text:
Mapping finalized
With many thanks to the comments here and via email from TNers (original thread), the Mapping project manuscript has moved from white paper to in-press manuscript. Yes, it took a long time.
I hope this is something researchers and thinkers find useful. From talks with funders and fellow researchers, I know that the issues of real/virtual comparisons and inferences are of keen interest, and it's my hope that this paper helps people think through the attendant issues. As I was contemplating the many uses I see in this space--disaster preparedness, military training--it occurred to me once again that the price of doing this wrong and drawing bad inferences is very high indeed.
Comments on Mapping finalized:
This is a very useful paper to have around; so many poor claims about virtual worlds are made that it's great finally to have something I point people at to tell them where they're going wrong. Of course, the greatest danger comes from non-academics who take mapping as a given (politicians, journalists, the general public); nevertheless, if we don't get our own house in order we can hardly expect them to, either.
I have some comments, all in the "future work" area:
1) You say that face validity is the simplest and most necessary condition. I agree, but note that it comes at different levels, some of which involve indirection. For example, if I want to find out people's political leanings I could have elections for NPC mayors in my MMO and see which way the players vote. This would be a syntax-level face validity. I could, however, be more subtle and offer multiple ways to solve a quest (give an NPC beggar money, fish, a fishing rod, an admonishment) and calculate political views from that. This would be a semantics-level face validity. I could even find something in real life that correlates with political views (eg. consumption of high culture) and use that as what I test, which can in turn be handled at the syntax, semantics or indirect level (the Game Studies equivalent terms being surface/dressing, mechanics and emergent). None of this is precluded by your paper, but I worry that it may suit people not to look beyond in-your-face validity when a lot of the strength of games in general and MMOs in particular comes from things that are incidental to its main thrust.
2) Mapping is something players may do in the absence of any structural similarity at all. Players can act as though there is a mapping in the code when there is none; this nevertheless establishes a possibly valid mapping. For example, players may anthropomorphise a pet to imbue it with qualities that it doesn't have at a a simulationist level; if you can establish that they do this, then you can run tests in the light of this that you couldn't run if you had to show what it was that pets did which made them (in the absence of player interpretation) behave like real pets.
3) Researchers need to be warned of the dangers of self-validation. For example, suppose an economist examined how the prices paid by NPC vendors for goods rose and fell and from that derived a formula that encapsulated what was going on. This would be a very useful piece of information to have if it applied to the real world, but for the MMO it could be that the designer had looked up that very formula and used it to determine how NPCs would adjust their prices. All the economist would have done in this case is examine empirical data to find the values that the designer was plugging in to the formula - which the designer could easily have just stated, had they been asked.
4) This is unidirectional. You talk about the mapping as if it were all "use virtual worlds as petri dishes to figure out things in the real world". Actually, the reverse also applies: sometimes, it's relatively easy to test ideas in the real world that would be very expensive to program into a virtual world. This is why designers will do pencil-and-paper mock-ups of gameplay, for example, or scour books looking for detail about the kind of creatures that live in mangrove swamps. Designers should be just as rigorous in their use of mapping from RW to VW as other people are in mapping VW to RW.
I also have one point of order: you say that Lessig first articulated the concept "Code is Law"; re-read footnote 7 to chapter 1 of Code and other Laws of Cyberspace.
>Here is the final version.
Too late to italicise those virtual world names you missed italicising on page 18, then?
My only complaint about your paper is that you say that practitioners should expect problems should their results challenge current orthodoxies. While I agree that they should, I fear that your words will be seized upon by anyone whose work produces contrary results for whatever reason. Young researchers in particular are apt to claim that orthodoxy is wrong when actually it's their research that isn't up to scratch. I probably wouldn't have mentioned this, but last week I reviewed two sets of papers (for a conference and a journal) and am so sick of seeing people using a single reference to Clifford Geertz's to give themselves carte blanche to repurpose their playing habits as research that right now I wish you hadn't said that in case you suffer the same fate. "Although this work runs counter to the commonly-held view that few angels play MMOs, such paradigm-changing results are to be expected in this very new field (Williams, 2010)".
Overall, though, I really like what I read here. It should be required reading for anyone wishing to draw parallels between the virtual and the real, for whatever reason.
Posted Mar 18, 2010 6:14:51 AM | link
Great feedback, Richard. I very much appreciate it and wish you'd been one of the blind reviewers!
Points #1 and 2 I hadn't thought of and are quite insightful.
#3 presumes that the designer is pulling from "real world" economic insights, but it's often the case that these are theoretical as well, i.e. assumed to be correct, but often found later to be wrong. There's frequently less hard economic data than expected. Still, point well taken.
#4. I agree, and if you check that table in the paper you'll see a column about direction.
I'll be more precise about crediting Lessig on code, but I do think he's brought the ideas out and crystalized them best, even if drawn from other bits and pieces.
I hope you're wrong about the young bucks challenging the system and forgetting to do good work bit, but of course you're not. Still, if someone reads the whole paper and all of its demands on rigor and quality and then shoots off their mouth, they were probably prone to do it anyway . . .
Thanks again for the good read and comments. I do hope this thing gets used and leads to better work and thinking.
Posted Mar 18, 2010 12:00:24 PM | link
I wonder if you could clarify a point you've made here and elsewhere: that the researcher must enter the world in order to research it. Now, my field is economics. Must I have attempted to merge one company with another in order to perform research on equity price responses for the merging firms? Must I have been a central banker to be an expert on monetary policy? Must I have been a legislator to research the role of bargaining in the lawmaking process?
From this economist's perspective, there are many features of virtual worlds I can study without having any prior experience in the world. RMT markets are an example. Price responses to monetary shocks where markets are centralized are another. I have a suspicion that any well-trained economist like Ted could have performed the same analysis as he did on your EQII data based solely on in-depth interviews of experienced players of that game (and, of course, the data). Clearly someone must enter the world to gather my data, but I need not be a player in order to analyze and understand that data, nor to draw solid conclusions from that analysis.
Indeed, many researchers will rely on others' accounts of a phenomenon because it would be too costly to acquire the experience themselves. What's more, being 'outside' the phenomena may make it easier for me to be objective in my analysis.
What is it about virtual worlds as objects of study that differs from other environments in which human interaction occurs?
Posted Mar 19, 2010 1:20:50 AM | link
To clarify my last sentence, I mean what is different about them that requires the researcher to experience them firsthand in order to study them.
Posted Mar 19, 2010 1:36:26 AM | link
Good questions, Isaac.
I'm not a trained anthropologist, so I'll have to channel one for a moment and give this my best shot. First, I think there is a real world answer to your question, and then I think there is an extra reason for virtual worlds work.
