i am livid

I called up the associate editor at my old job to ask her about tear sheets. (For those not in the biz, tear sheets are simply pages from the magazine. You commonly get tear sheets of articles you wrote, designed art for, were a source for, etc.

Before I left, I had written enough material for one department through the September issue. So, I should have gotten tear sheets for June and July. I hadn’t. The associated editor no longer handles tear sheets. That job was handed off to Replacement. And no wonder she didn’t think to send me tear sheets. MY BYLINE HAD BEEN LEFT OFF OF THE DEPARTMENT IN BOTH MONTHS. In June there was no byline at all. In July there sat Replacement’s byline on my work. (The material in June was 100 percent mine. The material in July was mostly mine, with an addition by a former intern and Replacement.)

I was hurt. I felt dismissed. Yes, I know, you all wonder why I should even care. But I do. I feel like the byline was ignored to try to wipe me from the magazine’s memory. But in doing so, the editor also cheated a former intern who worked with me on those pieces and who should have also shared the byline. And that intern needs those tear sheets for his portfolio much more than I do.

And surprisingly, I’m disappointed in my former boss. I expected more respect from her, at least publicly, than this. And I guess I’m a little hurt that my friends on the staff didn’t notice or make an effort to attribute the work correctly.

Grrr.