The Hugo logo contest is proceeding pretty much as expected. We have a bunch of entries already (some of them rather good, to my untrained eye, but I’m intending to rely on our judges for expert opinion). Many other people have muttered about entering, and there’s a holiday weekend coming up so many people won’t have time to think about it for a few days. All well and good. But…
On the other side of the coin, the old maxim that “no good deed goes unpunished” is proving true once again. Some long-time fans are furious that they personally were not consulted over every step of the process, which is exactly what I had expected. What was more of a surprise is that we appear to have put out feet into a minefield in the graphic design community. Most of the unpleasantness is happening over on Whatever.
As is the way with these Internet disputes, there’s not a lot that Kevin or I can say. Of course we took a lot of professional advice before launching the contest, but those who don’t like what we are doing will never believe that. Of course we don’t intend to ruthlessly exploit people, but again those who don’t like what we are doing will never believe that. Somewhere out on the Internet there is doubtless a blacklist with our names on it. Burning in Hell for all eternity is probably too good for us.
Which is sad, because I have a great deal of sympathy with the basic point. I really don’t like asking people to do work for free. In this particular case we had no choice. WSFS has almost no money, and will never have much money. And even if we did have a windfall there would be an outcry amongst fandom if we spent it on paying a graphic designer to create a logo for us. Even the suspicion that someone might have profited out of something to do with Worldcon tends to get greeted with outrage.
I, however, have been on the other side of the coin much too often. Because I have created web sites for conventions on a volunteer basis, people tend to assume that I’ll do the same for them, and maintain the sites forever, for free. Because I have written for fanzines, people tend to assume that I’ll write for anyone for free. I did once have an editor who paid SFWA rates for fiction phone me and ask for articles saying something like, “of course as a fan you won’t want payment.”
These days, of course, people expect pretty much everything for free. They expect to get their music for free, their books for free, their movies for free, their software for free. Anything you can get over the Internet apparently wants to be free. And in many cases creative people are happy to provide some stuff for free to deserving causes (e.g. Amanda Palmer doing spontaneous free concerts in parks.)
And yet somehow the people who provide these things need to make a living.
This isn’t the time or place to talk about the economics. I’ve done that often enough elsewhere, and so have people like Cory Doctorow, Charlie Stross and John Scalzi. Nor am I going to waste any more energy trying to explain. Everyone knows that something called the World Science Fiction Society must be composed of bloated plutocrats who swan around in thick leather armchairs in their exclusive London club, or around the pool in their exclusive Beverly Hills club, drinking expensive vintage brandy, smoking fat cigars, and being waited on by scantily clad slave girls whom they exploit for sexual favors. How could it be anything otherwise?
So what I’d like to do instead is highlight the issue. First of all, here is the campaign web site that all of the angry graphic designers are throwing at us. It is worth a read, though it is rather angry and bitter a lot of the time. And secondly, I’d like to give some PR to some great graphic designers.
The worst thing about this whole mess, as far as I’m concerned, is that I wouldn’t be trying to get a logo for the Hugos if I didn’t believe in the efficacy of good graphic design. As you probably know, I’m a particular fan of John Coulthart, but I’m sure there are many, many talented designers out there whose work could be used to enhance people’s products. We have Chip Kidd and Geri Sullivan on on jury for the contest. And amongst people I know there’s Tony Geer who did such a fabulous job on Emerald City, or Jean Gomoll who designed the Space Babe logo for the Tiptree Award, or Feòrag NicBhrìde who has done great work for various fannish groups including the P-Con logo, or Alison Scott who has done such great covers for Plokta.
I, of course, am by no means an expert. So I’m hoping you will help me out. If you happen to know of a great graphic designer or two, please provide links in comments. (And give me Twitter feeds as we have #followfriday coming up.) Let’s give these people some love.
While I get the whole argument about “doing what you do for a living for free” (I’m in software – it happens even to us non-coders all the time too) – I do *not* get why having a contest for a logo for an all-volunteer organization is getting this kind of insane vitriol.
But I’m guessing I’m not the target audience for recruitment ;>.
