BootsnAll Travel Community

I am looking for people who can submit stories for publication on a new website called www.brokeineurope.com.
The stories need to be about the worst financial situation you have ever currently, or in the past endured. These need to be accompanied by one or more pictures. We will be posting the stories that are the best on this site and eliciting donation from the rest of the world. Stories that are submitted will become the property of the site.

You will need to provide a valid email address so that you can collect the funds.

So dig deep and give us your best stories.

Submissions can be sent to
max@brokeineurope.com

You must have (1) picture
Valid Email Address
Story should run at a minimum 1 full page

quote:

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Stories that are submitted will become the property of the site.

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Yikes. What does that mean, exactly?

No one send them a bloody thing.

I don't know that you mean to be ripping people off mate, but that's how those guidelines come across. If you've got the money to get this site going and you're serious, please get in touch with an intellectual property lawyer - you need to do some mad revising. Here's a link to the Berne Convention on copyright; I'm not sure yet if the CZ is part of this, but either way...

If these guidelines spell out what you're offering, then you're offering nothing. Welcome to school. Pay attention.

From broke in europe's guidelines page:

quote:

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Anything you submit to Brokeineurope.com becomes the property of the site. You are entitled to the moneys that are donated, but have no claim to any other revenues generated by the site based on your content.

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Here's a translation:

You are a sucker and we are stealing your story. You can't send it anywhere else (including BnA), and we can do whatever we want with it without giving you a single deserved dime. We don't even have to publish it - all SUBMISSIONS (not just published works) are ours, and maybe we'll put it up, but tough schneckies if we don't. Please note that you are giving us something of value, but we aren't even giving you a wedgie in return. But! If someone happens to make a donation, you are entitled to some cut of it. That doesn't mean you'll get one though.

1) "Donations" don't cut it - especially since you're assuming you get copyright and all rights. You are getting something of value up front, but you offer nothing in return. There is no proof of donations being received, and there is no payment being offered for acceptance/ publication.

2) Calling for someone's "best stories" and saying outright that you're offering nothing in return is a b****-slappable offense.

3) Rights and copyright are not yours, and submissions are not your property. Period. All these rights reside with the author - amateur, professional, whatever - until they come to an agreement/contract with Broke in Europe. The way these guidelines are worded, you're saying the site may do whatever it wants with the story - option it for a movie, publish it in a book, send it to magazines, you name it. Wrong answer.

4) Writers - there are plenty of real markets out there, that actually give something back. Look to Written Road or Writer's Weekly for many of them.

Cheers, Anthony

Hey Ant

You would make my ex boss proud. Good legal dope up there in your post.

Great post Ant. Thanks!

Bravo, Ant! Swashbuckling becomes you!

No Touch Monkey! And Other Travel Lessons Learned Too Late by Ayun Halliday
http://www.ayunhalliday.com