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What's a Freelance RPG Writer Worth?
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<blockquote data-quote="Steve Conan Trustrum" data-source="post: 7734968" data-attributes="member: 1620"><p>The point is that business sustainment is a real thing that money must go into, more so when you don't have another job to support you. Green Ronin, as per your example, has a MUCH larger overhead than either Evil Hat or LotFP. And, although Green Ronin has full-time staff, I'd place safe money on them not living the Kardashian lifestyle as a result.</p><p></p><p>Not all businesses function the same. Just because you can point at LotFP and it's pay rate doesn't mean everyone who pays less is being unfair to their talents. Sure, some may be, but it's not a given. All of those businesses operate in different ways. Does James Edward Raggi IV have another job, for example, or is LotFP his only source of income?</p><p></p><p>That's why it's important to know the difference between gross and net profit. Having higher outlay =/= mismanagement.</p><p></p><p>Frankly, I don't know why it is, but I'm going to guess between your constant use of Evil Hat as an example and your loaded language and assumptions, you're concerned about proving some sort of personal point about them rather than actually discussing the financial realities of publishing.</p><p></p><p>[quoteThat's not a<strong> risk </strong>of how LotFP royalties work, <strong>that is how they work on purpose: LotFP pays a flat fee and then pays royalties on top of that.</strong></p></blockquote><p>From a publisher's perspective, it is an actual risk. Here's an example from my own company:</p><p></p><p>I have a popular supplement for Mutants and Masterminds. It's one of the most well-known and best-selling 3pp products for the system: Better Mousetrap. It was published under a royalties split model with its sole artist, Eric Lofgren, for the 2nd edition rules. It was a great deal because, at the time of that initial edition, I didn't have much money to work with as a budget, and certainly not enough to pay Eric a flat fee rate to illustrate and color all of this large book's art. It was a good deal for both of us based entirely on Eric's trust in me, as his income was 100% royalty based. When 3e came out, I went back and put time into rewriting this 150k+ word book, converting all the rules, redoing layout, remarketing, etc. That's a lot of work from the publisher's end. From Eric's perspective, he had to do a new cover and about 10 new art pieces. Everything else was carried over from the original, so not nearly as much work, but because the old art was being used, the old royalty agreement stands. So, from a publisher's perspective, using royalties for the art represents a clearly diminishing ROI from an effort perspective alone. But that's not all.</p><p></p><p>Better Mousetrap 3e surpassed the sales of its previous edition. It's now WAY past the point that it could have covered Eric's total art flat rate fees. But because he gets paid based on royalties, I keep taking money out of profits and giving them to Eric. This not only means less money in my pocket for all the additional work I put into the new edition, but it means less money going back into Misfit Studios for new products. Royalties, from a publisher's perspective, is an unending process of diminishing returns.</p><p></p><p>I've followed up Better Mousetrap, both in second and third editions, with my next most popular supplement, Metahuman Martial Arts. This book is even bigger and has more art, thus requires more time, but used stock art and art purchased on a flat fee basis. It's more niche and doesn't sell as well, in either 2e or 3e, but because my outlay is already long since paid, it makes far more money for Misfit Studios than does Better Mousetrap because my margin per sale is larger for the lack of still needing to pay someone else each sale.</p><p></p><p>The decision to go with royalties made sense at the time it was made but, future thinking-wise it was a mistake for Misfit Studios. I don't regret the decision, because i have a great relationship with Eric and it resulted in a good product, but purely from a business perspective, it's proven to be a bad risk that isn't paying off.</p><p></p><p>This here? This thing you just said?</p><p></p><p>This is where there is risk to the publisher. Intentions and good will aside, anything that increases costs is a risk to the business.</p><p></p><p>By definition.</p><p></p><p>The less money going back into the business, the less likely it is to be able to sustain itself against the unexpected, such as the rising costs of production if the paper market suddenly takes a hit or if another Wizard's Attic happens.</p><p></p><p>No, not "all the time."</p><p></p><p>The first is an outlier with most publishers. Most publishers develop product concepts in house and then look externally for the actual work to get done. Most publishers absolutely do not accept and then publish pitches as much as they do internally developed products.</p><p></p><p>Yes, although it may be a surprise to some, there are costs involved with product development other than paying the artists and writers.</p><p></p><p>Sure, we can assume that in both gross and net.</p><p></p><p>Yes on the former rates, but the latter isn't the same. All three companies produce print products with quality binding and paper. "Paying less" can be as simple as getting more for their money because they make larger orders with their printer. That "less" is actually purchasing value for the company and its market.</p><p></p><p>(again with the loaded language)</p><p></p><p>How do you know they are "pocketing" it?</p><p></p><p>Green Ronin has facilities and full-time staff to pay. The fact that their lower freelance rates reflects this isn't the same as "pocketing" money, "extra" or otherwise. It's a matter of the actual cost of doing business on a different scale than LotFP. (But the implication that it's not cool for the publishers to also try and make a living wage is kind of a real crappy perspective to take as a default position.)