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Inklings Issue 2.17
===============================================================
i n k l i n g s
Newsletter for Writers on the Net
Issue 2.17 Wed, Sept.18,
1996
=================================================================
<http://www.inkspot.com/inklings/issues/ink0217.html>
MOMS WHO WRITE - by Sharron Kahn
SUBSCRIBER COMMENT:
Some You Can't Win - by A.W. Andrews
COLUMN TOPICS:
Finding The Right Publisher For A Book? - Lee Wardlaw
How Do I Submit A Story? Reselling internet material? - Ken
Jenks
Time To Look For A New Agent? - Susan Graham
FRESH INK - resources for writers on the net
Market Information - First Sale Stories - Subscriber
Publications
Some of you have been receiving multiple copies of Inklings. I've
reported the problem to Bryan, and he's looking into the problem.
Thanks for your patience!
Thanks to Bonnie Lee Kappler for sending me an "I WRITE FOR WINE"
t-shirt! Inspired by an Inklings article, Bonnie decided to try
something new by entering a Writers' Digest t-shirt design
contest. To
her surprise, she won! After being flooded by orders for the
t-shirt,
she put together a catalog of difficult-to-find items of interest
to
writers on the net. You can find out more info from Bonnie at
blkapple@napanet.net.
=================================================================
====
This issue sponsored in part by:
* Samurai Consulting *
<http://www.samurai.com/>
Services include internet consulting, WWW page design, electronic
newsletters (like INKLINGS!), mailing lists, FTP sites, system
maintenance, training. Email: Bryan Fullerton
<bryanf@samurai.com>
=================================================================
====
ISSN 1205-6413. Copyright 1996 Debbie Ridpath Ohi. See end of
issue
for more copyright details, and info on how to subscribe and
unsubscribe. Send questions and comments to editor@inklings.com.
=================================================================
====
FRESH INK
=========
Paying Market List (sf, fantasy, horror) & workshop
---------------------------------------------------
Part of Critters webpage, a list of "recent sightings" of sf/f/h
paying markets. The Critters Workshop page is also definitely
worth
checking out if you're at all interested in sf/f/h. Link to
Critter
webpage available from URL below:
http://www.cs.du.edu/users/critters/sightings
Free promotion for children's authors
-------------------------------------
Linda Vieira is presenting "Using Children's Literature in the
K-8
Classroom" at November's California Reading Association annual
conference. Children's authors are invited to send publication
info
and reproducible lesson ideas to <linnick@vcnet.com>.
Romancing the Web
-----------------
Romance author home pages, links to useful romance writing
resources,
general writing info, publishers/editors/agents, online
newsletter,
bookstore, other resources.
http://www.romanceweb.com/
Hawaii Education Literacy Project
---------------------------------
Non-profit organization promotes literacy by making electronic
text
easier and more enjoyable to read. ReadToMe is a Windows-based
reading
tool available for free downloading.
http://www.pixi.com/~reader1/ Email for info:
bookstor@lava.net
EditStorials
------------
Email newsletter, focuses on editing and writing. Maintained by
David
Adelson. To subscribe, send email to editlist@vgernet.net with
"Subscribe EditStorials your name" in the message body.
How to Succeed in an Online Writing Workshop
--------------------------------------------
New article by Victory Crayne. Other articles re: writing also
available at URL below.
http://www.crayne.com/victory/writetop.html
Instant Editor
--------------
Upload your own poems and critique other writers' poems.
Needs forms-capable browser.
http://www.hallucinet.com/caffeine/instant_editor.html
Author promotion on Pure Fiction
--------------------------------
Ellie Kuykendall writes: "I am going to be reviewing and helping
to
promote more novels written by U.S. authors on Pure Fiction. If
any
of your writers have new novels coming out and would like to be
considered, they may email me."
Email: elliemk@pobox.com URL: http://www.purefiction.com
=================================================================
=====
MARKET INFORMATION
==================
Please note: Inklings does its best to print only accurate market
info. However, it cannot be held responsible for lost postage,
time,
etc. that you may incur due to inaccuracies. Do not send
submissions
by email before inquiring first. You should get current, detailed
guidelines before submitting. Include SASE for snailmail replies.
More
market info at:
http://www.inkspot.com/~ohi/inkspot/marketinfo.html.
