Chapter 8 Newsgroups - Social Networking - Forums and Reference Desks

Chapter eight topics

• Newsgroups
• Newgroup Reader Software
• Social Networking
• Forums`
• The Downside
• Reference Desks

Newsgroups can be an excellent source of information, but as with anything else on the Internet, sometimes you have to sort through a lot of dross to find the good stuff.

The alt. groups used to be especially bad about this, because they didn't have to jump through all the hoops that the "official" newsgroups did. Learn about alt. groups at Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alt.*_hierarchy.

It depends on the group, but some newsgroups are also subject to a lot of spam and flames. That's true also of some mailing lists. You can get a lot of leads to new web sites and mailing lists through newsgroups by lurking.

Getting quotes is much easier than you might think. It's as easy as formulating your question and asking it. When the response doesn't get the information you sought, send another question phrased more precisely to get the reply you're seeking.

I once attended a conference where the speaker, an expert on a specific topic, said he became the expert by contacting all the people he could locate who knew anything at all about the topic, and then he built exponentially on what he learned from each of them. And he eventually wrote a very successful book on the topic he'd only begun to research to write an article on! He had become
the expert!!

Getting quotes can be fun! While I was writing news stories for newspapers at least 50% of the information was quotes -- what some speaker said, usually at some pubic meeting or during an interview I'd arranged.

The first place to look for these helpful, online networkers is for online Newgroups and Forums; sometimes referred to as USENET Newsgroup used by people on the Net. These are subject-related groups where people meet to discuss a topic of common interest to the group. You'll find thousands of newsgroups on the net so you need to be able to zero in one the ones that are going to benefit you.

The best place to start is Google at, http://groups.google.com/. This is a website designed to help you find a newsgroup dedicated to your subject area.

It also allows you to browse online the messages posted to the group and to post messages yourself.

Lurk for a while to see what people are discussing before you post any messages to decide whether you have joined the correct group for your needs.

Read the groups FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) which will be a list of the questions asked by new members about the policy of the group, how to post, what types of messages are and are not acceptable, etc.

I suggest you participate in forums and mailing lists so you do not have to wade through the sea of rubbish before you get to what you're seeking on a newsgroup.

Try them out. You can always unsubscribe from a list if it does not work for you.

If you post messages to newsgroups, put something like NOSPAM in your out-going email address. Add a note to the bottom of your message saying, "Remove NOSPAM from the address before replying." It fools the programs that collect addresses for spammers.

Call your ISP if you don't see something clearly labeled as a newsgroup reader.

Most of the basic ones are free downloads. Search online, freenewsgroup reader for newsgroup reader software.

If you do not have a permanent connection to the Internet, and therefore it is costing you money to read the postings, you need to get a news group reader. This is a piece of software that will download the messages to your PC so that you can read them offline. This software will also let you join and leave newsgroups as you wish and will upload your postings in a batch.

Forums are another place to meet people. They are similar to newsgroups but generally all postings and discussions are conducted on the Web. A good place to start to find an appropriate forum is at Forum One: http://www.forumone.com/ which has a search engine (top right corner of page.) You can also find forums by subject.

Another good place is Topica's discussion lists site, http://lists.topica.com/, where you can search newsgroups, forums, and other resources all in one go! You will also find mailing lists here where postings are sent to your email box everyday.

And, of course, don't overlook the multitude of Social Networking opportunities such as Twitter, http://twitter.com//, Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/, etc.

The downside: Many newsgroups tend to have messages posted to them that are totally irrelevant to the subject being covered. A lot of the forums and mailing lists are moderated -- a human being reviews each attempted posting before it is seen by everyone else -- and therefore most non-relevant postings are deleted.

Be aware of pitfalls. Read Debra Littlejohn Shinder's article on the TechRepublic site, http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/10things/?p=851, 10 Ways to Stay Out of Trouble when you Post to Social Networking Sites.

Reference desks
Many professional writers choose refdesk.com as the most popular reference site on the Internet. It's a huge site with over 20,000 links. From the home page at www.refdesk.com you can access hundreds of web pages.

Tip: Read, 3-3, Critiquing How-To: http://tinyurl.com/3ywx8xm, and FAQ at Internet Writing Workshop, http://www.internetwritingworkshop.org/, and follow instructions.

Exercises,

1. Get permission from an online source to quote material for a (real or imagined) story.
2. Make the proper source citation in a (real or imagined) story.
3. Join The Writing Workshop for one week and participate by critiquing three stories in any genre of your choice.

Advice FromThe Pros: http://writerinsidertips.blogspot.com/

3-6, Words to Pages - book size: http://tinyurl.com/23vuql7

3-7, Let Writing Careers and Writers and Artists Glossary Terms Enhance Your Vocabulary:
http://tinyurl.com/24xpowt

Next, Chapter 9 - Querying and Related Issues: http://tinyurl.com/349p8ej

Chapter 9 Querying and Related Issues

Chapter nine topics

• Querying and related issues
• Why you should query
• Writing the query letter
• The query is three parts
• How to get guidelines from online Content Sites
• Multiple submissions (subs)
• Notification of sales
• Following up on queries
• CHAPTER 9 - Querying & related issues

The way you sell your work is by writing a query letter.
 
This is the single most important piece of writing you'll do because it is your

1. Introduction to the editor
2. Sales pitch
3. Resume

Only in exceptional circumstances should it exceed one single-spaced page.
 
Why you should query
B.J. Lawry, former editor and freelance writer explains it well in her article, The Difficulty of Getting Published (c)

"Having been a managing editor of a nationally circulated, monthly print magazine, I'll tell you what goes on in an editorial office. First of all, a publisher is in business to make money.

"Therefore, his staff is going to be as small as he can possibly make it and what naturally follows is that the pay is going to be as small as he can make it, too.

"My day started before 8 a.m. if I wanted to make it to the lunchroom for a cup of coffee that I could, at least then, carry to my desk. An editor doesn't sit down to a clean desk. Sometime during the night, notes have been left -- the printer needs you to call him before 9; the publisher will be out of town until Thursday, take his calls; delivery of such-and-such is delayed until next week, etc.

