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Coffee Break for Writers Monthly E-zine |
In This Issue: • Straight Talk From the Editor • Article: "Modifier Crimes and Misdemeanours" • Questions and Answers About Freelance Writing • Paying Markets for Writers • Success Café • Writing and Publishing News • Test Your Grammar • No Entry Fee Writing Contests • Writing Exercise • Observances and Holidays (Ideas Included) •Cafe Fun: Grammar Word Scramble Straight Talk From the Editor First off, welcome to the online version of Coffee Break for Writers! From now on each month's edition of Coffee Break for Writers can be found here, on our Web site. All you have to do is visit our homepage then click on "current issue" from the navigation menu. We still encourage you (if you haven't already) to subscribe to this e-zine. When you subscribe, you will receive notification in your e-mail inbox every time a new edition of Coffee Break for Writers is added to the Web site. Furthermore, subscribers are the first to know about new calls for articles from Coffee Break for Writers. What this means is we will let all our subscribers have first chance at the call for new article topics, before they're announced on the writers's guidelines page. We won't place the new call for articles on the writers' guidelines page until one week after we send it to subscribers. We think the online version of Coffee Break for Writers will be much better than e-mailing you a PDF file each month. You may also notice we've given our Web site a new look. Personally, I like this design better, but as always, your opinion matters too. With that said, please vote on our new look to let us know if you like it. Now, on to other things ... I'm happy to report that I had a lovely vacation. The Smoky Mountains (as always) were georgous, and the motel (Super 8) my hubby and I stayed in while in Clayton, N.C. wasn't too bad. Some things could have been better, but all-in-all, it was okay. I plan to write a review on this motel soon. In addition, I also have plans for some articles on things to do and places to see in Tennessee and maybe North Carolina as well. I imagine most of my articles will be about the Smoky Mountains since most of the attractions seem to be in Tennessee. The nice thing about traveling is you can get some articles out of the trip, but most of all, writing the articles from the trip allows me to write the whole trip off on taxes. What could be better than taking a vacation and being able to write it off on taxes too? Well, enough said. I hope you enjoy this month's editon of Coffee Break for Writers. We'll being with our featured article, which is a grammar related. Again, enjoy and have fun with our quiz and word scramble! Never give up on your dreams — work toward them, Misti Sandefur Modifier Crimes and Misdemeanors By Jan Grant Modifier Misdemeanors Never underestimate the importance of word order. Misplaced and dangling modifiers can be both (unintentionally) amusing and quite confusing to readers. "They said it would rain on the radio today." "Won't that break the radio?" This is an example of modifier misplacement that has become a joke — by playing on our commonsense vs. literal decoding of the sentence; the writer has made us laugh. Or perhaps smirk at least. When modifier problems crop up in your own writing however, you might not have so much to smile about. What's a modifier, exactly? Any word or phrase that limits, modifies or describes another word or phrase in the sentence is a modifier. Modifiers are also known as "qualifiers" because they limit or qualify other phrases or clauses in a sentence. There are two kinds of modifiers: adjectival, which modify nouns, and adverbial, which modify verbs. A modifier is considered misplaced when it seems to modify something other than what is intended. This usually happens when the modify-er is too far away from the modify-ee. In the radio example above, "on the radio" is too far from "They," so the sentence becomes nonsense. A much less sloppy, if less intuitive arrangement would be, "On the radio today, they said it would rain." Look at the following example: A book sat on the desk that Mary had read. Now, unless Mary has developed "desk reading" into an art (of the occult kind?) the sentence sounds pretty strange. Most of us have enough common sense to know "desk-reading" is not a new kind of fortune telling and would probably assume she had read the book. But look what happens in this similar sentence: A DVD sat on the desk that Mary had seen. Our common sense is not so quickly able to decipher the meaning from the sentence because it's not clear whether it's the DVD or the desk Mary has seen, but with a bit of shuffling, the meaning of the sentence can be made clear: A DVD that Mary had seen sat on the desk. The DVD has been reunited with the person who saw it, and Mary has been freed from a dubious fortune-telling career. Dangling Modifiers A dangling modifier (also known as a dangling or hanging participle) is the cause of much wry amusement for grammar geeks, and a source of consternation for those who don't get the joke. A modifier is a word that limits or qualifies another word or phrase in a sentence. If it is dangling, it is most often an -ing word or participle, usually at the beginning of a sentence. Instead of modifying the subject of the sentence as it's supposed to, it seems to modify an unintended noun or pronoun because of the position