SPECIAL THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING MARKET SOURCES:
***SCAVENGER'S NEWSLETTER***
Excellent monthly market info letter for
sf/fantasy/horror/mystery
writers and artists with an interest in the small press. Sample
copy
$2. SUBSCRIPTION INFO -- Bulk: $15.50/yr, First Class: $19.50/yr,
Canada: $18.50/yr, Overseas: $24.50/yr air mail, $15.50 surface.
All
orders in U.S. funds, MO, or mint US stamps. Contact: Janet Fox,
519
Ellinwood, Osage City, KS USA 66523-1329.
***CHILDREN'S WRITERS MARKET LIST***
Available by e-mail or snailmail. Margaret Shauers, 1411 12th,
Great
Bend, KS 67530. $5.00 email listing; $6.00 snailmail. Contact
<mshauers@midusa.net> for free sample e-mail market
listing.
==-----------------------------------------------------==
"FNASR" = First North American Serial Rights, "SASE" =
self-addressed,
stamped envelope, "simsubs" = simultaneous submissions, "mss" =
manuscript, "RT" = response time, "GL" = guidelines.
PAYING MARKETS:
Not One Of Us
-------------
John Benson, Editor. 12 Curtis Rd., Natick, MA 01760. "We're wide
open to stories and poetry about people (or things) out of place
in their surroundings, outsiders, social misfits, aliens - anyone
excluded from society for whatever reason. Although we're
primarily
a horror market, we also use sf, Western, mainstream, beat,
whatever.
We crave -characters- (human or otherwise) who are different and
act the way they do out of plausible (if occasionally insane)
motives." 1/2 cent/wd for stories, $1/poem. (Source: Scavenger's
Newsletter, Sept/96).
Verbiage
--------
Short fiction zine. Pays $10/piece. Length 100-3,000 wds. Email
submissions preferred. Send to Tom Boutell at boutell@netcom.com.
See website for full guidelines.
http://sunsite.unc.edu/boutell/verbiage/about.html
Natural Life magazine
---------------------
Seeking news stories and how-to articles. International
newsmagazine
in tabloid format, published 6 times per year. Pays 10c/wd, max
$100.
See website for full guidelines.
http://www.netroute.net/altpress/nl/writers.html
Philadelphia Forum
------------------
Dan Rottenberg, editor, Philadelphia Forum, 1816 Ludlow St.
Phila., PA
19103. Email: forum@libertynet.org. Newsprint weekly offers an
exchange of ideas and opinions among its readers and writers. "We
favor local writers, but quality comes first. We're looking for
essays
and op ed articles about the world as you see it--thoughtful
pieces
with something new to say, directed toward an intelligent,
questioning, concerned audience. We take no particular editorial
social/political stance but accept articles on merit (and, of
course,
whim). Ideally, we like to think of ourselves gathered in the
editor's
living room trading observations." Pay is in the neighborhood of
$50
(higher for cover stories). Send/phone/fax/email all queries to:
http://www.sb1.com/forum/ (Source: misc.writing, Sept.14/96).
(Careful--that's the number 1, not the letter l.)
Together Time
-------------
6401 The Paseo, Kansas City, MO 64131: Lynda T. Boardman, Editor.
This
Church of the Nazarene publication uses fiction of 150 to 250
words
for children 2 and 3 (not sure if they are buying freelance for
this
now). They pay to .05 word on acceptance. Lately, they've been
buying
ALL rights for their own uses, but usually issue a double check
since
they use much of the same material in a teaching magazine. They
don't
mind if you resell material to noncompeting markets. They are
very
interested in buying activities of 25 to 100 words. Pay is $10.
(Source: Children's Writers Market List).
Playboy
-------
Playboy Magazine, Attn: Fiction Department, 680 North Lake Shore
Drive, Chicago IL 60611. Seeks serious contemporary stories,
mystery,
suspense, humor, science fiction and sports stories. No poetry,
plays,
story outlines or novel-length manuscripts. "Writers should
remember
that the magazine's appeal is chiefly to a well-informed, young
male
audience." 1000-6000 wds. Pays about $5000; very short pieces
paid
$2000. Publishes about 20 stories/year. Include SASE. See website
for
full guidelines.
http://www.playboy.com/core/fiction-guidelines.html
FOLLOWUP TO MARKETS MENTIONED IN PREVIOUS ISSUES:
Subscriber reports Disabilities Digest (Issue 2.15) has moved
with
no forwarding address.