"Before 8:30, the mail arrives. It's always a stack, at least 30 or 40 pieces. It's been gone through by no one except the receptionist who has received it and gas slit each piece open to save you time.

"Half or more of the mail is garbage. You know that but you still have to go painstakingly through it, just in case. Some of it is checks that must be passed on to the accounting department. The rest is manuscripts, none of them solicited. Solicited mail usually comes by courier, by fax, hand-delivery by the author or by some other special means.

"By now, the phone has started to ring, the daily meeting of department heads is at 10 and will last until lunchtime. Each department head leaves the meeting with at least one directive: Cut costs.

"After an industrial lunch in the company "cafe," you go back to the stack of manuscripts on your desk, which has been added to the stack you've received already and have not been able to wade through, and the stack has now grown to at least two feet in height. You turn them upside down and work from the bottom.

"Beside them, you place the preprinted rejection notes that you'll clip to each so that your secretary can ship them back to the authors before the day is through.

"What you find is amazing. There truly will be a couple of manuscripts with coffee stains. There will be others that are written in longhand (believe it or not). Still others will just be so unprofessionally presented that you'll suspect the writer of not checking his facts or committing libel against a lost lover. Some will have notes attached.

"These are just a couple that I remember: "My mother is a good friend of the publisher." (That one immediately goes into the reject pile.) "Please publish my story. You don't even have to pay me." (Poor thing. He/she has been working so hard and you know the difficulties, but this is an amateur.

"You don't have time or money for amateurs. But you give it a once-over; you might be discovering a new talent. One hundred percent of the time, it ends up in the reject pile, too.)

"What's left are possibilities. Maybe two out of fifty. They'll sit in a special "in" basket for further consideration -- yours, the publisher's, maybe even the accounting department will have a say. So the manuscript will sit there for two or three months. After all, it's not something you've asked for to fit into the themes you've planned for the next six months.

"The writer waits. You know the writer is waiting, and that preys on your gut but there's nothing you can do about it. Finally, the decision is made: The manuscript just doesn't fit within the realm of possibility -- theme, cost, etc. So it goes back.

"The rejection has nothing to do, in these cases, with the quality of the writing or by any stretch with the quality of the writer. It just can't be bought, no matter how hard you, as an editor, have fought for it. The writer may get a printed rejection with a hand-written note: "Try again," "Sorry, just not for us" -- your way of telling him/her that you tried but forces greater than you made the final decision.

"The writer's life is a cold life. It's a lonely life with no one to share the pain of yet another rejection. But if it means enough to try again, try. Just don't quit your day job. bj. ~~

Use book search at http://www.diskuspublishing.com/ for BJ Lawry's books, Desert Heat and Dance Lesson and Other Stories. ###

Writing the query letter

When e-mailing to an editor always, always put the query, article, invoice, or whatever in plain text in the body of an email. Never send an attachment unless specifically asked to do so. Always send it in the format that was requested. If no format was specified, then ask. It is also a good idea to ask the editor what computer operating platform s/he's on: PC, MAC, Unix, etc.

The query is three parts

1. The lead. Get the editor's attention. *No "I would like to write an article on...." or he won't go any further. The editor's daily grind is is "open, read, reject" as many query letters as possible, finding only a few "useable nuggets." You have to have a really catchy opening to get the editor to continue to read instead of tossing yours into the reject pile.
2. Elaborate: Introduce the topic, what you will say, what the benefit is. One sentence should cover the preview and show the benefit. This is the age of "service journalism" -- the goal is to reward the reader for the time spent reading. You may offer a headline (editors would rather you came up with a title); word count. Write short. If Writer's Market says they use 1000-3000 word articles, offer 1000 if you're new to them. They're more likely to try a new writer on a shorter piece.
3. Resume: Why are you the person to write this? Write what you know. Once you have many clips, the editor will trust you. Don't sell yourself short. Only put in things that will make the editor say yes. If you don't have any credits, skip this point. (Don't say, "this will be my first article", etc.)

Always address a specific editor.  Landing an assignment boils down to finding that editor who shares your sensibilities.

If you spell out everything in your query letter -- your topic, your approach, an outline, your sources -- editors know what they will get when they give you the go-ahead to write the piece. The more complete your query, the better your chance for a sale. However, don't elaborate so much the editor can assign a staffer to write it!

How to get guidelines from online Content Sites

Here's an example of how to approach the site owner. Send an email saying,

"I am a freelance writer who specializes in (Blah, blah - the topic you've chosen to write about.) Do you accept submissions from freelance writers? If so, could you email a copy of your writers' guidelines to me at: (your e-addy.)"

Multiple submissions (subs)

Here's a sample of what you must tell editors when you submitted manuscripts simultaneously to different magazines:

"Although I believe this story will find its' best outlet in (Whatever Magazine) because the information is important to so many (xxx), I am also submitting the story idea to other non-competing magazines. I look forward to hearing from you in the enclosed SASE at your earliest convenience."

Professionalism is respected, as is promptness on both ends of querying and sales.

Notification of sales

Immediately e-mail, snailmail, or phone the other publications you submitted a manuscript to for the same article saying,

"You know that article you've been hanging onto, ("titled xxx") I just sold it to (xxx magazine) so I must withdraw it from you."

*Absolute rule: Articles will not be sold to publications with overlapping circulations. But, what if a e-Zine picks you up? In theory, it has a universal circulation. What then?

Question: I am sending a query to a magazine. In the course of working onthe article I was hit by another idea that was also suitable for this publication. They are actually very different from one another. If I send two queries, should I send them in the same envelope or in two. Which looks more professional?

Answer: I would definitely send them separately. Each query needs to be sent to the correct editor who handles that section of the magazine. If you are sending five queries to the same editor, IMO, you could send them in one envelope provided that you enclosed the SASE's for each one.

Think of querying this way. Good Housekeeping, has many editors who are in charge of various aspects of the magazine. So if you were to send an article to one editor and enclose the other queries that are not under her jurisdiction, she would then have to forward each editor their respective queries. Would you want to be her? How will you know the correct editor received it?

