by Leo Wiles
05 November 2014
Hi Leo. I’ve got a question for your Wednesday column. Is there a risk that an editor will take a freelancer’s unique story idea/scoop and run (away) with it? Karen
Big bad editors who steal your golden ideas are, to me, the biggest freelancer urban myth of all. Not to say that I haven’t sat on a bar stool and bitched about the fact that my great idea ended up in print by a seasoned staff writer (and heard similar war stories from other disgruntled writers).
We all know after coming up with a great idea, recognising it’s a beauty, pulling together experts, facts/stats and pitching it only to read a VERY similar article in the same publication has serious consequences for your blood pressure. However, when I was an editor, I can proudly state I never poached an idea or even thought of it. I was far too busy putting a mag together to twiddle my thumbs and wait for a freelancer to hand me the cover story of the century. Rather, I was working six weeks in advance and commissioning freelancers like crazy to ensure I had enough stories to fill my 26-page section each week.
That’s why a reality check can be useful when you realise that mags and papers come to life via a publication team batting ideas around a conference table, or from editors having an AHA moment (reading the news / through a conversation / or using another publications news piece as a feature launch pad). In my 20+ years of experience, the majority of editors will commission the person who brought them the idea. On one occasion I did purchase a pitch idea as I didn’t know the pitchee very well and did have a regular freelancer who I knew could make the piece hum. It was the same back on weekly women’s titles, where we paid $100 for celebrity phone numbers so that staffers could conduct the interview and land the expose.
It’s also worth remembering that stories are often seasonal: October for breast cancer, December for family and relationship tips and January for getting your body back on track and worrying about finances as you overspent at Christmas. It’s not magic it’s the way editorial calendars work. If I say Easter do you think bunny? The editor isn’t stealing your idea; but there is a chance you’re coming up with a crummy hackneyed one.
Blame the collective consciousness – we all read the news and listen to the commentary leading us to believe that there’s more digging to be had from a scandal etc, so it’s no brainer that the piece is already in the pipeline when an editor say thanks but no thanks and an article subsequently appears. Also, while media may have changed, I doubt the integrity of bona fide editors, who earned their title after putting in some serious years as writers, section heads etc, would they risk their reputation over intellectual property – especially as freelancers talk (and often tweet and blog) about who’s good to work for and who can’t be trusted / who pays on time / who changes copy etc.
By this you can read between the lies, oops lines. I am not writing about content mills or mags or sites being ‘edited’ by stressed out overworked teens who are living from one issue to the next without an editorial calendar. For them I cannot speak.
Of course, there are ways to make it less likely it’ll happen. Firstly, you could keep that idea under lock and key (yes I am joking) – or only pitch it to reputable publishing houses. Or, hit up social media and go to hell on their arse, but realise you’ll never work for that publication or sister title. Also, realise you cannot copyright an idea. If you send in a written draft you may have more sway as the piece is in print, leveraging potential legal recourse – but it’s a lot of effort to go to for a piece that may never be commissioned.
Have you ever had an idea ripped off? We’d love to hear from you in the comments.
Great to hear your insights Leo, thanks for sharing from an editor perspective.
Great piece Leo. I’ve only had happen once but now I’m not even sure it did given what you said about big mags etc. working on issues two or three months in advance etc. Best snorkeling spots in Sydney was not that original 🙂