Complaint about Kelly Sons / ruralwriter / theruralwriter

[angelahoy]

Subject: COMPLAINT about Kelly Sons
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 2008 14:43:31 -0400
From: Angela Hoy
To: ruralwriter@cafes.net, mrskmsons@gmail.com, kellymsons@yahoo.com

March 30, 2008

Kelly Sons - ruralwriter@cafes.net, mrskmsons@gmail.com, kellymsons@yahoo.com
http://theruralwriter.blogspot.com
http://managedmayhem.blogspot.com
http://www.womenofdeathrow.com
Machester, TN 37355 / Beechgrove, TN 37018
cafemom id: kellymsons
aka ruralwriter when posting to absolutewrite.com

WritersWeekly.com has received a complaint about:

Kelly Sons, publisher of http://theruralwriter.blogspot.com, http://managedmayhem.blogspot.com, http://www.womenofdeathrow.com; cafemom id - kellymsons; aka ruralwriter when posting to absolutewrite.com.

WritersWeekly.com is a publication that publishes information for
and about freelance writers. The publication is the
largest-circulation freelance writing ezine in the world.

As part of that information, WritersWeekly.com publishes a Warnings
section on its website and in its newsletter. This warning section
contains reports about publications that are unprofessional in
dealing with writers, haven't paid writers money that is owed to
them, who have not abided by their contracts, or who have unfair
contract terms. These reports are used by WritersWeekly.com's
subscribers
to decide which publications they should and should not work with.

Your firm has been submitted to us for inclusion in the
WritersWeekly.com Whispers and Warnings section.

Step one of our investigation of this report is to gather all
relevant correspondence between your publication and the person
submitting the complaint so that we can piece together that person's
side of the story. Step one of our investigation has been completed.

-------------
THE COMPLAINT
-------------

NS (name not published here but was, of course, provided to the publisher)
alleges you owe her $81.00 and that you have
owed that money for several months. See copies of correspondence under
my signature. She also alleges you're falsely claiming her writing wasn't good
enough but that you used it/it was published anyway. (Please
know this is a common stall tactic we hear from publishers when
they owe writers money and our readers will recognize it as such.)

-----------------
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
-----------------

The second step in our investigation is to send this communication
to your firm to get its side of the story. If you have evidence
disputing these allegations, or would like to make your own
statement about these allegations for publication in our report, please
email angela@writersweekly.com within two business days.

***All correspondence for our investigations must be in writing and
is subject to publication.***

If you do owe this person money, we strongly suggest you read
this article before responding:
http://www.writersweekly.com/the_latest_from_angelahoycom/003628_09132006.html

Our report on your firm is scheduled for inclusion in our
publication next Wednesday, though it may appear in our Whispers and
Warnings forum before that time.

If there is no response to these allegations, WritersWeekly.com will
still publish this complaint, but our readers will not be able to
read your side of the story.

We appreciate your prompt response in this matter.

Angela Hoy
Publisher
WritersWeekly.com

PUBLISHER RESPONDS

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Complaint
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2008 07:06:12 -0500
From: Kelly Sons <mrskmsons@gmail.com>

Hi Angela,

I do owe (NS) $81. I have no way of telling which of her articles were
used so I agreed to pay her the full amount. I have been paying her monthly.
I have already consulted with an attorney who assures me I am not breaking
any laws as long as I continue to pay her as much as I can monthly.

-- Kelly Sons www.theruralwriter.blogspot.com www.managedmayhem.blogspot.com

WRITERSWEEKLY RESPONDS

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: Complaint
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2008 10:26:44 -0400
To: Kelly Sons <mrskmsons@gmail.com>

When was the last payment sent and when will the next payment be sent?

Have you paid her each month or have you missed any payments

Angela Hoy
WritersWeekly.com

PUBLISHER RESPONDS

Subject: Re: Complaint
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2008 10:17:07 -0500
From: Kelly Sons <mrskmsons@gmail.com>
To: angela at booklocker <angela@booklocker.com>

Last payment was sent on 2/11 and 2/7 paypal and 3/29 postal.
The next will be in April. It has been sporadic.

I have never promised a specific amount or date because I wasnt sure I could
stick to it.
I am not a firm , just a single person. I have never contracted out work
before.
(NS) knew I might take a while to pay her but she left those emails out of
the string.

