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.

mel boring

While you're waiting, here are a couple of fun thingies:...

mel boring

First, a WordPlay:...

mel boring

Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.

mel boring

Here's another reason why English is so hard:...

mel boring

The farm was used to produce produce.

mel boring

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 ICHAT to post some questions for the discussion group.

mel boring

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.

mel boring

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.

mel boring

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.

mel boring

Here are a couple of things I wanted to pass along, first, a new book highly recommended, that I might've mentioned before, but it's worth mention again:...

mel boring

Les Edgerton's new book - FINDING YOUR VOICE - is quite marvelous. And even though it's written for writers of adult fiction, I think it's something that children's writers can also benefit from enormously. The best I've read on the subject of how to put personality into your work! Shelley Malka

mel boring

Second, a writing opportunity in a newly forming children's crafts magazine:...

mel boring

My name is Nancy Cavanaugh and I am the Editor-in-Chief of Kids

mel boring

Holiday Crafts Magazine, a new magazine with crafts, short stories,...

mel boring

poetry, jokes, puzzles and informative articles to help busy...

mel boring

parents, teachers and caregivers get through the day. The first issue of the...

mel boring

magazine will be made public on August 1....

mel boring

It is currently a non-paying gig but hopefully that will soon change....

mel boring

If you're interested and would like to see a preview of the magazine,...

mel boring

please e-mail me off list. I also could use the services of a...

mel boring

copyeditor to go over the stories before publishing, which would also...

mel boring

be non-paying at this time but might change in the future....

mel boring

Here is the editor's name: Nancy Cavanaugh, Editor-in-Chief,...

mel boring

The magazine is to be called KIDS HOLIDAY CRAFTS,...

mel boring

and Nancy Cavanaugh's e-mail addy is:...

mel boring

nancy@lillypadsoftware.com

mel boring

I tried to find a website for the mag, but it is too new, so none yet....

mel boring

But you can e-mail Nancy at that address if you're interested.

mel boring

Here is another GOOD tip from casey, along with a question:...

casey

Childrens Writer, June 2003, had a helpful illustration of writing a bibliography. When writing up a biblio should I list books, periodicals, web page separately or in order by author, alphabetically?

mel boring

If it's a ONE-page biblio, casey, I would list them ALL TOGETHER in alphabetical order....

mel boring

If the biblio is longer than that, that's a good reason to categorize the listings....

mel boring

Put first the BOOKS, with that as a label,...

mel boring

then the PERIODICALS, with that as a label,...

mel boring

then last the WEBSITES, with that as a label.

mel boring

Here is a presubmitted question that I'll run by more slowly today! (-:}...

Marilyn

How do I get motivated to write everyday? I guess I'm a procrastinator and get distracted in doing other things and tend to put less importance on writing.

silverdove

Please explain what you mean by "as a label". Thanks

mel boring

You're WARMLY WELCOME, silverdove, and that's a GOOD question....

mel boring

By "label" I mean HEADING, or SUBHEADING in the bibliography....

mel boring

So on the first page, before any entries, you'd have: BOOKS (center this subheading), and list all books under that....

mel boring

Next after books, a centered PERIODICALS, and list the magazines after that....

mel boring

Finally, the WEBSITES, and list web sites after that.

amadillo

When you have a book self-published and would like to....

amadillo

approach a traditional publisher, would you send on request,

amadillo

the published book or a regular 8 1/2 x 11 ms?

mel boring

Submit the MANUSCRIPT, amadillo, not the published book....

mel boring

You'll want to tell the editor that it's been self-published, and if they have any prejudices about that,...

mel boring

then NOT sending the published book will not emphasize the self-publishing....

mel boring

Besides, editors like to be able to conceive and plan how a book will be put together,...

mel boring

so JUST the manuscript leaves them open to planning and designing.

grandy1983

I just had a someone review 3 chapters of my middle-grade...

grandy1983

...novel, and she didn't like it, yet I had a published auth

grandy1983

...tell me that it was well-written. Should I finish it anyw

grandy1983

...or should I just start all over? I'm so discouraged.

mel boring

Please DON'T be discouraged, grandy1983!...

mel boring

YES, you SHOULD go ahead and FINISH it as you've started it....

mel boring

You've got one GOOD, SOLID opinion from someone who is published, and that's plenty good enough to go on....

mel boring

The fact is that a potentially publishable manuscript could be submitted to different publishers,...

mel boring

and ONE will LOVE it, another will NOT LIKE it....

mel boring

Here's a perfect example: J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books!...

mel boring

She has submitted it previous to her success, and it was turned down by a number of publishers....

mel boring

So GO FOR IT, grandy1983!

grandy1983

So, just because someone doesn't find my story interesting..

