Sorry for neglecting this so long. I check the forum every day, but for some reason didn't see that there were two new posts that needed answering (and two that didn't). With the proviso that I've never managed to sell a short story, I'd say see if you can get access to previous winners of the same contest, if any. You may be able to pick up a common theme, or a particular style of writing or subject matter that the contest owners are fond of. If it's a new contest, or you can't read previous winners, or if you have read them and there's no recurring theme, try to find out as much as you can about whoever's offering the prize money. Is it some sort of academic or lit'rary society? Is it corporate sponsored? Answers to that question would give you a hook vis-a-vis the mindset and what would make them happy. Because as J.S. Bach could tell you, when you make your patron happy, you never run out of groceries for the 14 kids...
It shocks me too sometimes, frankly. Dwellers in the Crucible, Catalyst of Sorrows, and an upcoming novel about Christopher Pike. Who writes what for which "flavor" of Trek is at the editors' discretion. If you're unhappy with the ENT novels, you should let them know.
This has probably been asked before but: What else do you do to bring money in? Or are you able to purely write for your income? If so, how long did it take you to get to there?
Given that the median income for midlist writers has remained around 7.5K a year for the past 30 years, the majority view their writing income as a secondary or supplemental income in addition to their Day Jobs. S/f writers in particular tend to be academics, or have careers in the sciences or IT or something along that line. My career's been a little different, in that early on I was marketed as a mainstream writer, and actually made a full-time living from 1979-1982. Then two things happened: the Recession of '82, and the decision by the parent company that owned my publisher to kill its publishing interests. That threw about a dozen of us out of our professional home, to join the 500 or so midlist writers abandoned by other houses during the biggest restructuring in the history of the industry in response to the recession. Over the next several years I wrote several mss. on spec, but no one was buying. Worked as an executive secretary until '87, when the combination of my first Trek sale and two other deals made it possible for me to quit and go back to writing and earning full time for the next 11 years. (As an aside, there are a couple of morons on this board who don't seem to grasp the fact that when the median income for one's profession is $7,500 a year, one's ability to make multiple times that in a given year is a success, not a failure. But there's no talking to morons.) From the late '80s into the 90s, various factors in the book business resulted in the payout of smaller and smaller advances (except for the Big Six, but what was siphoned away from us was added to them), so we were all doing just as much work, but at an ever-shrinking pay scale. So in '98 I segued into medical transcription, with writing as a second income. Over the past two+ years, I've made another lateral move into proofreading and editing, so I now have three sources of income: proofing/editing, occasional transcription, and the writing income. What's nice is that I can do all of this from my home office, make my own hours, and not have to commute, maintain a business wardrobe, or put up with office politics. What's not so nice is that it's all freelance income (with the concomitant double hit on Social Security, and no employer to pay into health insurance, pension, etc.), and those hours are sometimes seven days a week. If I had it to do over again, I might have retrained or even gotten a master's to continue my teaching career back in my late twenties/early thirties, but those first four years of Really Nice Income suckered me into thinking it would always be that way. But if 500 midlist writers fell off the charts in '82 and never returned, I consider myself Writer #501. I'm like a Timex watch - takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin'.
Cool. Okay, now, the Pike book. Turkey? Ham? Pastrami? If it's turkey, make it the good breast stuff with the grain still in it, not that watery extruded stuff.
Y'know, you've hit on one of the crucial aspects of the story and, I have to tell you, it required a great deal of soul searching. The goal was to consider my target audience. Looking at it from an age demographic, most under-30s can eat just about anything. But what of the 30-80-somethings whose doctors were concerned for their coronary health? Should I eliminate the pastrami, since I tend to draw a more mature audience segment (apparently the PlayStation Generation expects linear narrative; flashbacks upset them)? From a cultural perspective, should I reject the concept of ham, in order to avoid offending the non-traif eaters in my target demographic? After all, these books are translated and distributed worldwide. But not everyone likes turkey, not even jazzed up with baby Swiss and Dijon on a good sourdough baguette. What to do? But then I reminded myself: You're writing Star Trek. Star Trek is about many things, not least of which are strong characterizations, and an inbuilt technology that spares you having to explain "Well, boys and girls, this ship can go faster than the speed of light because..." Think food replicators. Then work backwards to the technology we have today. Suddenly, it all became clear to me. (See, kiddies, this is the value of flashbacks.) Why not all three? Turkey, turkey ham, turkey pastrami. Problem solved. Something for everyone, mindful of their cardiac health and cultural preferences. No one's offended, there's something on the buffet table for everyone. Pick your favorite, or pile on all three, and don't forget the bread-and-butter pickles. Oh, and rest assured, D, none of that extruded stuff on my watch. Only the best goes into my books.
