Crime Pays: Federation of BC Writers Fundraiser

Posted on March 4, 2009 by

From the Lorraine Murphy (aka raincoaster) fabulous organizer of the Shebeen Club, and now instigator-in-charge for the Lower Mainland contingent of the Federation of BC Writers comes Crime Pays:

Info from e-mail:

Who: The Federation of BC Writers and the Shebeen Club

What: a wicked good fundraiser for the Fed

When: Monday, March 16th, 6-9pm

Where: The Vancouver Police Museum, 240 East Cordova Street, Vancouver

Why: it would be criminal to miss this party!

Wanted: YOU!

Come help the Fed celebrate 32 years of getting away with murder. Whether infiltrating schools, divvying up swag, or distributing subversive publications, the Federation of BC Writers has been operating unchecked in our province for decades.

Do you enjoy the vicarious thrill of rubbing shoulder pads with the Lost Literati of the Wild West, surrounded by instruments of murder and mayhem in the cosy confines of the police museum? Do you have what it takes to make your bones as a Fed member? There’s only one way to find out! Come out to the party and make us an offer we can’t refuse.

Admission: $20 minimum donation includes a drink and appetizers. Click here to register. If you won’t be attending, but would like to support the Fed, you can click the Paypal button in the sidebar to make an online donation in the amount of your choice.

Dress code: Trenchcoat and fedora, deerstalker and cape, jailhouse stripes, uniforms, Bond Villain suits or femme fatale slinkwear all optional but encouraged. Attitude absolutely mandatory.

Raffle prize donations, bribes, and sponsorship applications very welcome: please email lorraine.murphy at Gmail dot com. Anything related to crime or the theme of noir is particularly welcome, eg detective books, Martini glasses, etc, or anything black or white.

If you’d like to perform a reading of some of your dark material, please contact me as well and we can make arrangements.

The Crime Pays fundraiser will be our Shebeen Club meeting for the month of March, so I hope to see everyone there, dressed fabulously and behaving infamously!

Many moons ago, I went to another Shebeen event on the topic of crime, and it was great, so I expect this event will be just as fun. Who’s in?

Posted in Literary | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Why I write

Posted on March 2, 2009 by

I can answer that question pretty simply: I write because I’m hungry. Not just for food, but for communication. To talk to someone and create some kind of reaction with them.

When I was a kid, dreaming of being a famous writer someday, the books I read did two things: they created something beautiful in me and they told a good story. These things I try to do in my writing today, although I had never anticipated the Web and the way it would change the way we read and write.

For example, today there’s not only the demand for good, clean copy on the Web, but also this thing called search engine optimization (SEO). For a writer, SEO means making sure your article has appropriate keywords sprinkled throughout that match what someone might put into a search engine to find articles on the topic you’re writing about. It also involves making careful decisions as to your article’s title and subtitle, so that searchers can tell instantly what you’re looking for. There’s a bunch more techy stuff to it too (terrifying), but I try not to get bogged down in that. As a writer, I have simply become more aware of being reader-friendly and thinking about what they might might want.

And that’s great. But a lot of the writing people want done for the Web is promo and sales material – in itself not a bad thing – designed to get to the top of search engine results by simply stuffing in keywords. You can even buy article spinning software to “write” articles around certain keywords. And this is not why I write – just to fill up space, feed the hungry content maw of the Web, and claw whatever comes out the other end to the top of Google results. There isn’t a whole lot of room for clever titles and surprising leads and slow dives into the material in this Web genre.

But the Web is undoubtedly where the work is for writers today. And writers of every generation have had to adapt and gear their material to where their audience is and how their audience will discover their materials. For Shakespeare, it was through the theatre. For Dickens, it was through the magazines in which he serialized his works, like a Victorian Melrose Place. For Hemingway, it was through novels. And throughout much of the last century, magazines, especially New York glossies, have been proving grounds on the way to a book contract. Each form has its own constraints and ways to hook the audience – which has never meant that writers have had to pander or dumb down the material.