grandy1983

...it doesn't mean that nobody else won't find it appealing?

mel boring

EXACTLY right, grandy1983! Editors are as different as we writers....

mel boring

They differ in what appeals to them, even though a manuscript might fit what they're publishing, one certain editor at the house may not like a submission...

mel boring

while another in the SAME house likes it.

amadillo

I have edited my book now 27 times. At what point....

amadillo

do I know that I have overdone it? I seem to find....

amadillo

new problems with every read.

mel boring

I know exactly what you mean, amadillo, because...

mel boring

I am right now rewriting a novel I've rewritten at LEAST a hundred times in 27 years!...

mel boring

When YOU feel it is done, then it is time to submit it, as I did my own novel about seven years ago now....

mel boring

When you feel your novel is DONE, and maybe OVERdone....

mel boring

That's time to submit it to an editor for an EDITOR'S opinion....

mel boring

Maybe that opinion will be a rejection, but that is how you can know it isn't done, and work on it again.

grandy1983

I'm going to get to work on my novel right away! THANK YOU

mel boring

Thank YOU, grandy1983, and let us know later how it's coming, please!

Jack C.

What are your thoughts about online publishers for children's short stories? A few I've researched seem like legitimate, paying publishers; but, I'm a bit leery about sending manuscripts over the internet.

mel boring

Are there online publishers that some of you have published with and could recommend as "reputable"? If so, message me and I'll let Jack know.

mel boring

Here is a NOT recommended site:...

grandy1983

I would NOT recommend Ivy house Publishing house...

grandy1983

...because someone asked me about it, and it's NOT a...

grandy1983

...legitimate publisher. I think it's subsidiary, or vanity.

mel boring

THANK YOU, grandy1983!

mel boring

RECOMMENDed ones from dolly:..

dolly

I have sold to Wee Ones, Write from Home, Simple Joy

mel boring

I have also known others published in those recommended by dolly, so I'll second those--and THANKS, dolly!

mel boring

More about Ivy House Publishing House:...

grandy1983

They claim to have a good reputation, but they do NOT.

grandy1983

In fact, if you glance at the site, you could tell it's not

grandy1983

...a professional publisher!!!

amadillo

I learned at the ICL that italicized words should be.....

amadillo

underlined in an ms. Now I got into contact with a few......

amadillo

publisher and they told me that this is no longer common....

amadillo

practice because of the computer age. Anybody can now....

amadillo

What is correct now? Should I still use underlining?

amadillo

use a computer.

mel boring

Sorry, I got those question parts put together wrong on the last two....

mel boring

While it IS true that italics and bold and such ARE easier because of the computer,...

mel boring

many editors STILL don't like them. So it's best to use them like salt, amadillo, sparingly....

mel boring

Again, I think this is a matter that most editors consider THEIR bailiwick, and THEY want to choose,...

mel boring

whether to use italics and so on. I must say that it ONCE was true, that if you wanted italics you underlined them in your manuscript....

mel boring

But as a rule of writing thumb now, when it doubt, leave them out--and use any of those things like table salt--sparingly.

silverdove

The online sites mentioned...are they like the ones....

silverdove

where you pay to download the stories?

mel boring

No, those recommended sites are ones where you SELL your writing to be posted there, silverdove....

silverdove

If not, can you name a few recommended sites that do this?

mel boring

I can't think of the URLs for sites where you pay to download their stories, any of you know any of those? Send them on and I'll post them here.

mel boring

For those of you who joined us after we started, this is an "Open Forum" session where you are free to ask any writing and publishing questions you have, and your moderator (Mel Boring) will do his best to answer them--the sky isn't even the limit!

mel boring

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.

mel boring

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.

amadillo

So the editors will eventually choose what will be ...

amadillo

italicized?

mel boring

YES, amadillo, that's a good rule to follow!

mel boring

Here is ANOTHER valuable insight from tatoland:...

tatoland

I checked with some people at our recent scbwi mtg (more)

tatoland

about the punctuation issue and was told (more)

tatoland

it's changing from 2 spaces to one...

mel boring

The OLD rule was to leave TWO spaces after a period--or a ? or a ---...

mel boring

NOW it's slowly changing to leaving only ONE space after those punctuations. THANK YOU, tatoland....

mel boring

I THINK this change is PARTLY due to the Internet, where things are read differently....

mel boring

I have noticed on web articles, most of them only have one space after punctuation.

grandy1983

What articles are you needing for the Website?

mel boring

THANKA for asking, grandy1983!...

mel boring

We are looking for articles about CONFLICT....

mel boring

This is interesting to me. A good number of students I've worked with did not WANT conflict in their stories....

mel boring

So I'm wondering if conflict is NOT a natural thing to write an article about....

