by guest writer, Erin Murray

The recent closing of Oregon Literacy, Inc., due to fundraising issues marks a sad moment for literacy advocates in Oregon and elsewhere. As information becomes more and more accessible due to constantly changing technology, literacy has become a more important issue than ever, both in terms of general literacy and information literacy. Not only is it crucial to be able to read, but also to understand why people read and what makes reading appealing.

On that note, compiled below is a list of sites, blogs, and newsletters that one may find useful in terms of keeping informed about the goings-on in the world of words. By maintaining a strong level of information literacy about their crafts, writers, publishers, marketers, designers, and other individuals can continue to make reading a fun and appealing activity and support childhood and adult literacy.

LITERACY

Catalyst
http://www.nifl.gov/
This newsletter released by the National Institute for Literacy is a great resource not only for keeping up with news about literacy, but also for learning about literacy and what teachers, parents, tutors, mentors, and other influential individuals can do to help reluctant readers.

Information Literacy blog
http://information-literacy.blogspot.com/
This blog defines information literacy as “the adoption of appropriate information behaviour to identify, through whatever channel or medium, information well fitted to information needs, leading to wise and ethical use of information in society.” First we learn to read, then we read to learn. Somewhere along that continuum, we learn to find, access, and manage the information available to us. Then, and maybe only then, do we learn to use what we have read for the benefit of all, particularly those who cannot read. Thought-provoking blog content; well worth your time.

GENERAL

Shelf Awareness
http://shelf-awareness.com/
This wonderful daily newsletter offers tidbits of news and information from all across the publishing sphere. Not only is it free, but they have archived their entire collection of newsletters on their website dating back to 2005, allowing you to access a veritable wealth of knowledge.

Powell’s Daily Dose
http://www.powells.com/features/dailydose.html
The Daily Dose is a feature that Powell’s bookstore has set up that benefits both the people posting reviews and those who subscribe to the daily feature. Readers can go online and write reviews for books, and each day Powell’s selects a recent review to be displayed on the Daily Dose page (you can also sign up for an e-mail version). If the reader’s review is selected, they get a $20 gift certificate to use on Powells.com. Not only that, if the prize isn’t claimed for the day, it’s added to the winnings of the next day’s reviewer. The incentive makes for high-quality reviews and is a great way to expand your literary canon, as reviews are selected from every genre and topic.

Publisher’s Weekly
https://www.publishersweekly.com/subscribe.asp?screen=ai1
Available in both print and electronic forms, the wide-ranging Publisher’s Weekly offers pages and pages of reviews of upcoming releases, author interviews, literary events, industry news, and much more through its print version and its free e-newsletters. Click on the Newsletters tab to sign up for PW Daily, Religion BookLine, Children’s Bookshelf, and PW Comics Week. These publications are excellent resources for publishers, writers of all genres, marketers, and anyone wanting to keep abreast of the latest happenings in the literary world.

DESIGNING

The Book Design Review
http://www.thebookdesignreview.com
This blog focuses on book covers and the design trends that appear in book covers. Blogger Joseph Sullivan posts various covers and writes a brief discussion about them, often closing by asking his readers what they think, sparking a conversation amongst his readers. Sullivan often includes both US and UK versions of the covers, and groups similar covers within one post. This blog is a great way to become acquainted with the names of various designers, and also includes links to useful sites, articles, and other items that make a great resource for any designer.

EDITING

Evil Editor
http://evileditor.blogspot.com/
This hilarious blog written by a mutton-chopped curmudgeon has two main features: “Face-Lifts” for synopses that authors plan on sending to publishers or agents that the Evil Editor comments on, and “New Beginnings,” a feature in which authors submit the first 150 words of their book and readers can continue the story, telling the author how they think the story should continue. Peppered throughout are cartoons, writing exercises, and other features relating to writing. The great thing about this blog is the interaction the author has with his readers—its success depends on contributions from readers for the blog to work, which means an active community as well as opportunities for you to get personalized advice (or admonishment).

MARKETING

O’Reilly’s Tools of Change for Publishing
http://toc.oreilly.com/
The goal of O’Reilly’s TOC blog is to not only provide readers with information about trends in the publishing industry, but also to encourage discussion—at the end of many of the blog posts the author poses a question that can be discussed in the comment section. The writers of the blog also discuss a wide range of topics, at times looking beyond the world of publishing for new and creative ideas that can still be used in publishing. The blog is well-organized, displaying related articles beneath each entry, and using a tagging system for easy navigating.

