourself answering editorial and fact checking queries months after you have finished the manuscript. Don't underestimate how long it takes to put together the back matter (references, more information sites, glossary) either. If you haven't done this before, you'll be surprised at how time consuming it is to produce a quality product that you can use to move your career in a new direction.

I'm not saying that you should not do this, but if you do enter into a contract for these kids biographies, go into it with your eyes open. Just be aware that you'll probably end up earning minimum wage or less and that you may not be paid until the project is complete. If they offer an advance, it will probably be the 1/3 when you sign the contract, 1/3 when you hand in the first draft and 1/3 when the book is deemed "publishable" (e.g. after you have addressed all the editorial and fact checking questions). And $333 every couple of months is not a living wage.

Thanks everyone for your advice. Much appreciated!