You say that you don't need to be a banker or legislator to understand the economic behavior of those people. I agree, and I can see the value of objectivity, but only up to a point. I think that one blind spot in traditional economics is to generally leave out the human and the social aspects of a system. If you assume rationality, or bounded rationality or doses of guile or whatever other parameters, that's only going to get you some, but not all of the way there.
For example, what if you studied stock market behavior and expected X, but found Y. Would your model be flawed? Surely you must allow for the fact that there may be some odd, irrational or unknown human element taking place. Let's say that there was a tradition among traders of heavy drinking on Thursday nights. The economists studying the system would wonder why Friday morning trading seemed so conservative, when the explanation might have been a high likelihood of hangovers. I am being cute, but I'm sure you get the idea: if you'd been a trader, you'd have had that hangover and would understand the dynamic instantly.
Studying any world--real or virtual--is better done if you are familiar with the customs and particularities.
Now for the virtual bit. Virtual worlds might be just like the real ones in the way people mix and behave. There's evidence of many things mapping, but there are also many cases when behaviors clearly don't. Sometimes the reason is the obvious one--the costs are different, changed by anonymity or artificial elements, e.g. resurrection. But other times the reasons why are much less obvious. They may be sociocultural as in my drinking example, but they may be systemic and due to some basic difference between the incentive schemes in the real world and the virtual one.
Here's an example. Members of a raiding guild behave much like members of a club or sport team. They pool resources, give emotional support, have leaders, etc. But in the real world, it's a lot harder to share resources and have trust because the world around you doesn't guarantee and protect trades. Banking isn't as easy. Conversely, if you scam someone in the real world we have cops and social networks that make the shadow of the future an element. In an MMO you could server and faction swap and be gone. Those are code-based differences that make RL and VWs different. You can account for them, but unless you've gone and played, you probably wouldn't intuit them, and you'd be expecting X but you'd observe Y. You might even attribute the difference to stochastic noise, but really you'd just be missing something systematic and knowable.
The assumption of perfect mapping is a dangerous one. I'd rather start with the assumption that there is none and then build it up one element at a time.
Posted Mar 19, 2010 2:05:49 AM | link
Isaac K.>Must I have attempted to merge one company with another in order to perform research on equity price responses for the merging firms?
Criminologists have a similar problem: must they have to commit crimes in order to be able to speak with authority about crime?
My own view is that MMOs have in the past had a particular problem with people who have written about them without understanding them. Such people will look at, say, RMT, write about it purely from an Economics or Law perspective, and then brilliantly conclude with an insight that they alone have had the perspicacity to see: MMO developers should themselves engage in RMT. If they'd actually played MMOs, or (not wanting to be criminals) interview people who play them, they would find that things are a good deal more complicated than that...
Playing MMOs is itself not without its problems, though: many people seem to think that a 2-4 hour nightly habit makes them uniquely qualified to be experts in all things MMO. They will speak with measured authority about what in practice they may know very little about. This is a trap that academics can fall into very easily: many is the time I have seen heavyweight theory dangerously misapplied because scant knowledge of the application domain (ie. MMOs) was arrogantly believed by the researcher involved to be complete.
Because MMOs have suffered in the past from know-nothings who have pontificated from on high in the complete absence of experience - or even a recognition that any is needed - players now happily mock anyone who writes about MMOs without having played them. The usual suspects are academics, journalists and politicians. This makes sense: if a politician is using a bad mapping (violence in games is isomorphic to violence in real life, say) but hasn't played the game, well of course they're talking rubbish and should be pilloried for doing so. To the politician, though, games are just like any other social problem: they can talk about the harm heroin addiction does to society without having taken heroin, so they can talk about the harm MMOs do to society without having played one...
Although it's great to see mad players talking trash in blogs about upstart academics, journalists and politicians who write ill-informed articles, unfortunately such players can also catch people in their firing line who make informed comments without having played. Designers, for example, who spend their working lives thinking about MMOs, do not need to play an MMO to be able to give a considered opinion about it: they can procedurally generate the play experience in their head from reading the design, watching people play or following comments in a forum. The more information they have then the more detail they will be able to go into, but even a small amount can be enough. I know I wasn't the only designer who knew Richard Garriott's Tabula Rasa was going to suck merely from reading the pre-release publicity; I didn't have to play it all the way through before I could confidently say that. I read several design documents a year: it's my job to envision how something will play before it's even made; it's ridiculous to assert that I, or any of the other design consultants around, actually need to play an MMO to the level cap and beyond before being allowed to comment on it. Nevertheless, because I got so many players moaning at me for not playing MMOs right they way through, I finally snapped did just that (in WoW and LotRO). I regarded this as obtaining the paper qualifications I needed for my job; it certainly wasn't a learning exercise for me.
Apart from designers, other people who study MMOs day in, day out, will eventually grok them. Academics are prime candidates here: Dmitri doesn't have to play EQ2 to study it (I don't know if he does play it, but he doesn't have to) because he's been there, done that. He has played MMOs extensively, he's surveyed thousands of people who play them, he's analysed terabytes of data; he's an expert. Contrast this with the postgraduate who has sat 16 volunteers (all second-year CS majors) in front of a computer, made them play Warhammer: Age of Reckoning for two hours, interviewed them afterwards, drawn conclusions about the effects of MMOs on people's predisposition to violence, and wants a PhD for it. I see this kind of thing all the time. Neither the postgrad nor the expert has necessarily played the MMO they're studying, but the difference is that the expert doesn't need to play it because, well, they're an expert!
Coming back to your problem as an Economist, it really depends on what you're studying. If you're purely attempting to make a mathematical model, for example, then by nature it will be abstract, therefore you could assume that MMO-specific details will be abstracted out; if the model works, you were right, and if it doesn't then you were wrong. You can study a system in depth without having to experience it in action (this is the "most gynaecologists are men" argument: if you fix tractor engines, you just need to know how tractor engines work - you don't have to be a tractor). The problem is that the moment you step outside your field of expertise, you do need domain-specific knowledge. That Economic model you made may be really useful for Economists, but if you then try to push it onto players or designers, that's when you really had better know about MMOs.
So my advice is that if you want to study MMOs and say anything about them as MMOs, you will save yourself a truckload of hurt if you play one first. Whether it's strictly necessary depends on what you intend to do with your results, but if you make even one obvious slip you will be torn apart by a baying mob of bloggers. Not the sort of thing you want your peers to discover when they Google your name..!
Posted Mar 19, 2010 5:55:23 AM | link
Dmitri>wish you'd been one of the blind reviewers!
You can send me stuff to read before it gets reviewed, you know.
>#3 presumes that the designer is pulling from "real world" economic insights, but it's often the case that these are theoretical as well, i.e. assumed to be correct, but often found later to be wrong.
Yes, that's right, but it's not what I meant.
