Job Offers in the Internet Age.

Red Flags on Job Offers

by Lorraine Mace

In this internet age it has never been easier for writers to find work. Opportunities seem to be (and are) abundantly advertised on various sites, including bidding and pay per click revenue outlets. However, the downside of this is that it has also never been easier for writers to be taken for a ride and end up out of pocket in terms of time and effort. There are all too many supposed job offers that are, in truth, little more than slave labour and others that are scams. For the unwary writer looking to make a living from their craft, all too often unscrupulous people are waiting to take advantage of the writer’s readiness to take their job offer at face value.

So, how can you tell when an online writing job offer is better left unanswered than followed up? Fortunately, there are some obvious red flags to look out for.

Deadline for delivery, when paid (publication or on acceptance), the rights being purchased (all rights, electronic, or print), when payment will be made and how.

Remember that your non-fiction writing should be treated as a business. Writing fiction for the love of it, because the characters are burning holes in your brain is one thing, but researching, planning and writing an article should always have a payment at the end of it. If you value your worth as a writer, it is going to be harder for an unscrupulous person to take advantage of you.

Lorraine Mace is a columnist with Writing Magazine (UK) and also deputy editor of Words with JAM. She writes fiction for the women’s magazine market, features and photo-features for monthly glossy magazines and is a writing competition judge for Writers’ Forum.

Find out more about Lorraine by visiting her website: www.lorrainemace.com

BE CAREFUL.

DO NOT GET CAUGHT.

Jim.