| 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-two
minutes from now.
|
| 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. Also note: If you want to make it possible to ask the
longest question you can, first type "/ask" (without the quotation
marks), then leave one space after the end of "ask", then type as
many characters of your question as you can. If your question is not
complete, send the second part next, then if necessary the third,
etc…
|
| 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 |
I'm going to START with
the Word of the Forum today...'
|
| mel
boring |
because it IS a
puzzler. It is BRITISH not AMERICAN English is the only clue I'll
give for now....
|
| mel
boring |
The word is "snoggle."
Does ANYone know it? Send me your answer in a question submission,
please!
|
| mel
boring |
MUCH GOOD NEWS from
Patricia LoCascio:
|
| children's
writing course last December. In this first year of professional
writing, I've been published in KEYS FOR KIDS (July) and TEACH KIDS!
(Sept.) Today I received the Dec. issue of KIDS ZONE magazine which
includes my 10th assignment for the course (a how -to craft) and a
nonfiction piece on squash (the food.) My article on lacrosse
(Assignment 9) will be appearing in an upcoming issue of BOYS'
QUEST. I thank the Institute for the excellent class and praise the
Lord for opening the doors. |
|
|
|
|
|
| mel
boring |
HUGE CONGRATULATIONS,
Patricia!!!...
|
| mel
boring |
To have graduated from
the ICL course less than a year ago...
|
| mel
boring |
and to have sold--let
me count--FOUR pieces already is PHENOMENAL!!!...
|
| mel
boring |
CONGRATULATIONS, and
THANKS for letting us share the joy of your
publication!
|
| mel
boring |
Lisa Gavin sent us this
excellent GOOD NEWS: I entered SCBWI's latest on-line contest and
received Runner-Up! The challenge was to write an intriguing query
letter introducing a book that is already a popular children's book
as if you were the author. I selected ENCYCLOPEDIA BROWN, BOY
DETECTIVE. My entry will be posted on their web site in a couple of
days. Lisa's very FIRST line of her excellent review was: "He's like
a complete library walking around in sneakers." The WRITE
STUFF!!!
|
| mel
boring |
I read Lisa's entry,
and it was EXCELLENT!...
|
| mel
boring |
As I quoted, I LOVED
her very first line! CONGRATULATIONS, Lisa, from all of us
here!...
|
| mel
boring |
And MANY HAPPY RETURNS
to you!
|
| mel
boring |
Chris Weigand sent this
double GOOD NEWS: Today I recieved in the mail a newsletter that had
an article of mine printed in it. This is my first print (not
online) publication and I was taken completely by suprise. I knew
they were considering the article but had no clue that they had
accepted it. Later
|
| month I will also
see my second article in print. It is one that was accepted about a
year ago and I have been waiting for it to be published. The first
article is in a newsletter entitled "Together," a Mennonite
publication. The second will be in "Once Upon a Time" a magazine for
Children's writers and illustrators. Thanks and God
Bless |
|
|
|
| mel
boring |
DOUBLE CONGRATULATIONS
to you, Chris!!...
|
| mel
boring |
Chris had been MUCH
published online, and now these PRINT
publications!!!...
|
| mel
boring |
We are all HAPPY for
you, Chris. And in OUAT
|
| mel
boring |
you are sharing a
spotlight with some VERY experienced authors, such as Jane Yolen,
who has been published in Once Upon A Time (OUAT). WAY TO
GO!
|
| mel
boring |
Sonya sent this GOOD
NEWS: I just sold one of my ICL article assignments to Fun For Kidz.
It's entitled "Kindergarten Inventor" and will run (in about 4
years!) in the
|
|
|
| mel
boring |
It is SO ESPECIALLY
satisfying to see an ICL grad or student sell what they wrote for
their assignments!...
|
| mel
boring |
HEARTY CONGRATULATIONS,
Sonya!!! I know you are MUCH published, and "Kindergarten Inventor"
sounds VERY INTRIGUING to me!
|
| mel
boring |
Here is MORE GOOD NEWS
just in and fresh:...
|
| dell |
Mel, I'm doing my very
first book signing tonight. If anyone lives in the Kingston, NY
area, I'll be at their B&N store from 7-9 . Thanks to everyone
who chatted with me this afternoon and made recommendations on what
kind of candy to fill my bowl with! Gotta get people to my table,
right?!