Following up on queries

I don't always follow-up on queries. If I do, I follow the guidelines to find out when. If they say they respond within three months, then I follow up at just about that mark. With the follow up, I basically immediately state what I am following up (title and date submitted), enclosing a copy of the original query, and say that I'm "excited" about doing a story on ....blah blah subject matter and hope you'll have time to respond to the query I sent.

End

Exercises,

1. Write a query letter to the editor of each of three magazines you have targeted for your story idea. Tip: To do this, you'll decide on THEME, SLANT, STYLE. Offer, in your query letter, to HELP the editor's readers ENJOY learning about your topic. Make use of the publications style and jargon.
2. Write a make-believe follow up to the query letter you wrote earlier.

Advice FromThe Pros: http://writerinsidertips.blogspot.com/

4-1, Active Voice or Passive Voice: http://tinyurl.com/33mm3l8

4-2, Grammar Tutor Online: http://tinyurl.com/2dgv38y

4-3, Improving the Query Letter: http://tinyurl.com/36hcc9t

4-4, The Internet - Your Road To Successful Writing and Marketing: http://tinyurl.com/29e5n5q

4-5, Writers and Networking: http://tinyurl.com/2b2q22n

4-6, The 'Rights' You Market: http://tinyurl.com/28ey4x7

Next, Chapter 10 - Manuscript Preparation: http://tinyurl.com/3xvzuze

Chapter 10 Manuscript Preparation

Chapter ten contents

• Magazine closing dates
• Chapter ten contents
• Magazine Closing Dates
• Preparing Your Manuscripts
• Formatting Your Manuscript in .pdf
• From Word Processor to e-mail
• Submitting Electronically
• Words to Beware of Using
• Citing the Bibliography
• Critique Services
• Proof Reader
• Web Design
• Web Writing
• Computer Publishing

Magazine closing dates
The magazine closing date is an important date for writers to keep in mind. Advertising is locked in and stories are decided on and assigned in staff meetings by this closing date.

Final manuscripts for assigned stories have to be in by the 'due date.' Knowing these dates can guide your decisions about when to send your query. Target a certain issue (month published) and query several weeks BEFORE the closing date for that month's issue ~~ but not right on the closing date for the previous issue because things get pretty hectic in the office on closing dates.

Make up a calendar of the following magazine closing dates and post it where you'll see it every day!

• Jan/Feb 2010 issue closes November 10 (copy due by November 30 2009)
• March/April 2010 issue closes January 1 (copy due by January 30, 2010)
• May/June 2010 issue closes March 1 (copy due by March 30, 2010)
• July/August 2010 issue closes May 1 (copy due by May 30, 2010)
• Sept/Oct 2010 issue closes July 1 (copy due by July 30, 2010)
• Nov/Dec 2010 issue closes September 1 (copy due by September 30, 2010)
• Jan/Feb 2011 issue closes November 10 copy due by November 30 2010)

Preparing your manuscripts
When you type your manuscript in a word processor to be printed out and sent by US Postal Service (snail mail) you must double space. It's acceptable to use five-space paragraph indents.

Your name and address go in the upper left hand corner. Do not include your social security number. Tell it to the editor over the phone after the article is assigned and a contract is signed.

Put the rights you are offering and the word count in the upper right hand corner of the manuscript; If you include side bars, give the word count for them separately.

Center the title about 1/3 down the first page. On the next line put the copyright symbol © and the name the manuscript is to be published under (either your name or your pseudonym.)

Be sure to include a header at the top with the manuscript name, your last name, and page numbers on one line. Use a smaller font if necessary.

If you convert a manuscript created in a word processor to e-mail, be sure to change the line-spacing to single space and remove all indents and do a two-space correction.

Since the advent of computers the standard number of spaces following a period should only be one, in either email or print (paper) submissions.

After your manuscript is done, use your word processor's search and replace function. (Generally it pops up when you press Ctrl key and the f key simultaneously.) In the search or find section, press the space bar twice (or type .) In the replace field, press the space bar once (or type .) That will search your document for two spaces and convert the double spaces to a single space.

Wordcounter, http://www.wordcounter.com/, ranks the most frequently used words in any given body of text. Use this to see what words you overuse (is everything a "solution" for you?) or maybe use it to just find some keywords from a document.

This is a good time to use the find function to check your manuscript for word repeats; you know, those words and phrases that we unconsciously use without thinking. Repeats result in redundancy, or worse.

Use two lines between paragraphs. And save the document in ASCII text before copy\pasting into an e-mail.

*Note: A few editors specify they want manuscripts submitted via e-mail to be double spaced. Tip: See
How to Double-space e-mail, http://tinyurl.com/39stcnq.

Address the editor properly.
If you can't get the editor's name from a current magazine call the magazine office and ask for the correct spelling of the appropriate acquisitions editor for your article, or for the Editor-in-Chief.

From word processor to e-mail
The guidelines may request that stories be submitted in Rich Text Format. What does that mean?

Word processors generally allow you to select which format to save as a document before saving (there's a drop down list beneath the space where you type the document's file name.)

Rich Text Format is one, or it may have Ascii format or Text or Plain text. Each saves a file in Ascii -- which is the file format you need to paste into your e-mail, or save on the diskette your editor specifies as a means of getting it to him\her.

Basic drill
Here are my simplified steps for getting articles from the word processor to the e-mail program.

1. Open the word document
2. Chose File
3. SaveAs

In the drop down box that lets you choose how to save your file, select plain text (or ASCII text). When it says, this file exists shall I overwrite it? Answer Yes.

1. Scroll, pressing Left mouse button and highlight the entire file.
2. Right mouse click and copy it.
3. Close the document without saving changesOpen your e-mail program and open a new message
4. Put mouse pointer in the message and Right mouse click to paste a copy of your article
5. Address the e-mail to the editor who asked to see it.

Before you send the e-mail, read the message through carefully.

Correct anything that needs it. WYSIWEG! (what you see is what editor gets.)

Now it's ready to send to the editor, and will arrive formatted the same way it left your e-mailer.

