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Inklings Issue 1.02
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i n k l i n g s
Newsletter for Writers on the Net
Issue 1.2 Monday, October 2, 1995
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<http://www.inkspot.com/inklings/issues/ink0102.html>
In This Issue
-------------
GENRE FOCUS:
Introduction to Mystery Writers' Resources on the Net - by Kate Derie
PROFILES: Trevor Lawrence, proprietor of Bricolage
Tom Nielsen, first Inklings subscriber
Regular Columns:
FRESH INK What's new for writers, best of the Web
MARKET Market information
WORKSHOP Improve your writing skills
MAILBAG Writing courses on the net
Many thanks to those of you who gave feedback on the first issue
of Inklings, or filled out the survey form. I got a much larger response
than I expected. Although most of Inklings subscribers are from North
America, I also heard from the UK, Guam, Israel, Malaysia, Australia,
Germany, Japan, Norway, Finland, Thailand, among others. About 70% of all
subscribers use Netscape, and 25% work in the writing or editing
fields. Other occupations vary widely and include cab drivers, chefs,
cartoonists, songwriters, computer engineers, ministers, talk show
hosts, homemakers, students, librarians, artists, booksellers,
scientists, teachers, among many others.
I've also received many useful suggestions about what to focus upon in
future issues of Inklings. I welcome suggestions and feedback...please
write to me at morgaine@utcc.utoronto.ca or (some people report having
some problems with the first address) dmo@astral.magic.ca.
FRESH INK
=========
Internet Writer's Guideline Listing
-----------------------------------
The Internet Writer's Guideline Listing is a service provided by
In Vivo Magazine, free of charge. Editors are encouraged to add their
own guidelines or links to their guidelines. James Tillman (the editor
of In Vivo) hopes this listing will help him and other editors by
reducing the number of inappropriate submissions received.
The IWGL has only been online for about three months, and James
says there are improvements on the way. Right now you can search the
directory by keyword, use a multiple field option, or a condensed
list option (certain information that is likely to be inconsistent).
The Internet Writer's Guideline Listing
http://www-wane-leon.scri.fsu.edu/~jtillman/DEV/ZDMS/
New Online Support Group for Magazine Writers
---------------------------------------------
Amy McBay is starting an online support group for those who write
for magazines. "Whether you are a beginner, pro, or somewhere in the
middle -- we want you!" Members can submit and critique work, answer
questions, offer help, share ideas. If you're interested, please send
your name, e-mail address, level of expertise, publishing credits,
and comments (suggestions, what you hope to gain from group, etc.)
to Amy McBay at DYVD82B@prodigy.com.
MARKET INFO
===========
Career Explorer Online
-----------------------
CAREER EXPLORER ONLINE provides daily career development information
to online subscribers (mainly secondary students and workers in transition).
Writers are asked to "synthesize and interpret labour market and skill
development information". Their website is closed to non-subscribers.
60% of their articles are freelance, and they receive about 130
submissions per month. Pays $50-300 (Cdn) for investigative journalism
articles, 500-1,000 words. Replies within 72 hours.
Contact Assignment Editor Kate Matheson (kmatheson@bridges.com) for
writer's guidelines and assignments. If you send one or two recent
samples of your writing, she will send back a non-disclosure form,
writer's guidelines and your assignment.
Contact: Kate Matheson (kmatheson@bridges.com)
Computer Consumer Magazine
--------------------------
COMPUTER CONSUMER MAGAZINE is a Seattle-area publication with a circulation
of 60,000. Majority of readers are between the ages of 23 and 40. CCM
specializes in both Windows and Macintosh platforms. "We are seeking
writers that have the ability to write both technical and non-technical
articles, perhaps with a touch of humour interjected!" Prefers to
receive submissions as a text-file via Compuserve. Sample issue available
on request. "Pays very generously upon publishing".
50% of CCM is from freelancers. They receive about 5 submissions/month,
accepts one per month. "Write creative, informative articles with
substance. No fluff articles, please, although we do like a touch of
humour! Proofread your work -- many spelling/punctuation errors
indicate sloppy writing and proofreading on your part, and continual
occurences usually eliminate the writer. Currently we are seeking more
Mac content. We like independent hardware reviews and new product
profiles as well."
Contact: Aaron Lerner (adlerner@seanet.com)
FIRST SUBSCRIBER PROFILE: TOM NIELSEN
=====================================
Tom Nielsen was Inklings' first subscriber. Autoworker by day, writer by
night, Tom has had opinion articles published in the Buffalo News and has
also worked on other non-fiction.
He discovered Inklings through the WWW Virtual Library's section for writers
on the web (http://www.interlog.com/~ohi/www/writesource.html), and
feels that the Internet is an extremely valuable resource for writers.
"One can be exposed to so many different ideas, thoughts, and personalities...
so many more than in everyday living."
Tom can be reached at 102166.777@compuserve.com.
PROFILE: TREVOR LAWRENCE, PROPRIETOR OF BRICOLAGE
=================================================
Bricolage is an online trade ezine for writers. Although geared
mainly toward those already in the writing field, it also has a great
deal of information useful to hopeful writers.