Example: following the publication of my Player Types model, designers started to design MMOs that addressed the player types the model listed. If you wanted to validate the player types model today, you would look at MMOs, survey the players and conclude that yes, it's valid. However, it could be that the only reason it's valid is because the MMO was designed to support it. It's self-perpetuating. The reason you find Syd Field's movie structure applies to most movies is because most screenplays that get made today are deliberately written to fit his paradigm.
If you are studying, say, the group dynamics of a new MMO, you may find that beyond a certain point guilds become unmanageably large and break up. You spot that this point equates with Dunbar's number. Yay! You can establish a mapping between the social groupings in this MMO and the social groupings of the real world. Except, you can't: unbeknown to you, the designer is aware of Dunbar's number and deliberately structured the guild system so that it would start to disintegrate around that point, thereby splitting guilds fairly amicably rather than having them fall apart in acrimony or collapse to a vacuum. Your mapping is invalid, because what you think is natural is artificial. It may be that the kind of relationships people have in MMOs effectively add 50 to Dunbar's number, but that doesn't get picked up because the designer has effectively forced Dunbar's number on the groups.
This has happened in other industries. I recall talking to a TV Producer who related having been contacted by an academic regarding the length of the breaks between the end of a programme and the start of the ads. The academic had measured the length in milliseconds of the interstitial splash for hundreds of programmes across all channels, and discovered that they were almost constant. He used research on persistence of vision to calculate the "ideal" value, and it had come out very close to what the TV programmes had. The academic wondered if the producer would be interested in reading the full paper. The producer replied that the TV industry had known about the persistence of vision research for years and had used it to determine the ideal length of an interstitial splash.
>#4. I agree, and if you check that table in the paper you'll see a column about direction.
Oh, I didn't read it as that kind of direction, sorry. I thought it was to do with who was calling the shots!
>I do think he's brought the ideas out and crystalized them best, even if drawn from other bits and pieces.
He has, yes; I may have read City of Bits a few years earlier, but it was Lessig's work that threw the spark on the tinderbox. He wasn't the first to articulate the concept, but he was the first to think it through.
>I do hope this thing gets used and leads to better work and thinking.
Me too, but given the sorry overall state of academic research today I'm not optimistic.
Posted Mar 19, 2010 6:29:34 AM | link
@Dimitri and Richard
I appreciate the responses. Obviously all the hype over VWs in recent years will motivate the uninitiated to have unreasonable expectations for the associated research. After some thought, I can see the value of experiencing the world first before researching it, but for a different reason. Rather than seeing something in real life and then heading into the VW to look for it, one needs to approach in-world research from the opposite direction - by finding interesting phenomena in VWs and then heading into the real world to find appropriate analogues. For instance, Dimitri, I think a scam-rampant VW is full of valid mapping prospects, but not for first-world contexts with strong third-party enforcement regimes. I know that when I first heard of RMT my mind went immediately to the possibilities for illuminating international economics and trade. For many reasons though, that doesn't map very well. But after looking at RMT, seeing what people use it for and the different ways that operators deal with it, I think it is very fertile ground for studying gray and black markets. That mapping has much greater force.
The headline excitement over virtual worlds seems to have originated with the phenomena that are extremely complex aggregates of micro-behaviors and institutions - macro-economies, cultures and societies, and epidemics. But it is the less-complex aspects of VWs that seem most ripe for exploitation for research - markets for single items or services,culture in starting areas, or even the corrupted blood as it was initially intended: a minor debilitating disease that can spread and, if not properly dealt with, able to severely disrupt life (raid-wipe on Hakkar = incentive for avoiding disease, healing disease, and not spreading disease). By not summing over inordinately large constituent phenomena, one can produce new, valuable knowledge, even if it is not as illuminating or awe-inspiring as was once hoped.
Posted Mar 20, 2010 7:18:23 PM | link
This discussion confirms that the concept of mapping was very much needed. It's going to be such a useful term as we go down the road. Nice job.
Posted Mar 22, 2010 9:29:20 AM | link
I do hope this thing gets used and leads to better work and thinking.
Posted May 25, 2010 5:19:05 AM | link
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Posted Jun 9, 2010 2:22:56 AM | link


text:
Apple products top most holiday wish lists, according to Nielsen
New York, NY, United States (4E) – For little kids who weren't naughty but nice want something really special from Santa. Or should we say from Apple. Consumer-generated media analyst firm Nielsen conducted a study on what kids (aged 6 to 12) want most for Christmas and Apple products dominated the list.
Based on its study, Nielsen reveals 48 percent of kids surveyed want an iPad for this holiday season. The second top choice kids want is Nintendo's recently released console, the Wii U. The Wii U makes a surprise cameo in the top five despite generally average reviews from critics. An estimated 39 percent of kids surveyed wanted Nintendo's latest offering.
The third most wanted gift is the iPod touch, which grabbed 36 percent of those surveyed. It was tied with the iPad mini with also 36 percent of respondents revealing they wanted the smaller model of Apple's popular tablet.
Rounding out the top five was the iPhone with 33 percent. The demand among kids for the iPad, iPod touch and iPhone increased from last year.
Nielsen also conducted a survey among teens 13 years old and older and found that the iPad was also the top choice. It received 21 percent of those surveyed. Computers landed in the second spot and Android tablets were the third most wanted by teens.
Among adults surveyed, the iPad mini came out on top followed by the Kindle Fire and iPod touch.
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
William C. Adams
Foreign Service Journal (May 1984)
Abridged and annotations added in brackets
Stereotypes abound when it comes to how the world views the American people. Depending on who sketches the caricature, Americans are all jingoistic adventurers eager to assert power, or ethnocentric know-nothings with no capacity for subtle diplomacy, or cowardly isolationists who have lost the will to defend Western interests. In addition, there is the odd impression that the American public treats each foreign policy issue in an ad hoc manner, as if based solely on the information in the last newspaper or newscast.Abstract: While Americans are cautious about foreign involvement, they believe strongly in the value of both talk and a strong military defense. For as long as survey data are available, the results are consistent and overwhelming: Americans want to reduce tensions, maintain a strong defensive military shield, promote American economic self-interest, and help the oppressed of the world. Most Americans do not expect to critique the details and tactics used by the president and foreign policy professionals. Their performance will be judged by the product -- by the extent to which they can successfully turn such goals into foreign policy achievements.
Generalizations, of course, are often wrong -- markedly so in this case. American public opinion on foreign policy can be broken into several broad orientations, but it does not fit crude categories such as isolationist, militarist, or internationalist.
A series of underlying attitudes forms the basis from which most Americans interpret international news. These fundamental orientations toward world affairs have been remarkably consistent for the better part of this century. Seven major patterns can be supported by decades of opinion polling. New polls offer only an occasional twist. (Unless otherwise noted, polls by the Gallup organization are cited in this essay.)
