What You Need To Know About California's New Law AB-5 Affects on Writers - Writer Beware

Today as our fastidious Panzer was washing the outside of the Panzermobile, he heard crying and shouting coming from the Catosphere. Hopping in the Panzermobile, he followed all the noise to the Writer Beware site. With no digging at all he found the source of all the angst. A new law in California has major problems for freelance writers in the state.

It's hard enough being a writer. Now this.

According to site owner Victoria Strauss, California has passed a new law aimed at helping 'freelance' workers. The AB-5 law gives freelance workers the benefits of regular employees after certain criteria are met. Because the law includes a limit of 35 'sales' to one company after that limit the freelancer becomes an employee under the law. This is one of the criteria of the law causing freelance writers a problem. Some freelance writers (and illustrators) can satisfy this criteria in six months, if not weeks. The post includes an article published by the Authors Guild explaining the law and its effects on writers.

Panzer says, "If you read all the way to the end of the post in the Update section, you'll see they want to do the same law here where I live in Washington state."

Note: This is a long post. Bring a cup of tea and two muffins for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to California AB5 Law

B&N Cuts Freelance Writers from Its Teen and SFF Blogs - Publishers Weekly

Today, Panzer was tootling around in the Panzermobile in the Catosphere when he heard sighing and crying coming from outside. Following the noise, took our sympathetic kitty boy to the Publishers Weekly site. There he found a post about Barnes and Noble's change to the company's freelance writing team.

Your job is never safe.

According to the post by Judith Rosen, Barnes and Noble has made major changes to the company's freelance bloggers. These freelancers are the ones who wrote the Teen and Science Fiction and Fantasy (SFF) blogs. The post includes quotes from freelancer teams that were let go and one of these is quoted as saying all freelancers were let go. As freelancers they weren't considered employees and so could be let go at any time. According to at least one of the quotes, some of them had worked for Barnes and Noble for years.

Panzer says, "Whenever a company is taken over by new owners, people will be let go no matter how long you've worked there."

Note: This is a medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and a muffin for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to Barnes and Noble teen and sff blogs

Freelancers are totally scrxxed: What today’s cultural treadmill means for writers

Don't say that in front of Mom!

Panzer took a trip into the Catosphere looking for something interesting to bring home for you today.

Now Panzer might be a bad boy, but he doesn't use bad words. Today's site doesn't have a really bad word, but it does have a word Panzer doesn't use around ladies or children. So ... if you are a lady or a child, you might not want to go to today's site!

My bad boy found a semi-rant by Noah Berlatsky over at Salon about the freelance writing life. It is true, it comes as a shock to many writers to realize that as a freelancer your next meal, the rent, the electric bill - literally everything in your life - depends on the ability to turn out more words to sell each day. It can at times seem overwhelming and that's why many freelancers give up and get a regular job.

If you're ready to read the real facts about being a freelancer, tootle over to Freelancers are totally scrxxed: What today’s cultural treadmill means for writers