The Writers Network News, Do I Coach Writers? February 2020
In This Issue
One: From the Editor's Desk: DO I COACH WRITERS?
Two: Ask the Book Doctor—ABOUT PEN NAMES
Three: Subjects of Interest to Writers
Four: Contests, Agents, and Markets
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The Writers Network News
No Rules; Just Write!
Editor: Bobbie Christmas
Contents copyright 2020, Bobbie Christmas
No portion of this newsletter can be used without permission; however, you may forward the newsletter in its entirety to fellow writers.
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Meet Fellow Writers
Do you live in or visit metro Atlanta? Sign up for notices of local (but sporadic) meetings today! Send your name and email address to Bobbie@zebraeditor.com.
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Some links in this newsletter may be shortened with help from www.tinyurl.com, a free service that converts long links to short ones.
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Writer's Quote of the Month
“Treat it [writing] as a job, not a mystical calling, and then you’ll get up every morning and go ‘to work,’ instead of waiting for the muse to attend you.” —Jean Brody
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One: From the Editor's Desk: DO I COACH WRITERS?
Dear Fellow Writers:
A fellow writer recently asked me if I coach writers. When I think of coaches, I think of hulking hirsute men running along the sidelines of a game shouting demands of the players. “No,” I instinctively said, “I don’t coach writers.”
Later I realized my error. It was a matter of semantics. I don’t coach writers, but I do mentor them. Here’s my problem: even in my experience with the milder form of coaching, as in life coaching, I still have the sense that coaches are nags, and I’m not a nag. It’s a personal feeling, of course, because many people benefit from the use of coaches in life, business, and of course, sports. Still, what I do as a mentor is not what I would call coaching, even though it can be equally effective.
Instead of coaching, I mentor writers. First I mentor writers through this very newsletter. I am your mentor because you are a subscriber. Next I mentor clients when they hire me to edit their manuscripts. My hard-copy editing and hybrid editing methods include a full report that evaluates everything in the contents of the manuscripts and explains all my editing changes in detail. That report shows writers so much about how to improve their writing style and manuscript that one client likened the report to a four-year college course in creative writing. I have also mentored writers for many years by giving countless seminars and meetings. I’ve mentored writers in my critique groups. I allow writers to send me emails with questions that I answer by email, another way I mentor writers. I have written several books that teach writers how to improve their writing skills. In the past I have even mentored a few interns, some that went into the editing business themselves. I even took one high-school student under my wing for a nine-month writing project during her senior year.
At every turn and whenever I can, I help writers in whatever way I can, but I have never considered myself a coach.
No, I won’t follow your progress, call you to remind you to write, or nag you into writing when you don’t feel in the zone. Yes, though, when you reach out to me, I’m there for you. I much prefer being called a mentor, thank you.
Yours in writing,
Bobbie Christmas Bobbie@zebraeditor.com or bzebra@aol.com
Author of two editions of WRITE IN STYLE, owner of Zebra Communications, director of The Writers Network, coordinator of the Florida Writers Association Editors Helping Writers service, and senior editor of Enjoy Cherokee Magazine
If someone forwarded this newsletter to you, please sign up to get your own subscription. Simply go to https://www.zebraeditor.com/ to subscribe to The Writers Network News. My promise: I never share your address or send out spam.
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Two: ASK THE BOOK DOCTOR
ABOUT PEN NAMES
By Bobbie Christmas
Q: I’m publishing a book of rebus puzzles. Should I use a pen name or my own name? I know some authors use another name when they switch genres, so readers don’t become confused. Your thoughts are appreciated.
A: I love to hear when writers of one style turn to another, as in the case of your writing word puzzles. The switch to a totally different genre does sometimes trigger the wish for a pseudonym, but the choice is yours.
Readers don’t easily get confused. They can tell the difference between a work of fiction and one of nonfiction. Even if you wrote in various fiction genres, such as romance, thriller, mystery, and science fiction, each book cover explains what the book is about. How would it baffle readers?
One of my most successful clients writes both thrillers and fantasy novels. She has won awards for both genres and sold the separate genres to different publishers. She has a big following for both genres and uses her real name for both. Using a pen name for one or the other genre might have cut down her fan base and reduced the overall sales of her books.
Personally I love my name, and the only reason I would use a fictious one is if I were to write something in which I took no pride. Omar Sharif did not write under other names when he shifted from acting to screenwriting to writing about bridge; he took advantage of his popularity.