Universal human decency. Most Americans assume that people everywhere are basically good and decent -- not perfect in some utopian way, but still good despite an inevitable assortment of human shortcomings. On the other hand, Americans are not reluctant to label governments as bad or even monstrous. This fact may seem trivial at first but it is significant. It means, for example, that Americans can be sincerely concerned about the fate of the Palestinian people and at the same time hostile toward the PLO.
Even after World War II, most Americans favored generous treatment of the citizens of Germany and Japan. This benevolent attitude was possible because of the distinction between peoples and governments, and faith in the usual goodness of most people. With their wartime rulers swept away, the Germans and Japanese could be seen as friends and allies within a short time after the end of a brutal war.
One remarkable Gallup poll in 1947 asked: "At the present time, do you feel friendly or unfriendly toward the people of Germany as a whole," Only 28% of the Americans surveyed answered "unfriendly." By 1953, only 15% felt so.
While other nations may have sustained centuries-old animosities of the Polish-Russian variety, Americans have no experience in constant hostility toward any people. A powerful consequence of this is that Americans are likely to assume that, if it were not for the men in the Kremlin and their government by gulag, there would be friendship not dispute with Soviets.
Hope in communication is an outgrowth of this underlying U.S. optimism toward other peoples. Americans invariably favor communication with other countries, adversaries and allies alike. Believing that other people are basically decent, despite cultural variation, Americans are eager for people-to-people exchanges as well as diplomatic exchanges -- without much regard to the politics of the foreign regimes. Thus, there is an abiding hope that discussions can resolve strife. When Anwar Sadat went to Jerusalem and joined in direct talks with Menachem Begin, Americans were ecstatic. Sadat received an outpouring of sympathy and support simply because he showed himself willing to break Arab barriers to talking with Israel. By 1979, in fact, Sadat's popularity ratings were higher than those of President Carter.
Americans believe that a willingness to discuss differences is an essential part of civilized behavior. Leaders, American as well as others, who refuse to talk to their opponents are usually considered intemperate if not extremist. Presumably, anyone genuinely interested in peace is always prepared to talk with the other side.
For these reasons, two of President Nixon's most popular moves, both with the press and with the people, were to travel to Moscow and to Beijing -- the first time an American president had gone to either capital. Even Americans who were most cynical about the motives and trustworthiness of Soviet and Chinese rulers still wanted to see the president make every effort to talk away tensions.
These attitudes do not represent some sort of recent shift. In 1938, for example, when asked if the United States should "refuse to take part in the 1940 Olympic games if they are held in Japan," 61% said that the country ought to participate. Likewise, the immediate reaction of two thirds of the public in 1980 was that, despite the Afghanistan invasion, the United States should still go to the Moscow Olympics.
The American eagerness to try to settle disputes through negotiation is also long-standing. In 1937, 66% favored a "world disarmament conference," and 79% wanted mutual reductions in spending for armaments." The next year 59% favored the Munich agreement and agreed that ''England and France did the best thing in giving in to Germany instead of going to war." In 1939, 69% wanted a "conference of leading nations of the world to try to end the present war and settle Europe's problems."
It is entirely consistent, therefore, that, Americans would sympathize with an international organization that facilitates communication and negotiation. Just after the war, 81% favored the United States' "joining a world organization with police power to maintain world peace." And two years later, 85% said they supported the United Nations. Little has changed. In 1981, despite the fact that 51% thought the United Nations was doing a poor job, 79% still wanted to continue U.S. participation.
Human rights. Empathy for other peoples and a commitment to freedom produces American concern with human rights violations. When Alexander Solzhenitsyn portrays the incalculable injury inflicted by the heirs of Marx, Americans grieve -- as they do when they hear Jacob Timerman tell of torture in Argentina. Images of good people suffering at the hands of despots are painful.
Washington policymakers may debate whether Soviet-aligned states or certain Western dictatorships ought to be the chief target of U.S. government efforts to promote human rights violations, but Americans will endorse condemnations of any government understood to be abusing its citizens. Attempts to rationalize nasty behavior by allies are doomed to failure, no matter how much worse the potential alternatives might be.
This perspective makes it difficult to generate much enthusiasm for the defense of illiberal allies. Some people claim that if U.S. support is to be confined to the Switzerlands of the world -- that is, to tranquil islands of democracy and plenty -- then much of the world will be future Afghanistans [then recently under Soviet control] and Cambodias [where Pol Pot's brand of communist murdered over a million Cambodians]. Nevertheless, the American revulsion toward all human rights violations undercuts sympathy for autocratic allies.
As much as Americans may sincerely deplore the trampling of freedom abroad, their approved approaches for responding to such problems are severely circumscribed. American concern about human rights is held in check by an even more intense and longstanding American attitude -- fear of foreign combat.
Opposition to foreign combat. Contrary to the cliché, wars are not "popular" -- at least not in the U.S. The most popular politicians have been those who promised to do everything possible to keep American boys out of war.
One still encounters the view that the Vietnam experience somehow created an antiwar constituency where none had been before. But Americans recognized the horror of war long before the Tet offensive. For as long as national public opinion polling has been conducted, the results have shown widespread opposition to fighting overseas -- as long as the United States is not directly attacked.
Americans overwhelmingly wanted to stay out of World War II. Gallup polls in 1939 showed that 96% opposed "joining the European war" and declaring war on Germany. When asked if they wanted the United States to keep out of the war even if it would mean Germany would conquer England and France, 77% still said "stay out." To help ensure this, 69% favored "stricter neutrality laws" and 73% liked the idea of requiring the government to call a "national referendum" before a war could be declared. In 1940, on the general question of entry into the war, 86% were in opposition. And, as late as July 1941, an overwhelming 79% still opposed American involvement.
Consequences of this antiwar tradition are considerable. It means that Americans resist, under almost all circumstances, the need to send soldiers to fight on distant shores. Students of this tradition are hardly shocked to find that 8 of 10 Americans in the 1980s reject any plan to send U.S. soldiers to fight in El Salvador. Nor is it any wonder Americans never endorsed the military engagement in Lebanon.
What is at first glance surprising is that Americans did indeed support, after the fact, the U.S. intervention in Grenada. Grenada and Lebanon, however, offer ideal examples of the types of military enterprises Americans will approve or reject.
Although few people would have given a pre-invasion endorsement of the move, Americans did support the fait accompli in Grenada [in 1983] because it was successful, quick, rescued Americans, had a limited number of casualties, and had clear and achievable objectives. The antithesis is Lebanon, where the involvement was prolonged [in the early 1980s], American lives were not as clearly on the line, casualties were high, and objectives were unclear and ultimately unattainable. In the public's eye, it held few prospects for success while the Marines became targets for snipers and terrorists.
Such views are not a new wave of post-Vietnam isolationism. They are part of enduring American attitudes that were not moved by storm troopers marching across Europe forty years ago any more than they have been by the adversaries of the 1980s.