Sproutwire
http://www.sproutwire.com/
Moderated by a team of business owners and bloggers, Sproutwire works to bring readers the best articles about small businesses. While articles can be submitted by anyone, they are only posted to the site after being approved by moderators, resulting in a high-quality pool of information. On the site’s main page are brief descriptions of each article, a link to the original source, and a counter that keeps track of how many times people have clicked to read the article. The information on Sproutwire doesn’t necessarily relate directly to publishing, but the articles do have gems of information that can nevertheless be applied to the efforts of anyone within the publishing industry.

Lifehacker
http://lifehacker.com/
Cool tech to help organize your life. Really. Lifehacker wants to help you get things done, and to make that happen, this site has tech savvy to spare. Great feature articles and commentary. Writing, reading, managing, living…

YPulse Daily Update (see YA/TEEN)

WRITING

The Practicing Writer
http://practicing-writer.com/
Created in 2004, this free monthly newsletter from writer Erika Dreifus is written in a personable style and is full of useful information for writers at all levels of skill and experience. Each issue includes a letter from the editor, articles on writing, and announcements of contests, calls for submission, and other opportunities that are free or have a small fee. The newsletter also features a calendar of literary events, and Dreifus keeps her readers informed about her own personal experience as a “practicing writer” through highlights from her own blog.

Purdue Online Writing Lab
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/681/01/
The Purdue OWL deals with the nuts and bolts of writing, and is designed to help writers in all genres of writing. Readers can post questions to be answered either by OWL tutors or by other newsletter readers (the posted answers are moderated so that they aren’t wildly inaccurate). This is a great resource to check out when polishing up your writing.

Evil Editor (see EDITING)

CHILDREN’S

School Library Journal
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/
The School Library Journal website has a number of opportunities for newsletters and journals. The primary publication is the Journal itself, which is available both in print and on the web. It contains articles, letters to the editor, news on children’s and young adult literature, book reviews, and a special technology section that helps keep you updated on the latest trends in technology relating to books. In addition, the SLJ website offers three different newsletters, all of which are archived online: SLJ Teen, discussing all things teen- and book-related; Curriculum Connections, a resource for K-12 educators, librarians, and other professionals; and Extra Helping, offering “news, views, and resources” from SLJ editors.

FICTION

Fiction Factor
http://www.fictionfactor.com/
The Fiction Factor is an online magazine published on a monthly basis. Each issue contains articles about writing, class opportunities, book reviews, and market listings. The site also supports a fairly active forum for a more day-to-day information exchange.

Fiction Fix Newsletter
http://www.coffeehouseforwriters.com/fictionfix/current.html
The fully archived Fiction Fix Newsletter is published once a month and aims to provide fiction writers with articles, tips on various aspects of writing, discussions of happenings in the writing world, and other topics. It offers information on a wide variety of subjects, and also provides an opportunity for fiction writers to submit articles about their own experiences as a writer.

GRAPHIC NOVELS/COMICS

Newsarama
http://newsarama.com/
Newsarama is a must-read website for anyone with an interest in comics or graphic novels, whether a publisher, writer, illustrator, purveyor, or fan. This site’s main page has updates about comics (both online and in print), graphic novels, film adaptations, movie trailers, television shows, games, news articles, and pretty much anything else related to the world of comics and graphic novels. In addition, the Newsarama Blog offers opinions and editorials about a wide range of topics written in a more personal style and providing the opportunity for readers to comment.

Pony Express
http://www.darkhorse.com/Newsletter/Current
The Pony Express newsletter, published by Dark Horse Comics, is marketed more for fans than writers/publishers/other professionals, but it is still a great way to keep up with news in the comic world. Each newsletter features an editorial as well as information about upcoming book and comic releases, new products, comic-related events, and a letter from the publisher.

SCIENCE FICTION

Locus Online (Locus magazine’s online site)
http://www.locusmag.com/
Locus Online is the web home of Locus Magazine, a top-notch science fiction & fantasy resource for writers, readers, and publishers. While this is actually their website rather than a newsletter or blog, Locus does a great job of posting recent news and events—particularly SF&F conventions—author interviews, and book reviews.