|
| mel
boring |
CONGRATULATIONS to you,
dell!!!...
|
| mel
boring |
How I wish I WAS near
Kingston, NY, I'd sure be there!...
|
| mel
boring |
Barnes and Noble makes
a very CLASSY book signing, friend!...
|
| mel
boring |
Are we allowed to ask
what kind of candy you decided on? YUMMY--you know me and my
tummy!
|
| mel
boring |
I am IMPRESSED, folks,
TWO people know what "snoggle" means!!!...
|
| susan
ralston |
J.K. Rowling used it in
last H.P. book = kissing, cuddling
|
| wenscritters |
"snoggle" - a carress
involving a kiss (snuggle
|
| mel
boring |
RIGHT you BOTH are!
J.K. Rowling used the word in her Harry Potter and the Half-Blood
Prince....
|
| mel
boring |
It is a VERY
interesting word, especially because now,...
|
| mel
boring |
Harry Potter is growing
up--16, I believe--so he and his crowd are getting into "snoggling,"
kissing....
|
| mel
boring |
BRIGHT you ARE, susan
ralston and wenscritters!!!
|
| dell |
Mel, we decided on
individually wrapped hard candy, like mints
|
| mel
boring |
Oh YUMMERS!!! I'd sure
be there if I could, ESPECIALLY for mints,
dell!!!...
|
| mel
boring |
We ALL wish you the
VERY BEST of booksigning tonight, friend!!!
|
| mel
boring |
BV needs to know: I
have submitted to half a dozen magazines with different manuscripts,
but have received only rejection letters in response. I am still
waiting to hear back from DIG. It has been 3 months--could I send a
follow-up letter?
|
| mel
boring |
I got out my 2006
CHILDREN'S WRITER'S & ILLUSTRATOR'S MARKET to answer this
question...
|
| mel
boring |
What DIG does, like
MANY of the COBBLESTONE/CARUS magazines, is to require quite
an...
|
| mel
boring |
extensive submission
package: A cover letter with details about the subject and word
length,...
|
| mel
boring |
PLUS a detailed
ONE-PAGE outline explaining the informatiion to be
presented,...
|
| mel
boring |
POLUS a BIBLIOGRAPHY of
materials the author intends to use in preparing the
article....
|
| mel
boring |
So, BV, if your query
did not contain that complete package, that MIGHT be why you haven't
heard from DIG.....
|
| mel
boring |
So what I would suggest
is for you to send DIG a postcard inquiring about your manuscript,
BV,...
|
| mel
boring |
and they might reply by
telling you what part(s) you didn't include with your
query....
|
| mel
boring |
A query letter is
usually just that, a letter. But DIG is quite extensive in their
requirements.
|
| mel
boring |
Because of many
writers' expressed interest in poetry, and the difficulty in getting
it published, I wanted to let you know about a fun Web Site, that of
Joe Sottile, "Silly Sottile," at:
http://www.consideration.org/sottile/
|
| Site, for both
kids and teachers. Take a look sometime at how Joe uses poetry on
his Web Site |
|
| mel
boring |
By the way, Frank Ball,
our Technician for the Web Site...
|
| mel
boring |
told me that because of
a recent UPDATE for some WINDOWS programs (like
XP)...
|
| mel
boring |
our chat software might
not function as before....
|
| mel
boring |
So if you run into that
difficulty, Frank recommends coming into the chat
room...
|
| mel
boring |
in JAVA LITE or HTML,
which should solve any problems you might have.
|
| mel
boring |
Here is some GOOD NEWS
so NEW that I haven't even read the article yet!...
|
| casey |
Our own ccollier (as in
Christine Collier) had a great article in Children's Writer which
just came out.
|
| mel
boring |
CONGRATULATIONS,
Christine!!! I can't wait now to get that issue of the CHILDREN'S
WRITER to read your article!...
|
| mel
boring |
Christine is WELL
published, and has published articles on our Web Site here! WAY TO
WRITE RIGHT, CHRISTINE!
|
| mel
boring |
scribblegirl needs to
find out: I was wondering if you have heard of any issues/problems
regarding payment
|
| from an American
publisher? I know that ICL has |
|
| are submitting to
American magazines |
|
| mel
boring |
I told scribblegirl
that I didn't know of any problems of CANADIAN authors not receiving
payment from American publishers...
