MATCH IN THE DARK
About Match in the Dark
Match in the Dark was set up to advise and improve on pay and conditions for writers in Ireland. Co-directed by myself and Dani Gill, we focused on addressing a number of gaps in service provision in literature in Ireland. We received funding from the Arts Council for this work
Writers Pay & Conditions document
Match in the Dark has developed a practical document for writers, and for anyone who employs or engages writers. Led by an advisory panel of professional writers, it sets out guideline rates for a variety of jobs that writers undertake, alongside key principles and best practices when engaging writers. Additionally, it lists four key issues that can’t be solved in a single document, but which we ask larger stakeholders in the sector to consider and address over time.
Click here to read or download the document.
You can also view a discussion about the background to and creation of the document on Youtube, here, with contributions from some of the advisory panel who helped to develop it – Oisín McGann, Mia Gallagher and Annemarie Ní Churreáin.
Say What You Pay
The above Pay & Conditions document also makes a case for pay transparency – that any arts organisation in receipt public funding should be transparent about the minimum fees they pay writers and artists.
In late 2022, Match in the Dark launched the #SayWhatYouPay initiative, where they asked all Arts Council funded literature organisations to be more transparent about how and what they pay to writers for a variety of jobs, giving each organisation two months advance notice before launching. The initiative was a success, with over two-thirds of literature organisation now listing their fees and pay for writers on their websites.
Here is a list of organisation that signed up to improve pay transparency about fees and now post info about what they pay on their websites:
Ennis Book Club Festival
Illustrators Ireland