=================================================================
====
MOMS WHO WRITE
-----------------------------------------------------------------
----
By Sharron Kahn
<75150.633@compuserve.com>
Novelist Jill McCorkle bought an 8 x 10-foot pre-fab shed, set it
up
in the backyard, and ran a power line out to it so she could
write in
peace. Poet Gail Mazur found herself being "blindsided constantly
by
crises" when her two children were small. And non-fiction writer
Judith Pierce Rosenberg said the hardest part about being a
mother is
knowing when to stop being a writer. For the writer, a child can
be an
inspiration, not to mention a wellspring of material. But just
try
composing a coherent sentence while one is around. Nearly
impossible,
was the conclusion of these three writing mothers during a recent
panel discussion sponsored by the Boston chapter of the National
Writers Union.
One of the challenges for writers with young children (or any
parent,
for that matter), is finding an uninterrupted block of time.
Sure, the
baby may nap for 90 minutes, but that doesn't necessarily
translate
into an hour and a half of free and clear writing. That's because
for
many, the writing process begins with a variation or combination
of
the following: a). brewing a pot of tea. b). staring blankly into
space. c). making a paperclip chain, d). writing, deleting, and
rewriting a single sentence 60 times. It's only after an hour or
so
of what the uninitiated would call wasting time that the actual
writing begins. Then just as you're hitting your stride, the baby
wakes up.
An option, of course, is to do your writing in the morning before
the
kids wake up or at night, after they go to bed. But that doesn't
guarantee peace, either. I sat down to write this article after
putting my 3-year-old to bed, but she still called me into her
room
four times in the space of 20 minutes. While none of her
"emergencies"
took long to attend to, each one broke my concentration,
interrupted
the flow of my writing and, I suspect, raised my blood pressure
beyond
normal levels. But despite the distractions and aggravations,
writing
creatively is not incompatible with parenthood. You just have to
know
how to adjust your expectations and in some cases manipulate your
environment to make room for those writing moments.
First Of All, Be Flexible
-------------------------
Until McCorkle became a mother she followed a strict schedule,
writing from 5 to 8 each morning before leaving for her full-time
clerical job. Then the baby came and there went the schedule.
McCorkle
had to adapt. "I had to grab (time to write) whenever I could get
it,"
said McCorkle, who has two children, ages 8 and 4. The new method
worked. McCorkle's latest novel, "Carolina Moon," is due out in
September. An important discovery for McCorkle was that the
"writing
never stopped." She found herself working out scenes in the
grocery
store, while gardening -- wherever she happened to be.
Do What Feels Right
-------------------
While McCorkle was relieved to find that the writing process
wasn't
confined to three hours in the early morning, others try to keep
their
writing and parenting selves separate. Judith Pierce Rosenberg,
who
examined the difficulties of being both mother and artist in her
book,
"A Question of Balance: Artists and Writers on Motherhood," said
she's not entirely "there" for her kids when she has her mind on
work.
And Mazur, whose third book of poetry, "The Common," was
published in
1995, didn't write at all while her children were young. In fact,
she
had to "wean" herself from what she called "the intense passion
of
motherhood" before she could focus on writing.
Take Advantage Of Online Resources
----------------------------------
A trip to the library for research can consume an entire day, not
to
mention, money for a babysitter. With online technology, you can
do
your fact-finding from home while the kids are asleep or
otherwise
engaged. Newsgroups and chat rooms can ease frustration and
isolation
by putting you in touch with other writing parents.
Get Help
--------
Hire a babysitter; enroll your child in daycare full or part
time;
swap child care with a neighbor or friend. Just remember: if you
and
your child are under the same roof, even with a babysitter, you
will
probably still be interrupted. Which is where the pre-fab shed
comes
in.
Don't Underestimate The Power Of A Bribe
----------------------------------------
Some parents wait for store sales to stock up on inexpensive
toys,
books, and crafts, then stow them away for emergencies. Depending
on
your child's age, concentration level and the appeal of the item,
the
unexpected surprise may buy you an hour or more of peace.
