Comments on: You Ask, We Answer: Can I Resell an Article That’s in Limbo?

By: LindaFormichelli

LindaFormichelli — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 18:35:26 +0000

Thanks for the suggestions, Anne!

By: Anne Wayman

Anne Wayman — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 18:16:46 +0000

I’d ask, but if they didn’t answer in 30 days or so I’d offer it to other publications stating to them that you were only offering second or reprint rights… it’s a shame this sort of thing happens… in the future I suspect I wouldn’t wait a year or more, but act after 90 days or 6 months.

Another approach is to really rewrite the articles in question and sell them again… I fine it’s pretty easy to rewrite stuff I’ve already written once. Won’t work in all situations, but more than you might first think.

By: LindaFormichelli

LindaFormichelli — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 23:54:14 +0000

Good point, Anon…contracts that have that clause usually specify how long after the on-sale date it’s in effect — but what happens if they never run the piece? I would definitely bring it up to the editor after a certain point. They can’t expect you to not write on a similar topic ever again!

By: Anon

Anon — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 21:42:39 +0000

It seems to me there should be some reasonable expiry date on not writing for a competitor clauses. It makes sense if they publish on schedule as promised, but if they are delaying indefinitely, then you shouldn’t be held to not writing for competitors – you’re not employed by them and so at a certain point, they can’t really continue to dictate who you can and can’t write for (unless it’s a regular freelance gig, in which case it’s worth your while to stick to the dictates of the clause).

By: LindaFormichelli

LindaFormichelli — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 00:01:55 +0000

Hi, Ann,

In my case, the article *had* been published. The magazine gave me back the rights after they went out of business, so I was able to sell the article as a reprint.