Submitting electronically

• Electronic submission requirements differ with each e-zine, but a few general rules (and some experience) will help you master writing for them.
• Get e-Zine guides, or query the editor of an e-Zine, electronically.
• If the magazine's website doesn't offer writers guidelines, find the editor's e-mail address (on the e-Zine site) and send an e-mail asking for guidelines.
• By following them to the letter you'll learn how the editor wants your story submitted.
• Some editors will tell you what goes in bold, or to never use italics, etc.
• Some want the story sent in the body of a regular e-mail, no italics or bold of any kind -- straight text all the way.Other magazines want the story sent in rich text format (RTF) attachment to an e-mail.

Write your e-query letters and e-articles in your word processor where it's easy to edit and polish them until they're impressive. Single space your story, double space between paragraphs.

Remember that nothing on the web is underscored except a web site address (URL); web site addresses are the only things in your manuscript that should ever be underscored.

To let the editor know that you envision certain words emphasized, you can use an asterick (*) before a word. The editor will decide whether to print it bold or italic.

Generally, if it's a title, or something you want underlined, here's how you can do it:
_Kids Master E-Zine Writing Quickly_.

You can make sure the editor knows you're using italics by writing it like the following example:

my laughline.

Another way to indicate italics is by using the HTML marks for Italics. (*Note, there's more about html later.) Example:

"I am thrilled to share with you what I know about writing for e-zines."

If you are uncertain about how the editor wants your submission, send an e-mail to ask for instructions; editors never mind answering those kinds of questions.

Formatting your manuscript in .pdf

When you format your manuscript it's often wise to save it as a .pdf file. If you want a free version of a software to do that you may want to look into Open Office (a free open source word processing program), which converts to .pdf. PDF reDirect Freeware v2.5.0 is now available at EXP Systems, http://tinyurl.com/37guwq4. There are also other .pdf converters that you may want to try.

Some authors claim that laying out a book in Word is never recommended (most publishers use either Quark or InDesign), but you really have to make sure your layout is correct in Word.

You can save as .pdf from most recent versions of Word. The .pdf option is an option when printing, not when saving. Look for the .pdf menu at the bottom of the print box. Most versions offer a number of .pdf options. If you're on a Mac, you can save any document from any application as .pdf from the print box.

Aaron Shepard's book, Perfect Pages, talks about book layout using Word.

Words to beware of using

If you use any of the following words. Ferret them out using the Find function and do your utmost to write them out wherever possible:

• be
• been
• being
• had
• have
• has
• is
• was
• were

Citing the bibliography
Do all necessary research and interviews. Access a library database from your desktop computer (if possible) and print out a whole bibliography on whatever subject, as required. Study this, http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/614/01/. Be sure to follow the rules of the Fair Use Guide
 http://tinyurl.com/29lzwj4.

American Psychological Association, Citing Internet Resources APA Style, http://www.apastyle.org/apa-style-help.aspx.

Critique services
Prices vary widely at commercial critique services. Check The Christian Communicator, http://www.christiancommunicator.com/%20to get an idea. However, you can read good free information there at Susan Titus Osborn's blog.

Find others services by using a search engine and typing in "critique service".

There are many great, groups available online and the members all donated critiquing. You're bound to come across many professional writers on some of the lists. These folks have been published, and nothing beats being accepted by paying publications for equipping a writer to offer pertinent and comprehensive critique. Of course, you'll also receive some critiques that are worthless.

Just remember that you're the one in control of what advice you choose to follow, whether you pay for critiques or whether they are free.

Internet Writing Workshop, http://www.internetwritingworkshop.org/ is one of the best, interactive free writing groups where members submit their work and critique the writing others submit.

Receiving a wide range of critiques helps a writer revise and polish material. IWW is cost-free and includes critiquing in the following lists:

• Fiction
• Lovestory
• Nonfiction
• Novels
• Poetry
• Practice
• Prose/Flash- Fiction
• Script-writing
• Children &- Young Adult

For information about joining any of the above lists, and for all the other great opportunities available at IWW, visit and follow instructions.

Proof reader
Proofreading services: Find by using a search engine and typing in "proof reader".

Be aware of whether the site is offering free help, or paid for services. Editing and proofreading are two different stages of the revision process. Both demand close and careful reading, but they focus on different aspects of the writing and employ different techniques. Additionally, before submitting a book manuscript to agents or editors many authors prefer to engage the services of a book doctor ( not to be confused with editing or proof reading.) While it is not cheap, a good book doctor's service can be invaluable.

Web design
You'll find HTML instruction at an Earthweb.com site called HTML Goodies -- http://www.htmlgoodies.com/

Or study at these sites:
HTML Code Tutorial, http://www.htmlcodetutorial.com/

w3Schools.com, http://www.w3schools.com/html/default.asp

internet.com, http://www.htmlgoodies.com/primers/html/

An Introduction To HTML and Web Pages, by P.J. LaBrocca, is available at HTMLementary, http://labrocca.com/htmlementary/. The only restriction is that HTMLementary is for online use only. It may not be downloaded to permanent storage.

In http://www.dogpile.com/ type 'An Introduction To HTML and Web Pages' and it returns multiple links to explore.

Arachnophilia, copyright by P. Lutus, offers a tutorial with visuals, HTML for the Conceptually Challenged, >http://www.arachnoid.com/lutusp/html_tutor.html

Web writing
Writing for the web is different, and it is not web design. Learn about it at Useit.com, Writing For The Web, http://www.useit.com/papers/webwriting/

To find a wealth of information, type web+writing into the search engine, http://www.dogpile.com/

Computer publishing
Learn more at Online Publishers Association, http://www.online-publishers.org/. Their biweekly e-mail newsletter featuring the latest news and research for the online publishing industry offers samples, and can be subscribed to, also.

Exercises,

1. Write a story, addressing it to an editor at one of the magazines you picked
2. Convert your story to ASCII and paste a copy into an e-mail.Convert your story to double lines and past a copy into an e-mail.

Tip: Refer to, How to Double-space e-mail: http://tinyurl.com/39stcnq.

Advice From The Pros: http://writerinsidertips.blogspot.com/

5-1, Essay Cover Letters: http://tinyurl.com/2c9axa9

5-2, Expedient Word Processor Functions: http://tinyurl.com/2ao7faw

Next. Chapter 11 - Greeting Card Business: http://tinyurl.com/3xta55u

Chapter 11 Greeting Card Business

Chapter eleven contents

• Get to Know the Business
• Greeting Card Company Contacts and Guidelines
• Greeting Card Publishers
• Mistakes to Avoid

Excellent money can be made if you like writing greeting cards and get into the business of doing it. The pay-per-word rate can be astounding. Freelancers report earning anywhere from $25 to as much as $150 per card.

