Everyone is Revolting

[sickofstupidity]

Edited to add that I don't want to link to a screenshot of the image on my Flickr, so I'm just pasting the text here. Seems like it's revolt day at DMS!

It’s time for me to say an official farewell. I have held my tongue for long enough about the mismanagement of this company and the treatment of the contractors, but I am done doing so. The latest insult posted by Chai was the final straw.

DMS wants you to believe that their goal now is upping quality, but it’s clear that’s not the case. If quality were the case, then pointing out that DMS did something wrong wouldn’t be grounds for refusing a writer work. I would argue that the most qualified of the contractors who wrote for DMS are the very ones who have the knowledge and the balls to point out the company’s flaws. People who have no options or skills, and those who are terminally lazy, will continue to hang around here waiting for some miracle.

Let’s talk for a moment about what constitutes professional behavior. I’ll give you some of my thoughts about what professional behavior is not:

Professional behavior is not hiring every Tom, Dick and Harry with a computer, telling them they’re professional writers, and convincing them they can make a full-time living doing DMS work alone.
Professional is not lying to your contractors that work is coming but the delay is due to system maintenance, titling backups, etc.
Professional is not pitting writers against editors (some are great; some shouldn’t be allowed to edit a grocery list) and further insulting the “professionals” you hired by giving the editors control of the writers’ pay.
Professional is having a complete set of writing guidelines and enforcing them equally, not siding with CEs when they reject articles for invalid reasons.
Professional is not having a help desk that clearly does not bother to even read the appeal before replying with statements that don’t even apply to the questions asked.
Professional is not approving people for special projects and channels because you like them. If you want quality, put your money where your mouth is.
I enjoyed writing for DMS in the beginning, but I never liked the way DMS staff members look down their noses at writers. Some of us are more qualified than any employee at DMS corporate. Some of us are more successful than anyone at DMS corporate will ever be if they continue to go through life being that delusional and treating people that poorly.

I work full-time as a technical writer and have had eight books traditionally published with three more releasing this year. I have a great relationship with my publisher and love every editor I’ve worked with. I’m certain the problem does not lie with me and my expectations of what the writer/publisher relationship should look like.

The shame of it all is that the unprofessional behavior by DMS is why the “real” writers are gone and not returning. The simple truth is that we have better options. In fact, most of the writers I personally know are turning work down because they’ve got more than they can handle.

So, farewell and good luck getting your “professional” quality with people who can’t get better clients. If my 20+ years of management taught me anything, it was that the people who kissed ass did so to make up for their lack of ability.

To most everyone else – I enjoyed spending these years with you on the forum and wish you all the height of success!

Jana DeLeon

[CE_ClueBat]

Jana is always awesome. Always has been and always will be. The only good thing that came out of DMS for me was the online people I met that I'd definitely meet in real life if I ever go out to their area.

[IloveCEs]

Not everyone is revolting...

I will begin this long post by saying that I appreciate the writing opportunities DMS has given me. I am lucky enough to be finding titles at present with Travel Beta, for however long that lasts. I also hope to be chosen for writing jobs here in the future. DMS has been very good for me. I accept, as difficult as it may be, that the company is making the decisions it has to in order to remain viable after the Google setback. I would also like more transparency but I understand that what is put on this work forum is not always kept on this forum, and the company must protect its business interests.

I also understand the position DMS takes regarding negative commentary on its forums. Forum owners are entitled to place their preferred parameters for behavior on their forums on a like-it-or-lump-it basis, since it reflects on the image and atmosphere the owner wants. I’ve been a forum owner enough times that can appreciate setting and maintaining a brand. I also understand how some writers may feel that it stifles their ability to be honest and meet issues head on. Ultimately, the forum owner makes the rules and it’s up to the participants to accept or not. That’s just the way most forum cookies crumble.

For a long time, I have wanted to create a forum for writers of all sorts. Initially, I was interested mostly in fiction and poetry, but as I moved into the professional realm of content writing, I started including that and all other forms of writing on my forum wish list. I’ve enjoyed participating in writing forums in the past that offered support and information, and gave participants opportunities to hone their skills with prompts and word games. They also provided opportunities to express feelings and experiences with life as well as with writing.

