Results tagged “Freelances” from The Word is Not Enough

Nearly five years ago, I had to get an i-visa so that I could travel to New York to cover a one-day Dell press conference. It was an exciting tale of couriers, last minute dashes to the airport and the fear of a lost passport. I was sitting on a park bench in the middle of London, waiting for a call to let me know I'd been granted a visa and it and my passport were on the way to Heathrow to meet me for a flight a mere five hours later.

That time round most of the work was done for me by an agency. Now, I'm doing it by myself. It's a right old pain in the arse, isn't it?

First, there's the fact that as a member of the media, I need the i-visa in the first place. What's going on there? Everyone else goes in on a visa waiver, but journalists need to be vetted. How is that equitable?

Second, as a freelance, I'm in an interesting position. If I'm just going to the US on speculative work, I only need a B-grade visa. But if I cover something on behalf of a magazine, then I need an i-visa. But to do that, I need to have a contract and a letter from the magazine testifying to the fact. But if I have a contract, am I actually a freelance? And if I'm not, do I really need an i-visa instead of a b-visa?

Then there are the forms. Apparently, not only do I need to fill out the standard i-visa application form, as a male aged 18-not dead yet, I need to fill out a supplemental form listing every country I've ever visited, current employer, previous two employers, etc. No possible opportunity for error there then.

Then there's the appointment for an interview at the US embassy that I need to set up.

Then there's the $100 charge.

And lastly, there's the 50mm x 50mm photo of myself that I need to provide. Is there anywhere that takes photos with these dimensions? I'm going to have to scan an existing photo, crop it, shrink it, and have it printed. How is that necessary?

If there are any problems I have with the process, I can always call the premium rate 09 phone number the US embassy has set up for the purpose.

And it's all so I can go to the US every once in a while to cover US companies, out of which they'll almost certainly get loads of free publicity for the stuff they're trying to sell to us.

The odd thing is that I've been on numerous press trips with fellow journos who can't be bothered with the i-visa rigmarole and go in under a visa waiver, despite saying their journos on business. Am I putting myself through all this for nothing?

Better safe than sorry anyway.

Updates and related entries
February 26, 2007: I've found somewhere that can take photos for i-visas.
March 7, 2007: I've finally been through the US embassy.

The trouble with freelancing is working out when to have holidays. It's not the same as when you're self-employed. There are so many caveats, most of them of the paranoid rather than the actual kind.

1. There's the whole idea of not doing any work. If you don't work, you don't get paid. So if you take a week off, that's five days at your normal day rate (£650) you won't be earning. Basically, whatever you're paying for your holiday, freelances pay double. Of course, you factor that into your rates, but you see the start of the terrible thought processes?
2. What will happen with your regular clients while you're away? If you're employed, someone at work will cover you, or they'll hire in cover (maybe even a freelance). If you're not around and you're freelance, maybe they will find someone to cover you during your absence - maybe someone they like better and they'll use instead of you in future. So now you have to time your holidays as much as possible around regular commissioning editors, just in case, except print days are just so spread around the month, trying to find a week - or even a few days - that don't conflict with someone's urgent delivery date is almost impossible
3. What about new clients? Who'll be answering the sales queries when you're sunning yourself on the beach? You'll get back only to find they've gone somewhere else because you weren't available.
4. Slippage. I was supposed to be on holiday yesterday, but I got summer lurgy on Monday, couldn't finish a feature and had to spend yesterday writing it instead. Do I take another day off or just accept that as a day off I couldn't take? Soon, you find all your days off have disappeared as you fit in just one last article that they begged you to take.
5. There's the problem of what you'll be doing when you get back. If you don't set up any work for your return, all those holiday days will be days when you've not been pitching. That means the first few days after the holiday will be days without work while you start pitching again. Which means less money again.

