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September 20th Newsletter for the Writer's Circle Newsletter recipiants |
** Image ID #427081 Unavailable ** Weekly Editor's Letter: Just recently I have become more and more concerned about Submission Guidelines or terms that every Writer/Author must agree to when submitting work to an online website for publication. This concern was mostly motivated by a Website recommendation I discovered in the
A Writing.Com member recommended an online publication called, The Rose and Thorn. Well, I had a problem with the Submission Guidelines and Terms in The Rose and Thorn. In my portfolio I have published the e-mails that I sent to Ms. Quinn, the Editor and Publisher of The Rose and Thorn, along with her response. I will let each of you decide if I am an unreasonable person.
Now, about Submission Guidelines and Terms, aka Editorial Guidelines, Writer’s Guidelines: Editorial guidelines, also commonly referred to as writer's guidelines, are the rules set forth by publishers for any contributing authors to abide by. In order to have your article, essay, poem, or whatever to be considered for publication you must read and understand the guidelines prior to submission. Regardless of the given name, submission guidelines, editorial guidelines, or writer's guidelines -- it is equal to acknowledging, agreeing to, and signing a legally binding contract. Know what you are legally agreeing to before you submit any work. It is your duty and responsibility. Have you ever heard the phase, "Ignorance of the law is no excuse." If not before, you have now! Outlined below are the typical issues covered in a publications guidelines. I have also included a brief definition of each along with some additional information. I think that these would apply to print publications as well. Length of Article: The minimum and maximum word count of articles that the publication will considered for publication. This usually varies per publication, and can vary depending on topic and genre. Topics: The subjects of articles accepted by the publication. Never submit an off topic article as this is very annoying and is a waste of precious time and postage. Illustrations/Photographs: Some publications require/accept illustrations or photographs and will usually specify the size and format required for acceptance. Editorial Style: Consistency and accuracy governs the use of a style selected by the editorial department of a publication. Many publications will state if they require the use of the Associated Press Stylebook, which covers spelling, capitalization, grammar, punctuation and usage. Author Photograph: Some publications require or accept a photograph of the author usually included with the submission of the article. Guidelines will often cover the size and format of photographs. Byline length: Also known as an author biography or resource box. Most publications have strict requirements for length, characters per line and what or how much contact information can be included. I have found that for print magazines the length is 50 words or less, or only 3 pithy sentences. Books normally allow about 100 words, that is unless you are a FAMOUS author or have won some National Book award. See "WC Newsletter: An Author's Bio"  Payment: Your byline is often the only payment you will receive for your article. However, some publications (particularly those in print) pay for articles by the word or per article. I strongly recommend that you understand First Rights of Publication, electronic rights, and reprint rights because all of that affects the payment you could be offered. My next newsletter will be titled, "Should I Write for FREE" Rights: Governs whether or not the publication will accept original or reprinted articles, how long they plan to use the material, archive your work, reprint rights in what forms, and whether the article can be used elsewhere at the same time. Query requirement: A query is a letter written to the editor that proposes an article topic and asks permission to submit. Many publications require that you query the editor (by e-mail, fax or mail) prior to forwarding your article. It is acceptable to query even before you have spent valuable time and resources to write an article, especially if your query is following a Publications Calendar. In order to query a book, an Agent will state exactly what is required, and usually asks for only the first three chapters and maybe the last. Submission methods: Methods of submissions may include via fax, e-mail or hard copy sent by courier or standard mail. Sometimes it is perfectly acceptable to send submissions by USPS next day or second day air as this will permit you to verify and track delivery, but not all publishers accept next day, second day, or any submissions by any method that they have to sign for. Publication Calendar: It is not unusual for a publication to establish an editorial calendar for each year far in advance. The calendar will cover topics, themes, article types and required submission dates broken down into submissions must be received by, and publication dates. Format accepted: Each publication will accept articles in certain formats such as Word, WordPerfect, text or pdf. Some require you copy and paste in an e-mail. Most all hard copy submissions are required to be double spaced on 20-pound weight paper. Very important to submit all work in proper format. Audience: AKA known as Demographics, and more often than not, includes the number of subscribers, gender, educational level, age and income level. It is a good idea to familiarize yourself with the magazine, or ezine that you are submitting by previewing their website, or reading a few back issues. Notification: Can take months, and often you are contacted only when your article is chosen for publication. So be prepared to be very patient. Once you have submitted an article for publication, get busy writing and preparing other articles for submission to other online or print publications. Keep yourself so busy so as not to be tempted to bother an editor, which may result in your submission being rejected. Acknowledgments: In some cases you will be required to sign (either electronically or on paper) an acknowledgment that you have read the guidelines. This is a legally binding contract! It is very important to understand and follow all publication guidelines in order to maximize your chances of publication. Not all of the above items will be covered in every publications guidelines. If any of this information is not disclosed and you need it to refine your submission don’t hesitate to contact the editor. I also suggest that you contact the publication by phone, if possible, to verify exactly whom you need to address your submission to in the event it is not stated in the guidelines. Editors seem to change jobs very frequently, so be sure that you have the correct name and spelling. Sincerely, The Critic  Next week's editor: Starr* Rathburn  ** Image ID #645128 Unavailable ** Featured Works From Our Members:
** Image ID #645128 Unavailable ** Featured Works From Non-Members:
** Image ID #645128 Unavailable ** Writing Prompt: Write your own version of the ultimate submission guidelines that would be fair to both a publication and a writer. ** Image ID #645128 Unavailable ** Quotes: "No one ever committed suicide while reading a good book, but many have tried while trying to write one."— Robert Byrne "We have read your manuscript with boundless delight. If we were to publish your paper, it would be impossible for us to publish any work of lower standard. And as it is unthinkable that in the next thousand years we shall see its equal, we are, to our regret, compelled to return your divine composition, and to beg you a thousand times to overlook our short sight and timidity."— from The Humanist Association of Canada Spring 1992 Newsletter, which also noted "For writers only - Every writer has received rejection slips; too many of them for most. The "Financial Times" has quoted the 'mother of all rejection slips', translated from a Chinese economic journal." "One of the signs of Napoleon's greatness is the fact that he once had a publisher shot."— Siegfried Unseld "You ask for the distinction between 'Editor' and 'Publisher': an editor selects manuscripts; a publisher selects editors."— Max Schuster "Asking a working writer what he feels about critics is like asking a lamp-post what it feels about dogs."— John Osborne "Writing is like prostitution. First you do it for love, and then for a few close friends, and then for money."— Moliere This week's quotes were contributed by The Critic , which you may think the number of may seem excessive in this newsletter. Obviously, I love quotes!   ** Image ID #645128 Unavailable ** Recommended Reading and Forums:
You are invited to submit suggestions to the Writers' Circle editors. To submit an item for consideration in the WC newsletter:
All comments about this and any WC newsletter are welcome!  How will I know any of you have read this blasted newsletter if you don't send me COMMENTS? Please...Tell your friends about our newsletter! They can sign up through the link above. Feel free to forward this newsletter (in its entirety) to your friends! ** Image ID #645128 Unavailable ** Issue #145 09/20/2004 Edited by: The Critic  Rate this newsletter here: "Submissions and Writer Guidelines" * Please rate this newsletter. If there is a topic that anyone would like me to write about, I assure you all suggestions would be greatly appreciated. All comments welcome. |
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