Hi everyone – I’m swamped busy but couldn’t resist posting the link to Canadian Magazines, the blog, where some good stuff is going on in terms of rebuttals to Transcontinental’s “poor us, we’re so misunderstood” musings. Visit: http://canadianmags.blogspot.com/
Derek Finkle, the writer that brought the original case against Transcontinental, lists a blow by blow of exactly the actions that have been taken in the case and Transcontinental’s response. I can also back up from direct knowledge his assertion that writers were told that if they didn’t sign Transcons contract they would NOT GET PAID for articles they had already written. What is more, the contract is permanent, so getting out of the contract for articles written after the contract is signed is pretty near impossible. The only misstep the writer’s groups have made is to assure writers who have signed it that they will try to work something out – once you’ve signed that sucker, it is fairly clear that you have signed your rights away, although hopefully a student of contract law can offer a rosier view on that one. It doesn’t look so good to me.
Also, on Twitter, this seems to have morphed into an outright boycott on the magazines themselves, rather than a boycott on writing for them. I’m not disagreeing with that stance, and I’m sure other writers don’t either. If we don’t give this boycott some teeth it will not succeed. Please blog, Twitter, Facebook and otherwise spread the word on the intertubes that Canadian writers will not go quietly into indentured servitude. I know some of you are afraid of getting blacklisted, but trust me, there are enough publications and online businesses that require web content out there that will hire you. This blog was started just to help out Canadian writers who were having a hard time getting jobs, and we’ll continue to do that no matter how busy we get. Let’s stand up together for our rights as freelancers; if we don’t we will not win the day.
Posted in Canadian Freelance Writer Jobs |
