Tue Jan 28 13:55:03 2003

Event end time:

Tue Jan 28 15:06:34 2003

mel boring

Join us this afternoon in the AUDITORIUM-Scheduled Events Room for an "Open Forum" with Web Editor Mel Boring. Mel has published some 25 magazine articles and stories, as well as eight books for the young readers market. He taught writing for 18 years, while being home husband and parent to two of his four children, and doing his own writing. He welcomes your questions on time management, getting started, writer's block, marketing, writing rights, writing earnings, or anything else you'd like to discuss. Bring your QUESTIONS to this open forum.

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I have one Simple Quiz question for you to think about before we start....

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Who is buried in Grant's Tomb? (purloined from Groucho Marx!)

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The Tuesday afternoon "Open Forum" will begin promptly at 4 Atlantic/CANADA, 3 p.m. Eastern, 2 p.m. Central, 1 p.m. Mountain, and noon Pacific. While you wait for the "Open Forum" to start, feel free to use your ASK A QUESTION button RIGHT BETWEEN THE YELLOW "MAP" AND THE RED QUESTION MARK IN GLOBALCHAT to post some questions for the discussion group.

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Good afternoon! Welcome to this Tuesday afternoon's "Open Forum" session. I'm your moderator, Mel Boring, and the Web Editor for this site. We're back for an informal time of answering any questions you might like to ask, on any subject. So feel free to ask what's on your mind--and I'll tell you what's on mine! First, please read these announcements, then we'll get started.

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IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS: Send questions you'd like answered or discussed by using your "Ask a Question" icon/button. (It looks like a thought bubble icon, RIGHT NEXT TO THE RED QUESTION MARK.) The moderator (me, Mel Boring) will post the questions one at a time in the chat room and do my best to answer them.

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WARNING: If you don't post anything at all, SOME of you will be bounced off the system in 15 minutes. TO PREVENT THIS, type something (either a question to the moderator or even a private message) every 15 minutes to stay active and remain online

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There are a number of things I promised to do this afternoon, and I want to do those FIRST...

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so they aren't overlooked by my memory....

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First of all, we have among us a WINNER in the Foster City 28th Annual International Writer's Contest....

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She is PATRICIA WEAVER, CONGRATULATIONS, PAT!!!...

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Pat won runner up award of for her entry, and was invited to come to California for the Award Ceremony....

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She isn't able to go, but we are proud of her that she beat 73 of the 75 entries to win the prize....

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She wanted me to pass this word along:...

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Patricia says,"If you don't enter contests, you can't win....

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I have to help me enter more contests, or for postage to send manuscripts...

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or to take a class or buy new shoes....

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Entering contests shouldn't be your sole concern," she says, "but it's a good tool to use."...

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THANKS, Patricia! And again CONGRATULATIONS from all of us!!!

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Secondly, Kim Freeman sent news ahead of time about her FIRST publication,...

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The sale was to HORSEPOWER Magazine, and her article will be published in the upcoming March/April issue this year....

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Kim also adds that this article was her re-do of Assignment 4 in the ICL basic course. CONGRATULATIONS, Kim!

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Now let's turn to your QUESTIONS, friends!...

dawgprint1

When you write a story that you have in your head that it will make a wonderful picture book, should you settle for a magazine market after serveral publishing rejections?

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That MAY be a good turn to make with the story, dawgprint1, but...

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here's a suggestion. I submit ANY piece at least 12 times FIRST, before changing my marketing aims....

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So I would suggest you submit the script AS A PICTURE BOOK about nine or so more times BEFORE you consider changing it to a story....

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I don't mean that I don't revise a piece at all in those dozen first submissions....

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I make any revisions editors might suggest, or I might think of in that dozen submissions. But I don't change the marketing genre for a dozen submissions....

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ALSO, you may find that if you do eventually submit the piece as a magazine story instead, you might be able still to publish it as a picture book after that,...

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if it proves a strong piece. That is, if children and editors find it attractive to read and use.

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Here is a punctuation challenge for us from Mary Beth Voelker....