Tobias Buckell’s Blog
http://www.tobiasbuckell.com/
Tobias Buckell, speculative fiction author and blogger, knows how to promote his work and his genre. The blog is widely read and admired for its ability to lift the veil on inside information about writing and publishing in the science fiction and speculative fiction genres.

Boing Boing
http://www.boingboing.net/
Boing Boing started life as a zine, but has morphed into a blog of cutting-edge technology, gadgets, science fiction, futurism, and intellectual property. The original editors were proponents of the cyberpunk subculture, and their content remains techy, exciting, and geared for both present and future. The four Boing Boing editors are contributing writers for Wired Magazine, and co-editor and SF author Cory Doctorow’s craphound.com is another great blog to frequent for related news and commentary.

POETRY

Sharp Sand
http://www.sharpsand.net/
Referring to the coarse sand used in mixing concrete, Joseph Duemer’s Sharp Sand is a bluntly honest blog about poetry, politics, teaching, and life as an artist. Duemer’s entries themselves have a kind of poetic quality to them—he doesn’t forget that even in the anonymous world of the Internet, he is still a quality writer. This is a good blog for learning about how Duemer draws upon his environment, especially in terms of politics and his work as a college professor, and uses it to feed his own artistic hunger.

Silliman’s Blog
http://www.ronsilliman.blogspot.com
Better warm up your scroll button before clicking over to this blog because it is overflowing with links. The first time I accessed the site, Ron Silliman’s most recent post consisted of no less than 158 (yes, I counted) links to articles, videos, reviews, blogs, and other items relating to modern poetry or the world of writing—and that was just one day’s worth of linkage. In addition, Silliman includes his own articles on theory, famous poets and writers, and other topics. This blog is a great way to dive into the contemporary world of poetry.

YA/TEEN

School Library Journal (See CHILDREN’S)

YPulse Daily Update
http://www.ypulse.com/
The YPulse newsletter is an easy way to get all the information from a day’s worth of posts on the main website delivered in one neat little e-mail. It includes information on media, entertainment, technology, and advertisements aimed at teens, and discusses how teens can be better marketed to. This is a great resource for anyone looking to get better acquainted with a teenage audience.

YPulse Books
http://books.ypulse.com/
“Insight, news, and trends for young adult and children’s book industry.” Like its cousin, YPulse Daily, the YPulse Books newsletter is packed with information about marketing to the YA/children’s audience, but centered on books. Excellent resource!

In honor of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Stet brings you this thought on literacy from the Olympian of Chinese philosophy…

“No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance.”

More From Stet

Are you spending too many hours hunched over your computer? Posture not the best? You may be cheating your brain of necessary blood flow, limiting the oxygen it carries, thus unconsciously contributing to a somewhat sleepy, muzzy-headed feeling. Proper body alignment and diaphragmatic breathing can help you feel mentally sharp, physically energetic, and more in control of your emotional state-all of which translate to increased creativity, a more relaxed frame of mind, and greater productivity in your work.

As Ink & Paper Group’s fearless editor in chief (well, maybe more curious than fearless…), I recently accepted an invitation to do a breath and alignment analysis with registered yoga teacher and meditation expert, Rose St. John. The experience was deeply rewarding. Rose explained the close connection between breath and heart, and how the diaphragm muscle communicates the heart’s electrical energy to our breathing system. “A haphazard, unconscious, choppy breath pattern increases unease. It also creates choppy and haphazard electrical impulses generated by the heart…. Over the course of a lifetime, the direct impact of breath pattern on the pattern of electrical energy generated by the heart is enormous, and may affect heart as well as overall health.”

Oxygen is critical to sustaining life, and as Rose says, “Breath is the prime mover.” Learning to check in on my breathing patterns will help me manage the long hours and high-stress level inherent with partnership in a young, independent publishing company. Heck, increased mental clarity and productivity may even help me reduce the number of hours spent at my computer!

For more information on breath analysis, contact Rose St. John at 503.282.1606 or rosestjohn@comcast.net. For writers and other interested folks, Rose will be teaching a November 8 class at Ink & Paper Group: “Use The Wisdom of Breath to Revolutionize Your Writing Process.” Her book Fathers at Birth: Your Role in Bringing Your Child Into the World will be released in winter 2008.

For our August 16 classes, Ink & Paper Group is now offerning a package discount for the Business of Editing and the Grey Area of Grammar. Sign up for both, and receive a 20% discount on each class. Visit the class postings for more information.

