I know, I know, this is the umpteenth "treat writers with basic human decency pls xoxo" post, but sadly things are easier said than done, and I hope this post will offer people some actions that they can directly take to help writers. This is also not a call-out post or in response to any recent event that I might not be aware of, I've been working on this post a while, and it is meant to be somewhat of a guide rather than a vent post.

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• Credit

I want to start with a way for writers to support each other, and for lurkers, VAs and listeners to help as well and that is to stand up for writers! Do you see a post with improper or no credit by your favourite VA? Talk to them! Send them a message or a comment politely telling them to credit the writer. And for writers who don't care, that's totally valid, but please do not undermine other writers and people that do care. Do not bash people that tried standing up for you, even if you personally don't care about proper credit, because it's not just about you, it's about any future writer whose scripts will be used by that VA who might care.

Writers have almost been conditioned to want less for themselves and to expect the bare minimum, and many have accepted this as the status quo, some even internalised this and feel as if this is all they deserve in the first place, and it's not right. You deserve proper credit, and you demanding it does not make you entitled or mean or wrong in any way. This doesn't mean that you can be a total dick about it, but attitudes towards writers have become so skewed and condescending that even asking for proper credit is oftentimes viewed as rude or demanding too much. You are not in the wrong for wanting to be credited for the work you did. And you're not a bad person for feeling strongly about content theft.

As a VA: Tag the writer in the post body, and link to the Script Offer on Reddit. Do not link to the script directly. Linking to the script offer will help the writer's post in terms of visibility, and people can leave a comment or visit their reddit profile. Linking to a script directly makes both of those things more difficult. I wish GWA mods were more vigilant about improper crediting, because oftentimes writers end up having to contact people about improper credit themselves. For writers who are introverted or conflict-averse this can be very tough and intimidating, which leads to many of them simply not doing it at all. Just because the writer hasn't said anything, doesn't mean that what you're doing is any less wrong. If a commentor mentions a funny line, or anything that has to do with the script: be sure to mention the writer! Additional things you can do: Writing the writer's name in the title, linking to their Script Archive if they have one (with their permission), or even writing some nice words about their scripts in the post or in a comment under their original Script Offer.

As a listener/writer: You should always feel free to remind or alert VAs of improper crediting. When you're leaving a comment and you notice something about the script; such as the flow of the dialogue or perhaps a funny line, know that this is the work of the writer, and some words of appreciation towards them are usually very much appreciated!

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• Monetisation

Despite this being a Script-oriented sub I know there's VAs on here who would probably like to know if there is anything they can do, and there is. As of right now the power imbalance between writers and performers is immense, and as GWA has grown this gap has only grown bigger. It is therefore mostly up to you to take the initiative. Don't just talk about appreciating writers, take action where you can!

A writer offers to write you a custom script free of charge? Insist on paying. Writers have been made to feel like their work is worthless or that they are asking too much by asking money for custom scripts, and it has lead to MANY writers writing custom scripts entirely for free, often for performers who absolutely have the means of compensating the writers; because why would you pay for something when you can get it for free, right? The truth is many performers are perfectly content with this dynamic, but how often would you make a full 20, 30, or 50 minute audio for someone completely for free? Custom scripts are like art commissions or audio commissions, but for some reason paying for scripts is sadly not seen in the same way by many people. Compensate writers, make it clear that you value their work, even when they have been made to believe it doesn't have value. And for writers: Please do not be afraid to ask people for compensation! Whether it's for a custom script, putting a script on their paid platform, putting it behind a paywall, putting it on a different website; you should be a part of the decision making process and you should be compensated! If either of these things is a problem for the VA then I am not sure they really value writers as much as they say they do, because filling a script is a collaborative effort and you wouldn't make a big decision like that on a group project without consulting all members of the group. Sorry if that comes off as mean, it's not meant that way, I just want to use clear and concise language with as little grey area as possible.

Writers: Don't be afraid of asking for money. No your commission prices aren't too high. No you're not a bad person for having a fee for when performers want to put fills behind a paywall. No you're not entitled for not wanting a VA to post a fill on a certain platform because you're personally not comfortable with it. You deserve to have control over your work, and you deserve compensation for your work. It doesn't mean "you're in it for the money" hell, you can always donate the money to charity afterwards. It's about people learning to value the work that writers do, and to not take it for granted. This doesn't mean that you HAVE to monetise, you have the right not to, just like any VA has the right not to monetise, it's just that the ratio between writers that monetise and VAs that monetise is very skewed, and I believe it has to do with the aforementioned points of writers not feeling like scripts are "worth" monetising in the first place; which they ARE.