</p><p></p><p>Only if we agree with your assumption they are "pocketing" it.</p><p></p><p>Well, I don't track Evil Hat as much, but people seem pretty happy with Green Ronin's product quality.</p><p></p><p>Having worked with Green Ronin, and knowing people who do, I'll also say that while people may always hope to earn more, they'll also work for the existing opportunities and be happy about it.</p><p></p><p>Talents are "underpaid" by most RPG publishers because of the market and customers, not because of the publishers. </p><p></p><p>Low talent rates are the result of customers complaining and moaning that they aren't still paying the same price for product in 2018 as they were in 2000, coupled with an overall shrinking market, while talent rates increase. That's just the facts of the economics. For example, every single time Misfit Studios has tried raising a price to match economic shifts, there's been backlash over it and sales go down. So then it becomes a juggling game of whether the increased price is enough to bring in more money with fewer sales or if it's been raised to the point where it's just too high.</p><p></p><p>Every.</p><p></p><p>Time.</p><p></p><p>I've taken a small PDF product line with a cost of $1.55 per (with a profit of $1 per sale to me) up to $1.99 to accommodate art cost increases. Sales immediately dropped as a result and I was sent more than a few messages about how I was "ripping off" my loyal customers. Keep in mind that this price increase happened after the product line was 5 years old, so there were legitimate economic shifts to address. The result was that, in order to sustain the product line, I had to use original art less and stock art more just to maintain my own take away of $1 per sale, as the person doing the writing, layout, logistics, and marketing (you know, everything except the art; sometimes also including colouring the art myself.) This outcome doesn't exactly benefit freelancers either unless they happen to be the ones selling the stock art, because the result is missing job opportunities. And it's not like that $1 per sale I'm sustaining has the same value today as it did 5 years ago. </p><p></p><p>Because these are the realities of publishing beyond the perspective of freelancers alone.</p><p></p><p>There is a smaller market, that market wants to pay prices that are 20 years old, and freelancers expect rates that keep pace with the changing economy.</p><p></p><p>One of these things is not like the others.</p><p></p><p>Again, LotFP may pay great rates but is James Edward Raggi IV still doing other work to help pay expenses? Does his company have an office and full-time staff? How much of the work is he doing himself to reduce costs rather than "just" being the publisher? And on the projects he does the writing for, does he pay himself as he would any other writer or is he taking his compensation as writer out of the income he also takes as the publisher (as is the case with most small press)?</p><p></p><p>Then they won't work for those companies and will all go work for LotFP ...</p><p></p><p>... except they can't because, due to their higher rates, LotFP has less money to put into new product development and thus presents fewer opportunities for projects.</p><p></p><p>Because that's how businesses operate.</p><p>[/QUOTE]</p>
[QUOTE="Steve Conan Trustrum, post: 7734968, member: 1620"] The point is that business sustainment is a real thing that money must go into, more so when you don't have another job to support you. Green Ronin, as per your example, has a MUCH larger overhead than either Evil Hat or LotFP. And, although Green Ronin has full-time staff, I'd place safe money on them not living the Kardashian lifestyle as a result. Not all businesses function the same. Just because you can point at LotFP and it's pay rate doesn't mean everyone who pays less is being unfair to their talents. Sure, some may be, but it's not a given. All of those businesses operate in different ways. Does James Edward Raggi IV have another job, for example, or is LotFP his only source of income? That's why it's important to know the difference between gross and net profit. Having higher outlay =/= mismanagement. Frankly, I don't know why it is, but I'm going to guess between your constant use of Evil Hat as an example and your loaded language and assumptions, you're concerned about proving some sort of personal point about them rather than actually discussing the financial realities of publishing. [quoteThat's not a[B] risk [/B]of how LotFP royalties work, [B]that is how they work on purpose: LotFP pays a flat fee and then pays royalties on top of that.[/B][/quote]From a publisher's perspective, it is an actual risk. Here's an example from my own company: I have a popular supplement for Mutants and Masterminds. It's one of the most well-known and best-selling 3pp products for the system: Better Mousetrap. It was published under a royalties split model with its sole artist, Eric Lofgren, for the 2nd edition rules. It was a great deal because, at the time of that initial edition, I didn't have much money to work with as a budget, and certainly not enough to pay Eric a flat fee rate to illustrate and color all of this large book's art. It was a good deal for both of us based entirely on Eric's trust in me, as his income was 100% royalty based. When 3e came out, I went back and put time into rewriting this 150k+ word book, converting all the rules, redoing layout, remarketing, etc. That's a lot of work from the publisher's end. From Eric's perspective, he had to do a new cover and about 10 new art pieces. Everything else was carried over from the original, so not nearly as much work, but because the old art was being used, the old royalty agreement stands. So, from a publisher's perspective, using royalties for the art represents a clearly diminishing ROI from an effort perspective alone. But that's not all. Better Mousetrap 3e surpassed the sales of its previous edition. It's now WAY past the point that it could have covered Eric's total art flat rate