This day and time, writing “teams” are making appearances across social media and emails. I get inquiries from them at least every other day. Sometimes they come across as individuals. Other times they openly state they represent teams. As an editor, I have a problem with them, in whatever guise they present themselves. Today, this is my rant.

Recently one individual pitched a piece about writers capitalizing on Pinterest. As I usually do, I Googled the writer. She indeed understood the subject and had been published as a freelancer, to include about this topic. So I told her I was interested.

A couple weeks later, she said the holidays put them behind. Them? She went further to explain that she had a team who edited pieces before they went out. Finally she sent the piece, and made mention of “the writer” and “the team,” and I put on my brakes. I asked who this person was who actually wrote the piece, because I needed to vet them. I had only vetted her.

She explained that she was part of a team that functioned this way. I said I still had to vet the writer. She instead pulled the piece, not wanting to reveal the writer, which suited me fine. I did not like the conspiratorial method in which she handled the situation.

A day doesn’t go by that others don’t pitch me, openly identifying as a team. They promise to write anything I need, guaranteeing superb quality. Again, no identification of an individual. I reject instantly, stating I do not do business with teams.

Why don’t I?

1) I like to know who I am doing business with. FundsforWriters is my brand, and I protect it with fervor. Allowing articles from unknowns is suspicious, and I have no idea who could one day prove detrimental because their work was shown on my site.

2) An article writer who really freelances for a living has a website and social media. If they publish in FundsforWriters, I expect them to broadcast the fact to their following, which in turn draws them to my site, and hopefully, the newsletter.

Writing teams are becoming popular in some circles, but not in this one. I prefer a personal relationship with the writers I do business with. I want them to stand up tall and present themselves, because a good writer reflects positively on FundsforWriters. An anonymous team makes me wonder why hide behind the curtain.