I am going ahead with plans to establish my writing board. Please understand that this is not an attempt to create a board where unabated bashing of DMS occurs. There is already a very nasty and vulgar board that specializes in that and it is certainly not my style. I want my forum to be a positive place to uplift and support. In fact, it will not specifically feature DMS except in general conversation where it pops up. For those who are leaving DMS, you are moving into a different arena are continuing to grow as writers. We’ve been a great community here and I think we would benefit from each other’s continued cheerleading now that the forum is dwindling.

It will take a short while to get the forum set up, since I am still writing under deadlines, both here and elsewhere. I think I have found a free venue that will give me the flexibility I want. What I don’t have, so far, is a name for the forum. The venue is Forumotion, but I am willing to look at other free spots as long as they offer the ability to embed YouTubes, post images and decorate with background grapics.

I enjoy the boards here at DMS and I hope to be able to post here for a long time. They have been a great source of encouragement and information, and have been a welcome respite for me as I sit for long stretches doing research and writing. I see the choosing of a separate board as an adjunct to this board. I hope to move beyond the disappointments due to the unfortunate downturns for writers and editors at DMS. I want to attract writers from other places beyond DMS and that is impossible in this specific work arena.

And, as for rules, yes, there will be several, not intended to stifle but to create a board atmosphere that will make others want to join and be glad they did. In past forums, I have been told that as adults we should be able to say whatever we want without restriction; that unrestricted speech is free speech. My response to that has always been that if we are adults then we should understand the concept of decorum and of respect for fellow posters and for the wishes of forum owners. It’s a fine line at times, I agree.

Everyone is welcome. I also welcome DMS staff who may be concerned that my board will be a subversive one. It will not, I assure you. It will be about the craft of writing, practice in writing, writing opportunities and our successes. The more the merrier. To everyone, come and look. If you like it, if it’s your cup of tea, stay. If not, I appreciate your checking us out.

I’ll post when I have the forum set up. I’m going to set up a new personal email address specifically for the new forum, but if you need to communicate before that, send your email address to my inbox and I will give you my ‘old’ addy, which will not be in use for the new board after setup.

Good luck to all of you!

TL/DR?

Fine, here comes the abridged version:

Paragraph 1: DMS ass-kissing
Paragraph 2: Forums are good. But sometimes they can be bad.
Paragraph 3: My life is an empty void after my husband dumped me for an 18yo waitress at Hooters. So I want to create an online forum where I could share my awesome poetry and writing with the world. And, oh yeah, talk about "THE CRAFT."
Paragraph 4: There is a NASTY and VULGAR board about DMS somewhere on the Intertubes (Hi there!).
Paragraph 5: I'm too dumb to set up phpBB, so I'm going to choose a lame-ass free board provider. I'm sure they will have sufficient bandwidth to handle my two daily unique visitors and the ten fake accounts I will create to make my board look alive.
Paragraph 6: I like the DMS boards. But I want to create my own DMS board. Only we will not only talk about DMS.
Paragraph 7: I will act like a freakin' Nazi and ban anyone who does not agree with me.
Paragraph 8: Please, Jordan and Chai, come to my board. You are already oh-so-popular in the Z-forums.
Paragraph 9: I will make a new email address. But I don't know how to do that, so please send all messages to the old one.

[partygirl]

LOL, ILCEs.
That sums it up quite nicely and accurately.

[CE_ClueBat]

Jana and I were a part of a forum that kinda fell apart because there were too many "no naughty words" rules.

[sickofstupidity]

Who the hell wrote that? I keep trying to look, but I get "unknown error has occurred" and the forum won't load.

[IloveCEs]

Who the hell wrote that? I keep trying to look, but I get "unknown error has occurred" and the forum won't load.

The first post? Jana.

The post I quoted? Nancy N

[sickofstupidity]

Sorry, the post you quoted.