I don’t know if any of you remember, but some time back, I posted a story here on the blog about how the capital of Nebraska came to be in Lincoln. In a wild “midnight ride,” the state library was stolen from Omaha and carried to Lincoln, and that effectively moved the capital.
I recently expanded that blog post into a magazine article and sent it to a national magazine. They’ve written back to say they won’t put it in the print magazine, but they want it to appear on their Web site. All well and good, but here’s the catch — on the Web site, it’s for no pay.
*sigh* It’s a mixed blessing. To beginning authors, I would say “Go ahead. At least you’ll have a credit for your resume.” But for myself–my first inclination is that it’s always nice to be published anywhere and have another credit. But my next thought is, “If it’s good enough to print, it should be good enough to pay for.” Publishers know they can get away with this because they know there are plenty of authors who will write for free. But how do they expect writers to make a living? They sure like to keep us “barefoot and pregnant,” don’t they?
So, I have to decide whether to publish for no pay or not. Should I? Your thoughts?