Twilight:
The reason why we are getting the vitriol is, I think, because these people have no idea how WSFS works. Kevin and I have seen this quite a bit before. When you explain to people outside of fandom that everything in WSFS is done on a volunteer basis they just laugh and tell you not to try such outrageous lies on them.
Thanks Cheryl. Chip Kidd rocks. So does Marian Bantjes and Jonathan Barnbrook:
http://www.bantjes.com/
http://www.barnbrook.net/
I appreciate the concerns about spec work, I’ve had to read the riot act to people over that in the past. This is different since it’s very clearly a public contest with high-profile judges. These are common enough in the graphic design world, a recent example was the Adbusters One Flag competition. The design blog, Design Observer, has no time for spec work but they promoted the Adbusters comp; the two things aren’t mutually exclusive. I think the way to differentiate is that contests are public events and the entries are presented publicly whereas spec work tends to be private; winner gets the fee, losers get nothing. In a public contest the losers still receive some praise and publicity.
I wouldn’t let them get to you — there really are only a couple of people REALLY making noise over there, and they’ve clearly got buttons that got pushed by this. That doesn’t mean that anything has been done wrong, only that those people have buttons. Sure you could have done things differently, but then people would have issues with the way you’d done that… You do the best you can with the resources you’ve got and, frankly, this contest is considerably more generous in prizes than many I’ve seen.
John:
Thanks. Do you know anyone at Design Observer? Is there any way we can get them to promote us too? Or at least give us a clean bill of health?
Brent:
Trust me, I’m used to being the spawn of Satan. But it isn’t just on Whatever – that’s just where the worst vitriol is. Someone, somewhere, is running one of those campaigns encouraging people to go and leave complaints on the official Hugo blog. Probably without giving any explanation as to who we are other than something like “a big corporation”. And worse than that, people are flinging shit at our judges, which I am very upset about. Just like everyone else, they are giving their time for free. They don’t deserve to be vilified.
1. There better be some pool boys in Beverly Hills too.
2. I’m not even wandering to try to read the idiots who think working on spec or entering a contest is a conspiracy or exploitation because, you know, they’re idiots. Clueless idiots who don’t know what they’re talking about, no matter what they think they know. After a polite point-out that they’re dead wrong, they deserve to be ignored (at most told: “I told you you’re wrong, here’s the website to prove it.”). It is unfortunate there’s too much idiocy in the world, and fandom has an abundant share.
These folks certainly don’t work in the world I work in, where you often have to pay an entry fee just to have a chance at winning a contest (the fine art world – you know “REAL” art).
These people probably also don’t understand artists have to pay to show at SF Conventions (and most other shows) for the _chance_ they’ll sell something.
3. I wish some people could take the criticism less seriously and personally, but know he’s always that way.
Most anime cons provide a table in artist alley, “guest” status at the con and free admission to those who we solicit for Artwork. We also have a lot of artists who want to get their name and artwork out there for people to buy and see.
Hey look! the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center is exploiting actors, directors and producers to get a “spec” video for publicity purposes!!!!
How awful!
http://www.lagaycenter.org/site/PageServer?pagename=Project_Pushback
YES, that was sarcasm. Just showing others who might wander through here that WSFS isn’t the first or only group to have a contest.
🙂
You want nasty, check out the BoingBoing thread!
No, seriously, don’t. But one useful bit of info there: one of the objectors was mollified when they noticed the .org in the Hugo domain.
Oh, I stopped reading the BoingBoing comments when I saw that the first one was being snarky about the very idea of science fiction. Comments on BoingBoing tend to descend into lunacy very quickly.
In any case, in some ways I’m pleased that someone is standing up for the right of creative people to be paid for what they do. Far too often fandom takes the position that no one should ever even get expenses reimbursed for anything, and the end result of that is that no one ever volunteers to do anything. As in all things, you need balance.
I often wonder if those people who argue the loudest against spec work are just as quick to hire young designers fresh out of school and give them creative control on interesting projects.
The first two good portfolio pieces I had that weren’t schoolwork were done for contests like this one, how else are you supposed to get a decent portfolio together?
In any case, don’t get me started on the design industry as much as I love design, I hate the industry I work in.