Don't Give Up
-------------
When Pierce Rosenberg interviewed 25 artists and writers for her
book,
she discovered two common traits: determination and perseverance.
These women were firm in their desire to both raise children and
to
practice their art. In your desire to do both, remember that it
is
possible for artistry and parenthood to co-exist, and what's
more,
each will feed and enrich the other. So remain resolute, and
above
all, be flexible. When you find something that works, do it. And
when
it stops working, find something else. And if you go with the
prefab
shed, consider adding a moat.
==------------------------------------------------==
Sharron Kahn is a freelance writer and publisher of At Home At
Work,
a newsletter for parents who work from home. For a free copy of
the
newsletter, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to at Home at
Work; P.O. Box 487; Mendon, MA; 01756-0487.
Copyright (c) 1996 Sharron Kahn. All rights reserved.
=================================================================
====
SOME YOU CAN'T WIN
-----------------------------------------------------------------
----
by A.W. Andrews
<ala2@earthlink.net>
Today, I received a rejection notice written by a
well-established
editor representing a respected mystery magazine. A rejection is
normally a mistake in marketing and is to be taken in stride, but
this
one deserves an answer. The thoughtful editor wrote this advice:
"A
good tale I was prepared to buy when I noticed your character
didn't
snap the safety off his revolver before firing. Story details are
important, and a small one like this will ruin the tale for savvy
readers."
He went on to recommend my reading of a known author who always
has
his characters snapping the safety off their revolvers. God bless
them. Unless they're using some prototype revolver made in the
1800's,
or one they've cobbled together, they're performing miracles.
Revolvers don't have safeties. Rifles have safeties;
semi-automatic
and automatic weapons have safeties; but not revolvers.
Editors rag on writers for not getting details straight.
Rightfully
so, many don't. However, an editor's advice isn't always correct.
Recommending another writer's mistake is as bad as making it
yourself.
I refuse to mimic an erroneous style just to make a sale. I
believe
every rejection I've ever received; I've deserved.
I've also learned from each. The lesson learned from this one is
no
matter how widely circulated the magazine, or well established
the
editor, the chance remains you'll be rejected for just plain
ignorance.
Copyright (c) 1996 Alexander W.
Andrews.
=================================================================
====
Ask The Experts
---------------
*** Please put "inklings question" in the subject header. ***
Judith Bowen (ASK THE ROMANCE WRITER) jbowen@max-net.com
Susan Graham (ASK THE AGENT) slgraham@atl.mindspring.com
Paula Guran (ASK THE HORROR WRITER) DarkEcho@aol.com
Carol Henson (ASK THE BOOK DOCTOR) UBKX12C@Prodigy.com
Ken Jenks (ASK THE ELECTRONIC PUBLISHER) MindsEye@tale.com
Michelle Sagara (ASK THE SF/FANTASY WRITER)
mms@turing.toronto.edu
Lee Wardlaw (ASK THE CHILDREN'S BOOK WRITER) Katknip2@aol.com
Marcia Yudkin (ASK THE FREELANCE WRITER) send to
editor@inklings.com
Sharon Zukowski (ASK THE MYSTERY/SPY WRITER)
76372.2252@CompuServe.COM
Columnists may be unable to reply privately to every message, but
will
answer selected questions in future issues of Inklings.
=================================================================
====
ASK THE CHILDREN'S BOOK AUTHOR
-----------------------------------------------------------------
----
by Lee Wardlaw
<Katknip2@aol.com>
Finding the right publisher for a book
--------------------------------------
Q: To do market research before submitting children's books, one
is
told to look at current publications of publishing houses for
books of
similar tone and content. How can one do this? The library only
gets
a few new titles each year, certainly not a good overview of all
the
houses. Publishers Weekly lists titles and summaries but not the
tone
of the books. Buying all the books is too expensive. And, if a
house
already has a book of the same tone and general subject, why
would
they want another? How can good, timely market research best be
done
to match an unpublished book with a publisher?
A: The whole idea behind studying the markets is *not* to send a
company something exactly like what they've already published,
but to
get a *general* understanding of the type of work they produce,
*and*
to see which company you'd like to work for. Each publishing
house
focuses on particular styles, subjects, philosophies and genres,
and
it's important to know what those are before submitting your
manuscript to them. For example, Farrar, Strauss & Giroux
publishes
primarily literary, hardcover young adult fiction which appeals
to
excellent readers; whereas a light, fast-paced mystery that the
average teen would enjoy reading at the beach on a summer
afternoon
might be better suited for Avon/Flare. If you haven't learned
this by
doing market research, you'll be wasting your time (and the
editor's)
by submitting your manuscript to an inappropriate publisher.
