| 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-in five
minutes.
|
| 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 |
First, here is the
Tasty Word of the Forum--a KIND of Christmasy
word!...
|
| mel
boring |
persimmon\
purr-SIMM-uhn\ noun
|
| mel
boring |
Special THANKS to Suzyn
Jackson for sending us this Tasty Word!--Do you know what it IS?
(-:}
|
| mel
boring |
Now for GOOD
NEWS:...
|
| mel
boring |
arnalda sent this GOOD
NEWS last week: I received an early Christmas present on December
19. HIGHLIGHTS accepted one of my poems! No publication date yet,
but I'm still so psyched!
|
| mel
boring |
Belated, but HEARTY
CONGRATULATIONS, arnalda!!!...
|
| mel
boring |
In light of
difficulties you've been through in the past month, we are REALLY
PLEASED for you, friend!...
|
| mel
boring |
And a POEM in
HIGHLIGHTS is a RARE acceptance, since there are so few POEMS, and
they are so PICKY--your poem MUST be good, and I can't wait to read
it--so let us know when it will appear, OK?
|
| mel
boring |
Shirley Connolly let us
know her GOOD NEWS: IT HAPPENED NEAR THE CLIFF ROCK is my newest
publication; it just came out this past week from PublishAmerica. It
is a Christian fiction romance, geared to women of ALL
ages.
|
| mel
boring |
CONGRATULATIONS,
Shirley! It sounds like your novel hit MORE than one genre, being
Christian AND romance. Way to GO, Shirley!
|
| mel
boring |
Rose Zediker sent this
GOOD CHRISTMAS NEWS: I had an early Christmas present. A contract
for a craft article came in December 23rd’s mail. THE FRIEND
accepted another craft article of mine titled “Christmas Doorknob
Banner.” What a wonderful way for the writer in me to start the
holiday!
|
| mel
boring |
You are a real VETERAN
in sales to THE FRIEND, Rose!!!...
|
| mel
boring |
CONGRATULATIONS, and
MANY HAPPY RETURNS to you, friend!...
|
| mel
boring |
I've noted previously
that I MET the previous editor of THE FRIEND at a conference MANY
years ago,...
|
| mel
boring |
and she asked me to
send her something, but she actually died before I could submit it,
and I never did! So YOU have succeeded at a FAVORITE mag of mine,
Rose!
|
| mel
boring |
omalizzie let us know
about her GREAT Christmas Gift: Just a note to let you know that I
did receive one writingly perfect Christmas gift in the form of
"Writing Children's Books for Dummies" by Lisa Rojany Buccieri and
Peter Economy. I haven't had much time to read yet, but am looking
forward to carving out comfy time, cozily wrapped in my brand new
fuzzy blanket, in the near future.
|
| mel
boring |
INDEED, a HAPPY
Christmas for you, omalizzie!...
|
| mel
boring |
That is an EXCELLENT
book that I've read and recommend. EnJOY the comfy, cozy, fuzzy
reading time, omalizzie!
|
| mel
boring |
Speaking of writing
books, June Ellis also sent us a marvelous
recommendation:...
|
| mel
boring |
June Ellis sent along
this wonderful suggestion of a very HELPFUL book: "I wanted to pass
along a book that I am finishing reading. It is Writer's Digest
Handbook of MAKING MONEY FREELANCE WRITING. It covers a wide range
of topics and many of your readers would find it quite
informative.
|
| mel
boring |
Thank you, June! I once
skimmed that book at a book store, and I think it's VERY
helpful!
|
| mel
boring |
RZ asks me: You
mentioned if anyone asked you'd share your good writer news. So that
is my question for this week’s forum. Mel, what is the good news you
mentioned in last week’s Open Forum email reminder?
|
| mel
boring |
I didn't mention this
GOOD NEWS of mine last week--AND I didn't ask Rose to mention it,
HONEST! ...
|
| mel
boring |
I've mentioned
previously that I wrote a book last March and April about water
birds....
|
| mel
boring |
It is to be in the
"critter" series that my CATERPILLARS, BUGS AND BUTTERFLIES is
in...
|
| mel
boring |
This water birds book
is the THIRTEENTH in the series (lucky, huh?),...
|
| mel
boring |
and is titled
FLAMINGOS, LOONS AND PELICANS....
