What's behind the Writers' Strike?

Hey, you there. Welcome to Julie Gammack’s Potluck column. Subscribers receive a link to future Monday Zoom discussions. Paid subscribers help fund the Okoboji Writers’ Retreat. We need five more paid subscribers to meet the needs of applicants. Can you pitch in? Be sure to participate in the poll at the bottom of this column. There will not be a Monday Zoom call today due to a scheduling snafu on Julie’s end Julie Gammack's Iowa Potluck is a reader-supported publication. Paid subscribers fund life-changing scholarships to the Okoboji Writers’ Retreat. Thank you! In our hour with Romen Borsellino, we learned much about the issues pivotal to the West Coast Writers Guild strike in Hollywood. Currently, most contract comedy writers are hired for 13-week segments. That means they only have a little over three months of job security. The bosses want to eliminate that contract and be able to hire a writer on a day-to-day basis. “Most writers are working a fraction of the year,” explained Romen. “If you are lucky, you may get a writers’ room job that will last about half a year if it’s a good, solid sitcom — but that money needs to last you the entire year.”Out of his earnings, he pays an agent, and a manager, a total of 20%. He explains that’s why residual payments are crucial. If a show is a rerun, the writer and the content provider are paid for showing their work. And the up and down, feast or famine, the structure of the writer’s life is why those residuals are so important. And, the ‘bad guys’ want to get rid of paying residual payments to writers. Iowa Caucus EffectRomen is an example of the ripple effect the Democratic Party’s Iowa Caucus system has had on Iowans. There was a writer’s strike in 2007, leaving Kal Penn (remember Harold and Kumar?) with time on his hands, so he volunteered to help on the Obama campaign for president. The comedian was dispatched to Iowa to work with young people, and Romen was president of the Roosevelt High Students for Obama Organization. Kal became Romen’s mentor and champion and has worked with him on various projects since. AppleishusWatching Romen evolve into this world of comedy writing will be fun. Who knows? He spent many August days in his youth staffing the Appleishus stand at the Iowa State Fair. Surely, there could be multiple seasons of comedy gold to serve up from that perspective. Caption this: Listen to the podcast. It’s fun. And informative.Due to a scheduling issue on my end, there will not be a Monday Zoom call today. * Here is our current upcoming schedule:* June 19, Matt Richter, University of Okoboji, and the Three Sons Clothing store* June 26, Phoebe Wall Howard, Detroit Free Press reporter covering the auto industry* July 3, OFF* July 10, Suzanna de Baca, Business Publications and member of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative* July 17, Liz Garst, Whiterock Conservancy* July 24, TBAIowa Writers CollaborativeI just looked at the metrics; not all of you subscribe to the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative. I’ll bet you’ll love it. We are growing exponentially with a 99% subscriber retention rate. Find out why:Vote NowWe have a conundrum. Many Iowa Writers’ Collaborative members do not want to put their content behind a paywall. That said, they work hard on these writing projects, and it helps to have reader financial support, even if those funds are contributed to nonprofit organizations. Some rely on income from their writing. During our recent gathering in the Amanas last weekend, the idea of having an event for paid subscribers was floated. Would you like to attend? Many of our columnists will be present. The location would likely be in central Iowa. This poll helps us gauge reader interest. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit okobojiwriters.substack.com/subscribe