I'm supposed to be having a couple of days off right now. I need it after working a fortnight of double shifts at the end of last month (subbing by day, writing by night). Instead, I've spent the morning blogging and pitching. I still have to return a prospective new client's phone call from yesterday. And then there's all those low-priority emails I have to answer.

I'm going to die an early death of a stress disorder, I know it.

Now, they've only been in business a little while, so you have to give them some slack, but SMD appears to be a little bit tardy at paying freelances, according to at least two contributors who have emailed me. Typical of many British publishing companies? Yes. Worrying all the same? Yes.

Just wanted to drop you a line and say thanks for blogging about the whole insane Highbury/SMD situation! I'm a relatively new Hotdog freelancer, though I lost money to Highbury and am having hell of a game getting any money out of SMD (five phone calls in three weeks -- I was told in the initial one that the money would be with me within 4 days!)

And

I have three Invoices outstanding and they're stalling on paying. This has been going on for two months. I think something's going on there.

What's up SMD?

Guardian Unlimited's assistant editor Neil McIntosh says freelances should blog if they want to be noticed. I get the feeling he means freelances should blog well, because I'm not going much attention as a result of this blog... ;-)

In case you don't get Gorkana's media alert, today's mailshot contained all the contact details of the ex-Highbury mags that Imagine is going to continue publishing. For the edification of freelances everywhere, I've listed them below. However, I've noticed that some of the names repeat, so either Imagine have some multi-tasking editorial staff, or there'll be one of those Gorkanna correction emails coming out tomorrow. I'll update the entry whenever that happens.

UPDATE: There's a PDF press release detailing all the Imagine titles and teams on the company's site. I've updated the Gorkana information where possible.

Advanced Photoshop (updated)
Aimed at Photoshop professionals, each issue of Advanced Photoshop has inspirational interviews, tutorials and professional tips.
Contact: Deborah Allen, Editor
Emma Cake

Digital Camera Buyer
Digital Camera Buyer is a monthly magazine covering news and reviews of the latest digital cameras.
Contact: Chris Lean, Editor
Rosie Tanner, Senior Staff Writer

Digital Photographer
Digital Photographer focuses on the complete needs of digital camera users, whether they are professionals or enthusiasts. Each issue brings the reader cutting-edge imagery, practical shooting advice, interviews with professionals plus news and reviews of brand new equipment. NOTE: This isn't listed in the Imagine press release, although there is a web site for it.
Contact: Kirsty Eaglesham, Features Editor

Games TM
Games TM is a gaming magazine about past, present and future gaming products. It features the latest news, reviews and previews appealing to both the serious and casual gamer.
Contact: Paul Morgan, Editor, tel: +44 (0)1202 586 257
Rick Porter, Features Editor, tel: +44 (0)1202 586 200
John Denton, Senior Staff Writer, tel: +44 (0)1202 586 239

iCreate
iCreate is a creative computing magazine for Apple computer users. Editorial focuses on Mac software and hardware.
Contact: Ben Harvell - Editor
Natalie Johnson, Senior Staff Writer

PDA Essentials
PDA Essentials magazine is for dedicated users of PDAs, and covers the very latest news and reviews in hardware developments plus new software and tutorials
Contact: Andy Betts, Deputy Editor

Play
As the longest running PlayStation magazine, Play features authoritative reviews, the very latest in news and the best cover exclusives.
Contact: Nick Jones, Editor in Chief, tel: +44 (0)1202 586 211
Aaron Asadi, News Editor, tel: +44 (0)1202 586 211
Luke Smith, Sub Editor, tel: +44 (0)1202 586 211

PowerStation
Merging the very best of PlayStation and Cheat magazines, PowerStation is packed with detailed guides to the latest PS2 and PSP releases, and all the latest cheats. This magazine is a solutions magazine for keen PlayStation gamers.
Contact: Ryan Butt, Editor
Henry Rowlatt, Senior Staff Writer

Web Designer
Web Designer is the UK's premier publication for the online author. The magazine has a tutorial-based format for learning, whilst also providing the reader with the latest industry news and feature topics.
Contact: Mark Billen, Deputy Editor
Mark was previously the Deputy Editor of Web Developer. There is no editor at present.