Webwriting can be artful and creative and surprising – and it doesn’t have to be all about text, either. I think what has changed is how we get the work to the audience, and on the crowded, stuffed, and shouting plain of the Web, it’s not easy to get attention. Although I’ve never used the suggested techniques of going to influential bloggers and asking them for links, nor do I truck much with feeds, social bookmarking, and other aggregators, I suppose it’s not realistic to hold to the ideal of just sitting in a room and hoping your writing finds its way out, magically. But I think that good content (maybe optimized, but preferably  relevant, well-written, and published in the right place) will find a reader, as it always has.

Posted in Webwriting, Writing | 2 Comments

…but you can’t make them think

Posted on February 23, 2009 by

Am I getting cranky in my old age, or is a university degree officially worth nothing nowadays: http://toronto.en.craigslist.ca/tor/wri/1048831736.html.

Here’s the text of the post, which seems to be getting flagged a lot:

Hi,
I have a few essay assignments for English course of University level available.
Would like to receive above B mark.
Please contact me for details and let me know your expected financial compensation.
If this works out well I’ll have regular essay gigs in the future if you’d like.
Thanks!

Newsflash: an English course is supposed to teach you to write, and it seems like the poster could use some help, not a writer to do it for them.

Think I need to go have some more coffee and calm down.

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Why hire an editor?

Posted on February 6, 2009 by

To avoid people coming to your store trying to redeem what they “think” is your offer, as seen on the back of a Safeway receipt:

adSix packs of beer for $10.20? That IS quite the deal.

An editor might have looked this over and added  a simple hyphen in there to make it read “6-packs of Molson Canadian $10.20″ And yes, maybe we would have charged a few bucks for service of inserting the hyphen – but would probably save the business a world of grief, because the store clerks wouldn’t have to waste time arguing with drunken cheapskates that the Best Deal in Town!! just isn’t quite that good.

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What kind of editor do you want?

Posted on January 21, 2009 by

After responding to several calls for editing work over the past couple of weeks, it occurs to me that most people don’t really know what kind of editing they need. So I thought I’d help out with a handy guide to helping me help you. Taking it from the top…

Proofreading

What it is: Proofreading often gets mixed up with copy editing, which I’ll get to in a minute. Proofreading generally happens when the material is in the final stage of production (i.e., the format it’s going to go out in) and involves checking for any glaring errors, such as typos, misspellings, and bad usage (for example, “peddle” (to sell something) for “pedal” (what you do when riding a bike)). Proofreaders might also question, respectfully, more serious content flaws that may have been missed by previous editors. For example, a misattributed quote, a wrong URL, or even sexist or racist language. It also involves checking for formatting and typographical errors and inconsistencies – anything from incorrect bullets and indentation to line spacing to straight quotes that should be smart, or curly, quotes.

Why it matters: Proofreading gives a document the final polish and fixes the little errors that might derail a reader. Proofreaders help make the document more professional and make the author look better.

What it’s not: It is not rewriting, cutting, or re-arranging. Proofreading should not seriously affect the flow or page count of the document. In fact, I used to work with one editor who’d make all kinds of big changes on page proofs (the laid out pages that were being sent to the printer), and it drove me crazy!

Copy editing

What it is: Copy editing happens before the document goes to layout. Also known as line editing, it involves correcting spelling, grammar, and punctuation throughout the document, at the very least. It tends to also involve fact-checking and querying and negotiating changes with authors. Consistency is the watchword for copy editors – they will make sure that if, say, a company is called “Widgets Plus More” on page 4, that it’s not “Widgets + More” on page 7. Better yet, they’ll determine which one is correct, and add it to their style sheet for the project.

Why it matters: A good copy editor is there to save butts and make authors look good in print. When writers say they fear or even hate editors, it’s probably the dictionary-wielding copy editor they fear the most. Some authors will even go so far as to forbid copy editors from “messing” with their work. A good copy editor is sensitive to the author’s unique voice while at the same time trying to make the work as clear and accurate as possible.

What it’s not: Unless specifically called for, copy editors should NOT rewrite, cut whole paragraphs, or do anything that changes the tone of the piece. Although deleting a few !’s for the exclamation mark-happy author does us  all a public service. This is where copy editing blurs into:

Stylistic editing

What it is: This often happens while the manuscript is in draft form. Stylistic editing looks more at the overall language and tone of a piece. It is editing to strengthen the content and ideas, and may involve some rewriting or rewording. For example, transitions may be needed to improve flow, or the language and diction may need some smoothing out. The editor might do this by rewriting and negotiating changes with the author, or by consulting on the manuscript and providing a list of suggested changes.