Strong defense. Avoidance of combat converges with another belief. Americans want a strong national defense, largely because it is understood to be protection against actual combat. In 1938, despite their strong resistance to joining in the war in Europe, Americans overwhelming favored President Roosevelt's strengthening of U.S. military forces. When asked if the proposed larger navy would "more likely get us into war or keep us out of war," 73% said such defensive strength would help keep us out.
Americans get upset with leaders who appear either too weak or too belligerent, either quality seeming to invite war for opposite reasons. Teddy Roosevelt's famous phrase has always found favor with the American public. Since the instant it was spoken, "speak softly but carry a big stick" has been a perfect expression of a key American instinct: do not be loud and warlike, but be sufficiently armed to discourage attack. In recent years, many conservatives have gone for the big stick while neglecting to speak softly. Many liberals have mastered whispering but tried to whittle down the size of the stick. Invariably, Americans turn their back on the politicians who come to represent either extreme.
This is not to claim that Americans are incapable of shifts toward more hawkish views. Perceptions of a weak Carter presidency coupled with explosive news from Iran, Afghanistan, Poland, and elsewhere produced 1980's strong surge in support for increased defense spending and for a slightly tougher (though still cautious) posture. To be sure, Americans do not want to be threatened, intimidated, or pushed around on the world scene. Such inclinations are restrained, however, by the public's dread of bloody foreign swamps.
Outrage over an event like the Soviet attack on the Korean jet typically subsides soon as people revert to their wish to minimize tensions. Such inclinations are due neither to the fall of Saigon nor to manipulation by liberal journalists. For the U.S. public, these basic orientations have shown stability for much of the century.
Economic self-interest. Economic conditions are outstanding predictors of whether incumbent presidents will be reelected, and election analysts have long noted that Americans vote their pocketbook. A neglected but comparable point is that economics forms an important part of the public's view of foreign policy. Americans often see the pursuit of national self-interest in economic terms.
Americans overwhelmingly believe foreign policy has an enormous effect on the U.S. economy. In 1982, 72% said U.S. foreign policy has a "major impact" on "our overall economy at home"; 81% said it has a "major impact" on gasoline prices; and 66% said it has a "major impact" on unemployment. Consequently, the public ranks issues of economic self-interest as goals that ought to be the top priorities of U.S. foreign policy. When presented with a variety of possible international goals, the top three were all economic: "protecting jobs of American workers" was picked as a ''very important goal" by 77%; "keeping up the value of the dollar" was very important to 71%; and "securing adequate supplies of energy" was very important to 70%. In fact, even though big business is never especially popular in polls, 44% said that "protecting interests of American business abroad" ought to be a very important goal of U.S. foreign policy.
Presidential leadership. Historically, Americans support the president in times of international crisis. They are also inclined to support the president even without a crisis. This reaction has not disappeared in recent years, but that public support is not now, nor has it ever been, a carte blanche. But within certain limits -- set largely by the preceding six factors -- the president can draw on a huge reservoir of public support.
This context for presidential support is crucial because, to reiterate the thesis of this essay, conventional American attitudes toward foreign affairs are fundamentally grounded in faith in the basic decency of humanity, fear of foreign combat, faith in communication and compromise, revulsion toward oppressive regimes whether of the left or the right, belief in the shield of a strong military, and concern with economic self-interest. Respect for the leadership of the president is a factor that helps tie the other six together.
Implications for policymakers are clear. Administrations that are perceived to violate these tenets regularly -- by being seen as either too bellicose or too weak -- lose public support. If the general foreign policy reputation of an administration is solidly in this mainstream, on the other hand, it can get away with an occasional transgression. Most people will at least listen to a president's attempt to justify policies that they might initially have rejected. But it is not easy to make a convincing case when it appears to contradict this national ethos.
. . . . .
A 1982 Gallup poll reveals the extent to which Americans share these general orientations. At remarkable levels of between 85 to 94 percent, the public agreed that the following were "important" goals of U.S. foreign policy:
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I got the gift I ordered quickly. I loved it, as well as the person I gave it to. It was well made and extremely cute. Thank you! I have ordered a few things from you guys, and have been satisfied...
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Personalized Rainbow Name Puzzle Stool
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Cute and practical
Zdenka J.
(Tinley Park, IL) - November 18, 2010 (
See all reviews by this customer
They are cute, kids friendly, and practical. The fact that the letters can come out and child can learn to spell his/her own name while putting them back is such a clever idea. Also, they are very adorable as a decoration in any child's room.
Stool is "The Bomb"!
Barbara F.
(Mount Laurel, NJ) - November 15, 2010 (
See all reviews by this customer
I love this little stool. The wood is beautiful, and the lettering is just the right size for little hands to pick up. Beautiful colors and workmanship. It was shipped in a timely manner, and the order entry lady was very nice. All in all a pleasant experience. I will definitely visit there again. Thanks, Lynn
primary color puzzle stools
Karen R.
(Springfield, OH) - October 21, 2010 (
See all reviews by this customer
I absolutely love the primary personalized name stools. Such great quality wood and the colors were so beautiful. I have twin grandsons and this will be a present for Christmas that they will have forever.
Well made heirloom
Laura P.
(Corpus Christi , TX) - September 26, 2010 (
See all reviews by this customer
I have been ordering the stool for close family friends. All have commented on the study, beautiful stool that will last a lifetime and is actually useful as well as beautiful.
Great Quality
Laura T.
(New Orleans, LA) - September 24, 2010 (
See all reviews by this customer
Love the stool! You get what you pay for because the quality is beautiful & this gift will last a lifetime. I was worried when I ordered it because the name I used was only four letters long and was for a boy. I wasn't sure what colors they were going to use. Thankfully, they actually gave it some thought and didnt use the first 4 colors of the rainbow. They used red, yellow, green, blue. I was very impressed & pleased. I will order this again if I ever need a sentimental special gift for a little one again.
adorable first birthday gift
Shana O.
(North Las Vegas, NV) - September 3, 2010 (
See all reviews by this customer
We purchased the puzzle name stool for a first birthday gift. Not only were the name puzzle pieces age appropriate, it was wonderful watching him play with and explore this new thing of his. The quality of the stool was solid and made to stand the test of time. It is a timeless gift.
A great little stool
Lori Z.
(Heyworth, IL) - July 29, 2010 (
See all reviews by this customer
I purchased this item as a gift, so I can not speak to the quality long term, but I was very satisifed with the product. It was sturdy, and VERY cute. I was happy to give it to the little guy as a gift, and he and his parents loved it!! Definately something that can grow with the child.
Cheri B.
(Gonzales, LA) - July 28, 2010 (
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Early Christmas present for my son who will be 10 months. Also bought one for my nephew who will be 11 months. I cant wait to see their faces!
Patricia S.
(Islip Terrace, NY) - July 7, 2010 (
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I ordered this for our niece's 1st birthday. It looks beautiful. I am going to order another one for a friends son for his 1st birthday also. The quality is great. The service was fast.