Windows XP Made Easy
Windows XP Made Easy is a magazine for the home PC user and covers news, reviews and tutorials on Windows XP and Windows based products.
Contact: Stuart Tarrant, Editor
Steve Jenkins, Reviews Editor
Matt Powell, Technical Editor

X360
X360, the essential magazine for enthusiastic Xbox 360 gamers, is dedicated to giving honest opinions and detailed coverage of the best and most exclusive games on the market.
Contact: Martin Mathers, Editor
Martin previously edited Games TM.

After consulting with a number of copyright experts, including the very kind Andy Sivell of Working Titles Publishing, it turns out that I've little chance of doing anything about Mac OS X: The Essential Manual. I could get an injunction out against Smith's at best, but all that would do is stop Smith's from selling the 'book', not get me any money.

Oh well. Figured the chances of cash were small.

Interestingly though, during the course of the consultations, I turfed out the old Paragon Publishing freelance contract that I signed all those years ago when I started writing for iCreate. As well as being self-contradictory, etc, it had one noticeable clause: if Paragon were to ever reuse my work, they would tell me about it in advance (although not pay me, of course). Which they didn't. Twice.

I've signed a few freelance contracts in my time, but the thing that's struck me about almost all of them (amongst a few other things...) is that so much work goes into them, yet it's always the publishing company that breaks them first. Why do they bother?

I'm sure a lawyer could tell me if I asked nicely.

Got a letter from Ernst & Young on Saturday, giving details of the Highbury break-up. For ex-Highbury freelances, the following clauses probably seem the most relevant - if anyone can spot any others, feel free to add comments:

Here's one for the lawyers and the copyright experts.

I'm in W H Smith's today and I notice a 'book' in the magazine section called Mac OS X: The Essential Manual. It's familiar in style to another 'book' Highbury put out in 2004 called Creative Computing Series: Mac OS X, which was basically a compilation of articles from iCreate - quite a few of which I wrote.

So I flick through it to see if I'm right, and whaddayouknow, it's exactly the same: a load of iCreate articles bundled together into a £10+ book. What's more annoying than the previous book, for which I saw not a penny of thanks out of Highbury, is the fact that the articles have actually been rewritten so that all author credits have been removed. (Yet they didn't bother correcting any of the obvious subbing mistakes. Huh.). I'm not even in the contributors section of this one, despite having written most of the main features.

I uttered some swear words to myself and put it back on the shelf. This is exactly the reason freelances are warned never to hand over copyright on their articles - publishing companies can file the serial numbers off the articles, re-use them wherever and whenever they like, and we never get so much as a thank you, let alone a cash payment – in this case, as with the Creative Computing Series volume, I didn't even get told they were doing it. Still, beggars can't be choosers and if you want to work for consumer IT magazines, you have to sign some pretty strict contracts.

However, it occurred to me on the way home that because of the Highbury fallout, I never got paid for most of the articles featured in the book. That means the copyright in the text of the articles still belongs to me.

Which brings me to my questions to the lawyers and copyright experts out there (and probably the NUJ's legal branch next week):

1. Since Mac OS X: The Essential Manual is 'exclusive to WH Smith's' and they're still selling it, are they infringing my copyright? Or is it still a Highbury matter?
2. Can I (and any of the other unpaid iCreate freelances) sue Smith's?
3. If I/we were to do so, how much could we expect - the original fee of the article, or something greater or lesser?

Anyway, the tiny cockles of my heart are warming to the thought of getting paid for something that tried its hardest to disavow me. Once I've heard from the NUJ legal department (which past experience tells me can take a very, very long time and usually results in nothing but disappointment), I'll let you - and the iCreate freelances know what I found out.

How's this for a happy story from a former Highbury freelancer?