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Before it comes through, I want to tell you about MB's most recent (that I know of) publication on the web....

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She had an article published in OPINIONJOURNAL, a GOOD one that informed me about something I didn't know of...

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the controversy about vans, the vehicles....

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The article/editorial she published is called "The Perfect Family Vehicle," and can be seen at this URL:...

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http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/responses.html?article_id=110002940

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Look it up, it's WELL work reading. CONGRATS, MB!!!

mbvoelker

I have a punctuation problem. How best can I handle this sentence?

mbvoelker

Oops -- "There was a peasant once...," Singer sneered at Jeron. "...Who became king in Encorn. Orden, known as ‘The Cursed’, who was possessed by a Faerie Sword."

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I'm working on it...(not exactly genius at work!) (-:}...

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YOU think about the punctuation, too....

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I would punctuate it this way, MB, assuming that you introduced SINGER already....

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"Singer sneered at Jeron. 'There was once a peasant,...

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who became kind in Encorn. It was Orden, The Cursed, who was controlled by a Faerie Sword.'"

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I've changed things besides punctuation, MB, to make it clearer--though this may be your YA fantasy novel, right?...

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Still, I think reordering of the wording, as well as the punctuation, would make it clearer....

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Firstly, it would make it clear WHO is speaking, then WHAT is being said.

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Here are some congratulations for the winners among us coming in....

lizr

Congratulations Pat !

lizr

Great attitude Pat !

lizr

Congratulations Kim!!

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Here is a marketing question....

lizr

I've never heard of Horsepower Magazine,another mag. 2 check

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HORSEPOWER Magazine is listed in the CMM of ICL....

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It is in Canada, and "covers the world of horses for young readers...

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with articles on riding, stable skills, equine health...

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breeds, and training. It also includes profiles of equine celebrities. Safety is always stressed, particularly in instructional articles."...

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Quoted straight from the listings. I remember HORSEPOWER from my ICL teaching days, and I think it's been around for ten to twenty years, so well established....

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They want 500 to 1000-word articles, respond in 3 months, and pay to per article. THANKS for asking, lizr!

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Asks kay kay: "I have heard both good and bad about entering contests. What do you suggest, Mel?"...

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My suggestion, kay kay, is that there ARE good and bad contests, and the Foster City contest is a GOOD one, having been around for many years, and established a (paying) "track record."...

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The contests I would caution about are some of the "Poetry Contests."...

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As many of you know, some poetry contests want to get your entries, then print them in a book, which they SELL TO YOU....

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The purpose of some is simply to make money book printing, knowing we all like to see our work, and our names, in print. So beware of poetry contests. Anyone else got a "contest caution" for us today? Send it in the question box, please!

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Mary Beth tells us, modestly,...

mbvoelker

Not an article, just a letter to the editor. :-)

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But ANY publication is an article, Mary Beth, even letters to the editor!...

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So CONGRATULATIONS anyway!...

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I recall one of my very FIRST publications--and for ADULTS....

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It was titled, "Rainbags and Rubber Bands."...

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I wrote it as a letter to the editor of the SANTA BARBARA NEWS-PRESS, which our son Jeremy was delivering at the time....

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The letter was about how hard he worked as a paperperson, putting the papers in plastic rainbags with rubber bands around them about 50% of the time there in Southern CA!

lizr

About submitting 12 times first --

lizr

That will take over 2 years -

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You're right, lizr, UNLESS you simultaneously submit!...

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That is what I do, so that 12 submissions--which I would do six at a time, would only take about six months, at most....

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Of course, when beginning, you may not want to simultaneously submit. But I do now.

lizr

By then you will see how your writing has improved

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Right again, lizr, you WILL see how your writing has improved--even in just six months time!

lizr

The URL didn't come up as a hotlink and we can't copy/paste

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THANKS for letting me know, lizr, that MB's article link didn't come cut-and-paste. I will send it along with the Friday Update this Friday, OK?

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Question for you, MB....