mel boring

I can't remember getting an article about conflict in my time here. How about sending me one or three? I hope you have no conflict with doing that! (-:}

EJH

I am a student of the Institute and I just have a question. I was wondering how I go about acquiring an editor for my writings or an agent and if they are the same thing. Also, is it necessary to have one to get published?

tatoland

how would you know which a publication/publisher prefers?

mel boring

tatoland is following up the ONE space or TWO spaces discussion we just had....

mel boring

I think you CAN'T know, tatoland, until you've worked with them...

mel boring

But I ALSO think it's NOT going to matter if the story or article or book you submit is GOOD!

writermom

Why the change in punctuation rules.

mel boring

Partly I think, writermom, because of the influence of media like TV and the web....

mel boring

Things move like lightning on TV, as you know....

mel boring

And on websites with articles, the idea is to move it along because it's a kind of "TV alternative."...

mel boring

and ONE space instead of TWO at the end of a sentence seems to "move it along more swiftly."

silverdove

So Mel, when we send in our MS...we should only use one ....

silverdove

space after ending a sentence instead of the traditional 2?

mel boring

I STILL use two, silverdove, out of LOOOOONG habit....

mel boring

and I haven't had an editor object, though in the reediting they've suggested, I've noticed that SOME use only one space, so I try then to follow suit, when I KNOW their habit.

grandy1983

I have some very vivid characters in my MG novel, and

grandy1983

...I've gotten either extremely positive reactions, or some

grandy1983

...negative ones. Should I tone them down a bit?

mel boring

NO, I don't think so, grandy1983....

mel boring

Don't tone them down. Because most editors today...

mel boring

are looking for "EDGY" writing, with characters who are both VIVID and conflicted....

mel boring

Again, the explanation for the some negative, some positive, reactions is that editors differ WIDELY.

halnic

I read somewhere that one space after sentences helps a scan

mel boring

GOOD point, halnic, thanks! Scanners are part of the new technology, and may be one factor that is changing the one space/two spaces "rule."

grandy1983

No conflict in a story? How can that be?

mel boring

You might read an OCCASIONAL story with no conflict, grandy1983, but not many....

mel boring

because most editors STILL agree: NO conflict, NO story....

mel boring

Here's a suggestion: Analyze the conflict in each mag story you read from now on....

mel boring

See, first, if there IS one. Then rate it as to its severity, whether it's mild or heavy....

mel boring

What I THINK you'll find is that conflicts in stories for the YOUNGEST, are mild--and need to be....

mel boring

Whereas conflicts in TEEN stories are heavy, HEAVY!

nkk

can i try to publish my 1st assignment or wait till...

nkk

...I have almost completed the course?

mel boring

You can try, nkk, but I wouldn't recommend it....

mel boring

As an instructor for 18 years, I always looked at the FIRST story as just a sample...

mel boring

of what the write could do NOW....

mel boring

Then we'd go from there to build what they WOULD do in FUTURE....

mel boring

SOMEtimes, a student who was well along in the course,...

mel boring

would go back to their 1st assignment, and see how it could be changed and improved,...

mel boring

and THEN submitted. So I suggest wait will later, nkk, and reflect back on the 1st assignment story through what you'll learn in further assignments. By the by, THUMPING GOOD PUBLISHING LUCK to you~

mbvoelker

I've been told that the change in spacing after punctuation is because most people now choose proportional fonts like Times New Roman instead of monospaced fonts like Courier for use with their word processors. Proportional fonts have appropriate extra spacing after periods built in.

mel boring

GOOD point, mbvoelker!...

mel boring

To explain a bit more, perhaps,...

mel boring

the SPACING of the letters and words on the page and in the lines...

mel boring

the PROPORTIONAL fonts compensate for the spacing better than...

mel boring

the nonproportional, monospaced fonts used to--THANKS, MB--GOOD to see you here!

amadillo

When using cussing language in dialogue between two....

amadillo

low-class boys how far can I go with the language without...

amadillo

Sorry....got kicked off....here is the end of my question...

amadillo

Are there any rules to what words can be used and which ones

amadillo

are considered too vulger to use in children's books?

mel boring

Very understandable, amadillo, I got kicked off once today too!...

mel boring

The language depends on the AGE of the readers....

mel boring

With YOUNG children, it's a no-no with most editors, that is for children of zero to about nine....

mel boring

After that age, I see SOME cuss language creeping in, and for TEENS, more is allowed....

mel boring

YOu also need to guage it by EDITOR, too, amadillo, because SOME editors won't want it at ALL, and some WILL want it.

mel boring

I'm sorry, chatsters, but it's time to go! I will put the leftover questions into next week's Monday announcement for Open Forum next Tuesday. I hope to see you again next Tuesday here! Bye!