One time a fellow author at a book signing admitted to me that she wrote in so many genres and had so many pseudonyms that she sometimes forgot who she was supposed to be on a particular day at a specific event. She said gatherings of authors had become a nightmare to her, because of her various names. At general book signings where authors were invited as a group, she brought five or six books with various pseudonyms, and no one knew who she was. Guess who was confused. Not readers; the author was the confused one.
No rule applies to using pen names. The choice is a personal one. Before you decide to use an alias, though, think of the pros and cons. The only pro I see is that it gives authors anonymity when necessary. The cons are numerous, though.
Q: I own a business, and I am writing a humorous book critiquing the dating habits of American men. Parts of the book are a little off-color, and I don’t want it to impact my business negatively by being “out there” where my clients might read it. Can I/should I publish anonymously? How in heaven’s name is that done? Maybe a pen name? How do I navigate this terrain in the book proposal, which is complete except for this aspect?
A: You’ve hit on one of the reasons why some authors use pen names. Pick a good nom de plume, and on the title page of the proposal below your name, drop down two lines and add, “Writing as” and add the pseudonym you have chosen. In other words, the book proposal should include your real name, but the actual book probably should not.
Q: Is there a section on a government website to add a pen name?
A: Pen names, or pseudonyms, are left up to authors, and authors may have a variety of reasons for not using their real names. As far as I know, though, there is no registry for pen names. The only rule of thumb is not to use a pen name that is the name of a well-known author or celebrity. For example, you are likely to be sued if you use J. K. Rowling, Stephen King, or Tom Hanks as your pen name.
Bobbie Christmas, book editor, author of Write In Style: Use Your Computer to Improve Your Writing, and owner of Zebra Communications, will answer your questions, too. Send them to Bobbie@zebraeditor.com or BZebra@aol.com. Read Bobbie’s Zebra Communications blog at https://www.zebraeditor.com/blog/.
For much more information on these subjects and hundreds of others of vital importance to writers, order PURGE YOUR PROSE OF PROBLEMS, a Book Doctor’s Desk Reference Book at http://tinyurl.com/4ptjnr.
Bobbie Christmas’s award-winning second edition of WRITE IN STYLE: How to Use Your Computer to Improve Your Writing is available from Amazon at https://tinyurl.com/y7ppcdkd or buy it directly at https://tinyurl.com/y7p9xkbb.
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Three: Subjects of interest to writers
MEMBERS WRITE
In the December newsletter I spoke of ending a family tradition that I’d been keeping for a quarter of a century. For twenty-five or more years I’d been giving a party I called Christmas Day at the Christmas House and invited my family and friends to come by and eat, sip cider, and mingle. I was surprised at how many folks wrote to cheer me up and cheer me on regarding my decision to stop giving the party. Here are a few of the comments I received:
Rosemary Perry wrote, “I'm sorry for the change in Christmas for you.” She suggested, “Next year take a cruise.” Great suggestion, Rosemary! I love cruising.
Marlene Clark sympathized. “How sad that you got only one response [to your invitation], but I'm glad that you could put that part aside and focus on what made you feel good. I've had similarly quiet Christmases, and I survived too.” She wished me good luck in the new year and said, “Remember to maintain a positive attitude.” That’s me, with a positive attitude 98 percent of the time.
Forrest Schultz reports, “Your ‘End of an Era’ experience was exactly the opposite of that of my maternal grandmother.” An uplifting story followed. Thank you, Forrest.
When Terry Wynne wrote, I told her of my new tradition of having my best friends over to spend the night on New Year’s Eve. She responded, “Love your new tradition. Friends become your family of choice and are sometimes nicer than family members.”
Ruth White and others sent compelling notes of compassion, understanding, and sympathy. I appreciate the understanding and kindness, and thankfully I don’t need sympathy. I look forward to the next era and the new normal.
Bill (William) Speir, author of quite a few award-winning books himself, addressed a different issue. He wrote, “I enjoy your newsletter very much, but I found a typo in this one (maybe you did this on purpose to see who would catch it?). The word is ‘Y'ALL,’ not ‘YA'LL,’ as this is a contraction of ‘You All.’ You had the apostrophe in the wrong place on the line that reads: ‘Happy New Year, Ya’ll!’"
