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Waiting is a huge component of a writer's life. We always seem to be waiting for something -- rejections and acceptances of queries and manuscripts; to hear from editors, agents, experts, and critiquers; and then, once a manuscript is accepted, even more waiting -- for contracts, revisions, artwork, layouts, publication, author copies, and reviews.

Most of the time, the publishing industry moseys along at a glacial pace, so it's always a treat when a publisher takes the time to send a status report during a long consideration process. It's especially welcome if the notice is an indication that a submission has passed through some hoops on a possible trajectory to acceptance.

Today, I'm tipping my goblet of sparkly apple juice (hey, it's before noon, here!) to celebrate receiving what is fondly referred to in the biz as a "bear card" from Highlights for Children. It's a simple postcard with a line drawing of a cute family of bears cuddled together reading, and it says, "Thank you for 'bearing' with us while we review your manuscript." It means the first reader liked my manuscript enough to pass it along to the rest of the editors for further consideration. Woohoo! First hoop cleared.

A "bear card" in the mail is the equivalent of getting a tiny nibble of the carrot on the stick while still on the long journey. Yum. It makes the journey so much more (sorry, can't resist) "bearable". Thank you, Highlights.
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I turned in two magazine articles yesterday, right under the wire. One was easy to write. The other one drove me nuts because I couldn't come up with a good hook to start it off. Usually I don't begin writing an article until I have what I think is a fabbo intro, but this time the catchy first sentence was eluding me, and had for almost two weeks.

When I get an assignment with a deadline a few weeks away, I do a flurry of research right away, and then let it rest for a day or two while my subconscious chews it over. At some point, it usually spits out a great first line---something that takes the very essence of the subject and shapes it in a cool way that will intrigue readers and hook them into reading more. But this time it just wasn't happening. My deadline was fast approaching and I had nada.

The article was a shortie, and I knew what I wanted to include in it, so I went ahead and wrote it without a first line to hang onto. Still nothing. I can't turn it in without a first line; it's unfinished.

By the end of deadline day, I'd tried all the idea-generating tricks I knew: physical exercise, fresh air, writing something else, doing dishes (usually a good bet), and a hot shower (another good bet. What is it with soap and hot water that pries ideas from the brain?). I had brainstormed every which way I knew how.

Still nada.

So. There I am, playing mindless solitaire. My brain is whirring away, searching, searching, when my husband comes along. He knows I'm behind the eight ball on this assignment and makes a good-natured Hmm-working-hard-I-see type comment. I tell him I'm in desperate need of a hook for my wolf article. He responds with something really far-fetched about sharks and predators and teeth, complete with hand gestures and facial expressions (hey, we're a theatre family dontchaknow). He does that---offers silly suggestions in an effort to make me smile when he knows I'm tense about something. He's used to me giving him the dipped head, looking-over-my-glasses, "Yeah. Right. I-love-you-dear-thanks-but-no-thanks" look in response. Much to his surprise, that's not what he gets this time. Instead, I say,

"Eureka! Thankyouthankyouthankyou! You're brilliant!"

In the next instant, I'm pounding away at the keyboard with renewed vigor, and hubby's walking away shaking his head. (Smart man. He knows to wait for an explanation when the keyboard clicks are that loud.)

I didn't use hubby's idea (it really was way out in left field), but his idea made me think of another one that incorporated the surprising overlap between shark and wolf. Now I just have to wait and see if my editor likes the hard-fought idea as much as I do.

Sometimes ya just need a little help to get outside the box.
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#1. Contributor copies of the Nov/Dec 2007 issue of KNOW Magazine arrived with my article "Slip Slidin' Through Winter"---toboggan physics for 6-year-olds. It's always exciting to see images and words together for the first time.

#2. A School Library Journal Review of some nonfiction Capstone books I wrote under a pseudonym. I stumbled across this as I was poking through articles on the SLJ website. The reviewer said, "These books are good introductions to the topics with many examples from the real world. They make physics fun." Yes, folks, physics can be fun. Ha! "Physics" and "fun" in the same sentence. . . two sentences in a row!