My brother is interested in becoming a "copy editor" for a book publisher or possibly for a periodical. -- What sort of degree(s) would you recommend he pursue? -- What would publishers be looking for in a potential copy editor? -- Are there likely to be many opportunities for him in the field? -- How would he go about getting an opportunity? -- Any particular websites or publications for him to look at? -- Any other advice? Thanks!
^At least a B.A. in English is a must. After that, it's the old "can't get the job without the experience/can't get the experience without a job" dilemma. If your brother's willing to move to NYC and start at entry level as an editorial assistant for about 15-18K a year (how to make rent in NYC on that little is the real challenge), that used to be the way to start. However, these days there are online editing/proofreading houses that might - might - consider testing someone with entry-level skills. Scribendi.com is one I can think of; a Google search should pull up a few more. Web design/IT skills are also a plus. He might want to rack up some volunteer experience designing friends' websites, playing webmaster, etc. Knowing how to edit online, as well as being able to find his way around the Track Changes function in Word, is a plus. writersweekly.com is a free subscription service that has job listings. And there's always Craig's List. A subscription to Publishers Weekly is pricy, but that might give him the lay of the land. He might also want to just cold-contact various magazines, particularly corporate-related mags, because MBAs can't spell worth a damn. Good luck to him!
Here's a question: How do you fight the depression when you're feeling the itch to start writing again, then you finish reading a series of books that are so freakin' good you know you'll never come within a million miles of being that good on your best possible day?
I actually admire writers who are better than I. For instance, I was more than pleased to see The Constant Gardener nominated for an Oscar, even though it didn't win. Of course I'm still puzzling over how Larry McMurtry, who's a really bad novelist, was able to derive a really good screenplay from the work of Annie Proulx, a really good novelist. Strange alchemy there. It's the crapmeisters who get the big bucks for writing the same book over and over again that piss me off. But then I have to remind myself that it's not their fault; they're just being used by the bean-counters, and all those millions won't make them feel any better about themselves, and all the money in the world can't compensate for mediocrity. Or something like that....
New question: When you submit a manuscript to your publisher, what format do you send it in these days? Paper copy? Word doc? PDF? Or does it ultimately matter what WP program you use?
^Most editors these days prefer a Word document. A few old-fashioned types still prefer hardcopy. Best bet is to check the submission guidelines on the publisher's site and/or shoot an email off to 'em and ask. If they wanted a printed copy, don't forget to enclose a SASE. Format is uniform in any event - double-spaced, one-inch margins all around, a header with your LAST NAME/Title at the left margin, page numbers in the upper right corner. As for fonts, Courier used to be the standard, but nowadays Times New Roman seems to be preferred. Again, it never hurts to ask.
Do you typically submit an entire novel as one gigantic Word file, or is it broken down into chapters and such?
garamet, Who are some of your favorite authors? And what do you think of Dan Simmons' (my personal fave) work?
^Despite his prolific output, I confess I haven't read Simmons. As a rule I don't read horror or fantasy, and actually read very little s/f. Don't want to end up imitating other writers' styles, or finding out all the good storylines are taken. Besides, I bumbled into writing s/f via Trek because the mainstream fiction market was closed to people like me in the early Eighties. My s/f reads like mainstream, which makes me difficult to niche, and that gives editors fits. So my reading's kind of eclectic. I'll usually bop into the library and grab anything that appeals to me. If I really like a book, I'll buy it. Rarely buy something first and then find out I hate it. Some long-time favorites are: Martin Cruz Smith John le Carré Both of whom are typed as writers of "thrillers," but who give their characters as much depth as a mainstream writer would. As for mystery writers: Jonathan Kellerman (although he seems to have lost his fast ball) Lawrence Block Tony Hillerman Also because they put more effort into character than your average mystery writer. Thomas Keneally. Actually Schindler's List is one of his less successful works, IMO, as compared to, say To Asmara. James Lee Burke. Atmosphere and character. Alice Walker, Toni Morrison. Because while I know what it's like to be a woman of their generation, I occasionally need a perspective not my own. Strong, driven characters. Guess you're noticing a theme here? The classics - Dickens, Faulkner, Charlotte Bronte (less hysterical than her sisters). Surprisingly, I'm not a big fan of Jane Austen, which I realize makes me an anomaly on the distaff side, but major screen productions aside, she's really just writing soaps. Um, after that, just about anybody who writes strong characters, sets them down in either places I know really well (like Block's NYC) or places I've never been (like Hillerman's Four Corners), and tells me a convincing story.
^Haven't read her. See what I mean? I know *of* her, I understand she's gotten lots of awards, but I'd rather read the next Kellerman. But that's just me.