|
| mel
boring |
Well, last week I
received my FIRST advance copy of the finished
book...
|
| mel
boring |
and I have NEVER been
as pleased upon the first reading and thorough perusal of a book
since I began writing!...
|
| mel
boring |
The illustrations (by
Andrew Recher) and the design of the book are
SUPERB!...
|
| mel
boring |
and the text "ain't
bad" either! (-:} THANKS for asking, RZ!
|
| mel
boring |
Now to the
"persimmon"!...
|
| delima-e |
persimmon is a hardwood
tree and sour fruit
|
| kswcolorado |
it's a southern fruit,
orange, puckers your mouth if not
|
| kswcolorado |
perfectly
ripe
|
| gladys1 |
MEl a persimmon is an
American tree with a pear like fruit. I cheeted and looked it up in
the dictionary
|
| delima-e |
did you know that inside
the persimmons nut an image of a
|
| delima-e |
knife, fork, or spoon,
can be seen?
|
| mel
boring |
SUPER answers,
delimma-e, kswcolorado, and gladys1!!!...
|
| mel
boring |
Ahd delima-e, I did NOT
know there are those images in a persimmons
nut!!!....
|
| mel
boring |
THANKS for telling us,
and I'll have to slice one open and LOOK for a knife, fork, or
spoon!!!
|
| mel
boring |
You're right, the
persimmon is SOUR if not ripe. But perfectly right--as kswcolorado
said, it is DELICIOUS!
|
| mel
boring |
I recall when I taught
in CA long ago, kids would pick them off neighborhood trees and
bring them into class to eat! They were YUMMY!!!
|
| mel
boring |
gerrie would like to
ask: Could you tell me the meaning of the term sales rank in the
Barnes and Noble listings?
|
| mel
boring |
GOOD question, gerrie!
I've researched BOTH Barnes and Noble and Amazon, and have some
info:...
|
| mel
boring |
At B&N, they keep
records of only the past months, six months at
most...
|
| mel
boring |
and their numbers for
ANY book, if the most previous number is higher than a former
number, show a rise in sales....
|
| mel
boring |
The numbers CAN be
HUGE!...
|
| mel
boring |
I mentioned my
CATERPILLARS, BUGS AND BUTTERFLIES...
|
| mel
boring |
Last week its "sales
ranking" was 383,370...
|
| mel
boring |
I don't KNOW what it
was previously, but that's a high number....
|
| mel
boring |
The sales number for my
BIRDS, NESTS AND EGGS was only 40,814--meaning it was a BETTER
seller....
|
| mel
boring |
Now, here's the REAL
test. J.K. Rowling's LATEST Harry Potter book last week was only 97
at Barnes and Noble!...
|
| mel
boring |
The LOWER the number
the HIGHER the sales, so Rowling's book is doing
EXCELLENTLY!...
|
| mel
boring |
When YOU have a book
for sale at B&N, look it up one week, then a week later. If the
numbers go LOWER in that time, sales are rising....
|
| mel
boring |
NOW, for AMAZON.COM,
it's different. THEY keep records of ALL sales for ALL time, since
the book was published....
|
| mel
boring |
And also at AMAZON, the
LOWER the number the HIGHER the sales...
|
| mel
boring |
So, for example, in
just ONE DAY at Amazon, Rowling's latest Harry Potter
book...
|
| mel
boring |
went from 17 to 15.
That is FANTASTIC!...
|
| mel
boring |
If a sales number goes
to just 1, I guess it's the BEST selling of all books for that
period....
|
| mel
boring |
If you have other
questions about this, ask and I will try to answer!
|
| mel
boring |
If you want to LIVE off
your royalties, your numbers should stay within the top 10,000,
about. That would make then VERY GOOD sellers. And they would have
to STAY there in the sales ranking.
|
| mel
boring |
Oh my, you are SO
thoughtful--LOOK what you just told me:...
|
| writersblock |
Congratulations
Mel!
|
| writersblock |
you must be "flying" high
with that good news!
|
| gladys1 |
Congratulations Mel hope
to read it and the rest
|
| spotslover2 |
Congratulations, Mel, and
when can we read your book? Happy New Year to everyone.