As a VA: Pay your writers. Even if they initially insist on doing it for free, at least try to compensate them. Ultimately you should respect their decision obviously, but you should at least try! Commission writers if you can! It's easy to focus on the sea of free script offers, and I definitely don't want to dissuade people from checking out free scripts, but if you have the means to; commissioning a writer is one of the best ways to support the writing community on GWA. Also don't try to haggle on prices or fees, or to make writers bad for having these prices or fees, that's just a bit shitty. You wouldn't want people to haggle over your audio commission prices, so treat writers with that same level of respect.

As a writer: Don't be afraid to charge people for your services. You are not entitled for doing so, and nobody should make you feel guilty for monetising. Respect yourself and other writers that monetise. Don't let people try to "negotiate" a price, have set prices: people who are unwilling to compensate you without treating you like an overpriced zucchini at a farmer's market are not worth your time. Don't feel bad to reject people that make you feel uncomfortable.

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• Boundaries and respect

I might say some controversial things in this last part, so feel free to disagree with me, but I firmly believe that there is a certain level of structural disrespect for writers. I think this is because of a multitude of factors: Writers are often more shy, conflict-averse, and introverted. Writers have a smaller following. Writers usually get less engagement in general, which in turn makes ANY kind of notice of their work seem like a godsend, affecting their behaviour and attitude. Many writers are just happy that you are looking at their script in the first place, and some performers, either consciously or unconsciously, take advantage of that fact. The writer's devotion or excitement, combined with all the previously mentioned things, makes the performer feel more important than the writer, once again whether it's a conscious decision or an unconscious feeling the effect remains the same. Writers are excited to get noticed; so excited that they are often willing to stomach a LOT of disrespect:

Improper crediting? Oh, who cares, I got my first fill!! No compensation for a private script? Doesn't matter, the fill was so good, that's all the compensation I need!! A script got stolen, put on a paid website without the writer's consent all without any kind of compensation? Oh, no big deal, when I contacted the creator they gave me a private link so I still get the privilege of listening to the audio!! :D

I've been around for a while now, and I am sad to say that these attitudes are very prevalent. A writer's excitement should NOT be your green light to treat them like an afterthought. Do NOT take advantage of people's excitement, and in more intense cases do NOT take care of people's inferiority complexes, that shit is scummy as hell.

Now, the following is gonna sound very mean, but it's the only metaphor I can think of rn that will get the point across so I am sorry in advance, I am not trying to shit talk VAs or anything like that, I'm just trying to get my point across: Just because some of you were bullied in high school and suddenly finally get treated like the popular kids got treated, does not mean that you can start treating writers like the unpopular "hooked" guy/girl that gets strung along by the popular guy/girl in a romcom. You're a grown fucking adult, stop trying to turn GWA into your high school redemption arc. It's very apparent that a small but nonetheless frustrating subset of VAs think think this way and it is extremely toxic to the point where it has made numerous writers quit just from the sheer amount of consistent disrespect, that shit is NOT okay.

As a VA: Writers are not rude for standing up for themselves, and you need to treat writers as your temporary business partner, not like devoted pets. You KNOW there's a power dynamic difference, so it's your job to check in with writers and to ensure that they really are comfortable, and they're not just trying to appease you because they're so excited to be working with you in the first place. It's *your* responsibility to ensure that you are doing right by the writer, not theirs. Of course you can be imperfect and make mistakes, that's totally normal and acceptable!! But it is wrong to just assume writers are okay with anything unless specifically stated otherwise. It should be the opposite: assume you need permission unless stated otherwise. This goes for monetisation, posting on other platforms, making changes to the script, and any other major decision.

As a writer: I highly recommend writing up a general boundary post, that you can reference. Especially if you have trouble standing up for yourself it's easier to refer to a "generalised" post, rather than to directly confront someone. It also helps good VAs because they will read it and it will help them treat you in a way you feel comfortable with, and eliminates a lot of potential awkwardness. And if you ARE comfortable exerting yourself a little bit more, stand up for other writers when you notice they are being treated unfairly. I myself have not always done the greatest job with this, but I hope this post will at least be *some* kind of solace to writers who don't feel valued in the community. Stand up for other writers, support their work, upvote scripts you like. It's the small things, the little extra bits of exposure and support, that can really make a huge difference. Scriptwriting is not a zero-sum game, you don't lose out by supporting and hyping up others. To quote the hero of every cringy teenage dudebro on gymtok: "We're all gonna make it brah 🔱" Supporting and hyping up other writers is only going to have positive effects on the community and- therefore by extension -yourself

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This is not a small issue, writers quit ALL the time because of stuff like this. In order to foster a healthy and thriving community of writers whose scripts performers can use, it is essential that they feel respected and valued in the community. Hopefully this post will help achieve that goal. Once again I would like to stress that this is not aimed at specific people, and additionally if you are a writer or a performer who would like to add onto this post or to offer your take/perspective on the situation I would love to hear it in the comments, thank you for reading 💙