| janfields |
November 21, OPEN FORUM
CHAT begins in 2 minutes. Join us while talk about the trials,
tribulations and challenges of the writing life -- and maybe a
chuckle or two!
|
| janfields |
Welcome to OPEN FORUM
CHAT with webeditor Jan Fields. Pull up a chair as we talk about
writing.
|
| janfields |
I suspect I'm talking
to myself today.
|
| janfields |
If anyone wants to pop
in and ask a question -- I'm here for you.
|
| janfields |
But I know I usually
come in early. I had a "mommy" emergency.
|
| janfields |
Ahhh...Coloradokate and
sweetpolly are here.
|
| janfields |
Hi, if you can here
me.
|
| janfields |
Unfortunately, the chat
software refuses to let me be in two places at one time
today.
|
| janfields |
I have no idea
why.
|
| coloradokate |
So this is the only way
you can hear us?
|
| janfields |
Yes, I'm sorry...today
it is.
|
| janfields |
I know that
stinks.
|
| janfields |
Anyway, I thought I
would pontificate on something I was asked in
email...
|
| janfields |
concerning
Highlights...and "all rights" policies in general.
|
| janfields |
First, I think we're
moving into a time when more and more magazines are going to demand
"all rights"
|
| janfields |
For a couple of
reasons.
|
| janfields |
One -- they
can.
|
| janfields |
Basically, there are
enough talented writers producing material that magazines know they
will get enough submissions -- even if some folks refuse to submit
to all rights markets.
|
| janfields |
Two, it's a function of
the multi-platform publishing that many magazines are doing
now.
|
| janfields |
They have a print
issue.
|
| janfields |
An internet
version.
|
| janfields |
And sometimes print
book anthologies and such.
|
| janfields |
If they buy something
for "all rights" -- they can use it in all the media for one
price.
|
| janfields |
And they can stagger
the use so that it feels "fresh" each time.
|
| janfields |
Third, it's money --
magazines are feeling the same pinch in children's editions as the
adult mags are...
|
| janfields |
but children's
magazines suffer more because they often don't have the advertising
revenue of adult magazines.
|
| janfields |
And "all rights" is the
most cost efficient purchase...especially if you don't have to pay
more for it.
|
| janfields |
So -- my crystal ball
says "all rights -- all the time" is inevitable.
|
| coloradokate |
I entered the Pockets
contest. They named the winner on 11/1 and said on their website
they mailed back the non-winners' SASEs except for about 30 they
were holding. I haven't heard anything, personally--wouldn't they
tell me if they were holding mine???
|
| janfields |
Considering the
efficiency of the average magazine
|
| janfields |
I think it's too early
to be sure...they may be holding yours
|
| janfields |
They may have lost your
SASE
|
| janfields |
They may have mailed it
in someone else's SASE
|
| janfields |
If you haven't heard by
the end of November -- I would drop them a line and
ask.
|
| janfields |
It wouldn't be pushing
and they wouldn't think you're demanding.
|
| ccollier |
Jan, do you retain your
rights back once a magazine goes und
|
| janfields |
If you sold "one time
use" and the magazine folds -- all rights revert to
you.
|
| janfields |
If you sold "first
rights" and the magazine folds, technically, you should contact the
magazine and "take back" the first right of
publication.
|
| janfields |
If you sold "all
rights" and the magazine folds -- they still own it unless you write
and request that rights revert to you.
|
| janfields |
Most of the time, the
defunct magazine is happy to give your rights back since they don't
need them.
|
| janfields |
But if they went
bankrupt -- TECHNICALLY -- the right to an "all rights" manuscript
is part of their assets and become part of the
proceeding.
|
| janfields |
At least, that's how a
lawyer 'splained it to me.
|
| coloradokate |
LOL... and sigh...