Sarah.
|
| mel
boring |
THANK YOU so MUCH,
writersblock, gladys1 and Sarah!...
|
| mel
boring |
Yes, I am flying high
with the good news of both the book sales and the upcoming water
birds book. THANK YOU! And I wish you ALL successful books--children
NEED them, my friends!
|
| mel
boring |
Here's a good insight
on the B&N and Amazon sales rankings:...
|
| writersblock |
so, it's like golf. You
want a low score! :-)
|
| mel
boring |
Yes, you want a ONE, if
you can get it! (-:}...
|
| mel
boring |
and their value is that
they show RISES in sales, not the actual sales
numbers.
|
| kswcolorado |
way to go,
Mel
|
| mel
boring |
THANK YOU,
kswcolorado!
|
| delima-e |
mel, in your bug book do
you have any info on wooly bears
|
| delima-e |
it's a type of
caterpillar
|
| mel
boring |
Yes, delima-e, we DID
have the wooly bear in the book, one of my FAVORITE
caterpillars!
|
| wordpaintervs |
how do you know if a
writting or illustration is in public domain
|
| mel
boring |
For writing, ANYthing
now that was published before 1923 by the years stated in the
copyright laws,...
|
| mel
boring |
is in public domain,
wordpaintervs....
|
| mel
boring |
But it's ALWAYS safest
to contact the LAST publisher of the writing and ASK, because there
may have been some RENEWing of the copyright by the author's
surviving family...
|
| mel
boring |
As for illustrations,
they usually will have a date of copyright on them AND the owner of
the copyright...
|
| mel
boring |
But if there is NO
copyright notice, don't assume the ILLUSTRATIONS are not
copyrighted...
|
| mel
boring |
BEST is to contact the
last publisher whose publishing they appeared in and ASK,
friend.
|
| mel
boring |
Here is a related
question:...
|
| mel
boring |
AS e-mailed to ask us:
If I have a nonfiction article and I am looking for pictures to
accompany it, where would I go? Thanks!
|
| mel
boring |
AS, one GOOD way that I
use is to go to GOOGLE.com,...
|
| mel
boring |
and click there on
"IMAGES," then type in your search words...
|
| mel
boring |
where that leads you,
and you'll come up with MANY images....
|
| mel
boring |
Of course you must seek
permission to use any of them, which USUALLY have a copyright
owner's notice....
|
| mel
boring |
For example, I went
there just this afternoon preparing for Open
Forum...
|
| mel
boring |
and looked for images
of Shel Silverstein....
|
| mel
boring |
It turned up DOZENS. So
ANY subject or person put in the search word box will get you
results....
|
| mel
boring |
YOu can also look for
ANY pictures in the BOOKS you are researching your subject
in....
|
| mel
boring |
Those pictures will
give a copyright notice, usually, and sometimes in the FRONT or BACK
of the book....
|
| mel
boring |
Then, if you want to
use them, contact the copyright owner--whom you can USUALLY find on
a search of the Internet. GOOD FORTUNE with your project,
AS!
|
| paige |
Hi, Mel, I was hoping to
join in the forum today, but guests will be arriving soon so I gotta
run. Just wanted to offer my sincerest congrats re your newest
book.
|
| mel
boring |
THANK YOU, paige, I
really appreciate that--and enjoy your guests!
|
| jolie |
Congratulations, Mel!
HappyNewYear to all.
|
| mel
boring |
THANK YOU, Jolie! What
an UNusual and pretty name you have, my friend!
|
| gladys1 |
Mel who is Shel
Silverstein?
|
| mel
boring |
He is the "children's
poet" who wrote WHERE THE SIDEWALK ENDS book of poems, as well as
THE GIVING TREE and THE LIGHT IN THE ATTIC....
|
| mel
boring |
And my FAVORITE poem of
Shel's is "Sarah Sylvia Cynthia Stout, Who Would Not Take The
Garbage Out."
|
| omalizzie |
Does a publisher pay the
same rate for all Picture Books?
|
| mel
boring |
USUALLY the same
ROYALTY, omalizzie, but NOT the same ADVANCE....
|
| mel
boring |
MOST picture book
royalties are 8% or 10%, split evenly between the author and
lllustrator....
|
| mel
boring |
But the advance can
vary from, say , if you are a "starter," to maybe FIVE FIGURES
(,000) for a "noted" author or illustrator.