How did you first come up with the idea for Bricolage?
------------------------------------------------------
John Leavitt's excellent "Speculative Fiction Clearing House" WWW site
(http://thule.mt.cs.cmu.edu:8001/sf-clearing-house/)
provided the kernel of the idea. I'm an Internet hacker from years back
when the net was mainly used for communication between researchers and
there was a strong ethos of contributing to the pool of knowledge, so I
appreciated the contribution which the SFCH was making.
The idea seemed too good to be restricted to SF, hence bricolage covers a
broader range. The narrower focus on matters of interest to writers is a
necessary tradeoff for the wider coverage.
The features serve two purposes: to expand on relevant topics of interest
and to give bricolage the flavour of being a magazine without actually
pretending to be one - I'm a writer, not an editor.
What is your writing background? What do you do for a living?
-------------------------------------------------------------
Although I have been published, to describe me as a published writer would
be a casuistry.
My non-academic writing career began about eight years ago when I wrote some
"dummy's guide" articles for the newsletter of the local branch of a
machine-specific computer club. One of the articles was reprinted in the
national newsletter.
Encouraged by this unexpectedly favourable reception, I wrote to a UK computer
mag to see if they were interested in freelance product reviews. They sent me
some keyboard springs to review. It was penny-ante stuff but they did publish
my review and I got to keep the springs (yes, they _did_ make a positive
difference). The magazine folded shortly after, bringing to an end my foray
into freelancing.
I had other plans, anyway. I started to pursue the idea of writing a thriller.
Six years later, I'm still in pursuit. That might seem a long time but
my previous career change from retail administration to cognitive
psychology took me six years and I anticipated that switching to writing
would take at least as long, maybe longer. I was determined not to
underestimate the amount of effort required to become a competent thriller
writer.
During the day I am a researcher in the European labs of a major US computer
manufacturer. I've been here about ten years and work in artificial
intelligence, cognitive ergonomics and recently, the Internet. If anyone is
consumed by curiosity, I'm the guy behind the Avon Internet Business Park
(http://www.avonibp.co.uk). I think of my day job as an extremely lucrative
hobby which I am unable to give up at the moment.
Do you have any comments on Bricolage's future?
-----------------------------------------------
I have just spent some time in a detailed examination of the access log files
for bricolage. I managed to get an idea of what was frequently accessed and
what wasn't. As a result of this, bricolage has been redesigned. I hope that it
will be a little tidier, somewhat easier to use and will allow me to keep it up
to date more easily.
As proprietor of bricolage, I have been contacted by a number of editors
asking me to help them contact on line writers. They are understandably wary
of posting to the newsgroups because they don't want to burden themselves with
an electronic slush pile. I have also been contacted by writers asking me to
help them contact on line publishers.
It doesn't take a genius to figure out that it would be useful if there was
some way of bringing editors and writers together and that's the purpose of
the bricolage Bourse, a kind of on line club room for writers and editors/publishers.
I'm still developing the technology for it to work properly but there will be
a database for articles offered by writers, another one for articles required
by editors and some message areas where writers can moan about cruel editors
and where editors can moan about disorganised writers. Well, that's the
general idea -- I shall be interested to find out whether it works.
(You can get some idea of what the bricolage Bourse look like by pointing
your WWW browser at
http://bel.avonibp.co.uk/bricolage/etc/access-request.html)
Bricolage: http://bel.avonibp.co.uk/bricolage/welcome.html
INTRODUCTION TO MYSTERY WRITERS' RESOURCES ON THE NET
by Kate Derie
=====================================================
This being the Second Golden Age of Mystery, according to some aficionados,
it's not surprising that there are more than a few mystery-oriented sites
on the World Wide Web (WWW). As an introduction to the genre, here are
several general mystery homepages which can serve as gateways to the rest
of the mysterious net.
Walter Sorrell's "The Mystery Zone"
(http://www.mindspring.com/~walter/mstzone.html) is the first on-line
mystery magazine. It combines excerpts of fiction and non-fiction books
with reviews, articles, and links to other web sites. There's even a
colorful collection of old pulp fiction book covers. It's a good sampler
for fans and an opportunity for authors to show their wares. Walter also
includes some links to criminalist sites for serious research.
Jan Steffensen's "Mysterious Homepage"
(http://www.db.dk/dbaa/jbs/homepage.htm) is an extensive list of web sites
related to mystery and crime. Jan maintains the "Mysterious Bytes"
newsletter here, and has the names and addresses of mystery periodicals
from all over the world. Because this site is located in Denmark, it can be
slow to get to at times, but it's always worth it for tracking down new
places to go.
The "ClueLass HomePage" (http://www.slip.net/~cluelass/) is a mystery
newsletter with a variety of information, including new releases, awards,
and calendars of book-signings and mystery conventions. News from both
published and unpublished writers is welcomed. Mystery links include
everything from sites dedicated to mystery movies and TV shows to crime
research information.