Love it!
Karen B.
(Jefferson Hills, PA) - July 5, 2010 (
See all reviews by this customer
This is adorable. It came within two weeks. Very sturdy. Inscription on the under side was perfect. Will be buying more as my friends keep having kids!
Great quality!!
Molly H.
(Pine City, MN) - February 2, 2010 (
See all reviews by this customer
It turned out great and my niece loved it! The letters aren't as heavy as I thought they would be but other than that the product was great.
Quality product - great gift
(NORWALK, CT) - February 28, 2014
This is my go-to item for baby gifts, I've bought at least 4 in the past year. It's a great quality item, and the legs come off (it's shipped that way) for minimal storage.
That said, I've downgraded to FOUR stars instead of five because the underside of the stool USED to be "customizable." Meaning, you could write a personalized message or the baby's stats on part of the stool that isn't obvious - but it makes for a sweet memory. The most recent stool purchased didn't have that option. Instead, it had a manufacturer's INK STAMP on it - I can't tell you how upset I was by this, because I couldn't even write something there myself!
Good Product, A bit pricey
Laura H.
(Dwight, IL) - September 30, 2013 (
See all reviews by this customer
Love the stool. I think the price could stand to be lowered.
Super cute!
Sarah E.
(Fairfax, VA) - September 3, 2013 (
See all reviews by this customer
The stool was super cute & seemed to be very well made / high quality! It did end up being a bit lower to the ground that I anticipated though...
Great Baby Gift
(Downers grove, IL) - August 31, 2013
This is my go to baby gift. My children received these as gifts and we use these daily. They hold up well and are great for you child to learn the letters in their name.
Good Purchase
(Elk Grove, CA) - May 21, 2013
Overall satisfied with the product. The construction appears to be sturdy, good use of wood, and engraving is superior. My only flack (which results in a drop of a star) is that the puzzle pieces are too tight and for a child, it will be very challenging to pull the pieces out. Also, the cutouts do not match the letters (like it is shown in the picture), instead, it is flat.
My grandaughter personally requested this for her birthday.
(Dearborn, MI) - April 20, 2013
My grandaughter requested this for her birthday (Her brother was given one for his 1st birthday) I would have given this 5 stars but the colors were not very vibrant two of the letters which were side by side were green one dark one lighter in color which didn't make the stool as colorful as her brother.
We will be giving this to her in a couple of weeks just hope she is happy
The Perfect Gift!!
(Saint Clair Shores, MI) - January 9, 2012
I bought this stool for my Goddaughter's first birthday. I included her first and middle name so I had to get the larger size. I decided on the pastel colors. The puzzle tuned out beautifully. It is exactly what the picture shows. My only complaints are that the stool is extremely heavy and the wood had a few dark stains on it - which I am sure is out of the company's control. I was a little hesitant to purchase because of the high price. But once it arrived I was extremely happy with the quality. I also had the bottom engraved with a short message - that turned out great as well. One more thing - the site says it will take three weeks for delivery and I got mine in about ten days. I love anything personalized and this item looks like a lot of thought was put into it (especially with the engraved message). I know my Goddaughter will be able to use this stool for years.
not quite the same stool it used to be
Jennifer S.
(Los Angeles, CA) - December 13, 2013 (
See all reviews by this customer
We bought this stool for my daughter a few years ago and wanted to get one for my son now. However, I will say that the new design is not my favorite. The letters are kind of smushed and definitely not as cute as the old style. It will suffice but I'm disappointed it's not the same.
Sturdy bench
Carolyn B.
(Rockville Centre, NY) - December 29, 2012 (
See all reviews by this customer
This product is well constructed and sturdy. What is disappointing is the difficulty a child has in removing the puzzle pieces. For the cost of this item, more thought should be put into correcting this design flaw.
Kaden & Molly
Elaine D.
(Anderson, SC) - July 21, 2012 (
See all reviews by this customer
The stools look well made. My biggest dissatisfaction is the order
of the color choices for the lettering. Colors did not make the lettering stand out and were not complimentary to each other. ie....green next to blue, yellow next to orange.
A surprise knot
Mary Ann S.
(St Paris, OH) - December 6, 2011 (
See all reviews by this customer
I have ordered puzzle stools for all of my grandchildren but used this company for the first time. All have been Made in USA. I was dismayed when Abigails small pastel stool arrived with a large dark knot close to the puzzle pieces. I had not noticed any knots on their display but looked back and saw one on a primary color stool. I am not sure I will order my next one from this website.
Letters too compressed
(Belleville, MI) - July 30, 2011
I got one for my daughter who has 9 letters in her name and it was great. Very sturdy, great colors, and well made. Though it does dent easily under the pounding of a 9 month old banging the letters against each other. We liked it so much we got one for a friend. It was a much smaller stool (5 letters), but the pieces/letters were still a good size. I ordered one for a second friend and it disappointed me as the letters were so tight and small width wise (7 letters). I would gave paid the large name premium if it had meant having normal sized letters. Too bad there isn't a preview and option to get a wider stool. I can't be certain if the problem is the number or type of letters. The stool one I didn't like was for a name that typed is as long as my daughter's; yet is 2 letters shorter. I don't think I'll order one again. I loved the first 2 (4.5 stars), but I would have returned this one if I could
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Writing For Fun And Profit
August 25, 2008
Writing Filter: How do I get published, or to be exact, how do I network with editors, so I can do some freelance writing on the side?
I was a campus paper staff member, and I got two articles published in a local alternative weekly. Now that I'm relocating to Montreal, I'd like to continue to write little '$25 an article' style jobs with an eye to making a side business to the part time writing thing and building a broader range.
I have a flair for witty how tos, writing about art (ie, gallery show = awesome), and doing bland filler articles on the topic of the editor's choice. I write for fun, and I adore taking a potentially boring subject and jazzing it up. What would this sort of talent work well with?
People tell me that things like travel magazines and websites will pay for articles, but I haven't the foggiest idea about going and pitching myself to these people. How do I assemble a portfolio of clippings? How do I track down English language publications who want articles? People looking for web content that actually pay?
What, as a novice freelance journalist, should I keep in mind? I'm sort of attracted to the idea of doing what I love for money. Now how to make editors think I'm awesome?
posted by
Work & Money
(22 answers total)
35 users marked this as a favorite
I've never sold a single word but I had a hair up my butt to do so at one point. As I recall there is a big book published annually that is basically a listing of every magazine, what sort of articles they want (if any), how to submit to them, what they pay, addresses, etc.
posted by
on August 25, 2008
Back when I was an editor buying articles, nothing screamed amateur louder than a pitch that was utterly wrong for the publication I worked for. You can write the world's most interesting and entertaining article about, say, guinea pigs, but if you pitch it to
Cat Fancy
they'll never read your emails again. Meeting deadlines also makes editors very happy. Spot-free grammar and spelling are great, but not nearly as important as a compelling story.