#3. Cybils nominated books arriving daily. Have you nominated your fave yet?

Bonus Cheer #4: Tomorrow's Friday!
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Oh, not me. I don't actually get to go to Korea---don't I wish!---but my words do.

The publisher of YES Mag and KNOW emailed contributing writers yesterday to say that starting in January 2008, versions of the magazines will be published in Korea for use with ESL students. If you're not familiar with YES Mag and KNOW, be sure to check them out. The are two of the coolest kids' science magazines on the planet. And I don't just say that because I'm one of the aforementioned writers! Honest.

These guys are a class act. Not only are they finding innovative ways to survive and grow in this tight, highly competitive business, but they're treating their authors well in the process. From now on, along with buying more rights (Korean as well as North American one-time rights), they'll pay writers more, too. And a nice healthy raise it is, with the possibilities of more to come in the future if the Korean print runs increase.

Very cool.

Kudos to the folks at YES Mag and KNOW. I wish them well in this new venture.
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There's a big secret about magazine writing (or any kind of competitive writing job) that nobody will ever put in a writing textbook.

It is an unavoidable part of our job, something that is at once troubling, annoying, and inspiring: in order to make it as a writer, you need to be friends with other writers and editors.

Without a community of writers, nobody will ever edit your work, pass your name on to an editor, or support you when you need the help. Don't try to make it all by your lonesome! 

This Urban Muse interview with author Louise Sloan lays it out pretty clearly.

Check it out:

"Well, I got both my first major magazine assignment (back in 1993) and the book deal last year because I made a personal connection to an editor and followed up on the opportunities that created for me. So I’d have to say, network, network, network! Get out there and meet people in the field, and then keep up with them. It doesn’t come naturally or easily to me, but the older I get the more I understand how essential it is."

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Most of the editors I've worked with over the years have been good. In fact, I consider myself extra lucky because only one was truly awful (and even she was just very, very green), the rest by-and-large were pretty darn good, and five fall into the crème de la crème category---much more than is statistically called for in such a bell curve tail. I'll happily take that distribution, however. Thankyouverymuch.

I was reminded today of my good fortune with editors when one---in the crème de la crème category---sent an article for me to proof.

For the best magazines, this is a standard procedure that bumps the quality up a notch. It gives the writer one last look at the text after it's been edited and sent for expert review. . . a chance for the writer to voice concerns about any changes that have been made. If everything goes as it should, the editor gets a "Looks great. Thanks!" from the writer, and the article goes off to press.

Sometimes, though, that extra author pass catches things that should be fixed. Even a comma shift or a word replaced by a synonym, or some other small change may inadvertently make a big difference to accuracy or meaning, expecially when cutting edge science is involved (which it frequently is in my magazine writing). In that case, editor and author work things out to restore the accuracy, either going back to the original wording or coming up with a third solution that satisfies them both. These discussions can be colourful, on such riveting topics as whether "shortfin makos" should be abbreviated to "shortfins" or "makos" or not at all (no, yes, and yes. . . even though "longfin makos" is shortened to "longfins", go figure) and whether North American kids would understand the word "squidgy" (no), among other tantalizing intellectual matters.

Today, the article to be proofed was barely changed from the one I turned in. Just a few stylistic word substitutions I couldn't have predicted, none of which altered the accuracy or meaning. Yea! Within an hour of the proofs arriving in my emailbox, the "Looks great. Thanks!" was winging its way back to the editor.

Thanks to her ability to communicate the scope of the assignment effectively, and my familiarity with the style and 'tude of the magazine, this article ended up right the first time out of the box. Actually, I knew the proofs wouldn't contain any major changes because crème de la crème editors don't make major changes to a writer's work. They return it to the writer with revision instructions and let the writer rework it. Oh, yeah, did I mention that editors showing respect for writers is a sure sign of a good editor?

It's such a pleasure working with crème de la crème.
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