it occupies — it's usually too far from the subject and modifies the thing it's closest to. Look at Stunk and White's often repeated, classic example: "Being in a dilapidated condition; I was able to buy the house very cheap." The sentence means, "I was able to buy the house cheap because it was in a dilapidated condition," but placement of the phrase "being in a dilapidated condition" makes it difficult for the reader to know whether it is the house that is dilapidated, or perhaps the speaker. With subtle topics, in academic writing for example, confusion and amusement can give way to serious misunderstandings. Consider the example and explanation from history professor Marc Damon: "After winning the Peloponnesian war, Athens was ruled briefly by the Spartans." By putting "winning" and "Athens" so close together, the sentence implies that Athens won the Peloponnesian War, which it didn't. The Spartans won the war. The sentence should be rewritten so that "winning" is closer to the Spartans than to Athens: "After winning the Peloponnesian War, the Spartans ruled Athens briefly." Or the participle should be dispensed with altogether: "After the Spartans won the Peloponnesian War, Athens was briefly in their control." The pesky danglers can be divided further into three forms for easy identification. The first is often characterized by anthropomorphism. "Rushing to the catch the train, Jan's purse fell out of her bag." This of course implies the purse has a life of its own - and a busy one! Here's another lovely example from Stunk and White in a Sorcerer's Apprentice vein: "Wondering irresolutely what to do next, the clock struck twelve." The second group is made up of scenarios that defy natural laws. The protagonists have super-human power to get things done. "Reaching up, she flicked off the light, grabbed her bag and keys and dashed out the front door." In this case, the subject is obviously the one turning off the light, but look at the other actions modified before she has finished reaching. The sentence can be salvaged with a simple rewrite: "She reached up, flicked off the light, grabbed her bag and keys and dashed out the front door." By changing the -ing participle to simple past tense modifier, the confusion has been cleared up. Nevertheless, simply changing to the past tense won't make all your problems go away. Dangling Past Participles are the third class of danglers, and these can, unfortunately, be harder to spot than the others can. Look at this example from a food-processor instruction booklet: "If properly positioned, you shouldn't be able to start the machine without first pressing the safety button." It is easy to fall into the trap of having dangling participles (modifiers) in your writing. They aren't picked up by computer grammar checkers and can be easily missed. Becoming more aware of the problem lessens the chance of overlooking them in your work. The best technique to weed them out of your work, aside from having someone else proofread it, is to read your writing aloud. Jan Grant is an EFL instructor from Brisbane, Australia who teaches and writes in
Germany. Questions and Answers About Freelance Writing Barbara Mulcahy from France asked, "I wish to learn about book reviewing — do you do anything which could help me?" Barbara, I currently write book reviews on writing-related books for Coffee Break for Writers. Before Coffee Break for Writers, I reviewed a lot of books on a regular basis. If you truly enjoy reading, then reading books and writing a review of those books could be something you would enjoy very much. Just make sure you mention the generes you will accept. It's best to read and review only the genres that you have an interest in. In addition to enjoying reading and writing book reviews, you can also make money by selling your book reviews to publications. Some publications do not pay for reviews, but some do. If a publication does pay for a review, they usually don't offer a whole lot. However, if you can write reviews for several different publications, then the money can add up. One place I'd like to recommend to you is Associated Content. Associated Content pays a one-time fee for reviews, articles and more, and then, after they publish your content, you'll also be paid for page views. A few other publications that accept book reviews are Boston Review, Mysteries Magazine, Northern Woodlands, Pyramid, The Antigonish Review and The Chick Lit Review. To increase your income, you could also review the authors of the books you review. Then, when you submit your book review to a publication, you can also let them know you have an interview with that author as well. By doing this you'll be selling two things: your book review and an interview. Many publications also like to include pictures with their content so you could include a picture of the cover of the book with your book review, and for the interview you can include a picture of the author (ask the author for a picture to include). Including pictures may also increase the pay as some publications will offer extra payment for images (check their writers' guidelines to see what they offer payment for). To learn more about book reviewing, Coffee Break for Writers recommends the following Web sites: "Guide to Writing Book Reviews" "How to Write a Book Review," by Bill Asenjo "Book Reviews a Different Way," by Behlor Santi Kalpana Sanyasi from India also asked Coffee Break for Writers, "Off