I had a, well, it wasn't strong enough to be an argument, but it wasn't exactly a discussion either with my cover artist. I've been working with her for five and a half years now, and she hasn't raised her prices once. Nope. Not one penny.
To top if off, she's working on the first cover for the Soccer Moms of the Apocalypse. And she came up with a super-cool logo for the series. So cool, I want to slap it on t-shirts, totes, cups, etc.
So, not only do I need the extended license from the non-royalty photo supplier, but I wanted to pay her for coming up with the logo.
The logo for a company is valuable property. A logo is a company's brand. It's identity to the public. Think of Apple's silhouette of the fruit with a bite out of it. Or the Nike swoosh symbol. Or Disney's signature of its founder. And those companies paid a LOT of money to develop those logos.
So, in my mind, my cover artist should be charging more for her work. I see too many talented, hard-working women sell themselves short.
She disagreed. She didn't think she fell into the category of selling herself short, and she gave me a lengthy list of her thought process of why she charged the amount she did. While part of me understands her reasoning, I still feel like I'm ripping her off. So after an extended talk, we came to an agreement. She would continue charging me an amount she felt comfortable with, but she would add a tip space on her invoice so I could pay her an additional sum I thought she deserved.
I'd still like to remind EVERYONE reading this to know your worth. Your skills are valuable. Your time is valuable. Your life is valuable. Don't give anything away for free unless it's part of a thought-out plan. KNOW YOUR WORTH!
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