Hi Rob. I freelance for the Radio Controlled Models and Electronics magazine previously owned by Highbury and now a suite of Orpington based magazines owned by Encanta media. I thought you might like to know that Encanta are to pay me in full the missing money I was owed by Highbury. A very kind gesture I thought as they have no obligations to do so. I believe this arrangement is offered to all Encanta freelancers who didn't jump ship as it went down.

A small result but encouraging.

While that's not happening, as far as I know, with any of the titles now owned by Imagine, Imagine are re-commissioning some of the work Highbury commissioned. That means that even if the receivers don't pay up, at least the work will get used and paid for by someone.

As for SMD, I've seen Hotdog and the other titles on the newstands now, but I have no further information on what's happening there. If anyone would like to email me with dirt, the address is blog@the-word-is-not-enough.com.

There's some handy tips on how to avoid losing your freelance gigs over at Washington City Paper today. It's aimed more at Washington Post contribs, but some of the advice is universal, I think.

No sooner do I wonder what's happening with all the ex-Highbury magazines and why Imagine's being so quiet than messages start to come out: I'm guessing everyone was under orders to keep quiet until now.

Only a couple of magazines so far have confirmed their existence, but I'm sure more will be emerging into the light in the coming days. Looks like the first new issues will be coming out this month and next month. Anyway, here's a round-up of what we have so far:

gamesTM: Will continue, according to Imagine MD Damian Butt.
Web Designer: Will continue, according to emails sent out by the new team. Working on issues 116 and 117 right now. Former contributors are being approached. At least some of the old team are running it as well as, I'm told, the former editor of Web Developer (who might also be editor of Web Developer, but I've no information about that title at the moment). The new contact email address for the mag is webdesigner@imagine-publishing.co.uk
Advanced Photoshop: The receptionist at Imagine says the mag will be back.
Web Developer: Ditto
Digital Creative Arts: Ditto
iCreate: Will be coming back and former contributors are being approached. Further details are available in this Mac Creative forum thread.

Anyway, that's six titles out of 24, so there's some way to go before we know the fates of all the mags. But I've had an idea. Seeing as

1. there's a bunch of people at Imagine who come to visit this blog every so often (yes, I can see you) and who are presumably in need of content quickly
2. plenty of former Highbury Entertainment freelances come here, wanting to know whom to approach about contributing articles
3. plenty of subscribers to the magazines come here, too, wanting to know what's happened to their favourite mags
4. Imagine's Flash-based website is probably a bugger to update and is none too compatible with search engine indexing

why don't the new Imagine teams leave their magazines' contact details here in the comments section, along with any information about their respective mags that they want subscribers to know? Alternatively, they can email me. In both case, I'll add a blog entry with the appropriate details so that the information's obvious and clear. That's probably the quickest way to get word out to contribs old and new, as well as subscribers, don't you think? Let me know if you agree or disagree.

And if SMD feel like doing the same, that's just dandy: I'm already getting lots of people asking me for their contact details and BT.com doesn't yet have a number for them.

There's been a slight quietness from Imagine of late as to which magazines it's going to continue publishing and in what forms. There's also a quietness about how many from Highbury have been offered jobs at Imagine. Given the interviews were supposed to be over a week ago now, that doesn't bode well.

I've tried phoning; I've tried emailing; I've tried instant messaging.

Quietness.

Some news has leaked though, as previous blog entries will show. There have been various assurances given that the Imagine versions of the surviving mags will appear at the end of this month or in March.

But there are a few questions still on my mind

a) has anyone from the old Highbury been offered a job yet?
b) have any of the former Highbury freelances (who weren't also Imagine freelances) heard from the editors of the new titles yet?
c) which magazines are going to continue?
d) are the new mags going to be pure Imagine, without any input from the former contributors, a mix, or a continuation?

If you have answers, could you leave a comment on the blog or email me at blog@the-word-is-not-enough.com? Let me know if you'd like the information published or not. I'm hoping it'll be good news for the ex-Highbury lot, at least.

