It makes me sick to write this article but you deserve to know about this situation. If I sound a bit angry here, it’s because I AM. And, you should be, too, because this affects YOU, our readers.
Last week, I wrote:
Paying freelance markets published by WritersWeekly.com are completely original listings, created by WritersWeekly.com after interviewing specific editors. They are our original, copyrighted work and they are time-consuming and expensive to create. We pay employees to help us with the work involved in contacting editors, and using their answers to create detailed market listings that feature each editor’s current needs. I, personally, check and edit each one, and send the finished listing directly to each editor for final approval.
We do not allow third parties to copy our markets because doing so greatly dilutes the value of these
markets for YOU, our WritersWeekly.com readers. When somebody steals our markets and publishes them elsewhere, YOU have to compete with THEIR readers for those valuable writing assignments! Therefore, people who illegally copy and publish our markets not only hurt WritersWeekly.com, they harm YOU, our readers, as well.
A couple of weeks ago, a reader informed me a competitor was publishing our original market listings. I investigated, and was shocked by what I found. It wasn’t just some unknown blogger with a hobby website. The person publishing our copyrighted material without permission was a very well-known competitor. Her name is Anne Wayman and she publishes aboutfreelancewriting.com, as well as AnneWayman.com and WritingWithVision.com. Anne Wayman’s website, AboutFreelanceWriting.com, currently features 51 posts dating back to last summer that contain our copyrighted material, word-for-word, with no credit given to WritersWeekly.com whatsoever.
And, that’s not all. We caught Anne Wayman publishing our copyrighted material back in 2002! I was absolutely blown away that this was happening again. To add an even bigger insult to the injury, she still hasn’t removed OUR copyrighted material from her website, despite the fact that we first notified her of this more than two weeks ago. It also appears she has stopped responding to our emails.
Here is our recent correspondence.
March 20, 2010
Anne Wayman – anne@aboutfreelancewriting.com
About Freelance Writing
aboutfreelancewriting.com
— ADDRESS REMOVED —
Hi Anne,
It has come to our attention that you have copied numerous paying markets created by and featured in WritersWeekly.com over the past several months. It appears you are reading each issue of WritersWeekly and pulling markets, word-for-word, republishing them without permission, and giving no credit to WritersWeekly.com.
Our markets are original, paying markets, created by WritersWeekly after interviewing specific editors. They are our original, copyrighted work.
Please advise as soon as possible.
Angela Hoy
WritersWeekly.com
ANNE’S RESPONSE (paraphrased, so she can’t accuse US of copyright infringement):
Date: Sat, 20 Mar 2010 19:44:15 -0800
She says she’s sorry and “It didn’t dawn on me where my gal was getting those…” She says she should have double checked but she didn’t. She says it won’t happen again and thanks us for letting her know.
She then says she lists job sites under her posts, and asks if we want her to include WritersWeekly there. She adds, “Which is what I should have been doing all along…”
Since I’d caught her copying our markets back in 2002, I doubted “the other gal did it” story. I responded with this:
——– Original Message ——–
Subject: Re: COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT BY ANNE WAYMAN / ABOUT FREELANCE WRITING?
Date: Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:04:56 -0400
From: Angela Hoy
To: anne@annewayman.com
What is the name and contact information of the person who stole our
material?
I figured she’d refuse to divulge the alleged “other gal’s” identity and I was right. This was her response (PARAPHRASED):
Subject: Re: COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT BY ANNE WAYMAN / ABOUT FREELANCE WRITING?
Date: Sun, 21 Mar 2010 10:46:24 -0800
From: anne@annewayman.com
To: Angela Hoy
She says it’s her website and asks where I’m going with this.
WRITERSWEEKLY’S RESPONSE:
——– Original Message ——–
Subject: Re: COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT BY ANNE WAYMAN / ABOUT FREELANCE WRITING?