tangent freelance writing jobs like writing slogans for t-shirts, writing advertisement slogans, funny quotes, humorous one-liners: What are the companies/Web sites offering them?" Kalpana, I will do my best to provide you with a little information in this area, however, I'm not too familiar with this area of writing because I don't specialize in it. From what I do know about funny quotes and humorous one-liners, most of these could be sold as fillers. Also, many greeting card companies will purchase funny quotes and humorous one-liners for their cards. Some greeting card companies you can check out are as follows: Blue Mountain Arts, Oatmeal Studios, P.S. Greetings (click on "creative," and then "artist guidelines") and Snafu Designs (pays $100), As for slogans for t-shirts and advertisement slogans, you could try pitching t-shirt companies for slogans for t-shirts, and for your advertisment slogans, I would try pitching several different companies for these. When pitching the companies, include a package that contains a list of your credits, sample slogans, your business card, a brochure, and of course a well-written sales letter. Sorry I couldn't be of more help, Kalpana. Readers, if any of you specialize in any of these areas and think you can help Kalpana, please contact Coffee Break for Writers and let us know. And finally, Diana Busby from the United States wants to know, "How do I get over the fear of failure?" Diana, every writer I know suffers from the fear of failure at least once in their career, and some more than once. I myself have had this fear a few times, and here's some of the things I have done to get over that fear, which I hope and pray will help you concor your fear as well. The number one thing: I don't let that inner-voice tell me I can't do it, or I can't succeed. Why? Because deep down I know I can. If I feel like that negative voice is getting to me, I usually take a break to clear my head. Taking a walk or relaxing with a good book is always a nice way to spend my breaks. I also save all my fan mail. When I'm feeling down, or that fear of failure strikes, I go back and read the fan mail that I have saved. Reading mail from my fan boosts my ego and gets me going again. Finally, another way to get over your fear of failure is to communicate with other writers. A great way to do this is by joing a few forums, message boards and/or clubs for writers. The Absolute Write Water Cooler has a community of very friendly and helpful writers. I've been a member of this community of writers for a little over a year now. When you're feeling down, just drop by Absolute Write and let the writers know why. I can assure you the writers there will communicate with you and make you feel much better about yourself again. Trust me, it won't be long before your spirits are back up again. When that fear strikes, continue to tell yourself, "I can do it. I'm not giving up." Like I always say, "Never give up on your dreams — workd toward them." Do you have a burning question about freelance writing? Send your freelance writing question(s) our way, and we'll answer it for you in the next edition of Coffee Break for Writers. We're always happy to help! Paying Markets for Writers Are you a paying market currently seeking writers? Send your information to Coffee Break for Writers. The information will be posted in our next issue. There is only one requirement: you MUST pay writers at a rate of 10 cents or more per word, or a flat rate of $25 or more. It won't cost you a dime to have your call for writers placed in Coffee Break for Writers. ChefsBest™ "ChefsBest™ is the independent judging organization dedicated to recognizing and honoring America's best products. Our next project is a major, exciting new website designed to help consumers make the best buying decisions." Seeking: Recipes and feature articles from food experts. Payment information: Pays $50 for recipes and $100 for features. MAD Magazine "We're actively looking to expand our pool of freelance comedy writers. If you have a twisted sense of humor, a peculiar way of looking at the world, or are simply eager to express your immature, strange or just plain silly side, then we want to see your stuff!" Seeking: Short form humor for their Fundalini Pages (excellent place for first time writers to break in), comic strips, articles on video games, kid/parent and student/teacher relationships, etc.. Payment information: Pays $500 per page, on acceptance. Pack-o-Fun Magazine "Group-friendly projects and activities using inexpensive household items. Pack-o-Fun magazine provides projects for kids of all ages." Seeking: Easy-to-make arts and crafts projects and designs. Payment information: Pay ranges from $25 up to $150. Pack-o-Fun buys all rights. The Chick Lit Review "The Chic Lit Review, enjoys reading good quality short stories from both established and new authors. As chic lit, our audience are women in their 20s and 30s who want light-hearted reads." Seeking: Short stories about young women, novel excerpts and book reviews. Payment information: $50 for short stories and $25 for book reviews. Pays on publication. Women of Spirit "A magazine to inspire and disciple Christian women. Women of Spirit seeks to be a friend and mentor, stimulating spiritual vitality, nurturing emotional growth, fostering balanced, healthy living, and encouraging a loving Christian witness in the home and community." Seeking: Fiction stories, devotional and