Ernst & Young are currently sending out letters to Highbury freelances, advising them of where they stand. If you don't receive yours within the next few days and Highbury owe you money, you should give Lukshmi Arulkumarasan a call on 020 7608 6304 (she's Margaret Mills' assistant).

There are a few notable points in the letter:

1. E&Y won't pay for any work delivered after 20th January, unless it was approved by one of the Joint Administrative Receivers (herself, R J Beard and S J Edel).
2. If you're working on anything for Highbury still, even if it was “ringfenced”, stop now or you'll probably be doing it with no payment in sight. You should also send a statement of any Highbury orders that you haven't completed.
3. You need to send Ms Mills a detailed statement of any sums you're owed.
4. If you have a preferential claim under section 386 of the Insolvency Act 1986, you need to advise her immediately. That's very unlikely though
5. You may get VAT bad debt relief on anything older than six months. You'll obviously have to be paying VAT to qualify for that.
6. She considers it unlikely there will be any surplus available for non preferential creditors. However, she'll be preparing a report in three months' time to deliver the bad news and give an indication of likely dividend prospects.

She also says that the company directors haven't yet submit a statement of affairs so the company's full financial position isn't known yet. Want to bet it's probably a lot worse than we already thought?

If you're owed money by Highbury, the London Freelance Branch of the NUJ has published the following advice:

If you are owed money by Highbury House Communications plc, note that it was put into receivership on 20 January. You need to file a creditor's claim form with the liquidator: write to Margaret Mills at Ernst and Young, 1 More London Place, London SE1 2AF. If you do so you should receive a proportion of what you are owed.

I've got two contact points at Ernst & Young for you if you're a former Highbury freelancer chasing money:

0207 608 6300 (ask for the receivers when calling)

and

Maggie Mills
Ernst & Young
1 More London Place
London
SE1 2AF

Tel: 020 7951 9802

Hope they prove useful.

Press Gazette has a little bit more on the Highbury saga today. A few notable quotes from Imagine MD Damian Butt that corroborate some previous entries here:

Growing tech publisher Imagine has swooped in on 24 computing titles at Highbury Entertainment — most of which were originally set up by the Imagine management team — but said this week that many had been “severely damaged”, possibly beyond recovery, in Highbury's final days.

and

Imagine MD Damian Butt said this week that liability for the debts had not been passed on to Imagine with the sale, adding: “Imagine already works with a large bank of freelances, many of whom are owed money by Highbury.

”All we can do is continue to ensure they are dealt with in a professional and punctual manner, and are paid on time to help restore their confidence.“

So, basically: expect a number of titles to close; expect no money if you're a Highbury freelance looking for payment from Imagine instead.

The Philadelphia Inquirer's Tom Ferrick Jr levels the blame for the latest US journalism row on freelances in his latest column. Notable quotes:

Freelancers are the coolies of modern journalism. Many work for low fees, often juggling four or five assignments to make one meager paycheck. Temptation can be high - especially among those think-tank wonks, who consult with private companies, get grants for research from corporations, and write op-ed pieces, all at once.

In the old days, when reporters got paid a pittance, they often supplemented their salaries with similar jobs. They also were open to accepting free booze, meals, tickets and other emoluments from their sources.

Any of that sound familiar? Ah, British journalism: beyond the American pale.

If indeed that is the problem, there is an easy solution to this: pay freelances more money. I, for one, will get behind that, no trouble.

While the antics at Encanta and SMD/Remnant have been filling this blog of late, the situation with Imagine is still developing. Many are curious as to what's going to happen to the former Highbury Entertainment staff (and, erm, freelancers). This is the latest from someone on the ground who wishes to remain anonymous.

According to a meeting with the HR consultancy firm that Imagine have employed and reps from the NUJ and our accounts and HR departments, they are looking to make approximately 70 redundancies, which is obviously a large proportion of staff. Even more concerning for freelancers is the fact that they are planning to axe all but 13 of the titles that they have acquired.