Date: Sun, 21 Mar 2010 13:41:59 -0400
From: Angela Hoy
To: anne@annewayman.com
Hi Anne,
How are we to know if it really is someone else or if you are the one who stole the copyrighted material?
You also stole our copyrighted material back in 2002. See old emails below. So, this is the second time you have violated our copyrights and we are now forced to invoice you for the unauthorized publication of our copyrighted material. Please advise if you would now care to share the guilty party’s identity or if you are still claiming 100% of the blame for this illegal activity.
Angela
ANNE WAYMAN’S RESPONSE (paraphrased):
Date: Sun, 21 Mar 2010 09:25:33 -0800
She said my “quarrel” was with her, nobody else, and that, “It’s on my head.” She then says she’s stopped it.
As I noted above, what’s really disturbing is that she still hasn’t removed our copyrighted material from her site. As of this writing, it is still there! It seems to us she isn’t sorry at all, and doesn’t care about the rights of others because she is STILL VIOLATING WRITERSWEEKLY.COM’S COPYRIGHTS!
WRITERSWEEKLY’S LAST RESPONSE, WHICH WE STILL HAVEN’T RECEIVED A RESPONSE TO:
——– Original Message ——–
Subject: Re: COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT BY ANNE WAYMAN / ABOUT FREELANCE WRITING?
Date: Mon, 29 Mar 2010 16:44:34 -0400
From: Angela Hoy
To:anne@annewayman.com
March 29, 2010
Anne Wayman / anne@aboutfreelancewriting.com / anne@annewayman.com
About Freelance Writing / aboutfreelancewriting.com
— ADDRESS REMOVED —
Also Associated With:
Writing With Vision / writingwithvision.com
annewayman.com
Tweets by AnneWayman
Paying freelance markets published by WritersWeekly.com are completely original listings, created by WritersWeekly.com after interviewing specific editors. They are our original, copyrighted work and they are time-consuming and expensive to create. We do not allow third parties to copy our markets because doing so greatly dilutes the value of these markets for WritersWeekly.com readers. Therefore, you have not only harmed WritersWeekly.com. You have harmed our readers as well. It is unethical and illegal to publish someone else’s work as your own.
This is the second time you have violated the copyrights of WritersWeekly.com. In 2002, you admitted you published our original paying markets, though you claimed they were just for a “sample” page you put on a website. We didn’t believe you at the time but we let it go. You’re now claiming one of your employees stole our copyrighted material but you are refusing to divulge that person’s name. You have now claimed this is your responsibility.
You recently published, without permission, 119 additional, original markets from WritersWeekly.com, including them in your newsletter, AboutFreelanceWriting.com, without permission and without crediting WritersWeekly.com as the source (though that would not have made any difference). It was copyright infringement either way.
The 119 original market listings below were copied from WritersWeekly.com, word-for-word, on About Freelance Writing / AboutFreelanceWriting.com. We have screenshots of every violation.
Despite the fact that you have been aware of this for over a week now, the infringing material is still appearing on your website. We demand the immediate removal of ALL WritersWeekly’s original content, both known and unknown, from every online property owned or managed by Anne Wayman.
Below is an invoice for the unauthorized publication of our copyrighted work. According to US Copyright Law – https://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap5.html
(c) Statutory Damages.
(1) Except as provided by clause (2) of this subsection, the copyright owner may elect, at any time before final judgment is rendered, to recover, instead of actual damages and profits, an award of statutory damages for all infringements involved in the action, with respect to any one work, for which any one infringer is liable individually, or for which any two or more infringers are liable jointly and severally, in a sum of not less than $750 or more than $30,000 as the court considers just. For the purposes of this subsection, all the parts of a compilation or derivative work constitute one work.
We are invoicing you $750 for each week you published WritersWeekly.com’s copyrighted material.
=========
INVOICE
=========
To:
Anne Wayman / anne@aboutfreelancewriting.com
About Freelance Writing / aboutfreelancewriting.com
— ADDRESS REMOVED —
DUE: On Receipt
PAYABLE TO:
Booklocker.com, Inc.