spiritual articles, how-to articles offering advice to Christian women and articles on a woman's personal experience. Payment information: Up to $150 upon acceptance. Success Café Let us toast to your success and share in your excitement! If you've got published or won an award by choosing one of the paying markets or writing contests from an issue of Coffee Break for Writers, or if you were published or won a contest using a writing exercise from an issue of Coffee Break for Writers, let us know so we can celebrate with you! Upon receipt of your information, we will send you an e-mail to let you know we received the information. Then, all you have to do is wait for the next issue of Coffee Break for Writers to see your success in print! Furthermore, the editor of Coffee Break for Writers will add her own words of praise at the end of your submission, and she'll even announce your good news on her Life of a Writer blog. Publishing your success in print is free, because it's all a part of celebrating with you; our way of showing you we care. Writing and Publishing News Have you launched a new e-zine, newsletter, magazine, blog or Web site for writers? Has your publication made editorial changes? Are you currently running a contest for writers that does not require an entry fee? Will you be hosting an event for writers, or do you know of an upcoming event for writers? Send us your press release and your news could appear in the next edition of Coffee Break for Writers! Editorial Comings and Goings Ashley Baker, former associate editor of Style, is now the fashion features editor for Glamour. Doug Crichton was named executive editor of the Better Homes and Gardens Web site. Prior to his new position for Better Homes and Gardens, Crichton was the editor-in-chief of Cooking Light. Publishing News Recently, from their kitchen, Darren and Michelle McChristie created the first edition of Superior Outdoors, which will be published twice a year. Superior Outdoors is a new regional magazine in Canada that will cover outdoor activities from Duluth to Sault Ste. Marie. In addition to outdoor activities, Superior Outdoors will include environmental news, big lake surfing, kite boarding, sailing, mountain biking, kayaking, book reviews and much more. Copies of Superior Outdoors can be picked up at Chapters or Shoppers Drug Mart in Candada. For U.S. residents, you can obtain a copy from Barnes & Noble. Metropolitan Richmond Sports Backers has launched Sports Backers Quarterly, a regional fitness magazine. Sports Backers Quarterly will debut in August 2007. Test Your Grammar Due to the remodeling of our Web site we were unable to complete this column, but I promise you it will return next month. In the meantime, we did manage to complete the word scramble for your enjoyment. :-) No Entry Fee Writing Contests Would you like to add award-winning writer/author to your name? Then, by all means check out the no entry fee writing contests below! You never know, you just may win. If you do win one of the contests below, let us know about it so you can earn a spot in our Success Café column. We love to know when our e-zine has helped you achieve another level of success! Are you running a contest for writers that does not require an entry fee? If so, send us a press release about the contest, and we'll place it in the next edition of Coffee Break for Writers. Be sure to include a URL to the contest information as well as the deadline for entries. Angel Dogs at Work Story Contest Categories: True stories (maximum of 2,000 words). Prizes: $250 for the winner and $25 for 2nd place (awarded to five contestants). Deadline: July 15, 2007 Intergeneration Storytelling Contest Categories: Fiction or nonfiction short story that does not exceed 600 words. Prizes: 1st place: $500; 2nd place: $300; 3rd place: $100. 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winning entries will be published on Intergeneration Foundation's Web site as well. Deadline: August 15, 2007 MyItThings.com Categories: Beauty-related articles. Prizes: 1st place will receive $1,000 and 2nd and 3rd place will be awarded special gift bags containing beauty products. Deadline: July 31, 2007 Pleasure Me Now's Erotic Story Contest Categories: Erotic short stories. Prizes: $100 Deadline: July 30, 2007 Writing Exercise Have you taken your summer vacation, or are you planning to take one soon? If so, write an article about an interesting place you visited or plan to visit. Observances and Holidays (Ideas Included) We still haven't completed the list for all the months yet. Once it's complete, we will place a link to it here. Café Fun: Grammar Word Scramble Instructions: Unscramble each of the following grammar-related words. Answers will be revealed in next month's edition of Coffee Break for Writers. 1. NNUROPO________________ 2. VBRE________________ 3. NUON________________ 4. NMTRFGEAS________________ 5. STONMECNEEELEPCT__________________________(2 words) 6. CMAOM________________ 7. OERTENNSNN-UEC_______________________(2 words) 8. ACPITEDSULNEENSEDN____________________________(2 words) 9. CNNOCTOISNJU________________ 10. VEBADR________________ What to Expect Next Month (August 7, 2007): • An interview with a successful author who made the bestseller list on Amazon. Find out what she did to market her book and more. • Article: "Avoiding the Research Trap," by Elona Sherwood. • And much more! |
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