Thanks.
|
| janfields |
Yeah, really, this
business can be a little crazy making.
|
| janfields |
But just about the time
you think it's just too nuts -- something lovely
happens.
|
| janfields |
So, maybe you're about
to be hit with a "something lovely"
|
| janfields |
Now, something else I
wanted to pontificate on about Highlights
|
| janfields |
Highlights shares money
with the writer when they resell something.
|
| janfields |
That has always been
their policy.
|
| janfields |
But it is not LEGALLY
required of them.
|
| janfields |
They buy all rights --
and there is nothing in the contract promising you any
money.
|
| janfields |
And if you move or
otherwise make it tough to find you -- they won't work too hard to
track you down.
|
| janfields |
But in virtually all
cases I've heard -- they send a check whenever she sell something to
another publisher.
|
| janfields |
Like a testing
company.
|
| janfields |
Or even TV (one
Highlights story sold to Disney).
|
| janfields |
Some folks have
reported quite a bit of money that way.
|
| janfields |
But realistically --it
could stop at any point.
|
| janfields |
Highlights is feeling
some of the financial crunch that is effecting all
magazines.
|
| janfields |
They have the
foundation behind them, and that helps, but we're seeing a lot of
magazines under pressure.
|
| janfields |
Right now, the CBHI
magazines are still not really buying anything from
anyone.
|
| janfields |
And a lot of the
smaller magazines have just folded in the last 12
months.
|
| janfields |
So -- it's probably not
a time when writers have much leverage to demand
change.
|
| janfields |
I actually asked a
Highlights editor if they had ever let anyone negotiate a contract
for anything less than all rights.
|
| janfields |
And she only remembered
one case -- an article written by a former president of the United
States.
|
| janfields |
So -- if you get to be
president - I think you'll have a shot.
|
| janfields |
Now, while I'm idling
away to see if anyone has any questions...or if I should keep
babbling.
|
| janfields |
I wanted to remind
everyone that the next GUEST chat will be Dianne de las
Casas
|
| janfields |
Which should be super
super cool.
|
| janfields |
Plus, I wanted to say
that I got the prizes in the mail yesterday for the big treasure
hunt drawing we're going to be running
|
| janfields |
Very
cool.
|
| coloradokate |
What's your opinion on
nonpaying or very low-paying (one cent a word) markets like some of
the new online magazines?
|
| janfields |
I think if you like the
quality of the magazine
|
| janfields |
and you have a story
that has already made the rounds of paying markets
|
| janfields |
there is nothing wrong
with "selling" to a low pay/no pay internet
magazine.
|
| janfields |
I would be very careful
about the 'quality' issue though.
|
| janfields |
If the stuff in the
eZine seems not really very good -- DON'T
contribute.
|
| janfields |
Honesty, you are judged
by the company you keep.
|
| janfields |
Now, having said that
-- I was once offered a book contract based on some writing I did
for an eZine.
|
| janfields |
The editor happened to
have seen the article (found it in a google search) and liked
it
|
| janfields |
and wanted that kind of
voice/tone/research for a nonfiction book for teens
|
| janfields |
And offered me a chance
to do it.
|
| janfields |
So, if you do let an
eZine have your story -- you still want to make sure the
story/article itself reflects well on you.
|
| janfields |
If it goes online with
typos -- ask the editor to fix it.
|
| janfields |
Make sure anything you
put out to the public puts a good face on your
work.
|
| janfields |
Now, having said that
-- I have written stuff for low pay sites...but the only no-pay site
I ever contributed to was KidMagWriters
|
| janfields |
Still...I think it
doesn't do you any harm as long as (1) the site looks good and
professional, and (2) your piece reflects well on
you.
|
| eggamy |
Does This type of market
still count as a publishing crdit.
|
| janfields |
Yes...and
no.
|
| janfields |
I would use it only as
a credit if I were trying to sell a similar sort of
piece.
|
| janfields |
For example, the
article that I mention above was on Teens and Guns.
|
| janfields |
If I were writing a
proposal for any kind of teen nonfiction -- I cited that
article
|
| janfields |
Because (1) it was easy
to find
|
| janfields |
(2) I was proud of
it.
|
| janfields |
and (3) the site was
nicely done.