P.O. Box 2399
Bangor, ME 04402
DESCRIPTION
51 incidents of copyright infringement / issues of
AboutFreelanceWriting.com featured WritersWeekly.com’s material
$750 per infringement
=========
$38,250.00 TOTAL DUE
LISTING OF INCIDENTS OF COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT BY ABOUTFREELANCEWRITING.COM:
Aug 31 2009
Adirondack Life
Wisconsin Trails Magazine
Sept 4 2009
HomeWorker Magazine
MomSense magazine
Sept 14 2009
Good Old Boat magazine
GRIT, Ogden Publications
Sept 21 2009
Faith Today
Fate Magazine
Sept 25 2009
Emerald Coast Magazine
ColumbiaKids
Sept 28 2009
Cross & Quill, The Christian Writers Newsletter
Ceramics Monthly
Sept 30 2009
Enrichment Journal
Oct 16 2009
Islands
Italian America Magazine
Key Club
Lost Treasure
Oct 19 2009
Italian America Magazine
Key Club
Living Abroad
Living Light News
Oct 26 2009
Fiberarts Magazine
DRAFT Magazine
Oct 28 2009
The Gay & Lesbian Review / Worldwide
GreenPrints, “The Weeder’s Digest”
Gateway
Oct 30 2009
Antiques & Collecting Magazine
Sourcebook
Nov 4 2009
The Antigonish Review
Brick
Nov 6 2009
Rack
Rock & Gem
Nov 13 2009
Fiberarts magazine
Imagination Cafe
Poisoned Pen Press
Nov 20 2009
Apex Magazine
The Chrysalis Reader
Nov 23 2009
Electric Spec
Descant Magazine
Nov 25 2009
American Craft
Threads
Nov 27 2009
The Writer
You&Me-America’s Medical Magazine
Vestal Review
Nov 30 2009
You&Me-America’s Medical Magazine
Dec 7 2009
The Pedestal Magazine.com
RANGE magazine
Notre Dame Review
Dec 11 2009
HealthSource
Native Peoples
HealthSource
Dec 14 2009
City Kidz World magazine and www.citykidzworld.com
Funds For Writers
Dec 18 2009
Back Home In Kentucky
Blue Mountain Arts, Inc
Central Florida Doctor
Bird Watcher’s Digest
Antioch Review
Dec 23 2009
Back Home In Kentucky
Bird Watcher’s Digest
Dec 30 2009
Sharing the Victory
Alaska Business Monthly
Unique Opportunities, The Physician’s ResourceA
Jan 11 2009
OCEAN Magazine
Outdoor America
Jan 4 2010
Reading Today-
Pelican Publishing Company, Inc
Sandlapper, The Magazine of South Carolina
Recreation News
Jan 6 2010
Pelican Publishing Company, Inc.
Jan 8 2010
The First Line
Just Labs
Outdoor America
Jan 15 2010
The Dollar Stretcher
The Fiddlehead, Atlantic Canada’s International Literary Journal
Jan 18 2010
Ephemera Buttons, Magnets & Stickers
Dramatics Magazine
Jan 25 2010
Vestal Review
Venues Today and VT Pulse
Jan 27 2010
Church Libraries
Wavelength Magazine
Valley Business Front
Feb 1 2010
Stone Soup, the magazine by young writers and artists
Susie Magazine
Urban Male Magazine
Feb 3 2010
PWC (Painting & Wall covering Contractor) Magazine
Poets & Writers Magazine
Feb 5 2010
Meriwether Publishing Ltd.