Get acquainted with the business
Greeting Card Association's site is a good place to begin, where you'll find links to instruct and guide you, http://www.greetingcard.org/ The Greeting Card Association is a must-visit site. You'll find contact information, http://www.greetingcard.org/mediacenter.html. And the Greetings, Etc. magazine, http://www.greetingsmagazine.com/greetings/index.shtml

Learn more about the market at About.com, http://freelancewrite.about.com/?once=true&, (a part of the New York Times, http://www.nytco.com/. New York Times web sites, http://www.nytimes.com/. New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com/auth/login, required but free).

Please be advised that linking to an article on The New York Times is free of charge and does not require permission, but you MUST include the New York Times Publisher's URL, http://www.nytco.com/ which zips readers back to The New York Times web site at which they have to be a member, or become a member.

Membership is free of charge and only takes a minute to complete.

Generally, the way to be sure of who owns a web site is scroll to the bottom of the page (which is where I found the information, "a part of the New York Times, http://www.nytco.com/." About Us links, and Company Profile, are also places to find the information.

Search: writing greeting cards. Also, search write greeting cards.

Greeting card company contacts & guidelines
While searching for writing opportunities at greeting card companies, try About Us; FAQ; Company Information, etc., then follow links, looking for career opportunities or job opportunities.

American Greetings, http://corporate.americangreetings.com/. Check Careers link and study the entire site thoroughly. Contact information is also at the bottom.

To get the latest information, go to WritersWeekly.com's search page and search in all categories for Greeting Card Markets, http://www.writersweekly.com/search.html

Greeting card publishers
You'll find a large list of greeting card publishers here, http://www.writerswrite.com/greetingcards/publish.htm.

*Note: clicking on some links takes you to surprising results; not necessarily the company you expected. One time while I was searching the Hallmark Card webpages for writers guidelines (using their search engine) I discovered I could find and read about many of their writers!

Because I didn't first locate the Site Map (at the bottom of the home page) it took a bit of surfing the links before I finally found what I wanted at Hallmark; Career opportunities. http://tinyurl.com/nb2ey3

Be persistent! Search web pages diligently until you find what you want, or find someone to contact to get answers to your questions.

Freedom Greeting Card Company, is a leader in ethnic cards, http://www.freedomgreetings.com/. Link to guidelines by clicking About Freedom at their top of the page, and then Working for Freedom.

Find more resources online by typing "greeting card publisher" into, http://www.dogpile.com/.
End

Exercise,

1. Read the online information about greeting cards.

Advice FromThe Pros: http://writerinsidertips.blogspot.com/

5-3, Model Release: http://tinyurl.com/35dg3ws

5-4, Photographs: http://tinyurl.com/29wxh44

Next, Chapter 12 - Other Writing Opportunities: http://tinyurl.com/35w2nj

Chapter 12 Other Writing Opportunities

Chapter twelve topics

• Stay Abreast of Oline Marketplace Changes
• Opinion-editorial (Op-ed)
• Writing Book Reviews
• Writing for Online Sites
• Screen Writing

No matter what kind of writing you do, in order to be successful it's important to know what's happening in the writing marketplaces.

*** Keep abreast of online marketplace changes ***

Read media news
Media Channel, http://www.mediachannel.org/
PoynterOnline, http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=45
ABYZ News Links, http://www.abyznewslinks.com/. Lists by (English speaking or conversant) countries, states, etc. Also, a good source for locating publications to query, with contact information.

Opinion-editorial (OP-ED)
Writing Opinion-editorial, or Op-Ed is writing on subjects that you feel strongly about. Op-Ed stands for "opposite editorials," as in, the page that faces the letters-to-the-editor page or the back page of magazines. The next time you have the urge to expound on a politically incorrect issue, write an op-ed.

For a comprehensive explanation of the ABC's of op-ed writing visit Dewitt Wallace Center Op-Ed Resources at Duke University web site, http://cnx.org/content/m14433/latest/, the Module, by Betty Monk. Use Find to search op-ed to quickly locate what you need to study.

• Craft an op-ed on any issue.
• Write out whatever you're intense about while you're still red hot about it.
• Hone it to 500 words +/-.
• Check one of the sites listing newspapers, build an email list, and blast it out.

In the subject line of your e-mail write: Op-ed Sub: (your Powerful Title.)'Write a one or two line bio to accompany the piece. Include a good, sharp mug shot, too.

Kathleen Purcell, former newspaper Editor, says,

"Most daily metros use staff and syndicated copy. Editors cannot wait until deadline to see if they have enough copy to fill the op-ed page. Second, in my experience, the big dailies pay little more than the small and mid-sized dailies. But they demand a lot more effort. Third, most big dailies these days have ugly, awful grab-all-rights contracts.

"My advice is to target small to mid-sized dailies, and the largest 3-to 4-times-per-week papers. They will be more accessible to you because of their smaller staffs and lighter organizational structures, they will pay roughly the same and they might have better contracts."

Writing book reviews
Nationally distributed periodicals rely on in-house reviewers. You have to collect your clips from smaller publications before approaching the big guys to ask for a spot on their payroll. They'll determine your worth as a reviewer based on those clips.

Book reviews contain:

• Title
• Author
• Publisher
• Price
• ISBN Number.

1. An overview of the book's contents. What is the book? Biography? History? How-to manual? Fiction? For nonfiction, use jacket copy and table of contents as a guide.
2. The author's approach to the subject. How is book organized? Which subjects are given the most weight and how are they presented?
3. Background information about the author. Is he an expert in his field? A journalist? List his credentials, if any. Again, you might find this information on the jacket cover or front or back matter.
4. What makes the book unique or particularly useful? Does it differ from similar works on the subject? Does it contain something that can't be found anywhere else, or present information in a particularly useful way? If not, don't be afraid to say so. Be honest.
5. What is the book's targeted audience? Beginners? Experts? Does it require prior knowledge of the subject? Is it for a general audience or a specific group? Is it an introductory text?
6. A short critique of the book's strengths and weaknesses. What's good? What's bad? How does it compare to similar books?