I do owe her the money, am paying her and will continue to pay her.
Kelly Sons

[angelahoy]

Kelly Sons has posted a mean rebuttal against the writer here:
http://managedmayhem.blogspot.com/2008/04/geesh.html

She says, "I will continue to pay her but now, Ive (sic) started sending her a money order.
$1 a week. Dont (sic) spend it all in one place."

UPDATE:

The writer reports she hasn't received any money since WritersWeekly first contacted Kelly Sons, including any $1 money orders.

UPDATE: 4/15/08

The writer reports she received two $20 payments from Kelly Sons today. However, Kelly appears to still be trash talking the writer on her blog.

[angelahoy]

COMMENT SUBMITTED BY WRITERSWEEKLY READER

Tried to comment on that mean post about that writer, but access is restricted. Here is what I wrote...

Thanks for the warning on working for you. Yes, one hand washes the other, but this writer did work for you and is entitled to the agreed-upon payment. It's pretty snarky to "conflate" her with murderers in prison. Come on. No--I am not a friend of hers. I am going by what you wrote. It seems to say more about you than her.

As writers you both are entitled to respect. This is why we created Writer's Catablog, http://writerscatablog.com. Our spokesdog Scribbles might bite someone who sent $1 money orders to punish a vendor. How childish.

[angelahoy]

ANOTHER WRITERSWEEKLY READER COMMENT

Subject: Kelly Sons
Date: Wed, 9 Apr 2008 13:36:52 -0600

Angela,

I read the blog post by Kelly Sons criticizing the writer who complained, and I am appalled and infuriated on that writer's behalf. Who does that woman think she is? Being someone's "friend" doesn't give you the right to take advantage of them and not pay them. I'm sure the electric company and the mortgage company aren't accepting a "what I can, when I can" kind of payment agreement.

And then of course, there's the claim that the writer's work wasn't any good. Frankly, I don't care if it was or not -- I'm just sick of hearing editors make this excuse. Also, she claims she hired the writer already knowing that her work wasn't any good... so why exactly are we supposed to feel sorry for her???

Personally, I think Kelly Sons is simply angry that the novice she claims to have trained has matured into a professional writer savvy enough to spot a scam and demand payment in full. Ms. Sons acts like she thinks that helping a writer get started gives her ownership of that writer.

Personally, though, I think that the claim that they were friends is debatable. If I ever owed a friend money, I would make paying her back my first priority, not my last. It sounds like Ms. Sons was the bad friend, not the writer!

Sincerely,
Katharine

P.S. Ms. Sons really went too far when she criticized WritersWeekly.com. Now we ALL know she's full of poop, because anyone who reads this site knows what a fantastic resource it is -- and how valuable it is to have an outspoken voice like yours on our side!

[angelahoy]

ANOTHER WRITERSWEEKLY READER COMMENT

Hi Angela,

I've been reading this exchange both on your site and on the writer's site. I have followed this writer's saga since she first posted her upset in October over nonpayment. So I'd love to comment based on knowing this story from practically the start.

If you read Kelly Sons' posting, you'll see a few things - she admits the writer did the work, and she admits she promised to pay. End of discussion. That's what I advised the writer to focus on because the emotional stuff is just hogwash muddying up the actual issue.

I agree wholeheartedly with your assessment of this "employer" based on her nasty post in reaction to your investigation and the writer's justified complaint. That's not a professional response, nor is it a professional person. She's angry because she didn't pay a small sum to a writer she owes money to. If the shoe were on the other foot, I'd love to see the reaction!

I tried to respond to that post, as well. She must know she'd get some strong negative feedback. Otherwise, she'd not worry about the responses.

Also, the writer in question maintains a weblog. I find it impossible to believe her writing is awful based on how well she puts together that blog. She's new to the field, so this woman exploits that newness and attempts to discredit her abilities. Frankly, I'd hire the writer over Kelly Sons any day given the way each of them handled this situation. One acted respectfully and demanded what was owed her. When she got no satisfaction,
she bumped it up to a higher level. Kelly Sons fully admits to everything the writer claims, and instead of apologizing and promising payment, she gets bitchy and blames unnecessarily.

The grownup in this situation is quite easy to locate.

Lori

[angelahoy]

The writer reports she has finally been paid almost in full (shorted by $1.00) by Kelly Sons. She's not going to "split hairs" over the final buck.