Other than that, I'd say it's just a matter of persistence. If your stuff is good you should be able to sell it.
posted by
on August 25, 2008
One of the best pieces of advice I've heard about freelance journalism (which is what it sounds like you're talking about) is don't write the article first. Especially since you've got a couple of articles already, what you want to do is pitch an
to an editor, using your published articles as proof that you can write the article you're proposing to them. If you have an idea, about which you have done in-depth research, you can write a number of articles about it, each one focused in a manner specific to the publication you're trying to sell it to.
Particularly helpful would be to find out, as far ahead of time as possible, if there are any issues coming up about a certain theme. You can then pitch an idea to the editor that fits in with that theme, and if you're early enough, he'll probably give you a shot, because editors often have to go out and ask writers they are familiar with if they can do an article that fits with whatever the upcoming theme is. If you pitch your idea before an editor has done that, that results in that much less work for the editor to do.
posted by
on August 25, 2008
has a bunch of articles on pitching for magazines. (may not have much information on the local market, however).
posted by
on August 25, 2008
: "
I've never sold a single word but I had a hair up my butt to do so at one point. As I recall there is a big book published annually that is basically a listing of every magazine, what sort of articles they want (if any), how to submit to them, what they pay, addresses, etc.
Writer's Market.
posted by
The corpse in the library
on August 25, 2008
Caduceus hits the main points. Call an editor with a story pitch, then ask if you can send some clips. You'll need a few. Note: In your pitch, avoid phrases like
"gallery show = awesome"
"bland filler"
, and
"jazzing it up"
When you first start freelancing for a publication, it's extremely unlikely that they'll say, "Hey, how's about you write about _____!" You'll have to have an idea and sell it. Comb your local alt-weekly, or other local publications, for two things: 1) Events/topics you'd like to write about, and 2) check to see if anyone in that publication is already on that beat. Quickest way to be shot down is if they've already got a veteran writing the things you want to write about.
In other words, look for a need and try to fill it.
Craigslist is also a good source for short-term, low- (or no-) paying gigs for websites/online magazines no one's ever heard of. You won't win any awards, and you won't make any money, but you'll be able to build up your clips by publishing with them.
posted by
on August 25, 2008
Also, in my opinion,
The Writer's Market
is about of much use as books they sell on how to win the lottery.
You need clips, and you need to pitch to an editor by phone. The Writer's Market book might give you an idea of publications in your area, but it's not going to help you in any concrete way, and you'll probably find more information online.
Just an opinion. But spend the money on something more worthwhile, I say.
posted by
on August 25, 2008
I'd offer one more piece of advice: Networking with editors is great, but networking with other working writers may be even better. I'm an on-the-side freelancer, and I got my first few gigs by first taking on jobs to help out writers I knew (sometimes credited, sometimes not), and then by getting recommended by them for jobs they couldn't take on for whatever reason. I continued building connections from there, and now have a nice sideline going (and a book coming out in the fall).
posted by
on August 25, 2008
yeah, writer's market sucks. it was probably useful in the days before the internet, but now not so much. the key to finding gigs is networking.
i took a writing class with a semi-famous in the genre editor. she liked what i was doing, passed my name to her editor friend, who published me. then teacher/editor published me. i could have pursued it more, but writing is hard and i am lazy.
when i was in grad school, one of my profs was also the EiC for the weekly entertainment magazine/insert of the county's newspapers. he was always in desparate need of writers (for no pay). so i did that for a while, partly for bylines, partly as a favor to him. had i wanted to, i could have extended my network through him, but i gave up on writing.
so, yes, networking.
ask your paper's advisor if he or she knows anyone in your market who might need writers. see if there are any writer's conferences or classes in your area.
posted by
on August 25, 2008 [
1 favorite
FreelanceSuccess.com is a much better use of $75 US than Mediabistro.com, if you have to choose one. (I'm a member of both, but I find the FreelanceSuccess "how to pitch" reports and updates much more useful.)
That said, both sites are US-centric. I don't know if there's a Canadian equivalent.
posted by
on August 25, 2008 [
2 favorites
Find a publication to whom you can pitch one of your article ideas. If you have a flair for writing "how to" articles about complex or dull topics in an entertaining and easy-to-understand fashion, browse through the latest copy of Writer's Market at the various trade publications, industry-specific newsletters, and other niche market papers and magazines.Then write a great query letter and address it to the proper editor (do
address it "Dear Sir" or "To Whom It May Concern.")
In case it's any help to you, here is the query letter that sold my very first freelance article. Looking through
Writer's Market
, I found a magazine called
Nuts and Volts
that was something of an electronics hobbyist publication.
"For some of us, a $10 Timex is enough to tell us we're late for work, or that the supermarket is about to close. But for others, accuracy in time is paramount: scientists, meteorologists, oceanographers, computer specialists. And then there's the average horologist, for whom accurate time is just a hobby, yet they treat it with the fervor of a nuclear physicist, fretting over lost fractions of milliseconds. Such time-fanatics are constantly scouring every possible avenue, trying to find ways to construct better and more accurate timepieces.
Shortwave radio enthusiasts have long been aware of WWV, the US time signal station operated by the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Colorado, and CHU, the Canadian equivalent in Ottawa. What makes CHU different, other than the bi-lingual time announcements, is that seconds 31 through 39 of each minute are broadcast in Bell 103 compatible 300-baud modem tones. So, while NIST timecode requires very specialized hardware to interpret, CHU's timecode can be received directly via a serial port after demodulation. Simply put, with a basic set of instructions, a shortwave receiver, and a modem, one can build his own radio clock.
My proposed article (approx. 2500 words) would include step-by-step directions on assembling a "Gadget Box" so that the reader can build his own "World's Most Accurate Clock." In addition to the "how-to" building instructions, I will also include Internet resources where free drivers for the clock can be downloaded. I could also provide a brief history of CHU as a sidebar.
Scanning the Classified Ads in the past several issues of
Telling Time
, I note that many readers are anxious to locate an old Heathkit "World's Most Accurate Clock", which has been out of production since 1994. I believe that many of your readers would welcome the opportunity to build their own radio clock, and at a fraction of the $300+ Heathkit used to charge."
posted by
Oriole Adams
on August 25, 2008 [
3 favorites
Please don't pitch by phone. Find the right pub, get their submission guidelines, and follow those.
posted by
futility closet
on August 25, 2008
Seconding don't pitch by phone or in person.
A portfolio of your clips is a great way to get yourself noticed. Photo copy your clips, scale, cut and crop them onto one page each. Type of up a one-page letter telling the editor about yourself and pitching a few stories, then stuff it in an envelope and mail it to your local outlets.