|
| mel
boring |
but I wanted to ask YOU
if YOU knew of any....
|
| mel
boring |
So those of you who are
Canadian, and have published in the US and gotten paid--or not--will
you please let us know here?
|
| mel
boring |
farmergirl sends these
questions: For the past several years our church choir has done
Christmas musicals. This year, it was decided that we should
"re-visit" some of our favorite songs from the previous five years
and find a way to weave it together. I was asked to be the weaver
(write the drama). I spent several weeks doing so, and would like to
submit this drama for possible future publication.
|
| What are some
possibilities for me to research as far as editors? 2) The drama was
written to coincide with the songs. Do I have to get permission to
list these songs/writers/ arrangers as part of the drama? 3) If so,
how do I go about that? FYI The drama includes 13 characters, which
are teenager and adult roles |
|
| mel
boring |
CONGRATULATIONS,
farmergirl on your Drama Weaving!!!...
|
| mel
boring |
What to do to find
editors/publishers is to COMB the listings in
ICL's...
|
| mel
boring |
CHILDREN'S BOOK MARKET
and CHILDREN'S MAGAZINE MARKET and the CHILDREN'S WRITER'S &
ILLUSTRATOR'S MARKET from Writer's Digest
Magazine...
|
| mel
boring |
and find ANY that want
musical drama like yours...
|
| mel
boring |
They may be FEW, but
there should be SOME interested....
|
| mel
boring |
Yes, you need to get
permission to use the songs in your drama,
farmergirl....
|
| mel
boring |
Look at the scores of
the music you'll use, and the copyright owners will be
listed....
|
| mel
boring |
and probably with their
addresses, too. Write and ask permission from them is the way to do
it....
|
| mel
boring |
Play publishers that I
know usually want plays with FEW characters;...
|
| mel
boring |
but I think a special
Christmas production with that many characters should appeal to at
least a few publishers. GOOD FORTUNE with yoru
project!!!
|
| minkadoo |
mel boring, I've noticed
when submitting, ask for photos or
|
| minkadoo |
or ill. do send reg.
photos or illustrations on side paper
|
| mel
boring |
Hi,
minkadoo!...
|
| mel
boring |
Yes, they want regular
photos...
|
| mel
boring |
UNLESS they ask for
DIGITAL photos....
|
| mel
boring |
MANY publishers are
starting to use digitals now,...
|
| mel
boring |
which are so much
easier to send, via e-mail...
|
| mel
boring |
But if they want
regular photos, usually 5 X 7-inch black and white are
best,...
|
| mel
boring |
unless they tell you
they have the equipment to use color....
|
| mel
boring |
Put the photos between
two stiff cardboards, with the top cardboard's grain running the
other way to the bottom cardboard's....
|
| mel
boring |
Wrap two rubber bands
around this package, at right angles to each other, and send in a
padded envelope....
|
| mel
boring |
As for illustrations,
it's USUAL to send only ONE finished illustration on its original
paper stock,...
|
| mel
boring |
but SKETCHES only for
others with it.
|
| mel
boring |
rls wrote to ask: How
can one get started actually working for a publishing house? Maybe
as a proofreader, or something along those lines of employment? Is
it a norm to work "in house" or are there any
|
| from home? I ask
this because |
|
| publishing house,
and I can't just pick up and move my family |
|
| mel
boring |
MOST publishers use
IN-HOUSE people to do proofreading and entry-level
jobs....
|
| mel
boring |
AND most publishers ARE
in large cities....
|
| mel
boring |
so the prospect of
getting such a job from afar is small, I''m afraid,
rls....
|
| mel
boring |
When those jobs ARE
out-of-house, they're usually done by people who at one time worked
there IN-house...
|
| mel
boring |
You might look for a
SMALL publisher near you,...
|
| mel
boring |
and be prepared to do
ANY jobs that come up in that publishing house....
|
| mel
boring |
Usually small
publishers have all their employees doing about EVERYthing,
rls....
|
| mel
boring |
GOOD LUCK in a
difficult job search, and will you let us know how it comes out,
please?
|
| mel
boring |
Birdi was inspired by
our former discussion to ask this question: On Tuesday October
13th's forum, Crabby J mentioned that she was told that one of the
worst mistakes writers make is not learning the non-writing portion
of the trade. One example given was billing a company for your work.
