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| − | '''''"Pro" is not the opposite of "fan"'''''.
| + | #REDIRECT [[Pro]] [[Category:redirect]] |
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| − | In [[fandom]] the word [[pro]] or "professional" is used in multiple ways, but the basic distinction between "pro" and "non-pro" is receipt of more than ''de minimus'' payment for work.
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| − | A specific piece of work is ''pro'' if the person who produced it was paid ''more than a token amount'' for it. So the common [[fannish]] payment for a contribution to a [[fanzine]] of a beer or a copy of the [[zine]] is token and does '''not''' make the work pro.
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| − | The best way to understand what is token and what isn't is to ask if the payment would be a ''significant'' motivation for someone to consider doing the work. Payment in cash is usually non-token. Cash prizes in a contest where only a small fraction of the entrants can expect to win a prize is not normally considered to make the contest entry professional.
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| − | Token payment, even in cash, does not make something professional. A work is professional when the payment involved creates a non-trivial economic justification for doing the work. (Note that we're talking motivation here, so that what is a good salary for a job for J. Random Poorfan, is an entirely token payment for Bill Gates.)
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| − | The [[semi-pro magazines]] are a particularly complex case because they normally do pay cash, but the amount is often very small. As of 2012, when the [[professional magazines]] are paying 3-5 cents/word for fiction, payments of around 1 cent/word or higher are generally considered to be professional. (Lower rates may also be, but it's not as cut-and-dried.) There is a continuum between [[semi-professional magazines]] and [[fanzines]] which publish fiction.
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| − | Someone who is known for their professional work will often be called a [[pro]] (which does not preclude them from also being [[fans]] or engaging in [[fannish]] activities, even in their field of professional endeavor if they are not paid for it).
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| − | {{fanspeak}}
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