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You are asked, MB: "Is MBVoelker's punctuation in a PB or article or MG?"

lizr

Is MBVoelker's punctuation in a PB or article or MG ?

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I THINK it is a YA fantasy, isn't it MB?

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I am asked if Patricia Weaver is here with us today; I don't THINK so, but I'll pass our Congratulations on to her, kay kay, for one.

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Here are a couple more GOOD comments about submitting a manuscript over a 2-year (possibly) period....

lizr

and you will be able to make the ms stronger and tighter

lizr

would you be able to send via email ?

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Yes, lizr, you would be able to keep improving it over that two-year, or however long time!...

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And YES, some submissions would be made by e-mail, which would speed things up.

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Lodger has suggestion about MB's punctuation:...

lodger

First of all, I'd put "Who" in lower case. Just for starters! :)

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First of all, it was I WHO put MB's who in UPPER CASE, lodger....

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And for sure, it should be in lower case. mea culpa! (-:}

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MB replies to our original posting:...

mbvoelker

I'm sorry, Mel. I lost some of that when my connection went bad. Yes, it is from my novel. They are in a group and Singer is insulting Jeron under the nose of an adult who would have interfered if she had realized that "peasant" was intended for Jeron.

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Here is emi's suggestion for the punctuation, MB:...

emi

"There was a peasa nt once....," Singer sneered at Jeron, "...who became king of Encorn; Orden, known as 'The Cursed,. who was possessed by a Faerie sword>"

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That looks clearer, I believe.

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Before we go further, I want to post about US/Canadian postage exchange, which...

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you seemed VERY interested in last Tuesday. I received MANY comments then, too late to post, so I wanted to post them today....

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Here's the first comment, from lizr:...

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If it's an American stamp you'll still get the mail?

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By that I think is meant, if you send AMERICAN stamps to a CANADIAN publisher, will you still hear from them? (right, lizr?)...

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The answer in general is NO, the Canadian publisher couldn't legally use the US stamps from there, and probably wouldn't reply....

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BUT I have know at least ONE Canadian magazine (BLESS those Canadians!!!) who DID send an article back to me with HER OWN Canadian postage. So it CAN happen, but prolly would not.

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Can you purchase the stamps you want online from the US Post Office?

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silverdove: Can't they buy the stamps from online? I think the site is STAMPS.com

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A question asked, then answered by silverdove. Yes, U.S. stamps can be bought FROM CANADA at that address....

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Here was also a healthy suggestion from MB:...

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You can order stamps online at the USPS website. I tried it and it takes forever to actually recieve them. But if you don't have a US post office handy... :-)

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So the USPS website does work, I think www.usps.com?

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Here is a comment from a Canadian:...

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mabrager: Can I add to flash's question? I, too, live in Canada. I called the Philately Fulfillment Service Center at 1-816-545-1100 and just told them what I needed for US stamps. They sent them along with a catalogue to order more. Very pleasant people and quick service. I highly recommend them.

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THAT advice from mabrager--THANK YOU!--seems the best bet for Canadians needing U.S. stamps, to call 1-816-545-1100.

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Here is also a NICE offer from paige:...

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paige: I live close to the U.S border. I have gotten stamps for other students and wouldn't mind buying them for Canadian students if the student wants to send me a little money. We have the International Vouchers but they are way too costly to be practical.

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paige tells us there that the International vouchers like I mentioned last time, are too costly. flash also added to this strand:...

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The item is the same type of thing that you have, Mel. I thought I'd just write to a postal outlet in the States and ask them if they'd send me some stamps.

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Now, does anyone know the address or phone number of a U.S. outlet like the Philately Fulfillment Service Center in Canada, where we could get stamps in the U.S.?

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Let me know, and I'll post it!

spudsie

How do you get the Children's Magazine Market from ICL?

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The only way to get the marketing books from ICL, spudsie, is to enroll in one of their courses. )-:}...

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But THOSE BOOKS in themSELVES, are a GREAT value part of the enrollment fee, in my opinion.

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Here is a specific submission problem question I got in advance...