|
| wordpaintervs |
So then if you are sure
something is in public domain and you use a portion as a quote...do
you credit with the footnote 'public domain'?
|
| mel
boring |
No, you would credit
the AUTHOR, wordpaintervs....
|
| mel
boring |
By the way, with
QUOTES, you WOULD be allowed by law to freely...
|
| mel
boring |
quote up to FIFTY
words, no copyright problem. ...
|
| mel
boring |
But it is ALWAYS polite
and professional to credit the AUTHOR for any
quote.
|
| gladys1 |
thanks
Mel
|
| mel
boring |
You are WARMLY WELCOME,
gladys1! I think you'll LIKE Silverstein's children's
poetry!
|
| mel
boring |
pjhausman asked:
Following up on my question a few weeks ago about whether Book
Markets for Children's Markets might include a section of Literary
Agents. Any news on that?
|
| mel
boring |
Yes, pjhausman, though
ICL's BOOK MARKETS FOR BOOK AUTHORS doesn't have agents
listed,...
|
| mel
boring |
the CHILDREN'S WRITERS
AND ILLUSTRATORS MARKET 2006 DOES have a section listing
agents....
|
| mel
boring |
AND you can also check
out a huge reference tome at larger libraries called LITERARY MARKET
PLACE,...
|
| mel
boring |
which lists virtually
ALL agents, both adult works' and children's agents,
pjhausman.
|
| mel
boring |
jhausman also asked: In
some recent chats, Middle-Grade has been defined as about 4th - 6th
grade. Young Adult usually means about mid-teens up. Doesn't that
leave a gap? What about books for the 12-14 age range; too old for
4th-5th grade stuff, not quite ready for the heavy YA
issues?
|
| mel
boring |
PARTLY that "gap" is
because of the recent "sophisticazation" of children,
jh....
|
| mel
boring |
The age groups USED to
be VERY clear-cut....
|
| mel
boring |
But in the last decade
or so, children in the UPPER part of the 8-12 have been going for
Young ADULT books, for instance....
|
| mel
boring |
It USED to be that the
"upper-teen" age level was clearly ages 13-15, and the Older Teen
level from 16-19...
|
| mel
boring |
But that is changing.
However, if you think of 4th to 6th grade as the "middle-grade"
level, you can't go wrong...
|
| mel
boring |
Just remember that the
age ranges are FLUCTUATING....
|
| mel
boring |
Young Adult NOW seems
to mean about age 12 or 13 up to 19...
|
| mel
boring |
At our last Guest Chat,
Russ Nelson said of his TEACH ME, about a high school girl having an
affair with her male teacher,...
|
| mel
boring |
that his agent want to
"test the waters" for it in 2002...
|
| mel
boring |
But the "waters said
YES" for the YA market, so it was sold...
|
| mel
boring |
The shifting of age
ranges has to do, partly, with the thinking that ANY age is pretty
much OK with ANY subject....
|
| mel
boring |
I don't agree with
that, but it IS a shifting situation in regard to age ranges and
books.
|
| mel
boring |
CW needs to know: Can
you tell me what program (software) would be appropriate to use on
my computer to write, store, edit, etc; my attempts at writing
stories, articles and whatever?
|
| mel
boring |
EXCELLENT question,
CW!...
|
| mel
boring |
I use Word2003 for most
of my work...
|
| mel
boring |
THOUGH I sometimes go
back to old Word97, because it is simpler with some
functions...
|
| mel
boring |
I also use Works7, and
sometimes even Works4, for software....
|
| mel
boring |
What do you OTHER
writers use? Let me know and I'll pass it on
here....
|
| mel
boring |
By the way, I have to
tell you that CW put me onto a TV commercial that is VERY
MOVING....
|
| mel
boring |
It is the
Annheuser-Busch "Thank You" commercial,...
|
| mel
boring |
wherein some military
people are moving through an airport, and people spontaneously start
applauding them...
|
| mel
boring |
I can't watch that
without my eyes misting up....
|
| mel
boring |
and if you haven't seen
it, I recommend it. SHo7uld be commercial of the year, I
think.
|
| showauthor |
Mel...How hard is it for
a canadian to break into the Americ
|
| mel
boring |
It is EASIER for a
Canadian to break into American publishing than for an writer in the
US to break into Canadian publishing, I understand,
showauthor...