Here's a suggestion to get you started. Like all book authors these two welcome reviewers.

• Bob Sanchez, author of When Pigs Fly (an iUniverse Star book.) Bob Sanchez ; http://bobsanchez1.blogspot.com/.
• Mel Jacob (Melduvall@aol.com), Train to Yesterday by Nell DuVal; Thorndike Press 978-1-4104-0878-5, (Five Star Expressions (Gale) 978-1-59414-663-3 available at http://www.spritepress.com/.

When you're serious about writing a book review, contact either or both.

Tip: You don't need to buy any book you are reviewing. If you can't get enough information online, write to the author and ask questions. If you have a magazine or newspaper that commits to publishing your review, authors are willing to provide you with a "review copy."

*** Never *** ask for review copies from an author if you don't intend to publish a review -- that's cheating and very unprofessional and unethical!

Also, book review writing is not for you if your attitude is (as some writers feel), "it's not worth the effort to wait 2 months for a measly $30 bucks."

Markets that pay for book reviews include, Clarion which is a part of ForeWord Magazine. Foreword/Clarion also looks at small press, mostly POD from Xlibris and AuthorHouse. For information, contact jennifer@forewordreviews.com.

It's good to have a clip when you're starting out. Reviewers reported, ForeWord and Clarion paid $50 apiece for 400-500 words; one said "the folks there are very nice ... the job was excruciating because the self-published books included mediocre and very academic, in-depth analysis works. Another said at ForeWord, most of the books are from independent presses, payment is $30.00, and takes about eight weeks to receive payment.

Keep your eye on New York Journal of Books, http://www.nyjournalofbooks.com/ to learn when\if they start paying for reviews. Early this year they were working on getting their site to look good. Ted Sturtz, Editor-in-Chief said in October 2010,

"W've not yet begun to pay reviewers. Our new site is just up, so we are just beginning to commercialize and will have to see how quickly we are able to begin to see any material revenues."

Read here, http://tinyurl.com/27ncjru, or email info@nyjounalofbooks.com if you're interested.

Writing for online sites

My long-time friend and professional freelance writer, Kathleen Purcell, shared the following excellent insights into writing for online.

"Look for corporate sites that provide content. I go to sites hosted by manufacturers of fitness clothing and gear, but there are many others. And then there are the sites doing what is called "data mining." Data mining is what they call it when a site posts articles about some topic complete with links to other sites on the web that further the conversation.

"Basically, if you see a corporate site that is posting articles relevant to (but not actually about) the corporate product or image, it's possible they pay freelancers to write those articles. For the most part these sites are being managed by a computer or marketing type, not an editor.

"This is good and bad. It means they rarely ask for revisions and they often pay more than the going rate, but they don't even understand the whole "which rights are you buying" discussion. Most want to pay one time and keep your article forever. And I wouldn't be surprised if they used the articles in the company newsletter or something. I just assume I'll have to rewrite all those articles if I want to resell them.

"On the plus side, you can sell corporate sites a rewritten article, or even a reprint, and they still pay top-dollar, whereas an editor might want to pay less for a rewrite or reprint. I can recycle an 800 word article and get $300-$400 for it on a web site, which is the same pay the Chicago Tribune will pay for a painstakingly researched original article twice as long.

"Most sites have an email link to someone. Often this person is the web master or web site designer, not the editor-like person. Still, a politely worded inquiry often yields the name and email addy of the individual responsible for site content. And--whereas web zines and data miners often want links, sound, video clips, etc.--corporate sites do not want those things.

"They don't want to crowd their server with AV clips, and they definitely don't want to send people OFF their site with a link, unless it's a link to another of their sites. And--once--when I did include a link to another page on a corporate site, they paid me for the link like it was a word. Which is another nice thing about non-editor editors: they count words by running a word counter. There's nothing like getting paid 50 cents for "a". "

You can read another good article on this topic at a CopyDesk,Inc. http://www.copydesk.net/nf_digwrite.html

TV and Screen writing

The University of Illinois website -- Unit For Cinema Studies, http://www.uiuc.edu/unit/cinema/links/index.html has links to excellent information. It's an excellent place to begin learning about this genre. Browsing brought me, http://media.illinois.edu/media-and-cinema-studies/resources.html, with links galore to informative sites.

Hollywood Film Festival site: http://www.hollywoodawards.com/. Click About Us, and surf until you're satiated.

Other film industry sites include,

Academy Of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences: http://www.oscars.org/

Screen Writers Federation: http://www.screenwritersfederation.org/. Scroll to bottom and click Site Map.

TV Film Rights.Com, http://www.tvfilmrights.com/, billed as a world marketplace community for TV and film rights offers a wealth of information on the subject of rights, as well as other topics of special interest to writers in this genre. Our Marketplace is where you'll find About Us. Pitch Template is where you'll discover the nuts and bolts of screen writing.

Screenhead has this link that explains many complexities, study these: Unfilmables, A List of The Hardest Novels to Film, http://www.screenhead.com/reviews/the-unfilmables-a-list-of-the-hardest-novels-to-film/

Scriptwriters Network, http://www.scriptwritersnetwork.org/swn/, is an organization that may have just what serious screen writers are looking for. Fee membership. A wealth of information and Resources are available to site visitors, without charge. It's worth your time to browse and study, especially while you're deciding whether or not this is your niche.

Don't let yourself get swept away in any of the above sites, and forget to devote time to write, daily!

Exercise,

1. Study and discuss other writing opportunities. Make a priority list of writing jobs in the order of your 1st preferences.

 Advice From The Pros: http://writerinsidertips.blogspot.com/

5-5, Screenwriters Online Resources: http://tinyurl.com/2ck4psp

5-6, Medical Writing: (currently being updated)

5-7, Travel Writing: http://tinyurl.com/2dumo9g

5-8, Newspaper Contracts: http://tinyurl.com/2b3kkax

Next, Chapter 13 - Genre Writing and Writing for Children: http://tinyurl.com/3x33osl

Chapter 13 Genre Writing and Writing for Children

Chapter thirteen topics

• Who Wants Your Book?
• Names and Body Language
• Genre Writers
• Science Fiction
• Novel Writing and Group
• Writing for Children

Who wants your book?
Targeting your writing to a specific genre (or kind of book) is one way to become specialized. Begin compiling markets, addresses, and information about the specific genre that interests you. Next, finding a publisher willing to take your book requires a good deal of effort. Start by finding the agent who wants to represent your work.