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I recieved a personal rejection of a non-fiction article on Coney Island from an editor at Cricket after it went to an editorial review. The letter stated, "While we found the facts interesting, we felt that the story would be better served by putting some of the information in context, since it is somewhat politically incorrect in modern times. Another problem was the "hook"; the story seemed to start off as a realistic fiction then turned abruptly into a nonfiction piece with no sm,ooth transitions." The she wished me luck PLACING IN WITH ANOTHER PUBLISHER. This was last July.

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I have since made the changes; do you think it appropriate to e-mail the editor (her e-mail address was enclosed at the bottom of the letter) and ask if I could resubmit the manuscript with the changes to her , and after all these months?

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YES, I think it would be entirely appropriate for you to send the piece back to the editor at Cricket, because...

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of the changes you've made in the piece, writer....

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SOMEtimes editors kind of WANT to ask for resubmission, but are VERY hesitant to do so, but the editor you dealt with may have been hoping. So yes, I would resubit it to CRICKET....

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Also, yes, it's alright to submit to a "sister magazine" in the CRICKET GROUP instead, if you feel to do that.

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Here is a SUPER question we are all eager to know about, submitted in advance....

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in Winter 2003, I found that several other participants had fairly impassioned views on the subject, especially Silverdove and MBV. It is a serious concern. Some of the better magazines, HIGHLIGHTS, CRICKET et al, pay good money but they buy all rights.

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This person is speaking of our Discussion Boards in Writer's Retreat, labeled "Winter 2003."...

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Now, while I appreciate the logic of boycotting such magazines, I am torn. Naturally I want to be published. I also want to be published in 'good' magazines.

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My question is, what exactly is 'all rights' -- I understand the English, but what does it mean in the actual magazine publishing world? They cannot buy the ideas. And we are told to use our research wisely and repeatedly to get as many articles as we can out of a topic. I don't want to kill any chance I have by putting my restrictions in my cover letter before they've read the piece. And I might not mind if 'that' story was to become their property, so long as I can use the ideas, possibly targetted to different age groups or readerships, etc.

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By "All Rights," any magazine means EVERYTHING about the exact way the purchased story or article is worded....

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SO, if you sold ALL RIGHTS, you couldn't submit the story/article elsewhere in that form....

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The question of HOW MUCH CAN I CHANGE IT TO MAKE A DIFFERENT STORY OR ARTICLE? is another good question....

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IF the original editor might RECOGNIZE the piece, while she/he couldn't sue for plagiarism (the exact wording repeated), they might have bad FEELINGS toward you....

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SO that is to be careful of....

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Let me cite an example. If you wrote an article about the erection of the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, a historical survey piece, I wouldn't suggest changing the wording for ANOTHER historical piece....

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BUT, you could write an article about HOW THE STATUE OF LIBERTY WAS BUILT--its construction....

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THAT would be an entirely different article that the previous editor could NOT look at and feel badly that you'd "sold the same article again."

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I am SORRY, but the clock BEAT ME, friends! It's time to close, and I will, as usual, save any questions you've sent in for NEXT TIME(s). So don't fear, we'll get to them yet....

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Meanwhile, consider this:...

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First of all, Who is buried in Grant's Tomb?...

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Ulysses S. (U.S.) Grant, of course....

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And I'm TOLD that at one time, that tomb of Grant's received MORE visitors than the Statue of Liberty!...

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I canNOT leave you without passing on a MARVELOUS article by my webbing colleague on the Long Ridge Writers site, Mary Rosenblum....

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MB Voelker drew my attention to Mary's article about AGENTS. Here is the URL to read her article:...

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http://www.longridgewritersgroup.com/rx/wc04/doctor.shtml

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DO READ THAT ARTICLE! Consider it "homework" for next Tuesday. (-:}...

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I leave you with this happy Schultz thought:...

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Gentlemen, I have just completed my new novel. It is so good, I am not even

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going to send it to you. Why don't you just come and get it? - Snoopy

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BYE for now, see you next Tuesday--THANKS for being here for us!