TSR TSR Cutting Writers Rates (In 1994!)

Writer James Lowder posted about TSR (the company which created and owned D&D until WotC purchased them) cutting it’s writing rates back in the 1990s, along with restrictions on freelancing.

“1994. Facing brutal competition in the tabletop game market from Wizards of the Coast, White Wolf, and others, and a potential design staff drain to the blossoming computer game industry, TSR management responds by cutting the rates the staff received for company freelance projects. Given that TSR would, within two years, start missing regular royalty payments to authors, I have to wonder if this ill-conceived cost control measure was an early warning sign.”

 

[Mournblade94]

Fantastic piece of History. I love the insight of the Old guard.

 

[Deleted member 7015506]

What astounds me (if I understood that correct) is, that some TSR employees worked also on a freelance basis for their company (see the remark for withheld taxes on their payroll)? Is something like this legal I wonder - being employed is one affair, but then processing freelance material through the same channel? I ask because over here in Krautland such things are (nowadays) illegal as hell. Being employed - okay you pay taxes according to your job contract/employment. Contributing material as an independent writer (at least that´s how I understand the term freelance) means you have to have your kind of own business = extra company that writes bill, pays extra taxes etc.
Perhaps some of the more eductaed ones on this subject can shed some light on the matter, since I am perplexed. Or did I understand something wrong (any corrections welcomed)?

 

[Nagol]

What astounds me (if I understood that correct) is, that some TSR employees worked also on a freelance basis for their company (see the remark for withheld taxes on their payroll)? Is something like this legal I wonder - being employed is one affair, but then processing freelance material through the same channel? I ask because over here in Krautland such things are (nowadays) illegal as hell. Being employed - okay you pay taxes according to your job contract/employment. Contributing material as an independent writer (at least that´s how I understand the term freelance) means you have to have your kind of own business = extra company that writes bill, pays extra taxes etc.
Perhaps some of the more eductaed ones on this subject can shed some light on the matter, since I am perplexed. Or did I understand something wrong (any corrections welcomed)?

It's entirely legal in Canada. Person has Accounting job, for example, and is paid for Accounting work, but has a creative writing sideline. Employer has creative writing need and contracts person A at their typical employer rate for creative writing. Person A pays taxes on their full time salary through the company and then pays taxes on independent earnings when taxes are filed.

 

[Ed_Laprade]

Sounds like a major red flag, and that one should start looking for a new employer asap. Did that happen?

 

[kenmarable]

Also interesting to see that these rates - which are even less than their normal freelancer rates back then - are still more than most companies pay now, 25 years later!

 

[Deleted member 7015506]

@Nagol
Thanks for the clarification. Still strange to me, but laws differ. So basically just another boxed marked on your annual tax declaration with the approbate amount. understood. Thanks for the clarification.

 

[aco175]

The $1200.00 for a module unit in 1994 would be roughly $2650.00 now. I wonder is a unit is roughly a chapter or how many units do you need to write to get by.

 

[kenmarable]

The $1200.00 for a module unit in 1994 would be roughly $2650.00 now. I wonder is a unit is roughly a chapter or how many units do you need to write to get by.

A “module unit” in TSRspeak is 32 pages, or about 24,000 words. It’s the length of an old adventure module, and I think they often even divided up larger books into “module unit” chunks for writers (which might be 1 or more chapters). I also recall for staff writers, I think the goal was 1 module unit minimum per month?

 

[Kramodlog]

Now I'm curious to know WotC and Paizo's rates.