Letters To The Editor For April 19th
This Week:
- Why All Books Should Be Non-Returnable
- When Writing Publications Hurt Writers
Tickle Their Funny Bone By C. Hope Clark
Tim Bete, humor writer and coordinator for the annual Erma Bombeck’s Writing Workshop, teaches that to become a paid humor columnist, you need to submit your column to someone who will pay you…
Did This Publisher Forget My Advance Or What?
I have a book contract. However, while I received the first part of my advance, I did not receive the second half. Nevertheless, the book is already for sale. Now, I have another manuscript that I submitted to the publisher, and he said it was too long, but, that he liked the writing and the work, so he broke it up into two works. He has indicated the second will be coming out on his next list. I am gratified to have such a reception, but, the second work has no written contract, I have not been paid the second part of my advance on the first, and there has been no discussion about money on the second. I do not know what to do. I know I need an agent, but, I am in a bind. My work is already sold! However, I need money to live as well! I have no “new” work to present to an agent.
The Internet Changed My Writing Life! By Connie Werner Reichert
On New Year’s Eve in 1994, I gave birth to a baby girl and a new business. Crazy, yes, but it was something I had to do. Determined to be a stay-at-home-mom, I began to make my living as a home-based publicist and freelance writer. This was especially challenging since I was an orphaned single mom with no one to help me. I had to figure out a way to raise my child and earn a living in an environment that catered to both. Thank God for the Internet!
A Friendly Family Wager…
Zach (age 19) got two new Beta fish over the weekend. You can’t put them together because they’ll fight to the death, so Zach’s aquarium has a separator in it. Since Zach is such a busy guy and is rarely home, and since we have four cats, the rest of us placed a friendly family wager on how long the fish would survive. Frank bet three weeks, Ali bet six weeks, I bet three months (the 4th of July to be exact), and Richard just rolled his eyes and shook his head.
When Writing Publications Hurt Writers By Angela Hoy
Some publications are so hungry for content they’ll publish anything – even content that ultimately hurts their readers. This is really no different from running ads (and accepting money from) companies that engage in questionable business practices or companies that do not serve writers in a positive way.
Letters To The Editor For April 12th
This Week:
- Another Writer Gets Paid For Unauthorized Use!
- Thanks For The Warning!
- AP Blog Plagiarism: “We Only Credit Blogs We Know.”
- Collecting From A Deadbeat
ALL IN THE FAMILY: WRITING FOR FAMILY HISTORY MAGAZINES By Erika Dreifus
Recently, I described a bit about my own freelance writing for genealogy and family history magazines. In this article, I’ll expand the discussion: I’ll explain how you can break into this market, too – and where you might do so…
The Book Launch–My Success Story By Elaine Ingalls Hogg
“You’re famous!” I had to smile at my nine year old grandson’s conclusion.
We had been looking at a scrapbook I’d put together containing newspaper interviews and press releases for my recent book, When Canada Joined Cape Breton. In reality I’m far from famous but some amazing things have happened since the morning a few years ago when I told myself, “I’ll never know until I try.”
Sugar-Free Momma
Two weeks ago I got to drink a nasty orange concoction and then have my blood tested. Last week, the results were in and I was told I’m borderline diabetic. I was pretty discouraged by that news and was ordered to cut way back on sugar and carbs for the remainder of the pregnancy (lots of protein and veggies, brown rice instead of white, that sort of thing).