|
| mel
boring |
One reason is that
Canadian publishing has STRONG governement support--so of course the
Canadian govt wants to support CANADIAN writers,
understandably...
|
| mel
boring |
I know of VERY LITTLE
of that kind of support that the US gives writers, and I ADMIRE it
in the Canadian Government...
|
| mel
boring |
So your chances are
GOOD in the US, showauthor!
|
| kswcolorado |
So when we submit
articles to magazines, should we include
|
| kswcolorado |
pictures (and in what
form?), or include sources for
|
| kswcolorado |
pictures, or
what?
|
| mel
boring |
ONLY when they want to
BUY the article, kswcolorado....
|
| mel
boring |
should you submit the
ACTUAL IMAGES....
|
| mel
boring |
When you QUERY an
article, DO tell them that images are AVAILABLE, and you might tell
them from what sources....
|
| mel
boring |
But only when they want
to publish it would you provide images....
|
| mel
boring |
and nowadays, MORE and
MORE publishers want DIGITAL images,...
|
| mel
boring |
which are MUCH EASIER
to send and work with!
|
| mel
boring |
Here's a related
queston--I mean, question!...
|
| pjhausman |
Mel, doesn't the
publisher usually find the pictures that...
|
| pjhausman |
they use to accopany the
articles?
|
| pjhausman |
[oops! that's accompany,
not accopany.]
|
| mel
boring |
GOOD spelling! SOME
publishers find the pictures....
|
| mel
boring |
For example,
work-for-hire publishers such as LUCENT find their own images,
though they may ask you for SUGGESTIONS....
|
| mel
boring |
And some TRADITIONAL
publishers ALSO gather their own images....
|
| mel
boring |
But that job is USUALLY
and traditionally left up to the AUTHOR, and the contract so
states....
|
| mel
boring |
But because publishers
don't want poor images,...
|
| mel
boring |
it is becoming more
common for them to give an "allowance" for picture
buying...
|
| mel
boring |
I say "allowance"
because it is not huge, unless you're a "big
name."...
|
| mel
boring |
For instance, for our
GUINEA PIG SCIENTISTS Leslie Dendy and I were given five hundred
dollars,...
|
| mel
boring |
but our images cost us
closer to two THOUSAND dollars. But the allowance certainly HELPED,
pjhausman.
|
| writersblock |
I did an interview for an
article on wolf spiders and the interviewee offered to provide
pictures. Should I mention that in my query letter?
|
| mel
boring |
Yes, by ALL means,
writersblock--that's a GOOD "persuader."
|
| kswcolorado |
Office:mac which includes
Microsoft Word for Mad
|
| kswcolorado |
oops for Mac, not
Mad!
|
| mel
boring |
GOOD to clarify that,
kswcolorado! (-:}...and thanks for your
suggestions!
|
| crouse7 |
How do you get Word? My
computer has Works, but I can save it as Word. When I get my lesson
back from my e-mail I can't read all my instructor's
..........
|
| crouse7 |
notes. I found this out
by forwarding one of the lessons to my Yahoo e-mail so I could print
it out on a different computer. Any suggestions?
|
| mel
boring |
You can BUY Word2003 on
the INternet, using that for a search and also COMPARING prices,
crouse7....
|
| mel
boring |
ALSO, you MAY be able
to find used copies (CDs usually) of Word2003 and Word97 and others
on EBay at auction.
|
| mel
boring |
I must quit, and it's
really like pushing away from a delicious meal! THANK YOU for being
here, and for your GREAT questions!...
|
| gladys1 |
belated Merry Christmas
Mel and all and a very Happy New Year to you
|
| mel
boring |
Same to you, gladys 1,
and to ALL of you, a HAPPY NEW 2006!...
|
| mel
boring |
There will be no Guest
Chat this Thursday,...
|
| mel
boring |
and the next one will
be THursday, January 5 with Judy Bradbury....
|
| wordpaintervs |
I'd like to say Thanks
Mel, for the answers here in the forum, and I am learning a lot from
them
|
| mel
boring |
You are WARMLY WELCOME,
wordpaintervs!
|
| mel
boring |
BYE for now, my
friends!
|