Why it matters: It helps a good piece become better, and ideally, more targeted to the audience it’s trying to reach.It might also removes annoying jargon and tech-speak that business people love to use, yet that might be suitable for a general reader. Raise your hand for the deletion of “outside the box,” at the end of the day,” and “impact” used as a verb. Yeah. Thought so.

What it’s not: It’s not generally a line-by-line error-finding mission (as with copy editing and proofreading), but more of a big picture edit. See: Professional Editorial Standards.

Structural editing

What it is: In the official definition, structural and stylistic editing blur together. Structural  editing is the really big-picture stuff: the organization, the outline, how the document will fit together. Structural editors are often the very experienced ones, skilled at pulling a coherent book or series of articles out of a jumble of manuscript. They may even be the ghost writers who do the actual work after the wordy-challenged famous person gets the book deal.

Why it matters: It happens more often than you think. While certain authors provide star power to the project, the professional editors pull it together for the publisher.

What it’s not: Lucrative enough.

Also note that the fees go up for each level of editing from micro (proofreading) to macro (structural/stylistic), since progressively experienced editors are required at each stage. The EAC’s 2007 rate survey is a good guide on what’s fair for the job.

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A dash of self-promotion makes the season bright…

Posted on December 23, 2008 by

I just updated the portfolio page with new pieces I’ve been working on this fall… check it out, will ya? Merry, merry this, happy, happy that.

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I made that

Posted on December 15, 2008 by

Last month, I attended a life coaching seminar put on by my friend Lara. The topic was work-life balance and as many of us were involved with creativity in our professions, we got onto the topic of making time to actually create not just work for clients but for ourselves.

This question crystallized things for me: When was the last time I could point to something and say, “I made that”?  When was the last time I made something, anything, out of nothing? I love working with my clients and knowing I’m a part of their projects, either editing materials or writing copy for them that works well for whatever purpose it’s put to. Like many writers these days too, I’ve taken on assignments to write content for websites. All of that is good, fun work, and is good for both the portfolio and wallet. But it’s been a long time since I’ve allowed myself to get the good old creative jollies.

Go ahead, ask yourself – when was the last time you proudly pointed out something you created? For me, even when I get a piece published in a magazine, it’s hard to look at it and not see the flaws. Ditto with other creative projects, like knitting – I fight myself not to point out the dropped stitches I fixed or the misaligned ribs or whatever other mistake it was.

It’s important to be proud of your work and to do it so you can share it. Just today, I got the nicest Christmas card. A couple months ago I had some pictures taken – some were of me (for stuff like this website) and some were of me and/or my dog, as I had met a photographer, Sheri Frailick, who loves taking pictures of pets and their people. She sent me a card with a  picture of Levi from the shoot and a really lovely message inside. Completely unexpected. An excellent early Christmas gift.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Years everyone.

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Busy bee

Posted on December 9, 2008 by

This fall been one of those wonderful periods when I’ve had plenty of work to keep me busy. I’ve been copyediting/proofreading for alive and blush magazines, writing lots of reviews of restaurants, stores, and everything else on the map for Yelp, plus writing some book reviews for subTerrain and doing odd editing and writing jobs as they come around. Fitting a little self-promotion into that busy schedule, too.

I’ll soon be putting up lots more samples on the Portfolio page, too.

In other words, it’s been great to just be doing the work… and not have to worry too much about, gulp, marketing myself. Promoting myself, calling attention to myself – it’s one of those things I was taught not to do (“Quit showing off, Christine!” said Grandma), and yet you must do it at least a little when you’re in business for yourself. I’m not talking about dancing on tables kind of attention-getting, but just letting people know that I’m here, in a positive way. Hello my name is… and you are?

Because it’s not enough to just get out there and meet people – you have to be a little bold, a little sparkly. My Dad once told me, you know how smart and capable and talented you are, but when it comes down to it, you have to stand up and show it. Now, I naturally gravitate to corners, so I don’t find this easy. But if I want to eat and live indoors, people, I can’t afford to be shy.