What's shocking me is that the majority of staff haven't been given this information, and it seems to be down to the NUJ to keep us informed. Their plan now is for everyone to participate in one-on-one interviews with these consultants to justify our own jobs so that they can decide which positions to make available, and we will then have to reapply for our jobs.

I haven't verified any of this with Imagine or the NUJ (this is a non-paying blog and with taxes just around the corner and a big Highbury-shaped dent in my bank account, I have a lot of money-earning to do), so don't take it as gospel. Nevertheless, the re-interviewing procedure has been confirmed by other sources, so that part's almost certainly true.

Having been through a couple of redundancies myself, my heart goes out to you ex-Highbury guys. I really hope it all works out well for you.

Press Gazette has picked up on Damian Butt's letter to me. Which is nice.

Incidentally, it's been intimated to me by various sources that since Imagine has only acquired the brands, rather than the limited company, that means there probably won't be any provision for paying creditors.

For both selfish and altruistic reasons, I'm hoping freelances like me may be the exception rather than the rule. Anyone from Imagine want to clear up whether the titles' freelances will get paid for their work? The last article in Press Gazette on the subject didn't fill me with confidence, since it suggested we'd get as little as 10% of our outstanding invoices, but I always live in hope.

It's very easy to have theoretical morals. You can say to yourself “I'll never write anything for Associated Newspapers for as long as I live”, knowing full well that the Daily Mail, the Mail on Sunday et al aren't going to beat down your doors with thousands in cash to make you.

But what happens if someone dubious does come to your door, offering you money? Is it easy to make the same commitment?

I have an ad in Press Gazette. It runs weekly and is mostly useless; I'll get round to changing the wording some time, I'm sure, but I doubt they'll ever get round to so much as hypertexting my URL and email address on their web site. Lazy buggers.

Anyway, I've just had my first editorial enquiry as the result of it. A Spanish company is launching a new mag, 24-K, and they're looking for freelances to fill its pages. The money isn't brilliant but it's not awful and they're looking for gadget and film reviews, which I'm more than up to.

The problem is this: bound into every edition of the magazine will be 12 pages of hardcore porn. And this is a Spanish magazine we're talking about here, so I'm guessing 'Confessions of a Window Cleaner' it ain't.

Now I'm not especially against porn in principle. My concerns are for the models who are often drug addicted, psychologically damaged after sexual abuse and so on: these are well-worn arguments and I don't have to repeat them here. If the models were all happy, well-adjusted, well paid and so on, I'd have no issues.

Anyway, essentially, this company has made its money from the exploitation of the vulnerable and anything I write will not only be paid for in part with that money but will be accompanied by yet more exploitation.

On the other hand, it'll be cash, a new client and more articles to add to my portfolio that could eventually get me more clients, more cash, etc. Maybe this company's models really are happy, well-adjusted, etc and I'm just making assumptions. And there are plenty of companies out there who have made their money dubiously without any of us realising it: how many Daily Express readers know how its proprietor made his millions? How many Daily Mail readers know that the Rothmeres supported Oswald Mosley and Hitler? Then there's GAP, Nike, McDonald's, WalMart, et al. Do I stop working for or buying from any company that may have compromised ethics? I'll starve if I do.

Suddenly, the ethics of the situation don't look clear cut. What do you think I should do? I'm siding with the “don't do it” argument at the moment, but I'm still feeling the temptation...

Updates and related entries
January 13, 2006: So I decided not to pitch to that lifestyle mag with the porn bound in that approached me. Ethical problem solved by erring on the side of the angels, I reckon. But it seems that's not enough for those ethics testers in the sky.

So Christmas is upon us and the usual tugs at our finances are pulling hard. Freelances like me get even more fun at this time of year: no one's commissioning much new work; accounts departments are going on holiday; and late payers don't get twinges of conscience and start paying their debts without ghosts rattling their chains nearby.