You'll find helpful information at these sites:
dmoz, http://dmoz.org/Arts/Writers_Resources/Fiction/

Emily Hanlon, http://www.thefictionwritersjourney.com/Links_and_Resources.htm.  If links don't work for you, try typing the link title into a search engine to locate the material.

SpeculativeVision, Science, Fiction, Fantasy also offers excellent resource links, http://speculativevision.com/network/Writers_Resources/Genre_Resources/.

Using a search engine to surf for agents can lead to others.

Names and body language
Have you thought about how facial expressions can help you tell your story? Although outdated, these books can help:

• 1977. Manwatching: A Field-Guide To Human Behaviour, Jonathan Cape, London. 320p.
• 1979. Gestures: Their origins and Distribution (with Peter Collett, Peter Marsh and Marie O'Shaughnessy) Jonathan Cape, London. 296p.
• 1985. Bodywatching: A Field-Guide To The Human Species, Jonathan Cape, London. 256p.

To locate online resources, type manwatching or human behavior into http://www.dogpile.com/.

Explore names and their meanings for your characters at Kalabarians Philosophy, http://www.kabalarians.com/index.cfm.

Genre writers
SFF Net, http://www.sff.net/ is a host for genre writers. Explore its links, network with members, and find many outlets for your writing.

Science Fiction
The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Inc. HOME page offers great information for writers: http://www.sfwa.org/. For background and definition of "slipstream" books, read Nine Below, http://ninebelow.livejournal.com/169856.html.

Writing for children
Childrens Writing -- Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBSI), http://www.scbwi.org/ is considered the best resource available for writers who aspire to write for children. If you're new to writing for children start with Resource Library tab. Use Illustrators tab to locate illustrators.

The Children's Book Council, http://www.cbcbooks.org/ is another great resource.

Interested in writing for Children? Check out these FREE resources at Write 4 Kids.com, Children's Book Insider, http://www.write4kids.com/index.html. Be sure to click the About US Link at the bottom.

Hover your mouse along the top bar, and especially appreciate the drop-down site style to locate goodies!

Explore! Explore! You won't find such a wealth of excellent, free information anywhere else, http://www.write4kids.com/ebooks.html.

Patricia Johnson, a proffesional writer offers excellent advice for query letters.

Query Advice

(c) Patricia Johnson

• A query is succinct; make it one page in length.
• Include the unique elements of your work; the genre, subject and target audience.
• Include marketing information such as if you are already beginning to market by social media like twitter and blogging on relevant sites. Briefly mention the marketing you plan to do after publication. Will you market locally as well? Mention that also.
• Include a brief history of your writing experience that is relevant to this project.
• Give the name(s) of those who referred you to the publisher/agent.
• If you are submitting other queries, be sure to mention this. Limit the amount of queries you send at one time since some agents/publishers want a low number of queries out on a book, or even an exclusive query. ### Patricia Johnson,patricia.writeviewpoet@GMAIL.COM.

Writing Romance:

Romance is a broad category with many specialties. Begin your search at Romance Notes, http://www.romancenotes.com/write_romance.html, Follow the links provided. When you need more answers, use http://www.dogpile.com/ to search writing romance and romance writing and "publishers of romance." Tip: By omitting quotation marks, you'll get different lists of URLs.

Sift through the URLs returned by each. Pay attention to the web link shown, and consider it carefully before you click to help avoid sites that offer little help, and want your money!!

Exercise,

1. Study and discuss the various genres. List all genres you could write a story for. Tip: Use your idea file and topic spoke. 

Advice FromThe Pros: http://writerinsidertips.blogspot.com/

6-1, Strong Fictional Characters: http://tinyurl.com/2v23v69

6-2, All About Names: http://tinyurl.com/32vyakh

6-3, Character Traits: http://tinyurl.com/2cmgumc

6-4, Show Versus Tell Issues: http://tinyurl.com/298dogs

6-5, Song Lyrics, Fair Use and Trademarks: http://tinyurl.com/2bpb9oz

6-6 e-Zines By The Dozen, http://tinyurl.com/32lag6w

Next, Chapter 14 - Tending to Business: http://tinyurl.com/32rr8a5

Chapter 14 Tending to Businesso

Chapter fourteen topics

• Setting up shop
• Laws
• Taxes
• Know Your Rights and Fees
• Work-For-Hire
• Co-authoring and Contracts
• Contract Help
• Getting Your Money
• The Letter of Understanding
• Writers Digest Fee Chart
• Cashing in From Databases
• Health Insurance

There are many aspects to the "business" side of writing. You'll market your work more effectively the more you understand these important aspects.

For example, when a publisher doesn't send you a contract to sign and return, be sure to enclose your statement or invoice with the submission of your assigned manuscript. Pay close attention to contracts, rights, and copyright issues, too.

Setting up shop
Doing it right is just what you learn how to do when you visit Digital Women web site: http://www.digital-women.com/. Don't be mislead because these resources include the word "women." Each contains valuable business information for either sex.

Tip: I do not suggest that you sign ujp for services, but to learn about business-related terms and issues I recommend studying the information on linked pages at FLOWFUNDING,
http://www.flowfunding.com/.

The National Foundation for Women Business Owners (NFWBO) online, http://www.nfwbo.org/ hosts an exceptional amount of resources. A non-profit research organization, NFWBO's mission is to support the growth of women business owners and their enterprises by conducting research, sharing information and increasing knowledge. You can contact them at: info@nfwbo.org.

The National Association of Business Owners, http://www.nawbo.org/ is another site with links to useful business knowledge. Scroll to the bottom and use their Site Map. Then scroll to Business Resource Links. Browse and study.

You'll find other useful help at America's Small Business Development Center Network, http://www.asbdc-us.org/.