However, I do know one thing that many shameless self-promoters seem to forget: it’s not all about me. I crave attention, feedback, and praise, any sign that someone out there can hear me – and so does everyone else. We’ve all been trapped in a room, or worse, in a corner, with that person who needs to put on a show or who just won’t stop blabbering without breath. I can’t deny that this me-me-me approach sometimes works – just look at certain celebrities and their wannabes. Perversely, society DOES reward irritating behaviour and you even have to admire the rhinoceros hides of the people who populate pages of certain magazines. Frankly, there’s something to be said for developing a thick skin, harnessing the power to surprise, and getting enterprising with one’s image – all the while tapping into a network of helpers, friends, and hangers-on.

So when it comes time for the self-marketing, I’m going to try not to dread it. It’s simply a matter of being myself, showing what I’ve been doing, and talking to people about what we could do together. I’m here to work.

Posted in Business | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

It’s an honour being norminated

Posted on August 12, 2008 by

Yesterday morning, I received an e-mail with the subject line (in caps): “THE PULITZER PRIZE 2009 NOMINATION LETTER.” Well, isn’t that exciting. After all, I am a nationally published writer and all.

Here is the e-mail, cut and pasted, warts and all:

REF:PULITZER PRIZE

ATTN:

I write to acknowledge the above attachment to us of your inclusion as a norminated finalist for the Pulitzer Prize,2009. I forward you same, to enable you contact us and get the requisite details germane to your participation without further delay.

Regards,

Paul Tash.

I found out Paul Tash is a real person and a member of the Prize board. However, I doubt an organization dedicated to high standards in journalism would send out such a poorly composed and proofread letter. The supposed nomination letter is attached as a Word file … fat chance I’m going to open that. Looking even more closely at this e-mail, temptingly designed as it is, I also notice that my name doesn’t appear anywhere on it!

I’m not sure where this type of spam is coming from, but there seems to be no shortage of people who will send out offers of work or notices of awards in order to get you to open files, click on links, or send information. Poor grammar and spelling, and obvious ESL-type mistakes should be the first tip-offs.

I had another guy contact me recently to edit some dubious article, and he claimed to be in a foreign country and offered to send a cheque, if I sent my full address. It’s a red flag when a client is so eager to pay even before the work is discussed.

When a stranger approaches you to do a job, or if you see a posting on Craigslist for work, it’s worth five minutes to do some Google searches and check them out. Writers Weekly‘s Whispers and Warnings message board is also worth a look. This article suggests some keyword combinations to use, and other things to keep in mind to see if a client or job offer is legitimate. Better to be skeptical than scammed!

Posted in Business, Resources, Writing | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

When work is slow

Posted on July 30, 2008 by

I probably do as much work as someone with a full-time job, but I only get paid when I actually produce something. When paid gigs are sparse, or you’re waiting on someone else so you can begin to do a job, you’ve got to find other things to do.

  1. Look for work – the websites I wrote about previously are great places to start. I would also add Media Job Search Canada to the list – their new layout is great, plus you can post a resume. Free advertising, I guess.
  2. Network. Aka check Facebook. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. There’s also LinkedIn… I have a profile there, but there’s nothing to do on LinkedIn. As I also wrote about previously, there are networking groups you can visit or join to meet the vast community of non-writers. Talking to other people about their businesses is a great way to get ideas and potential interview sources for articles.
  3. Pitch articles. Make it rain. Go magazine shopping and call it research, or join and search the vast database on WritersMarket.com.
  4. Clean the employee lounge. It’s important. To prevent passing out from chemical fumes while you’re at the keyboard, look into the vast array of environmentally-friendly cleaning products that are available (you’ll be motivated to find work in order to pay for them) or go DIY with baking soda, lemon, and vinegar concoctions. Random plug here for Sapadilla … a local eco-cleaning company.
  5. Go outside. A quick walk around the block with the dog or a bike ride to the store gives me a chance to move, a change of scenery, and hopefully, inspiration and ideas.
  6. Diarize. Every little thing. It’s cathartic and provides unexpected insights and material for a future tell-all.
  7. Make lists.
  8. Oh yes, the work. Because there is no such thing as a rent fairy.
    Posted in Business, Resources | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

    Go where you’re wanted

    Posted on July 7, 2008 by

    When it comes to finding work, you hear a lot of talk about finding a fit; that is, a match for your skills, interests, and talents. But recent experience has shown me that even a great fit is nothing without feeling appreciated and valued, whether you’re a freelancer, volunteer, or employee.