For the real world of law enforcement, Cop Net (http://police.sas.ab.ca/)
makes a good jumping-off point. Their police resource list will link you to
over 150 police departments and law enforcement agencies around the world.
In addition, they have a public site with dozens of other crime-related
links, including police dogs, firearms, and traffic.
No introduction to mysteries in cyberspace would be complete without
mentioning DorothyL. This "mystery literature E-conference" delivers via
E-mail a daily digest with an average of 50 messages about mysteries. This
literate and witty group can give writers some valuable feedback about the
art and craft of crime fiction, besides recommendations for your own
reading list. To subscribe, send a message to (listserv@kentvm.kent.edu)
with any subject, and text consisting of SUBSCRIBE DOROTHYL followed by
your first and last name.
If you find any interesting mystery or crime-related sites while cruising
the Internet, or have any mystery/crime writing topics you would like to
see discussed in this column, send E-mail to (cluelass@slip.net).
WORKSHOP
========
In a rush and desperately need to know the answer to a grammatical
question? Just contact the Grammar Hotline Directory, a directory founded
by Tidewater Community College. Organized by state, each listing
gives the university or college name, phone number, e-mail address
(if available). Only a few have e-mail addresses listed; hopefully
this will change over time. At the time I checked, there was one
Canadian listing: Grant MacEwan Community College, Grammar Hotline
(403) 497-5663.
Grammar Hotline Directory
http://www.infi.net/tcc/hotline.html
Starting next issue: WRITER'S TIPS. If you have any tips to share
with other writers (e.g. work habits, overcoming writer's blocks,
inspiration, etc.), please e-mail them to morgaine@utcc.utoronto.ca
or dmo@astral.magic.ca.
MAIL BAG
========
-----------???-----------
I'm home with two kids and really can't break away for a night
to go to the local community courses. Would you know of any
online writing courses I could take to sharpen my skills?
-----------???-----------
There are many different kinds of writing courses online,
some with tutors who work with students individually, some where
the student works independently, some free, some commercial.
Of the courses where you work on your own, I like Crawford
Killian's course the best. Available free of charge through the writers' site
Bricolage, it is an excellent course for beginning writers and
a good refresher for the advanced.
Crawford Killian's course:
http://bel.avonibp.co.uk/bricolage/resources/seminary/kilian/index.html
Bricolage:
http://bel.avonibp.co.uk/bricolage/bricolage.html
I haven't had personal experience with any of the commercial
writing courses, so the following list information is gleaned from
the web pages advertising the sites, and from corresponding with
the organizers. I welcome feedback from any readers
who have taken online writing courses.
WRITERS ON THE NET offers tutoring, classes, editing and writers'
groups. All the teachers are published writers or editors (you can check
bios online) and have had experience teaching. Tutoring is accomplished
via e-mail and the content is determined by both the student and
teacher. This could involve polishing a manuscript, working on
exercises, having stories or poems critiqued, discussion of
subjects such as publishing problems, motivation, writer's block,
stylistic concerns, plot problems and other craft concerns, or
philosophical meanderings around the heart of the work.
From a quick browse through some of the tutor names
for horror, sf and fantasy, I was quite impressed: they included
Nancy Kilpatrick, Jo Clayton, George Alec Effinger, Edo Van Belkom.
Cost for tutoring is $35 per hour. Cost for classes varies. Groups
use mail lists and web message boards. Writer's
groups are free to students and clients of Writers On the Net;
others are charged a fee.
WRITERS ON THE NET: http://www.writers.com/
or e-mail for more information: writers@writers.com
CLIVE'S VIRTUAL WRITING WORKSHOP is run by Clive Brooks from
Southampton, England. He has published twelve books (mostly mystery
fiction and a variety of non-fiction), broadcast fiction, magazine
articles. His courses focusses on classic crime fiction. The
three-week "taster course" costs $35, includes e-mail instructional
texts and image files, an online discussion seminar where you
can meet other enrolled students and talk real-time to them and
Clive, a writing assignment in the Sherlock Holmes genre.
After completing the 3-week course you become eligible to take
the full 12-week course.
CLIVE'S VIRTUAL WRITING WORKSHOP:
http://theodore-sturgeon.MIT.EDU:8001/~cbrooks/
or e-mail for more information: cbrooks@tcp.co.uk
Another way of improving your writing skills is having your
work critiqued by others. The next issue of INKLINGS will
cover
the various critique sites and groups available on the net.
If you know of a critique site or group not listed in INKSPOT
or the WWW Virtual Library Writers' Resource page, I'd
appreciate some e-mail about it.
===============================================================
NEXT ISSUE: Online critique groups and writers' mailing lists
================================================================
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published every 2-3 weeks. For more info, please e-mail:
morgaine@utcc.utoronto.ca or see
http://www.interlog.com/~ohi/ink/inklings.html
WWW-VL: Writer's Resources on the Web:
http://www.interlog.com/~ohi/www/writesource.html
INKSPOT: Resources for Children's Writers:
http://www.interlog.com/~ohi/inkspot/
To subscribe, send e-mail to morgaine@utcc.utoronto.ca
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