Military History
Feb 8 2010
The Hollins Critic
IMAGE
Feb 12 2010
Blurt Magazine
Hayden’s Ferry Review
Feb 15 2010
Downstate Story
Disaster News Network / Village Life Company
Feb 17 2010
Downstate Story
Feb 19 2010
Animal Wellness, Feline Wellness
BackHome Magazine
The Artist’s Magazine
Feb 22 2010
Alaska Business Monthly
Arc Poetry Magazine
Feb 24 2010
Animal Wellness, Feline Wellness
Feb 26 2010
WOW! Women On Writing
Windsor Review
March 1 2010
SimplyFishingMagazine.com and SimplyHuntingMagazine.com
Windsor ReView
March 3 2010
AGNI Magazine
New Jersey Family
Scottish Home and Country
March 8 2010
South American Explorers Online Magazine
March 12 2010
General Aviation News
Go For A Ride
Kraze Magazine
March 15 2010
LIVE
Modernism Magazine
New Jersey Family
March 19 2010
DOG FANCY
Early American Life
FIDO Friendly magazine
While this was, by far, the worst infringer, we caught other people stealing our markets as well. Next week, I’ll let you know who they are and what they did after getting caught.
UPDATE: The day after this article was published, Anne Wayman’s site, aboutfreelancewriting.com, was down for several hours. It is back up today (Friday, April 9th). She did remove some of our markets from her site, but not all of them! So, she continues to violate federal copyright law and profit from someone else’s hard, honest work. Furthermore, after being alerted to our discovery of this infringing activity almost three weeks ago, she only bothered to remove some of the markets after she was exposed on WritersWeekly.com.
ANOTHER UPDATE: Anne Wayman emailed, claiming she’d removed the stolen material. We pointed out that there was more. She emailed again later, saying it was removed. We’re still waiting for her to let us know when she plans to pay the invoice we sent for 51 incidents (6 MONTHS!) of copyright infringement.
AND ANOTHER UPDATE
We sent a certified letter to Anne Wayman on April 2nd. It was returned today, April 15th, with “REFUSED” written on it. We’re not surprised. Shame on you, Anne Wayman.
Got questions about Print On Demand and Self-publishing? Ask Angela Hoy.
About The Author
Angela Hoy is the publisher of WritersWeekly.com, the author of 19 books, and the co-owner of BookLocker.com (one of the original POD publishers that still gets books to market in less than a month), PubPreppers.com (print and ebook design for authors who truly want to self-publish), and Abuzz Press (the publishing co-op that charges no setup fees).
Angela has lived and traveled across the U.S. with her kids in an RV, settled in a river-side home in Bradenton, FL, and lived on a 52 ft Irwin sailboat. Angela now resides on a mountaintop in Northwest Georgia, where she plans to spend the rest of her days bird watching, gardening, hiking, and taking in all of the amazing sunrises.
WritersWeekly.com - the free marketing ezine for writers, which features new paying markets and freelance job listings every Wednesday.
BookLocker.com - According to attorney Mark Levine, author of The Fine Print, BookLocker is: "As close to perfection as you're going to find in the world of ebook and POD publishing. The ebook royalties are the highest I've ever seen, and the print royalties are better than average. BookLocker understands what new authors experience, and have put together a package that is the best in the business. You can't go wrong here. Plus, they're selective and won't publish any manuscript just because it's accompanied by a check. Also, the web site is well trafficked. If you can find a POD or epublisher with as much integrity and dedication to selling authors' books, but with lower POD publishing fees, please let me know."
Abuzz Press offers FAST and FREE book publication, but only accepts a small percentage of submissions, and only works with U.S. authors.
PubPreppers.com - "We Prep, You Publish!" Print and ebook design for authors who truly want to self-publish. Offers formatting and design services only, and then provides simple instructions for authors on where to sign up to have the print and ebook editions printed/listed/sold. Cut out the middle man. Keep 100% of what bookstores pay for your book!
Angela's POD Secrets Revealed Series can be found HERE.
Have a POD Book with another publisher? See if BookLocker can give you a better deal. (BookLocker offers "disgruntled author discounts" to those who want to move from other POD services.)
See BookLocker's publishing packages HERE.
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https://24hourshortstorycontest.com/
Read More Of Angela's Articles HERE