    Part of this is being made to feel included and welcomed. This is so simple, yet many times I have gone to an office or an event where no one even says “hello,” even in response to a greeting. And you don’t feel so hot when someone says “What? Were you talking to me?”

    It’s not just with total strangers either. There are certain groups of people I’ve encountered several times over the space of years, who I have barely gotten past the hello with. I remember them, I’m 50-percent sure they recall my face, but nothing. Not even a “Hey, what’s your name again?” At a certain point, you just want to give up on trying to join the clique.

    It’s a bit of chestnut, but it’s true that everyone wears an invisible sign that says, “Make me feel important.” Since so many organizations, publications, and events run on donated labour, here are some ways to make sure that volunteers return, or at least don’t feel like they wasted their time.

    1. Give them something to do. No one wants to show up intending to help out the cause, only to twiddle their thumbs. Have the materials they’ll need organized, if possible, and take a minute to give some instructions and tips.
    2. Let ‘er rip. No micromanaging – unless it’s a catastrophic mistake being made out there. I once volunteered to bartend at a party, and every time someone ordered a drink or asked me a question, the people on either side would jump in to get the order, take the money, or answer the question. It was confusing and annoying as hell.
    3. Feed them. A slice of pizza, a cup of coffee – what is that? Five bucks? Bonus points for quality food.
    4. Be nice. Make some conversation, especially if they’re new.  If they came to help out, they probably feel some sort of connection or common interest. Discover it.
    5. Give feedback, and be open to it. A few tips to help a volunteer do a better job, or better yet, positive reinforcement of a good idea. Some organizations have a formal comment card they get you to fill out, but in less formal situations, or with fewer people, just having a conversation during a quieter moment in the proceedings can be golden. Ask how things are going, too – at the Writers Festival, where I volunteered selling books at events, the bookstore managers asked about the sales, the mood, the popular books, etc. when we came to return the goods to the main store. This made me feel that we were part of the same team.
    6. Let them know what’s going on. Asking a volunteer if they would like to come to a future event or talking about other opportunities is a huge form of flattery.
    7. Duh, say, Thank you. Good job. Good night.

    Really, it all comes down to a bit of politeness and consideration. Even when paid, I don’t want to work with indifferent people, the types who seem terminally deluded that they’re desirable to work with simply because of prestige or prominence. As for me, I will continue to go where I’m wanted.

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    Smiling and shaking hands

    Posted on May 22, 2008 by

    When I was in writer school, we had to take several courses in professional development along with the regular diet of writing, editing, research and design courses. One thing that our instructors and guest speakers said, over and over, was that you have to get out and meet people. Not just that, but try to meet people in different businesses, not just those in the publishing and communications worlds.

    Scary stuff.

    Like a lot of people in the writing game, I would consider myself an introvert. When I do go out and network, admittedly, it’s usually with other writers and editors and literary folk, and worse, I tend to stick with the people I already know. They are a lovely bunch and we have a fabulous time catching up on what’s happening in our respective hidey-holes, but it’s not great network-expanding technique.

    So last night, I put my good clothes and went out to a networking event. My sister, who runs an event planning company focused on enviro-friendly events, invited me. She belongs to the newest Vancouver chapter of an organization called BNI Canada, which functions as a network for business referrals. The interesting thing is about this group is that they allow only one person with a particular specialty per chapter, meaning that you meet people with lots of different businesses. So last night, I talked to a water distributor, mortgage broker, cafe owner, gardener/caterer, homeopath, driving school owner, and homeopath, among others. Some were already members of the chapter; most were invitees, like me. And from the moment I arrived, I was talking to people – the event was designed to encourage, nay, force, people to talk to each other about their businesses and anything else that came to mind.

