Art Machine
Just another former infatuation junkie

Twice in a single day—twice, and it’s not even noon—I have run into people quoting the $200,000 average WGA salary figure, claiming that it’s proof the striking writers are just greedy.

First of all – it’s not about them making as much money as the producers. It’s about the producers turning their content into money without giving them a share. Writers see nothing from online use of their content, and little if anything from their content being put on DVD. All of this based on the idea that the content is worthless to the companies, even as the companies turn around and happily slap a dollar figure on it for the purposes of investor reports and lawsuits against YouTube.

Second, as August J. Pollak points out, if many writers make over a million a year and the average salary is $204,000 annually, then the vast majority of people have to be making well under $200,000 a year for the numbers to add up.

In conclusion. First, let’s not make the strike out to be about being paid the same as management – it’s about being justly compensated for your work. Second, let’s not allow pretty numbers to shut off our actual ability to interpret those numbers, shall we?

Thank goodness Not The Daily Show is ready to cover the WGA strike.

I have a lot of friends in Adjusted Gratuity, the hip new internet comedy troupe (along with the other hip new internet comedy troupes – you know the ones) responsible for a few videos I’ve posted to this site. They rock.

Their latest video on MySpace is a bit of a departure for them. They’ve entered into a Fox-sponsored competition to create a pilot – but on short notice, they didn’t have time to create, write, and shoot a comedy. Instead, they pulled a script from one of their members’ pilot file. The result is their first dramatic video.

And here is the result.

Storyteller

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What makes an effective strike? When the work can’t get done.

From the beginning of the WGA strike, one of the things that has been generally understood is that even a strike doesn’t stop writers from writing. No under-the-table deals were expected (and any such will be punished by the WGA if discovered), but it was largely understood that once this strike was done with, there would be a miraculous “appearance” of completed and revised scripts just ready for production.

It’s an understanding that – even if it is essentially honest – can really hurt a strike. After all, if the work is getting done no matter what, it’s just a matter of waiting out the strike and then you’re good to go.

Which makes this move by the WGA a nice addition to the strike. [link via The Artful Writer].

We won’t weaken our own position, or let down our supporters, by doing any writing during a strike. We know that any writing, outlining, even meetings with executives could serve to prolong a strike.

So, just to be absolutely clear: we, the following screenwriters, will do no writing — until all writers get a fair and reasonable deal.

A writer’s strike can halt production for as long as the strike continues.

Writers putting down their pens and turning off their laptops for the duration of the strike can mean consequences beyond the duration of the strike – and the longer the strike continues, the farther the consequences can reach.

That, my friends, is a strike.

Art-Machine has moved and upgraded to a new content management system! You may have noticed we look a little bit generic at the moment. You’ll excuse me if I don’t change that look for a while as I focus on NaNoWriMo. Funny how the move happened just at the moment I was to begin work on my novel.

Speaking of NaNoWriMo, every time I sit down at my computer to write, you’ll be able to watch me. The hot literary action comes courtesy of Stickam and their free user account. You can check me out at my profile page there. They encourage chatting, but you’ll excuse me if my typing is elsewhere. As an added bonus, you’ll get the audio of whatever it is I’m watching/listening to while I work.

Tune in tomorrow for the slightly-delayed random 10…