fees. But because he gets paid based on royalties, I keep taking money out of profits and giving them to Eric. This not only means less money in my pocket for all the additional work I put into the new edition, but it means less money going back into Misfit Studios for new products. Royalties, from a publisher's perspective, is an unending process of diminishing returns. I've followed up Better Mousetrap, both in second and third editions, with my next most popular supplement, Metahuman Martial Arts. This book is even bigger and has more art, thus requires more time, but used stock art and art purchased on a flat fee basis. It's more niche and doesn't sell as well, in either 2e or 3e, but because my outlay is already long since paid, it makes far more money for Misfit Studios than does Better Mousetrap because my margin per sale is larger for the lack of still needing to pay someone else each sale. The decision to go with royalties made sense at the time it was made but, future thinking-wise it was a mistake for Misfit Studios. I don't regret the decision, because i have a great relationship with Eric and it resulted in a good product, but purely from a business perspective, it's proven to be a bad risk that isn't paying off. This here? This thing you just said? This is where there is risk to the publisher. Intentions and good will aside, anything that increases costs is a risk to the business. By definition. The less money going back into the business, the less likely it is to be able to sustain itself against the unexpected, such as the rising costs of production if the paper market suddenly takes a hit or if another Wizard's Attic happens. No, not "all the time." The first is an outlier with most publishers. Most publishers develop product concepts in house and then look externally for the actual work to get done. Most publishers absolutely do not accept and then publish pitches as much as they do internally developed products. Yes, although it may be a surprise to some, there are costs involved with product development other than paying the artists and writers. Sure, we can assume that in both gross and net. Yes on the former rates, but the latter isn't the same. All three companies produce print products with quality binding and paper. "Paying less" can be as simple as getting more for their money because they make larger orders with their printer. That "less" is actually purchasing value for the company and its market. (again with the loaded language) How do you know they are "pocketing" it? Green Ronin has facilities and full-time staff to pay. The fact that their lower freelance rates reflects this isn't the same as "pocketing" money, "extra" or otherwise. It's a matter of the actual cost of doing business on a different scale than LotFP. (But the implication that it's not cool for the publishers to also try and make a living wage is kind of a real crappy perspective to take as a default position.) Only if we agree with your assumption they are "pocketing" it. Well, I don't track Evil Hat as much, but people seem pretty happy with Green Ronin's product quality. Having worked with Green Ronin, and knowing people who do, I'll also say that while people may always hope to earn more, they'll also work for the existing opportunities and be happy about it. Talents are "underpaid" by most RPG publishers because of the market and customers, not because of the publishers. Low talent rates are the result of customers complaining and moaning that they aren't still paying the same price for product in 2018 as they were in 2000, coupled with an overall shrinking market, while talent rates increase. That's just the facts of the economics. For example, every single time Misfit Studios has tried raising a price to match economic shifts, there's been backlash over it and sales go down. So then it becomes a juggling game of whether the increased price is enough to bring in more money with fewer sales or if it's been raised to the point where it's just too high. Every. Time. I've taken a small PDF product line with a cost of $1.55 per (with a profit of $1 per sale to me) up to $1.99 to accommodate art cost increases. Sales immediately dropped as a result and I was sent more than a few messages about how I was "ripping off" my loyal customers. Keep in mind that this price increase happened after the product line was 5 years old, so there were legitimate economic shifts to address. The result was that, in order to sustain the product line, I had to use original art less and stock art more just to maintain my own take away of $1 per sale, as the person doing the writing, layout, logistics, and marketing (you know, everything except the art; sometimes also including colouring the art myself.) This outcome doesn't exactly benefit freelancers either unless they happen to be the ones selling the stock art, because the result is missing job opportunities. And it's not like that $1 per sale I'm sustaining has the same value today as it did 5 years ago. Because these are the realities of publishing beyond the perspective of freelancers alone. There is a smaller market, that market wants to pay prices that are 20 years old, and freelancers expect rates that keep pace with the changing economy. One of these things is not like the others. Again, LotFP may pay great rates but is James Edward Raggi IV still doing other work to help pay expenses? Does his company have an office and full-time staff? How much of the work is he doing himself to reduce costs rather than "just" being the publisher? And on the projects he does the writing for, does he pay himself as he would any other writer or is he taking his compensation as writer out of the income he also takes as the publisher (as is the case with most small press)? Then they won't work for those companies and will all go work for LotFP ... ... except they can't because, due to their higher rates, LotFP has less money to put into new product development and thus presents fewer opportunities for projects. Because that's how businesses operate. [/QUOTE]
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