    The event was held at a fairly small restaurant, and the turnout was strong – the place was packed. It made for an overwhelming experience for someone like me, but the vibe was positive and I did really feel as though I could talk to anyone because everyone was there to meet new people. My sister and her bf/business partner were there too, so I had some familiar moorings, but I tried not to stick too much on them nor talk too much about insider information.

    The outcome was having lots of people asking for my business card and offering to contact me, and collecting a lot of business cards in return. I’m still processing the whole experience of last night, but I know the thing now is to decide how to follow up on all these new people and ideas.

    Posted in Business | Tagged | 2 Comments

    Sixth Sheep Sick

    Posted on April 28, 2008 by

    Today I am feeling pretty gross, but since I am freelancing, I feel like the show must go on even if I would rather not be sitting upright, typing, or reading. And when you’re sitting around all nauseous and dizzy, the last thing you want to be doing is contacting potential clients, employers or markets (i.e., magazines).

    Well, at the very least, at least I can hide behind the e-mail. If I need to put my head on my desk or lie on the floor for awhile, I don’t have to worry about a boss walking by and giving me crap for slacking off in the middle of the work day.

    But since I am on my own, there is the very real stress that comes about from feeling like every day, I must do something to make some money. I am lucky enough to have a husband with a good union job and health benefits, but Vancouver is an expensive city to live in and one full-time income just isn’t enough to support the whole household. The constant anxiety I feel from not earning enough to pay my share of expenses does start to take a toll on my health, and perversely makes it so that I will earn even less money because it’s hard to concentrate when I’m feeling sick, tired and overwhelmed.

    So what are some of the solutions for taking care of yourself and making it so you can be energized and productive as a freelancer? Some things that I’m trying to do include meditation, taking vitamins, establishing a routine (i.e., having a regular workday schedule), and spending some time each day exercising, even if it’s just walking around the building with the dog. More difficult is trying to get the emotional and mental support for freelancing. I try to get out to meetings and events – even if I don’t talk so much to new people, they give me a chance to reconnect with my loose network of fellow writers and editors. I also find that I have to explicitly ask for support from my partner from time to time. Both of us were reared on a “job has a punch clock” mentality and it can be hard sometimes to wrap your head around the catch as catch can, feast or famine nature of freelance work.  My husband can get quite anxious about feeling like he has to be the breadwinner for the household while wifey does mysterious things with the computer all day.

    But the main thing is to keep writing even when you don’t feel like it. I feel sorta kinda better now. Keep well out there, ya hear?

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    Vancouver writers taking over the world

    Posted on April 11, 2008 by

    Could Vancouver’s next claim to fame be our literary prowess? (Quit looking at those mountains, we’ve got books to read.) Not only is there a miraculously resilient publishing industry in town (small but wiry, it is), but Vancouver is home to plenty of authors: Douglas Coupland, Steven Galloway (an old classmate done good, as profiled by another former classmate, Kevin Chong), Grant Buday, Timothy Taylor, and Barbara Hodgson.

    And now, as reported by the Vancouver Writer’s Festival newsletter, there is a movement afoot to name Vancouver a “UNESCO City of Literature.” Here’s the info:

    A movement is underway to have Vancouver named a UNESCO City of Literature, joining the City of Edinburgh, which received the first-ever UN designation in 2004. Does Vancouver have what it takes? Alma Lee, the founding artistic director of the Vancouver International Writers & Readers Festival, and Margaret Reynolds, executive director of the Association of Book Publishers of British Columbia, will chair a public consultation on April 23 that will explore the opportunities associated with becoming a UNESCO World City of Literature. Please join us to learn more and to give your input on the project.

    Wednesday, April 23, 4:00-6:00 pm
    Alma van Dusen Room
    Vancouver Public Library at Library Square
    350 West Georgia Street, Vancouver
    For more information: almalee <at> telus.net

    It’s not just that we have authors who live here whose books are published, sold and read throughout the world, but also that they’re writing about the specific place that is Vancouver for the world. I get a special twinge when I read Douglas Coupland novels with plotlines that feature specific, familiar streets and neighbourhoods on the North Shore,  my hometown, or Timothy Taylor gently skewering the Vancouver restaurant scene in Stanley Park.