PLUS: You can invite a friend for FREE! This applies whether you attend both classes in the package discount or if you take just one of the classes!

Is that all? No! All our fee classes come with a money back guarantee! We offer the best possible publishing classes or your money back! No strings, just tell us why the class didn’t meet your expectations!

THE GREY AREA OF GRAMMAR: Refresher Course for Writers and Editors
Instructed by Vinnie Kinsella
Date: Aug. 16
Saturday, 10 to noon

THE BUSINESS OF EDITING: Making a Career of Freelancing
Instructor: Charity Heller Hogge
Date: Aug. 16
Saturday, 1 to 5 pm

by guest writer, Emilee Newman Bowles

A query letter is your first, and often your only, chance to grab an editor’s or agent’s attention. You have only a few sentences to show that you can write, and to convince the gatekeeper that your manuscript is worth reading. Without a good query letter, most editors and agents won’t even look at your writing. Harsh, but true. They have to get through their pile of submissions somehow.

Considering the importance of the query letter, it surprised me to see how many authors make simple mistakes when they write theirs. During a year of reading queries and submissions for Ooligan Press, I learned some simple things to do and not to do when writing a query letter.

1. Do your homework! Don’t send your manuscript to every agent and publishing company in Writer’s Market. You’ll save time and money in the long run if you research and send your work to presses that publish the type of writing that you do.
2. Don’t submit genre work to a press that doesn’t publish it. If you write science fiction, send your work to presses that publish science fiction. And don’t over-categorize your manuscript. There’s nothing that will scare an editor away faster than being presented with a fantasy-romance-horror-mystery novel.
3. Do address the letter to a specific person. It should be addressed to the agent, acquisitions editor, or the publisher, if you can find this information. This shows that you have researched their press and avoids giving the impression that they’re receiving an anonymous bulk mailing.
4. If you can’t find the name of an editor or publisher at the press, write simply “To Whom It May Concern.” I once read a query letter that was addressed, “Dear Gentlemen.” As a woman working in a press staffed mostly with women, this put me off immediately. Editors are people too, and you don’t want them to be in a bad mood when they read your manuscript.
5. Don’t insult the people reading your query. This sounds obvious, but you’d be surprised how many query letters I’ve read that are filled with insults to the person reading it just to see if we’re actually reading it—we are, but insults don’t make a good impression.
6. Don’t be overconfident. You want to come off as confident in yourself and in your writing, but phrases like “the next great American novel” or “Oprah’s book club” are huge red flags for editors and agents. (Unless you and Oprah happen to be best friends, of course.)
7. Don’t make simple spelling, grammar, or punctuation errors. This holds true for your manuscript as well as your query letter. Yes, it is the editor’s job to fix mistakes. But your manuscript has to be worth the time and money it will cost to put it into acceptable form, or the publishing company can’t afford to publish it, no matter how much they like it.
8. Know your audience. Not only the editor or agent, but the people in the bookstore who will pick up and buy your book. Do some market research and know whom your book will sell to. When reading a manuscript, editors and agents ask themselves if it will sell and who will buy it. Answer those questions for them, and you’re ahead of the game.
9. Don’t send more than they ask for. Don’t send your entire manuscript when the submission guidelines say to submit a few sample chapters.
10. Do follow the submission guidelines to the last detail. So few people do this, that doing so will automatically make you stand out. Editors are looking for good writing and a good story, but they’re also trying to judge if you can follow directions and if they’ll be able to work with you.

It doesn’t have to be difficult, but taking the time to write a good query letter can make all the difference in whether or not your manuscript is read in the first place, and whether or not you get a personalized letter in return, instead of the publisher’s standard rejection slip.

Starting on Monday, July 28, 2008, the talented and beloved Allison Collins began wielding her keen marketing sword at the local offices of MIG, Inc., a multifaceted consultant group with a focus on “planning, designing, and sustaining environments that support human development” (www.migcom.com). Though Allison will still be maintaining her position as one of five partners here at Ink & Paper Group, her marketing duties for books, classes, and custom publications will now be handled by individual publishers and other staff.  

All general marketing queries should be sent to marketing@inkandpapergroup.com. Please feel free to contact us by phone if you have any additional questions: 503.232.0103.

We wish Allison all the best in her latest marketing pursuits, and we proudly maintain her one-of-a-kind position as a lifetime member of the Ink & Paper Group family.