Laws
The Publishing Law Center sponsored by the law office of Lloyd L. Rich, http://www.publaw.com/ is an excellent source of information. Be sure to check out the Links to get to some of the best writing-related links.

Taxes
This site lists all the publications put out by the IRS to help you figure out how to file, learn about allowable deductions, etc., http://www.irs.ustreas.gov//. Click Site Map (at top) to make it easier to find what you're seeking. Also, see publication 535.

Know your rights and fees
First North American Print Serial Rights (FNAPSR).
Question: Does inclusion of a work in an anthology constitutes first printing (with or without the copyright)?

The opinion which counts is that of the editor to which a writer wants to subsequently market the piece. An editor or publisher who wants to purchase FNAPSR wants exactly that, a pristine, virginal work to which you (the creator) are licensing First North American Print Serial Rights. Otherwise, for a work which has appeared in print anywhere, a writer may only sell subsequent rights, such as reprint rights, or one-time rights.

Work-for-hire
The most important thing for a freelance writer to remember is that unless there is an express written agreement, signed by both parties, that the work is made for hire, the work does not fall into that category. Even where the entire copyright is assigned by the author, he can get it back eventually. But once a work is legally designated a work made for hire, an employment relationship is deemed to exist, and the employer is considered the author for all time, no matter who wrote the piece.

Co-authoring and contracts
When you contract a co-authored book, two separate contracts are necessary. The first is between the writers ~~ outlining the responsibilities and respective shares ~~ and should be drawn and signed before a word is written. If you are drawing up the contract after-the-fact, you need to hope there won't be any problems over the split. If it isn't on paper, it isn't legal.

A copy of this contract goes to the publisher as an addendum to their contract to publish.

Make a condition in the contract with the publisher that they pay royalties to writer separately. You need a lawyer to draw up your contract between authors and possibly examine the publisher's contract for unfair clauses that take away rights you don't wish to sell (ancillary rights such as electronic publication, film and tv rights and stipulations about increasing royalties when the book reaches certain benchmarks.)

You may want to consider an attorney who is also an agent. He or she will know the most about the legal and the publishing ramifications. The cost shouldn't be extreme unless the attorney is bargaining the contract for you, in which case, he will earn for you far more than he charges.

Contract help
American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) is a great supportive organization for writers, http://www.asja.org/

ASJA Contracts Committee (contracts@asja.org) seeks information about contracts from writers and publishers, http://www.asja.org/cw/cw.php. ASJA Contract Committee are great folks, willing to offer free help to any writer, whether they're an ASJA member or not. When youneed contract clarification or help, ask them.

Another great organization for writers is National Writers Union (NWU), http://www.nwu.org/

Getting your money
Invoicing: Be sure to invoice any publication (or organization you write for) and include all details of your arrangement.

If you are going to donate your writing, send a bill for services anyway, and under total due, put "$0, Balance of xxx Donated to ..." or something like that. That lets both you and whoever is publishing your writing know that your services and your writing have a value.

Remember, you can use writing donations for your charitable contributions on your taxes.

The Letter of understanding

Dear (Editor who assigned article)
The following is my understanding of the details of the assignment that we discussed:

Subject: XXX
Slant: (The slant you and the editor discussed.)
Length: xxx words
Date assigned: (Date editor assigned the article)
Deadline: (Date article is due.)
Publication date: (Date of issue the editor said article will be published.)
Payment: $xxx (agreed on price.)
Pay schedule: Payment (whether on acceptance or on publication -- specify a deadline.)
Rights: First North American, licensed for one time publication. Reprints, electronic, or other secondary publication to be negotiated with author. All rights not expressly transferred are reserved by author. (or whatever you've agreed on.)
Photos \ Art work: You provide; I will provide contacts. (or whatever you've agreed on.)
Acceptance: You will accept the manuscript within xx days or notify author that you require a rewrite. Author will be given reasonable opportunity for a rewrite. Work beyond the scope of this letter does not constitute a rewrite, and additional payment may be necessary.

If there is anything in this letter that is incorrect, please call me at once so that we may be in agreement. Please sign and return one copy of this Letter of Understanding in the SASE provided.

Kind Regards,
[your name]

Getting paid
Use a search engine to search information on writers getting paid.  At Write101, http://www.write101.com/paid.htm, Laura Backes, author of Best Books for Kids Who (Think They) Hate to Read, writes about how authors get paid.

Getting paid
At A List Apart, http://www.alistapart.com/articles/gettingpaid/ Jeffrey Zeldman's (2002) article addresses the difficulty of getting paid.

Writers Weekly, http://www.writersweekly.com/ has a forum in each issue, Whispers And Warnings, that tracks non-payers ~~ which is probably most relevant for those who write for magazines and such.

Cashing in from databases
Copyrights Clearance Center: http://www.copyright.com/. Writers who register their works set their own fees and dictate use of their works.

Health insurance
At least 30% of artists and writers are without any kind of health coverage, according to surveys. That's about twice the national average. In 1994 the National Endowment for the Arts convened a group to look into health care insurance.

Visit the Actor's Fund, http://www.actorsfund.org/, to learn about assistance; top tab, Services and Programs, to Health Care and Health Insurance.

Search, Social Services. and go here, http://www.actorsfund.org/human/social/. Scroll and read links. Also, check the links under Services and Programs, at the top of the page.

Search insurance will get you extensive links to insurances, etc., http://www.actorsfund.org/util/search?SearchableText=insurance.

No writer or artist should go without adequate healthcare for lack of insurance.

Exercises,

1. Create a business plan.
2. Set up your record keeping method. (Books, ledgers, reports that will help you at tax time.) 

Advice FromThe Pros, http://writerinsidertips.blogspot.com/

7-1, Freelance and Security: http://tinyurl.com/39g3qo9

7-2, Infringement and Plagiarizing: http://tinyurl.com/2amdvnf

7-3, What About Taxes : http://tinyurl.com/25ssc52

7-4, Formatting your manuscript in .pdf: http://tinyurl.com/38qgqv4

7-5, Publications That Renig on Payment: http://tinyurl.com/24eqoa2

Next, Chapter 15 - The Many Facets of Freelancing: http://tinyurl.com/36v758m