Even so, what none of us needs is fraudulent transactions on our business accounts. So imagine my delight last Thursday when I discover a payment from my account to “Vanquis Bank Chatham” for nearly £250. I'd never heard of them. I've been to Chatham once, but I went through very quickly once I'd had a look around. Needless to say though, I'd done no business of any kind with anyone in Chatham ever, let alone Vanquis. I hadn't even done any business that week using that account, certainly nothing to the tune of £250.

I pointed this out to my bank, First Direct, who were kind enough to do a Google search and point out what I'd already discovered for myself: Vanquis Bank runs a credit card for those with debt problems who can't get a credit card anywhere else. It has a maximum limit of £250 and (wait for this: it'll stagger you) an APR of 58%!

Surprisingly enough, I don't own one of these. First Direct shouldn't be surprised since I have a credit card with them with no balance on it at all at the moment. You'd think – and you'd have thought they'd think this too – that if I were going to buy anything using a credit card, it would be with that one. But no. I patiently explained this to them, but they didn't see quite to understand. So they got their disputes department to call me the next day. They sent me an e-message using their atrocious e-messaging system (not for us email! We want a system that you can't store messages in and can't easily print out any messages. Hoorah!), which I duly printed out and posted on Sunday.

Guess what. Today, another entry for the “Vanquis Bank Chatham”, again for nearly £250 appears on my statement. Despite my contesting the previous payment, First Direct has decided to let the second payment through as well. I'm down half a grand now. I can look forward to calling their disputes department again tomorrow, I guess.

But here's the fun part. Remember Groundhog Day? That's what it was like with First Direct. I rang up, told them what had happened last time as well as this time. And they then proceeded to do exactly the same things again, even repeating back to me things that I'd already told them that they decided to proclaim they'd discovered. They offered to do a Google search for me (“apparently, they run a credit card...” “I know, I told you that two minutes ago”), told me there was nothing they could do until the disputes department was open, etc.

First Direct: here's something you could do to improve your service. If there's a disputed transaction where the customer says they've never done business with the company in question before and if the company either looks dodgy or looks like it might have one or two dodgy customers, why don't you stop all future transactions on that account with that company? Doesn't all that evidence suggest to you identity fraud or something similar, particularly if your customer tells you it is?

My next worry is working out how the tea-leaf got my bank details. I don't use my bank details online that often, usually only for direct debits and the like with reputable companies. I have a Mac so spyware is not going to be the cause. When I use my Switch card, because it's my business account, I save the receipts for tax purposes. I shred everything I don't keep. So how's they do it?

I'm paranoid, but not paranoid enough it turns out. Any suggestions anyone?

In his case you haven't been keeping up with tax cases, the news that Arctic Systems has won its High Court Appeal probably won't interest you very much. But for freelances, particularly those working in the IT industry, it's a very important case that strikes to the heart of how the Inland Revenue operates.

Updates and related entries
December 15, 2005: If you do a Google search about Arctic Systems, then guess what: 1. AccMan Pro (result analysis)2. Citrus Tax Consulting (result reporting)3. Tax Blagger (reportage with some analysis)4. Heating guide ?????5. FreelanceUK.com (October discussion)6. AccM...

What does it take to be a sub (Americans who are mystified, I'm talking about copy editors here, not sandwiches or submarines)? Some people drift into it, some people train for it. Whatever the entry route, you need to have an appreciation for language, a knowledge of the law, an understanding of production and design, the ability to write, a pedantic need to check facts and an eye for spotting mistakes at least.

Not any more though.

Updates and related entries
January 12, 2006: Ah, I know I've ranted a bit about 'subs' before, but a couple of things to complain about this month. First off, apologies to Ryan Style, whose perfectly reasonable question about Safari for iCreate's helpdesk this month got replaced...

Excellent Slate piece about life as a freelance.