There are two excellent ways to discover who is publishing what
children's books without going bankrupt buying each and every
one.
First, visit your local children's bookstore, or the children's
book
section of a good independent book store. (Avoid chain stores, if
possible, as their overall selection of children's books is
limited
solely to the best sellers, not necessarily the best books.)
These
stores carry all the latest titles, and no one will mind if you
spend
an hour or more browsing. You might also consider asking a
knowledgeable salesperson, or the store's children's book buyer,
to
recommend a few titles that are similar (not exact!) in style,
tone,
content, etc., to your manuscript.
Second, write to a few publishers and ask them to send you their
latest catalogs. (They will usually send you a copy if you
include a
SASE.) Or, ask the children's book buyer at your favorite
bookstore
if she will let you have the catalogs she's received after she's
placed her orders for the most current season. Catalogs are
produced
and mailed by publishers to buyers each spring and fall, and
feature
complete information about all the newest books. Although
perusing
the catalogs or glancing through the books at the bookstore isn't
as
helpful as actually reading the titles themselves, it *will* give
you
a basic idea of what types of books each company is publishing.
By
doing your research, hopefully you'll soon find the perfect home
for
*your* book!
==-----------------------------------------------------==
Lee Wardlaw is the award-winning author of 15 books for children,
ranging from picture books to young adult novels. Her two most
recent
titles are 101 WAYS TO BUG YOUR PARENTS (middle grade, Dial) and
THE
GHOUL BROTHERS (first chapter book, Troll). PUNIA AND THE KING
OF
SHARKS (picture book, Dial) will be published in January 1997.
Lee's
web page is at http://www.inkspot.com/~ohi/inkspot/a-lee.html
Copyright (c) 1996 Lee Wardlaw. All rights reserved.
=================================================================
====
ASK THE ELECTRONIC PUBLISHER
-----------------------------------------------------------------
----
by Ken Jenks
<MindsEye@tale.com>
Q: How do I submit a story?
Each electronic publishing company has its own submission
guidelines.
Usually, authors submit stories via e-mail or by sending a floppy
disk
through postal mail. Very rarely, the publisher will scan a
printed
document and perform OCR to generate an electronic version of a
printed page. All electronic publishers on the Internet have
their
guidelines available either on the Web or by e-mail. Because of
the
difficulties of electronic transmission, it's especially
important for
you to read and follow these guidelines.
The easiest way to send a story via e-mail is to paste the text
of the
story into the body of the e-mail message. If your story requires
bold, underline or italics, you might just mark these sections as
<b>bold</b>, <u>underline</u> and
<i>italics</I>. If you must transmit
more extensive formatting information, the best method is to save
your
word processor file in Rich Text Format (RTF) then paste the RTF
file
into the body of your note. Avoid e-mail attachments whenever
possible.
Q: If I publish something on the Internet, can I still sell it to
another publisher?
Probably not. Publishing on the Internet is similar to publishing
in a
magazine with a world-wide distribution. It's unlikely that a
publisher of books or magazines will purchase "first rights" to
your
work after it's been published on the 'Net. But you may be able
to
sell reprint rights. Ask your editor in a query letter, but be
sure to
disclose prior publication history. Selling a story for "first
rights"
prices can get you a bad reputation if the publisher finds out
that
you have previously published the work.
==-----------------------------------------------------==
Ken Jenks is the editor-in-chief and owner of Mind's Eye Fiction,
a
paying market for short stories on the Internet. He is pleased
to
correspond with readers, writers, agents and publishers about
on-line
publishing. Mind's Eye fiction can be found at
<http://tale.com/>.
Copyright (c) 1996 Ken Jenks. All rights reserved.
=================================================================
====
ASK THE AGENT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
----
by Susan Graham
<slgraham@atl.mindspring.com>
Time to look for a new agent?
