Last week, McSweeney’s and Salon.com announced a new agreement that would put new McSweeney’s content online at Salon. A question arose on Twitter as to whether or how McSweeney’s writers would be compensated. (Check our sibling blog’s post for the background.) eBookNewser sent McSweeney’s a note to get the details.
Chris Ying of McSweeney’s brokered the deal, and here’s what he told eBookNewser: “Our arrangement with Salon is much more of a trade than a business venture. We don’t get paid for any of the content. What we get are ads on Salon for the products we excerpt from. So if we post something about a novel, then we get an ad for the novel on the site.”
The object of the deal is exposure, Ying continued: “For us it’s all about getting our writers in front of more eyes; everything’s done with the authors’ blessings. If there were any money exchanging hands, rest assured the writers would be getting their share.”