I responded with a red face that could not be seen over the Internet, “You are so right! My parents were from Connecticut, and my mother never let any of us say ‘y'all,’ so I apparently never learned to write it correctly. It wasn't a typo. It was a dumb error that proves that even editors need editors—a second pair of eyes—because writers and editors don't know what they don’t know and therefore can’t know when they make mistakes.”
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EDITING TIPS:
BAD/BADLY
Even though it may not sound right, people do not feel badly, they feel bad. Badly is an adverb that describes the manner in which something is done. He felt badly means he did a poor job of feeling with his fingers. Correct: He felt bad, because he played tennis badly.
If someone is hurt, however, they are not hurt bad; they are hurt badly. When John stumbled, he hurt his ankle badly.
FORWARD/FOREWORD
Foreword: introduction to a nonfiction book, often written by someone other than the author of the book
Forward: toward a front position (not to be confused with a foreword in a book)
(Excerpts from PURGE YOUR PROSE OF PROBLEMS, a book doctor’s desk reference, available only at ZebraEditor.com.)
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MEDITATION MAY CATCH MISTAKES
According to researcher Jeff Lin, lead author of a paper published in BRAIN SCIENCES, a twenty-minute session of open monitoring meditation helps folks identify when they’ve made mistakes. In open monitoring meditation, the meditator tries to notice all thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations as they happen, rather than in typical meditation, where the meditator tries to block out all thought and sensations. Extended use of open monitoring meditation could lead to improved error recognition, something all writers could use. To try open monitoring meditation, see SoundCloud.com and listen to “20-Minute Seated Meditation by Steve Hickman.”
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EASY ACCESS TO BOBBIE’S BLOGS
Read creative writing tips as well as some of my personal experiences. Access the Write In Style blog here: https://www.zebraeditor.com/blog/
On the other hand, for my relationship-related blog, see my blog titled “Neurotica: Crazy Stories of Love, Lust, and Letting Go.” If you like to read about disastrous dates and ridiculous relationships, I’ve got a ton of them, and they all happened to me. Some are funny, some are a little sexy, some are sad, and all true. My latest addition is a little scary, because it happened when I was only six years old. Read it here: https://neuroticastories.blogspot.com.
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HILARIOUS MISUSES OF QUOTATION MARKS
Searchlights says, "Generally the use of quotation marks (when they're not an actual quotation) carries a connotation of sarcasm, or of a tongue-in-cheek admission that the thing in quotes isn't actually what it's said to be. That's what has the effect of making the statement suspicious. My favorite examples usually come from the food service industry. There's something alarming about chicken being written dubiously as "chicken" (what is it, really?) People want to emphasize a word, and for whatever reason they think putting it in quotations gets them there." See the funny uses here: https://tinyurl.com/s6t9cyp
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CMOS ONLINE Q&A
This month someone posed the following question to The Chicago Manual of Style Online:
Q. I am editing a brief in which the author has used “and/or” multiple times. I know that this term should be avoided, but I’m not exactly sure why. Is it because it’s confusing and ambiguous? What is The Chicago Manual of Style’s stance?
To get the answer to this question and many more based on Chicago style, go to http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/qanda/latest.html.
THE CHICAGO MANUAL OF STYLE sets the standard in book publishing for issues such as punctuation, capitalization, and much more. If you write fiction or nonfiction books, you will want to know about Chicago style or be sure to use a professional book editor intimately familiar with Chicago style.
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MANUSLIP TIME: WRONG WORDS
Sometimes writers are unaware of choosing the wrong words when they write. The result can sometimes be funny, and I call them manuslips. You may note that in my manuslips I always remove the original names of characters so the errors are not attributable to any particular manuscript or author.
Here are a few examples of incorrect word choices:
He certainly didn’t want to revisit the crying gig that occurred earlier. (A gig can be a concert, but I’m sure the author meant a crying jag. Jag refers to a bout of unrestrained activity or emotion, especially drinking, crying, or laughing.)
They fell head over hill in love. (Unless they were Jack and Jill, they should not go over the hill. I am sure the author mean head over heels.)
The flames rose, and she screamed again and collapsed as he douched her. (Oh, heavens, I do hope he doused her, instead.)
The barn collapsed, creating a massive bomb fire. (A bonfire, which I’m certain the author intended, is bad enough, but we don’t need a bomb fire!)
He helped her excise the horses. (Excise means to cut out. Unless the horses were paper dolls, I hope he helped her exercise them, not cut them out.)
