Regularly, my dad has to go through my grandpa’s mail and discard the many offers and “awards” that he receives. Additionally, scams (including one that is aimed at seniors receiving a bonus through Social Security ) are often aimed at our elders. It is vital that you pay attention to what is going on in your own family . The California Society of CPAs points this out about the desirability of seniors for scam artists :

Con artists can use hard-core social influence tactics to take them in, both on the phone and in person. The oldest generation in any family is vulnerable to scammers for a variety of reasons , none of which necessarily have to do with their mental competence. They’re typically home during the day - a prime time for con artists. Once they give up the financial security a paycheck provides, and begin living off the wealth they’ve accumulated for retirement, they are naturally mindful that the money has to last. This makes them more susceptible to investment schemes and the con artists who sell them on this fear. In addition, con artists target seniors because that’s where the cash is.

And, of course, one can’t forget scams and other schemes that come through the mail. One of the most blatant is one in which a check appears in the mail and is cashed. Unfortunately, cashing this check constitutes entering into an agreement that a certain amount of money will be removed from your account , either all at once, or in monthly installments. Investment schemes are also worrisome, since it preys on seniors’ concerns about how long the money will last.

Protecting your elders from these kinds of schemes can be difficult, especially since you do not want to seem patronizing or distrustful of your parents’ or granparents’ abilities with money at this point. Before you talk to your elders about money, consider these good points offered by Money Energy :

1. Understand that their decisions are their own . You can warn your elders about scams, and help them with their finances, but unless they are declared incompetent, you have to realize that it is still their money.
2. Make sure you understand the line between “helping” and “controlling” .
3. Respect others’ boundaries .
4. Examine your own position . Are you really in a place that qualifies you to be giving this sort of help?

Image source: U.S. government via Wikipedia.

Over the past few days, we’ve been talking about freelance scams. Granted, a lot of problems you come across in the world of writing aren’t because the client has a huge scheme to rip you off. I’m using the term “scam” pretty liberally. Sometimes people just see a way to suddenly take advantage of you, and sometimes a disagreement between you and the clients leads to a problem - and they legitimately think they’re being fair (even when they aren’t).

But sometimes, people have set out to scam you. That’s the kind of freelancing job you just don’t want - and although the scam-y ads look the same to amateurs, as you’re in the business longer and longer, you begin to see patterns. After just a few years of freelancing, you’ll start the notice the signs of a job that’s a scam (most likely). Here are three freelance jobs you definitely don’t want:

• A Non-paying Job

Jobs that are non-paying are ofen advertised as “great for your portfolio.” Let me say this - unless you’re actually put in contact with top people in your industry or receive mass amounts of exposure, a non-paying gig will do nothing for your portfolio that you couldn’t do on your own. I mean, if you’re a budding sports journalist and are giving the chance to interview Tom Brady for Sports Illustrated, you may want to do it just for the byline. In general, though, non-paying jobs just don’t make sense. If the person doesn’t have a way to pay you now, it is very, very, VERY unlikely that they ever will. The ONE exception is an internship. I do believe there are some non-paying internships that can actually be worthwhile. Usually, though, people who advertise non-paying jobs just want free work.

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Whenever you work on a contract basis, there’s always the potential that someone will try to take advantage of you. And when that happens - believe me, it will happen - you’ll ether be able to stop them or you’ll be a victim. Careful contract planning, which we’ll talk about later this week, is the key to making sure that you never get scammed in the first place…but it happens to the best of us. Maybe there was a loophole in your contract. Maybe the amount isn’t worth going to court to get back. Maybe the scammers used a fake name and just *poof* disappear. Maybe all three happen at once.

This is how being scammed makes me feel. Image:sxc.hu

Once bitten, twice shy. Today, I’m a pretty wary contractor, but that wasn’t always the case. I like to believe the best in people.

Let me tell you my story:

About two years ago, a few months after I started freelancing full-time (I had only done it part time before that), I got hired to write some articles for $50 a pop. For the length of the article and the number they wanted, that seemed like a lot. I signed a contract to get paid within 30 days of publication, and  got my first batch of 10 titles. I completed them, sent them in for review, and she loved my work - so I took a second batch…and then a third batch.

All of this work was really cutting into my time with other projects, but the money was too good to pass up. At least, it would have been. About two months into the project, the lady who was my contact stopped replying regularly, and then not at all. Soon she sent out a mass email to all of the writers on the project, telling that that no one’s work was going to get published and that no one would be paid. She then closed her email address, so questions just bounced.

Cue Allison’s panic attack.

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A member of our forum pointed to a great article on firstwriter.com that outlines how to avoid scams involving agency for writers. Written by J. Paul Dyson
Managing Editor there, Avoiding literary agency scams makes it clear that fees for reading and representation are certain signs of a scam.

Dyson then goes on to explain the pros and cons of other fees an literary agent may request or require. It’s a great overview.

I’m not familiar with First Writer – but it looks like a site worth getting to know, with a ton of helpful resources.

Write well and often,

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