#141267 - 03/18/07 03:41 PM
Great Expectations??
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Halzard
trapper
Registered: 12/22/06
Posts: 731
Loc: Blue Creek, Ohio
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In another thread, Thomas Riely made an informal solicitation for a manuscript. And I unabashedly asked him "How much does it pay?" Rather than drag that thread off track, let's discuss it here. T.R. replied.
Hal brings up an intresting point, that is not a lot of magizine contributers get paid well, if at all.
most of them offer you the "expert status" line. that is you use the contributions to define yourself as an expert with your peers and with the public, you can retain your pieces for promotional purposes.
writing in these circumstances is more personally gratifing then anything else.
a good example is that FFG and the T & P have made absolute legends out of certain folks hereabouts.
Which in the end increases the value of their service
To set the record straight, if you have an article good enough to be published in FFG or TTPC (with the possible exception of their School Days column.) You'll get paid for it.
But beyond that, just getting something published, period, is a milestone. Your first few bylines, i.e. "by Hal Sullivan", are invigorating. And everybody is excited to see their name in print. Heck, you should be proud of that. And that's a good thing because as T.R. noted, in reality you're not going to get paid very much, if anything.
But here is the slap down truth of the matter. The first few times you try this, the odds are overwhelming you will get nothing more than a pleasant rejection letter. That'll pop a hole in your balloon. In all likelihood you will have spent days or weeks or months working on your story, and you will be mad. If you are lucky, an editor will give you some idea of why the piece was rejected. Otherwise you'll get the standard: "This is not exactly the material we are looking for at this time."
If you don't take rejection well, don't play this game.
The places you are most likely to not get rejected from are indeed those that pay little or nothing for submissions. As far as trapping articles go The NTA magazine and the FTA magazine are good places to start. The Ohio State Trappers Association has it's own magazine, and they are always looking for trapping articles, no matter what state you're from. They might even be paying $5 - $20 for a manuscript now, but don't quote me on that.
One of the first regular "columns" I ever had was in a local tri-state outdoor "journal" (newspaper format) it paid $20 per month. And yes, I have moved up from there.
" FFG and the T & P have made absolute legends out of certain folks hereabouts. Which in the end increases the value of their service"
If I'm well known, it's probably because I've been writing in one form or another for 20 years and people recognize my name. If I'm actually legendary, it's probably because of my superpowers.
 -- Hal
_________________________
Not quite as miserable as Buzzard.
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#141986 - 03/19/07 05:12 AM
Re: Great Expectations??
[Re: Halzard]
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Thomas Reilly
trapper
Registered: 01/05/07
Posts: 70
Loc: Massachusetts
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" FFG and the T & P have made absolute legends out of certain folks hereabouts. Which in the end increases the value of their service"If I'm well known, it's probably because I've been writing in one form or another for 20 years and people recognize my name. If I'm actually legendary, it's probably because of my superpowers. -- Hal
Oh hey, I wasn't taking anything away from anyone, your recognition and your material are valuble assets to any magizine.
"Hey whats Hal say this month",,,,it keeps readers coming back,,,,sorry but its not your super telepathic ability that hooks em in.
it a good thing
Any how,,,magizines are cheapskates period, write because you like to write and you feel you have somthing to contribute, if it pans out for you then yeehawwww. you might make a few bucks.
A good piece needs a little passion behind it, if you start out looking for a career, fagetabout it, you will get rejected, feel rejected and toss the notepad out the window.
its like your trapping, you enjoy it, got good at it,,,and then found out you could make a few bucks,,,not the other way around
So Hal, are you able to be a bit of a go between?...mebee a pre screener, help guys get read by an editor?
_________________________
Men who sling mud quickly lose ground
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#142618 - 03/19/07 01:08 PM
Re: Great Expectations??
[Re: NYNovice]
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V3N
trapper
Registered: 12/28/06
Posts: 400
Loc: Indiana
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I've had a couple magazine articals and one book published but to say I'm a successful writer would be a stretch.In these days of self publishing anyone can be a published author.
Unless you write those romance novels my wife loves, I doubt you will become rich and famous. But if a little recognition among your peers is enough, articals and maybe a booklet or two is all it takes.
_________________________
From Dave Barry's 25 things I learned in 50 years:
"There's a fine line between a hobby and a mental illness."
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#142932 - 03/19/07 05:08 PM
Re: Great Expectations??
[Re: V3N]
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James
"Frostbite Jimmy"
trapper
Registered: 12/26/06
Posts: 1491
Loc: Anchorage, Alaska
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I've had stories published in science fiction and mystery magazines. My experience in fiction markets tracks with what Hal says here. You will probably have to submit stories repeatedly -- many stories, to many magazines -- and may collect enough form rejection notes to paper your wall, before breaking into print.
When I was nineteen, I wrote a SF story and sent it off to Analog magazine. It came back with a fairly detailed note from the editor (Ben Bova) about why the story didn't work. Before then I'd collected maybe half a dozen form rejections.
"Aha," I told myself. "Here is proof that an editor actually READ my story, and didn't like it." And I didn't send another story off to a publisher for more than twenty years.
In fact, I'd interpreted Bova's note completely wrong. The fact that he bothered to send me a personal note, instead of just sticking a form rejection in the return envelope, actually meant that I was getting close to writing a story he might like. What I should have done was redouble my efforts to write more stories and send them to him.
You need to grow a thick skin in this business, and keep writing and sending out your work to publishers.
Jim
Edited by James (03/19/07 05:09 PM)
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#144483 - 03/20/07 04:52 PM
Re: Great Expectations??
[Re: Halzard]
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James
"Frostbite Jimmy"
trapper
Registered: 12/26/06
Posts: 1491
Loc: Anchorage, Alaska
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No. Should I?
Jim
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#145887 - 03/21/07 01:25 PM
Re: Great Expectations??
[Re: Halzard]
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James
"Frostbite Jimmy"
trapper
Registered: 12/26/06
Posts: 1491
Loc: Anchorage, Alaska
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Gosh, you're confused. I never said I write for comic books.
Jim
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Moderator: NYNovice, James
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-- Hal