|
| janfields |
But I would never use
it as a credit for a children's picture book
|
| janfields |
or as a credit for a
Highlights article
|
| janfields |
Because the site itself
didn't have any prestige
|
| janfields |
I would use it just to
showcase my experience with that type or article.
|
| janfields |
Does that make
sense?
|
| janfields |
With 99% of online
publishing, the site itself has no sway with an
editor
|
| janfields |
But it can be a way to
point an editor at another example of you doing a specific type of
writing well.
|
| janfields |
The easy accessibility
is actually very nice.
|
| janfields |
Editors SAY they don't
look for stuff online...but some actually do.
|
| bechu |
Do you send all experts
you interviewd copies of the story?
|
| janfields |
No, I
don't
|
| janfields |
In fact, I am ashamed
to admit...I never seen experts a copy of the story
|
| janfields |
UNLESS I need them to
read it and tell me if I got the science/technology/whatever
right
|
| janfields |
BUT...many many writers
do send copies of the stories to the expert.
|
| janfields |
It's a nice
gesture.
|
| janfields |
The reason I don't is
probably because I began my writing life in
journalism
|
| janfields |
And I have a journalism
degree.
|
| janfields |
And my
instructors/newspaper editors pounded it in my head that you NEVER
EVER let sources see the article.
|
| janfields |
So it's a habit I never
picked up.
|
| janfields |
Which probably gets my
name in "rude" box for some of my experts.
|
| janfields |
Alas
|
| janfields |
Any
questions?
|
| janfields |
Y'all aren't making
jokes about me over there where I can't see them are
you?
|
| janfields |
This lack of vision in
the other room makes me very paranoid.
|
| janfields |
Hmmm...oh, by the way,
I got the first draft of my book for the book packager
done.
|
| janfields |
Are y'all
impressed?
|
| coloradokate |
We're not whispering
about you, really Jan! Congrats on the draft!
|
| janfields |
Thank you...now I just
hope it make sense.
|
| janfields |
I had to wander from
the outline slightly...like the introduction of blood sucking
plants.
|
| wee willie
winkie |
I think you sre losing
your audience here
|
| janfields |
I'm so sorry...but I
have no questions to answer.
|
| janfields |
Hit me with a
question...come on...something tough.
|
| coloradokate |
How's the move
going?
|
| janfields |
Great, we're in the new
house.
|
| janfields |
I have almost no boxes
upstairs to open.
|
| janfields |
I hate my bedroom
configuation...but I'll figure it out.
|
| janfields |
I haven't seen deer
yet, but I'm hopeful.
|
| eggamy |
Is the ICL student center
open to former students like me
|
| janfields |
Yes, if you have a
student number...you can enter the student center.
|
| janfields |
You'll find some great
articles in there, by the way, that aren't accessible anywhere else
on the site.
|
| janfields |
If your student number
is balky for you -- just contact student services and they should
fix you up.
|
| rainchain |
Some rumors on Verla
board seem to say CBHI is not accepting
|
| rainchain |
Have you heard anything
about CBHI lately
|
| janfields |
CBHI (in my
opinion...which must be right) is probably suffering more than a lot
of magazines.
|
| janfields |
They are basically
overextended.
|
| janfields |
Too many magazines, all
doing the same thing.
|
| janfields |
So they are cutting
costs where they can
|
| janfields |
And that primarily
means no buying of new material.
|
| janfields |
I talked to an editor
about it a while back
|
| janfields |
And this editor said
there probably isn't going to be a change anytime
soon.
|
| janfields |
It's a financial
thing.
|
| janfields |
They have a huge amount
of material they've used through the years.
|
| janfields |
And they can produce
magazines for quite a while just pulling that stuff out and dusting
it off a bit.
|
| janfields |
Now, I was told that
they will pick up some of the "low cost" items -- mostly seasonal,
things like poetry or fillers.
|
| janfields |
Just to keep some new
stuff.
|
| janfields |
But that's not across
the board...some of the CBHI editors have slightly more room than
others.