What other things should we be learning now so that we are prepared
for the future? I am sure that many of the ICL students would be
happy to know these things now so they are not surprised by them
later.
|
| mel
boring |
First, Birdi, there is
a certain "writer-editor ediquette (sp?)"...
|
| mel
boring |
that is important. For
instance, DON'T send a manuscript by e-mail if the publisher doesn't
want it by e-mail....
|
| mel
boring |
Also, don't call an
editor by their first name UNLESS they offer for you to do
that....
|
| mel
boring |
But CHIEF among the
dos/don'ts is basic respect for editors....
|
| mel
boring |
Don't PHONE them, for
example, unless they phone first....
|
| mel
boring |
Here is a SECOND area
of things to know: CONTRACTS....
|
| mel
boring |
Most writers, when they
get their first contract, have never seen one...
|
| mel
boring |
So it's a good idea to
FIND sample contracts to see what they look
like....
|
| mel
boring |
SOME publishers will
even SEND you a sample contract to give you a
look....
|
| mel
boring |
And if you know what's
coming up in a contract in general, you'll be better
prepared....
|
| mel
boring |
You can see some
contract samples, I believe, at Harold Underdown's Purple Crayon Web
Site....
|
| mel
boring |
Just put in Purple
Crayon for search words, and you'll get there
easily....
|
| mel
boring |
In FACT, Birdi, there
is MUCH at the Purple Crayon Web Site that will teach you the things
you asked about, things you should know in dealing with being
published.
|
| mel
boring |
iluv2write asks: Is
there a correct way in composing a novel outline?
|
| mel
boring |
There is no ONE way to
do outlines that is considered THE way by publishers,
iluv2write....
|
| mel
boring |
But MOST do not want a
"Roman Numeral" outline...
|
| mel
boring |
What is BEST is a
SENTENCE OUTLINE...
|
| mel
boring |
That is an outline that
presents in short sentences...
|
| mel
boring |
For example, the
outline for an article might have one sentence for the
introduction:...
|
| mel
boring |
The dodo bird is one of
the few extinct birds that people might not want to see come
back."...
|
| mel
boring |
That is just off my
cuff, but that kind of sentencing....
|
| mel
boring |
Then in the first
section of your outline, you could write four to six short sentences
that describe what will be in...
|
| mel
boring |
the first chapter of
your novel....
|
| mel
boring |
The most important
sentences for each chapter will be the BEGINNING and the ENDING of
the chapter....
|
| mel
boring |
THINK of a novel
outline as a VERY MUCH SHORTENED VERSION of the novel
itself....
|
| mel
boring |
You might have, say I'd
guess, 20,000 sentences in the novel itself...
|
| mel
boring |
If so, about only
TWENTY sentences in the outline would be best,
iluv2write.
|
| mel
boring |
MS asked us this
question: I recently did an article for an assignment and most of my
research was obtained from the internet. I do not always have access
to a car and I was wondering if the internet is considered an
acceptable source.
|
| mel
boring |
The Internet is NOT a
good source for all or even most of your research, MS, I'm
afraid....
|
| mel
boring |
That's because (unless
you get info from a .org or a .edu site,...
|
| mel
boring |
it's NOT very
dependable. Often the info is not signed or
dated....
|
| mel
boring |
so editors are VERY
SUSPICIOUS of mostly Internet sites,,,,.
|
| mel
boring |
Find some way to get
into a car, MS, and go to the library....
|
| mel
boring |
There is NO SUBSTITUTE
for books and magazines with information on your
subject.
|
| mel
boring |
KL e-mailed from
Finland to ask: Being an alumni of ICL from mid 90s I would like to
ask your opinion of the following: What is the status of fictitious
animal storis for kids aged 4-7 years at this moment among U.S. book
publishers? I have written several such stories and found some 5-6
years ago that these topics were not much in demand in the U.S. More
emphasis was paid, as I understand it, to the latest techniques and
pictures and such stories, and good old-fashioned animal stuff was
not so interesting any more. Is the situation still the
same?
|
| mel
boring |
Hi,
KL!...
|
| mel
boring |
It's probably not that
animal stories were not liked for U.S. books,...
|
| mel
boring |
but that books were
just not selling well at all...