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WRITE IN STYLE: How to Use Your Computer to Improve Your Writing
Five-time-award-winning WRITE IN STYLE leaves grammar to the grammarians. Instead it uses humor and expertise to show writers how to strengthen their writing style and create a fresh voice. Available as an e-book or printed.
Order your copy today at https://tinyurl.com/y8fp5nym.
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Four: Contests, Agents, and Markets
OH READER WANTS ESSAYS, PAYS $200
Oh Reader is not so much about books themselves (although we do love them—fiercely); it’s more about the lives of those who read them. Because, let’s face it, the books we read shape who we are as people.
Oh Reader is a magazine about reading, for and by readers. It looks deep into the art of reading—why we do it, how it affects us, who we are when we read, and how we’re all connected through words.
Expect insightful stories, hilarious observations, fascinating interviews and a lot of word-nerdery. We publish four times a year, in print and online, so you can read any time. The first edition lands in June 2020.
We’re looking for stories about your experiences as a reader, insight into the effect of reading on humans, humorous takes on the world of words, and anything else you as a reader or writer might be interested in sharing. In other words: we’re open to any ideas you may have. Don’t be afraid to get inventive. We’d love to hear your ideas!
Please note that due to the volume of submissions we receive, only submissions that we would like to follow up for publication will receive a response.
Authors of all accepted stories will be paid a flat rate of $200 for their published article. To submit see https://www.ohreader.com/submissions.
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FLASH FICTION CONTEST
Short fiction; short deadline, February 29. Hurry!
Remember, we only allow for 300 entries, so enter early to ensure your spot. We look forward to reading your work!
WORD COUNT:
Maximum: 750
Minimum: 250
The title is not to be counted in your word count. We use MS Word’s word count to determine the submitted entry’s word count.
Open prompt! That’s right, this is your chance to shine and get creative. You can write about anything, as long as it’s within the word count and fiction. If you’re feeling inspired, write something new, or dig out those stories you started way back when and tailor them to the word count.
We’re open to any style and genre. So get creative, and most of all, have fun.
Full guidelines here: https://tinyurl.com/uuw2s5f
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TAPROOT MAGAZINE
Taproot Magazine is an ad-free, independently published bimonthly print magazine celebrating farm, food, family and craft through writing, photography, and the arts, both fine and domestic. Our magazine is divided into three sections:
Head - essays about living a more connected life
Hands - recipes, crafts and projects to make yourself
Heart - the personal experience of more connected living
If you are interested in submitting something to us, we encourage you to first familiarize yourself with our pages by spending some time with an issue or two. If you are already familiar with our magazine, please consult our editorial calendar to see if your submission would work well with one of our upcoming themes. All submissions, and questions about submissions, should be sent to: ideas@taprootmag.com. For submission guidelines plus themes and deadlines, see https://taprootmag.com/pages/submissions.
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PENTIMENTO
Through art, photography, essays, stories, and poetry, Pentimento will ask its readers to see beyond disabilities and physical challenges. To see the ways in which we are all connected. We publish essays, short stories, poetry, and interviews. We are seeking authentic, well-written essays and poetry with a disability-related theme. Submissions may be by a individual with a disability or an individual who is part of the community such as a family member, educator, therapist, etc. Please indicate in your submission which category you are in. We accept essays, short stories, and interviews by individuals with a disability or a community member. If you are an individual with a disability or part of the disability community as a family member, caregiver, special educator, or in any way connected to disability, we want to see your disability-related writing. We will pay $25 – $250 for a published submission, and payment is determined by length and quality. Payment for previously published work will be reduced.
A contract will be sent upon acceptance. We publish twice a year: Summer and Winter. The deadlines are March 15 for the summer issue and September 15 for the winter issue. See complete submission guidelines at https://pentimentomag.wordpress.com/submission-guidelines/writing/.
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Do YOU have news for The Writers Network News? Send it in the body of an email to Bobbie@zebraeditor.com or bzebra@aol.com. Deadline: 18th of each month.
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Send a copy of this newsletter to all your writing friends. Tell them to join The Writers Network F-R-E-E by visiting https://www.zebraeditor.com/ and signing up for The Writers Network News.
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With the exception of Zebra Communications, information in this newsletter is not to be construed as an endorsement. Research all information and study every stipulation before you enter a competition, pitch or accept an assignment, spend money, or sell your work.
The Writers Network News: a newsletter for writers everywhere. No Rules; Just Write!
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