    It’s also thrilling to see local imaginations writing about the world, as Barbara Hodgson does in her amazing illustrated novels.

    It would very cool indeed if Vancouver gained this kind of cultural distinction. Of course, if I hear Gordon Campbell proclaiming our literary culture as “world class” I’ll still grit my teeth. That empty phrase, that tourism-marketing-puffery just drives me batty.

    Posted in Literary | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

    To SASE or not to SASE

    Posted on March 22, 2008 by

    Just as every client seems to have a specific invoice they want you to use, every magazine and book publisher has their own highly particular set of submission guidelines to follow. Some welcome electronic submissions; some still specify 8 1/2 x 11 paper, double spaced type, to be packaged in an envelope marked just so, and including a SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope).

    Having worked on the other side, reading submissions for a well-known Western Canadian book publisher, they can impose all these little rules because even a small publisher or literary magazine receives absolute ton of submissions. They also have small budgets and limited time. And much of what is received is either wholly unpublishable (to put it nicely) or justnotquitegoodenough to fit into one a few slots available.

    Which brings me to the SASE. Several markets are still holding out on that SASE requirement, citing the cost it would take to send out letters and return manuscripts.  From the writer’s point of view, including a SASE is a way to pay for your own rejection letter. Talk about insult to injury. I don’t know about you, but getting an envelope addressed to me in my own handwriting sends a little chill through my soul.

    So, I’ve stopped sending SASEs, even when the guidelines require them. I don’t care what they do with my rejected manuscripts. Hell, having a little bonfire with the reject pile might be cathartic for the poor souls on the receiving end and save a few bucks on heating. And perchance my story is good enough for publication, I’m sure they can reach me via the e-mail address in my cover letter. And if they don’t want to do that, well…

    Now the good news is that several magazines are starting to embrace a fully electronic submission process, letting writers e-mail submissions and responding via e-mail as well. Others are choosing a middle road and requiring paper submissions but making the SASE optional and offering to respond via e-mail.

    Interestingly, for the Canadian literary/ideas magazine scene there seems to be a geographical trend in electronic submissions and rejections; the further east you go, the more likely magazines are to be e-mail friendly.

    Warning: A highly unscientific sample of submission guidelines from across the land:

    • Montreal: Maisonneuve accepts via e-mail or snail mail, nary a mention of Mr. SASE
    • Toronto: The Walrus welcomes queries via e-mail; again no dreaded SASE mentioned
    • Toronto: Descant doesn’t want e-mail submissions, but will respond via e-mail. They do want a SASE if you want the ms returned, or if you just really really want to be rejected by mail.
    • Winnipeg: Prairie Fire only accepts paper submissions, but they will respond via e-mail if you ask nicely in your cover letter
    • Vancouver: SubTerrain, Geist, and Event all take paper submissions only, and require SASEs for response. None will respond electronically.
    • Vancouver: Memewar accepts e-mail submissions only. They reject you nicely too.

    Writers, do you still send SASEs with your submissions?

    Publishers – why still require SASEs when e-mail could be much faster and less hassle? Here’s my take: when I was rejecting stuff, I had to drag out the reject box, print up a bunch of form letters, figure out which SASE went with which submission and if they had the correct postage, put the reject letters in the envelopes, seal them, and make sure the postie picked them up or dragged the pile out to the mailbox. The I had to file the strays in case the writer inquired as to why we kept their manuscript, etc. It seems like it would have been much easier to set up a generic e-mail address and form letter, enter the rejectees e-mail address and hit send. The risk of crazy writers responding is one reason I’ve heard for reluctance to reject via e-mail, however.

    I’ve focused mainly on the literary side of things here, and I should say that despite all the rules, these folks are the ones most open to receiving material from new writers or writers who aren’t already known to the editors. So even if I won’t pay for my own rejections, I still love you.