|
| mel
boring |
And about five or six
years ago, the children's book market was soft, books weren't
selling well....
|
| mel
boring |
But even at THAT
time,animals are THE preferred subject for children, and will always
make good submissions, whether books are selling well or
poorly...
|
| mel
boring |
Today, the book market
is some improved over five to six years ago...
|
| mel
boring |
So animal topic books
should sell well, KL!
|
| brenbo |
Hi, Mel! I saw a 10-year
old comic featured on the local
|
| brenbo |
news about three weeks
ago. I'd love to interview him for a
|
| brenbo |
magazine article, but
I've never done interviewed someone
|
| brenbo |
before. I don't know how
to start. How do you approach the
|
| brenbo |
kid's mother so that they
know you are not a predator? It's
|
| brenbo |
sad that we have to think
that way, but it is a concern I
|
| brenbo |
have.
|
| mel
boring |
Hi, brenbo! I would
phone the mother and father, or write them,...
|
| mel
boring |
and simply tell them of
your idea and ask their okay....
|
| mel
boring |
You're right, with a
child of 10, parents will be worried about...
|
| mel
boring |
adults trying to take
advantage of their child....
|
| mel
boring |
So DO approach the
parents first. Adk them if you could interview the child--in the
parent(s)' presence, of course...
|
| mel
boring |
You may find they are
EAGER to have the right kind of publicity,...
|
| mel
boring |
and the kind YOU would
do would be the right kind, benevolent and harmless, brenbo. So get
to it and do it! And please let us know how it comes
out!
|
| mel
boring |
Here's a SUPER
suggestion from scribblegirl about contracts:...
|
| scribblegirl |
"Doesn't the ICL
cirriculum provide sample contracts?"
|
| mel
boring |
Yes, they have sample
contracts in some of their course materials--GREAT idea, THANKS,
scribblegirl!
|
| caq |
Ris can try local
corporations, they do tech manuals for the companies and training
books, etc. May use outside proofreaders. Also, a local printing
press may have call for some. I used to do a lot for a local
corporation from my home, from desktop publishing to typing to
proofing.
|
| mel
boring |
EXCELLENT suggestion,
caq!...
|
| mel
boring |
Local companies are
much more open to this kind of job than huge
corporations.
|
| gladys1 |
Mel if the editor or
publisher uses your first name then can you use theirs or do you
still use the formal Mr. Ms.
|
| mel
boring |
Yes, you CAN use their
first name if they use yours--THAT's a good signal,
gladys1.
|
| gladys1 |
Mel is there a way to
include a marketing class with the ICL course
|
| mel
boring |
This is a bit out of my
bailiwick, gladys1, but I THINK that the BEYOND THE BASICS course
has more time that it devotes to marketing....
|
| mel
boring |
And the PIPELINE TO
PUBLISHING course is VERY much about marketing....
|
| mel
boring |
The BEST way to find
out about these two courses and what they contain is to
e-mail...
|
| mel
boring |
informationservices@institutechildrenslit.com
|
| mel
boring |
THEY have the most
ACCURATE info on the courses.
|
| lauriet |
What about magazines
(Cobblestone), that require an outline?
|
| mel
boring |
The outlines for the
COBBLESTONE family can STILL be sentence outlines,
lauriet,...
|
| mel
boring |
and many of those would
still be OK with Roman Numeral outlines....
|
| mel
boring |
What a SENTENCE outline
is is really a short precis of what the book or story or article
is...,...
|
| mel
boring |
a kind of abbreviation.
But I suspect that magazines in the COBBLESTONE group DO get LOTS of
Roman Numeral outlines.
|
| mel
boring |
The hour is up already!
CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT?!?!...
|
| mel
boring |
THANK YOU for coming
today, friends....
|
| mel
boring |
No Thursday evening
Chat Guest this week, but next week comes Bruce
Coville...
|
| mel
boring |
See you next
Tuesday?
|
| eggamy |
mel please that e-address
in your full lights
|
| mel
boring |
Do you mean this
one?...
|
| mel
boring |
webeditor@institutechildrenslit.com
|
| mel
boring |
That is MY e-mail
address...
|
| gladys1 |
Thanks
Mel
|
| mel
boring |
You are WARMLY WELCOME,
gladys1!
|