-----------------------------
Q: My agent had a severe health problem two years ago. Since then
he
has been rather unresponsive to my work. I have heard it said
that a
poor agent is worse than no agent at all. 1) is the above
statement
true? 2) if so is it time for me to be looking for a new agent?
A: Agents are prone to health problems because of the severe
stress
their job puts them through. I should know -- I'm dealing with a
recently diagnosed thyroid problem right now! However, whatever
the
reasons, if you are not happy with your agent, I always suggest
the
following: Talk to your agent about your concerns. Keep a
professional tone throughout, and present your concerns in a
non-accusatory tone with the expectation of working it out so
that
both of you are happy with the results. If you are not happy
with the
results of that communication, look for another agent. So until
you've talked with him, it's not wise to either continue on as
usual,
or just drop him.
No, I don't think a poor agent is worse than no agent at all.
They're
about equal, but a really bad agent can be extremely bad and
disruptive to your career. A better alternative is to keep the
agent
you have, and look for another, more compatible one. Keep in
mind
that personality conflicts play a large role in these problems,
and
that may mean that neither one of you has done anything wrong at
all.
Just shrug, and go on with your life.
==-----------------------------------------------------==
Susan L. Graham owns Graham Literary Agency, Inc. She represents
genre fiction as well as commercial fiction and nonfiction. Her
unique Website (http://www.mindspring.com/~slgraham/) helps to
promote
her authors and the agency.
Copyright (c) 1996, Graham Literary Agency, Inc. All rights
reserved.
=================================================================
====
"FIRST SALE" STORY: Dick Harper <rbharper@together.net>
------------------------------------------------------------
After the usual round of rejections from the usual suspects, a
new
magazine rescued me from the slush pile. Good news: the editor
accepted my title and story with no changes, negotiated a better
price
than his original offer, and subsequently accepted a second
story. :-)
Bad news: that new magazine took forever to go to press, send the
check, and ceased publication before the second story could
appear.
:-( I learned, patience and great restraint; it was truly worth
the
wait.
==-----------------------------------------------------==
Thanks to those who sent me "first sale" stories. I will be using
some
of them in upcoming issues. Published authors: please encourage
others
by sharing the story of how you made your first sale! Send your
paragraph to editor@inklings.com with "first sale" in the subject
header.
=================================================================
====
SUBSCRIBER BOOKS
================
If you have a book coming out this year, send the info (BRIEF,
please,
no press releases) to editor@inklings.com with "inklings book
promo" in
the subject header. Subscribers only, please. I will print a few
each
issue. If this is your first sale, please let me know so I can
highlight it!
Baldwin, Juanitta, co-authored with Diane Hoots, KUDZU The Vine
to Love
or Hate (Suntop Press, Oct/96).
***Burnett, Mary. HEARTWAVES: DAILY MEDITATIONS FOR CHILDREN
(Resource
Publications, San Jose, Cal.)
***Button, Margo. THE UNHINGING OF WINGS (Oolichan, BC Oct/96).
Poetry
collection about love and loss, and the tragic life of author's
son.
Singleton, Linda Joy. CHEER SQUAD (Avon Camelot, September 1996).
Part of series about competition cheerleading.
<ljscheer@inreach.com>
***First book!
=================================================================
=====
EDITOR: Debbie Ridpath Ohi (editor@inklings.com)
COPY EDITOR: Cathy Rutland (cathyr@rom.on.ca)
Subscribers are welcome to recirculate or reprint Inklings for
nonprofit use as long as the appropriate credit is given and the
ENTIRE text of the newsletter is included (including credits and
information at the end of each issue). Others should contact me
at
editor@inklings.com. All articles copyrighted by their authors.
Inklings is a free newsletter for writers on the net, published
every
2 weeks. More info at
<http://www.inkspot.com/~ohi/ink/inklings.html>
Inklings is part of the writers' website INKSPOT:
INKSPOT: Resources for Writers
<http://www.inkspot.com/~ohi/inkspot>
To subscribe & unsubscribe: Send e-mail to majordomo@samurai.com
with
"subscribe inklings" in the message body. To unsubscribe, use
"unsubscribe inklings". Find out more information with "info
inklings". EMAIL: editor@inklings.com. SNAILMAIL: Inklings, 55
McCaul St.,
Box 123, Toronto, ON Canada M5T 2W7 (for packages, contact me
first)
================================================================
