When I lost my full-time job in 2020, I explored the possibility of taking on writing jobs.
Initially, I thought I had found a job as a writer for a mobile game app, the kind that place you in romantic, choose-your-own adventure scenarios. I sent in my writing sample, signed the contract, and was ready to go.
Or so I thought.
Not too long after my initial onboarding Zoom meeting, I asked about the manner of payment. The initial model was via Paypal, but some time immediately before joining the team, they had changed it to wire transfer (?) I thought I would receive a simple answer; instead, the two members who were spearheading the team both jumped ship in the span of two weeks, citing lack of faith in the company.
This was a major red flag. Nevertheless, I sent an email to their replacement, insisting I would not write a single word until I knew what was going on. The new individual wrote back, explaining that the company was going through a “transition phase” having just been bought out, and if I wanted to continue to work for them, I would have to sign a brand new contract.
This contract was worse than the last, and the payment rate section was left suspiciously blank – the implication was that I would write for them until I reached a minimum word count threshold. Then, and only then, when they determined the strength and quality of my work, would they dictate a rate.
I thanked them for their transparency and told them I would not be working for them any longer.
The last I heard from this company, they had sent a post out on Twitter asking for writers. Here were some of their requirements.
No, that’s not a typo. The company expected every writer to churn out a story that’s a MINIMUM of 3 million words. 3 MILLION WORDS.
To put it in perspective: I’m reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, and that behemoth brick of a tome is just over 257,000 words. Either the individual who wrote the ad had absolutely NO concept of what it takes to write a story, or the company has adopted predatory practices to exploit unsuspecting new writers.
But what does this anecdote have to do with Zulie Rane?
I have nothing but respect for Zulie Rane. Her Youtube videos and Medium posts are a wealth of knowledge and information on how to successfully break into the world of freelance writing and content writing. It was actually her Youtube channel that inspired me to take a deep dive into the practices of writing platform Vocal Media to give writers an objective, unbiased analysis on the true earning potential of the site.
That said…lately Zulie Rane has been recommending some questionable practices to inexperienced writers.
As of late, Zulie has been promoting the idea of writing fiction for the platform Stary Writing. In the above video, Zulie actually interviews a writer that has had success on the platform.
Now, I’m not going to disparage the guest that had given her positive experience with Stary Writing, but I am gravely disappointed in Zulie for glossing over some of the glaring issues with Stary Writing and its similar ilk.
Stary, Dreame, Webnovel – all these companies scour fiction sites in search of naïve, amateur writers, hoping to loop them into signing predatory contracts that strip away their rights to their works while paying them the bare minimum, if anything at all.
I know, because I’ve been approached by WebNovel on my Wattpad account. All it takes is a quick Google search to see several posts cautioning writers to steer clear of Stary/Dreame/WebNovel and anything similar.
In Zulie’s Youtube video, she highlights the monetary potential of writing for Stary, but ignores some of the glaring drawbacks of writing for the platform (ie. Stary stripping rights away from writers and even penalizing them financially for speaking ill of the company).
In Zulie’s Medium post on the same topic, she mentions some of the requirements for being successful on the platform:
That 50,000-200,000 seems awfully on par with the sketchy gaming company’s requirements, does it not?
Zulie also mentions $150 for writing every single day for a month, and a completion bonus s $50-$350 to write an entire novel.
I can tell you from experience that writing large amounts of content every single day is a recipe for burnout.
Also, to be offered $50-$350 for a full-sized novel is downright INSULTING.
50,000 / $50 = 0.001 per word. LESS THAN A CENT PER WORD.
For someone who gives a more transparent analysis of Stary Writing, there is an in-depth video on Stary and its similar sites by Youtuber/Writer Julian Greystoke:
Zulie – I truly hope this was an oversight on your part. Writers look up to you and hang on your every word, especially when you espouse your quirky theories on how Medium’s constant tinkering of the algorithm can benefit one’s writing habit.
I still value your wisdom, and I’m still going to watch your Youtube videos and read your articles.
But when it comes to offering advice on options for writing fiction, I sincerely hope you decide to change course and promote outlets that are not going to poach the creative talents of aspiring writers.
Sites like Vocal and Simily are not perfect, but they offer a low barrier of entry into the world of getting paid for writing fiction, and I’d be interested in hearing your take on their earning potential.