|
| janfields |
For example, Turtle
basically can only buy Rebus stories and poetry
(seasonal)
|
| wee willie
winkie |
why were you never
allowed to let a source see the story
|
| janfields |
It was a function of
trying to show we were totally independent and
unbiased.
|
| janfields |
The fear was that if
you show the source the story, they will want you to slant it a
specific way
|
| janfields |
And won't want you to
write anything that makes them look bad.
|
| janfields |
Kids magazines don't
worry about stuff like that.
|
| janfields |
But newspapers like to
consider themselves above bias.
|
| bechu |
In writing PBs does the
author assign material to pages?
|
| janfields |
No, in virtually all
cases, the division of pages to the material is done by the
editor/illustrator.
|
| janfields |
However, having said
that -- I know Rick Walton writes his picture books with the text
broken by pages.
|
| janfields |
But then...he's Rick
Walton and can probably do what he likes.
|
| janfields |
And the editor doesn't
always abide by his division.
|
| janfields |
So, you need only write
the manuscript like any other -- the editor will divide it
up.
|
| ccollier |
I wonder why Kid Zone
isnt listed in the new market book or
|
| janfields |
Kid Zone is a magazine
that doesn't totally know what it wants to do.
|
| janfields |
A lot of craft
publishers are starting to eye the children's
market
|
| janfields |
Because there's money
in it.
|
| janfields |
But they are heavily
married to their "craft magazine" way of doing
things.
|
| janfields |
With Kid Zone, it's
meant a magazine that is "sort of" a kid's
magazine.
|
| janfields |
And because it's still
Semi-experimental, it's a magazine where the editor is HEAVILY
overloaded
|
| janfields |
So she probably asked
it be removed from the guides to cut back on
submissions.
|
| janfields |
Which can drown you
fast when you're a one-woman editorial
|
| rainchain |
If I have a story idea is
it best to decide genre and then
|
| rainchain |
write or write and then
figure out what I have?
|
| janfields |
I know folks who do it
both ways and have good success.
|
| janfields |
For me, I generally
know where I am going before I start the journey.
|
| janfields |
I always have my "ideal
reader" in my mind's eye.
|
| janfields |
I know the most likely
markets.
|
| janfields |
I'm sort of...market
oriented...in a lot of ways.
|
| janfields |
But I equally know
people who spill out stuff...then look for what they find it
in.
|
| janfields |
Like reading tea
leaves.
|
| janfields |
Then they revise and
revise and revise to get the shape and genre and age targeting and
all
|
| janfields |
to be clear and
workable.
|
| janfields |
It just depends upon
what works for you.
|
| coloradokate |
I was surprised that
Dragonfly Spirit still isn't listed, in the 2007 market
guide.
|
| janfields |
That is a surprise.
Maybe Gisele is afraid of getting overwhelmed
|
| janfields |
and feels she's getting
enought submissions via word of mouth.
|
| michell
p |
Tell us about the
treasure hunt
|
| janfields |
I'm going to have some
questions in this Friday's eNews -- the answers can be found on the
ICL site
|
| janfields |
Everyone who "finds"
the answers and sends me an email, get in the
drawing.
|
| janfields |
The books are very
cool...and I know ICL is going to throw in a "surprise" gift
also.
|
| rainchain |
Do editors have to
request to be in the guide?
|
| janfields |
No, though they can
request NOT to be in the guide.
|
| janfields |
However, the editors of
the guides can only find just so many markets
|
| janfields |
so some of the new
small markets DO contact the guides to make the guidebook editors
aware
|
| janfields |
And editors sometimes
hold back to see if a magazine/eZine looks like it's going to
last
|
| janfields |
I know of one ezine
that's had a number of incarnations and names and foci and when an
eZine does a lot of that, it makes market guides wary of listing
them.
|
| rainchain |
Can I get a 2007 guide if
I'm half thru the course?
|
| janfields |
You can get one through
the online bookstore...but I don't believe you'll get one
automatically via the course.
