it is for a number of reasons...The cons themselves- some- not all- are not paying any fee- some are charging for tables and such- and then the biggest companies have lowered most of the page rates so a lot of artists cannot afford to make a living just doing the usual job. A lot of the bigger ones are asking for the talent to take pay cuts as a regular thing now. Covid gave them all an excuse to lower rates and they have not come up for the most part. Why do you think writers have to do 3 books a month and artists rather take commissions than normal work? Why do you think most are only doing covers? Leave the top 20 books and there are hardly any more royalties being made. It has gotten worse and worse in this field, sadly. So when some ask for a fee, they are trying to cover expenses or help of dinners and such...there are exceptions, but for the most part, outside the top people, its a constant hustle. Amanda and I always do the first book free for everyone, mainly because we also understand all this from both sides, but charge after that to cover our expenses. Hope this makes sense.