    Posted in Business, Publishing | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

    EAC meeting addresses the power and perils of writing online

    Posted on March 12, 2008 by

    The Editors’ Association BC Branch has just announced their topic for the March monthly meeting and it looks like a good one: Public-Private Boundaries in Online Writing and Publishing. It will be held at the usual bat time and bat channel (7:30 pm, Wednesday, March 19 at the Y-W-C-A downtown) and features superblogger Derek K. Miller as the speaker. Derek is a well-known webwriter and tech blogger who has written extensively on his blog about undergoing treatment for cancer for the past two years.

    Having written a personal blog for about four years, I know I’ve struggled with issue of how much to reveal online many times. I’ve written and deleted more posts than I count because of concerns for how certain stories and attitudes would look to the people involved, and I’ve worried endlessly about how certain posts would be received. So this should be a good talk for anyone who has ever struggled with the ethics of online publishing and personal revelation.

    Admission for EAC members is free, and non-members pay $10 (students $5). For more info visit: http://editors.ca/branches/bc/meetings

    Posted in Editing, Webwriting | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

    Book Learning

    Posted on March 10, 2008 by

    A summer tradition in the publishing world is SFU’s Summer Publishing Workshops. As usual they’re offering a range of courses from one-and two-day seminars to the famous  immersion workshops.

    I myself am a graduate of the two-week Book Publishing Immersion workshop, where participants simulate a publishing house and work from 8 am in the morning to 10 pm at night, 6 days a week, to create and refine book concepts, design book covers, brainstorm sales pitches and media angles, and present “the list” at the closing sales conference. Along the way you meet great people (and then try not to kill them in an argument over something like fonts or colours) and have fun. A conveniently located Liquor Store downstairs in the Harbour Centre Mall provided the red wine that saw us through to many a nightly deadline…

    The range of courses means there is something for anyone looking to develop their skills in writing, editing, publishing or designing books and magazines. The courses are moderately priced and I speak from experience when I say that they’re of high quality and taught by people who know their stuff. For the full list of courses visit: www.ccsp.sfu.ca/pubworks/workshops.html.

    And should you prefer to sit back and just listen, check out the Symposium on the Book. This year’s theme is crime writing, and the $75 fee includes copies of books from each of the six authors on the panel. Note: The Book Publishing Immersion Workshop also includes admission to the Symposium.

    Posted in Publishing | Tagged , | Leave a comment

    A Grab Bag of Spring Writing Contests

    Posted on March 8, 2008 by

    Get going, kid

    Event Non-Fiction Contest #21

    Better not procrastinate too long

    subTerrain‘s Lush Triumphant

    Squamish Arts Council  Sea to Sky Literary Contest

    The Federation of BC Writers’ 20th Annual Literary Writes Competition

    Bags of time

    Vancouver International Readers and Writers Festival 10th Annual Poetry & Short Story Contest

    Posted in Literary, Resources, Writing | 2 Comments

    Freelance writing job sites

    Posted on March 6, 2008 by

    I’ve decided to start this new blog and website in order to find writing and editing work, but in order to get, you must give. So, for my first post on this new blog, here is a rundown of some of my favourite sites for getting job leads and information on writing for a living:

    • Freelance Writing Jobs: This site posts a daily roundup of freelance writing job leads from around the internet. Most of the jobs come from Craigslist sites, and not all are what I would call fairly paid, but it’s a good cross-section of freelance and blogging jobs. FWJ also features posts on various aspects of writing for a living, particularly webwriting. (And if you get frustrated with the Craigslist scam scene, head on over to Craigslist Curmudgeon for catharcism.)
    • Copyblogger, the blog for web copywriters now has a jobs page. The opportunities are mostly US-based, but there are many that could probably be done from anywhere.
    • Jeff Gaulin: This site posts writing and media jobs for Canada. It’s pretty easy to use, although the “freelance” search function can be tricky, I find. If you’re a writer, editor, or journalist, you can promote your site here as well as spy on how others are doing it.

    If you don’t belong to one already, it is probably worth joining at least one of the professional associations for access to their jobs boards and e-mail lists, as well as listing in the directory for your specialty area. Some of the big ones for communicators include:

    For employers, listing your job or contract with one of these societies ensures that it will be seen by a targeted, qualified community.

    If you have other ideas for resources and job sites, please leave them in the comments. Thanks for reading!

    Posted in Resources | Tagged , , | 6 Comments