|
| stretch |
Hi everyone, sorry I'm
late, what have I missed?
|
| janfields |
Not much, mostly I
babbled a lot.
|
| janfields |
Unusually high babble
quotient today.
|
| janfields |
So...any other
questions?
|
| janfields |
huh huh
huh?
|
| rainchain |
Do you notice small words
like "her" as echos when
|
| rainchain |
overused in a
piece?
|
| janfields |
Any word can be
overused and become attention getting.
|
| janfields |
The best way to find
out if that's the case is to read the manuscript
aloud.
|
| janfields |
For me, I read them
aloud into a tape recorder
|
| janfields |
And then play it
back...I catch about half the problems while reading...and the
others while listening.
|
| janfields |
You will see an amazing
number of things that way -- like flat places where you overused the
same sentence structure
|
| janfields |
poor speech
tags
|
| janfields |
overuse of character
names
|
| janfields |
weak
dialogue.
|
| janfields |
It's
invaluable.
|
| eggamy |
Which packger are you
working with Jan?
|
| janfields |
It's a company that has
only done craft books in the past (they do all the Annie's Attic
stuff)
|
| janfields |
But they are branching
out into the children's field
|
| janfields |
especially
girls.
|
| janfields |
So...they are really
feeling their way as they go.
|
| janfields |
I get a lot of emails
that say things like..."So how is this sort of thing usually
handled?"
|
| janfields |
Amazing.
|
| coloradokate |
What is
reality?
|
| janfields |
It's a construct
designed to make me look weird.
|
| rainchain |
Well some words like the
can't be changed so I was
|
| rainchain |
wondering if pronouns
seem to be an issue
|
| janfields |
Most of the time, not,
but sometimes what you'll realize is that you need to rephrase the
whole sentence
|
| janfields |
Sometimes the problem
isn't in the use of the pronoun....but in the use of identical
sentence contructs that produce the pronoun in the same spot over
and over
|
| bechu |
Say something about
ghostwriting, is it professional?
|
| janfields |
Sure, I know some
WONDERFUL writers who have also done ghostwritten
books.
|
| janfields |
Well, including me
:-)
|
| janfields |
It isn't always as
creative, but it can be as challenging as any other
writing.
|
| janfields |
Especially when you
need to mimic a pre-existing style that isn't similar to your
own.
|
| bechu |
Have you heard of
Outskirts publishers, how are they?
|
| janfields |
I'm sorry, I don't
think I have.
|
| janfields |
There are so many
micropresses out there.
|
| janfields |
Be careful that it's
not a vanity press
|
| janfields |
And before you go with
a micro press...read one of their books.
|
| janfields |
I've read quite a few
books by tiny presses...and...well, sometimes I wouldn't want to be
part of that book line.
|
| janfields |
Again...like in an
eZine...you will be judged by the company you keep.
|
| janfields |
Even if your book is
wonderful, if the other books in their line are substandard...it
reflects badly on you.
|
| janfields |
Plus, many of the tiny
presses have HORRIBLE distribution
|
| janfields |
Meaning you end up
handselling your books.
|
| janfields |
Not a way to build much
audience.
|
| janfields |
Ah-ha! It's 3pm and I
actually answered some questions.
|
| janfields |
Thank you, thank you,
thank you for asking some.
|
| janfields |
I was feeling kind of
bummed.
|
| janfields |
And if anyone runs into
dragonlady -- tell her I wasn't ignoring her.
|
| janfields |
My daughter had to come
home early from school -- she's peanut allergie and had some tainted
Chinese food.
|
| janfields |
So I only LOOKED like I
was online.
|
| janfields |
Thanks for coming
everyone -- out next chat will be December 7
|
| coloradokate |
Sorry you couldn't hear
us in the peanut gallery out here... Thanks for the chat, & I
hope the wee girlie's better.
|
| janfields |
Actually, I hear here
eating cheese puffs...I think she's healed.
|
| janfields |
Hey, since chat is
over...I'm coming out
there.
|