Editors care about punctuality and tight prose. You should stress your understanding of both.
You should also be willing to work for free, or at least for movie tickets, etc. Most alt-weeklies are sinking ships nowadays with budgets only for their star writers. You should still do the work though to flesh out your clips portfolio and to establish yourself as someone reliable an editor can turn to.
posted by
on August 25, 2008
sometimes has postings for freelances and, of course,
posted by
on August 25, 2008
Also, there's plenty of money to be made in trade journalism. It's just that the subject is often is a) boring and b) requires some prior technical knowledge.
posted by
on August 25, 2008
Another vote for not pitching by phone. Identify a market you want to work with, research it by looking at past issues of relevant publications, write a concise pitch, and send it to the appropriate editors following the guidelines posted on each publication's web site or in the Writer's Market (probably available free at your library).
I published a lot in trade magazines, and that's what worked for me. A similar approach got me a book deal. Once editors were familiar with me they would call me with ideas, or I could call them, but it started with written communications, which makes sense, since you're trying to convince them you can write.
As for what market to aim at, look at your own reading habits. It's far easier to drum up enthusiasm for a topic you're already interested in than it is to write fascinating copy about, say, demand-side management policies in the electrical industry.
posted by
on August 25, 2008
I think connecting with the local alt-weekly is a great place to start. There's a timing element to getting published, also; you need to have your article in front of their editors when they happen to have space for it. Remember that alt-weeklies tend to publish on Wednesday-Thursdays so Tuesdays are not the best time to submit something since they'll be under pressure to put that week's paper to bed. Usually Thursdays and Fridays are the best days to get a submission in front of an editor. I would recommend rather than submitting clips to go ahead and write an article that you would like to publish and submit something completed. If the article's good and your timing's right it might wind up in the next week's paper. Also, I've only ever submitted articles and pitches via email and that has worked just fine.
posted by
The Straightener
on August 25, 2008
So this is basically what I've been doing all summer--graduating from the student press and trying to launch a part-time freelancing career.
I'll nth the not phoning part--well, at least not initially. I did this once and the guy was all "uhm, send me an email." At first I thought he was brushing me off but then I thought about it and remembered that when I was a student editor, in-person pitches really pissed me off (so did publicists who phoned me without first sending me a press release via e-mail). Volunteers would approach me all the time but I never felt comfortable giving them any assignments until they wrote me a basic outline of their pitch and I got a sense of how well they could write a simple e-mail.
People offer varying advice on this, but what's worked for me in the past is to first send an e-mail complete with my resume, cover letter, clippings, and a link to my portfolio. I then say if they're interested in hearing my pitch ideas to contact me. They almost never do. That's not the point, though--inevitably, they will skim my initial e-mail and be able to reference it later when I follow up.
And follow up I do, about 1-2 weeks later. I outline 2-3 pitch ideas that are never longer than a paragraph per pitch. I mention in this second e-mail that I will follow up with them via phone in a day or two. This gives them time to look at my writing, figure out if they want to hire me, consider my pitches, and then be prepared to either reject me (and possibly screen my calls) or welcome me to their cool club.
That's pretty much it. I have been really slow this summer at approaching publications, but I've been doing a lot of work for the only arts weekly in town, and that's enough to keep me going right now (I'm still trying to get another publication to talk to me -- persistence is key).
One ridiculously important aspect to story-pitching that's already been mentioned, but worth mentioning again: You GOTTA research the publication prior to contacting the editor. You should also be comfortable enough to think of at least one story idea. I'd recommend purchasing a few back issues so that you can do your research right (if you still have access to the school library, you should check the archives there first before shelling out any money).
If you're thinking of approaching art weeklies, Facebook is your best friend. Seriously, anything cool that is happening in your city is BOUND to have a Facebook event. Check out the events that your scene-iest friends will be attending. Join any and all local arts-related Facebook groups so that you'll be notified of upcoming events. Pitch these events to the arts weekly editors. This is pretty much the only reason why I use Facebook anymore.
I'm still new to the game--been only doing it for 4 months, now--but in that short span of time I've learned a lot. Mefimail me if you got any questions.
posted by
on August 25, 2008 [
1 favorite
Okay -- you know the people who have been tut-tutting Writer's Market? Don't listen to them. You know why?
You know the other people above who have been saying, "no, don't use the phone, find out who to pitch to and write them"? Writer's Market is how you do precisely that.
This is not to say that the Internet isn't valuable either. I've gotten a couple ideas for articles I'm working on myself, all simply because I fell over a travel site that accepts submissions -- and the same site didn't have any pieces on a travel destination that I know very, very well.
Yes, you can also use the Internet to find individual magazines' web sites, dig through their sites to find the submission guideslines, dig through their mastheads to find the proper contact, try to find the contact page to get the right address, etc. Or, you can have all that information already at your fingertips in a print copy of Writer's Market, and also discover other magazines you didn't know existed and find all their information as well. The information in Writer's Market is information you can find online as well, yes. But the information in Writer's Market is all in one place, so you can find your way to it much faster.
posted by
on August 26, 2008
My sweetie is a freelance writer/editor in the general publishing industry.
I am not directly involved in her work, but I certainly know how things seem to work from her end. Please note that I am speaking in generalities here, and that there is no specific case and no specific individuals I'm talking about, especially when I talk about negatives.
If you can get an agent, get one: Even if you are versed in contracts and are competent to manage your own paperwork, agents have the networking and the infrastructure to do this stuff for you. In general, unless you are a type A personality who takes provigil all the time and networks famously, the 10% - 15% of your commission that an agent will take as his/her cut is well worth it. If you can't get an agent, that's okay too - if you do self-educate and can manage contracts, etc, you'll probably do fine for your first few years without one. Corollary: Don't fall for the scam agents that ask for fees to represent you. This is not okay. Agents do up-front work and collect portions of your advances/commissions. There should be no additional fees, especially not up front.
Magazines/Newspapers and submission guidelines: Don't ignore the submission guidelines. In general if you decide one guideline doesn't sit well with you and you don't want to follow it, don't risk offending the editor by submitting anyway. You're more likely to find a different publisher that would not have that guideline than you are to have a good experience violating submission guidelines while trying to get published. Those guidelines are generally not negotiable and if you act like they are, you're most likely to have your submission thrown out and the editor may remember your name.
Editors are really busy: Make sure you read the guidelines, make sure you do basic spell checking and basic editing on your own stuff. Try a writing group or get other beta reviewers to read your stuff for readability/suitability before you submit it. Try to mindfully remove as much challenge to the editor to work with you and work with your stuff as you can. Don't impose your own style guide in preference over any stated style guides in submission guidelines.
Some editors are asses: If you know your editor is trying to take credit for your hard work that they didn't meaningfully collaborate with you to create, throw the biggest fit you can, taking into account your long term career goals. At the same time, do be honest and give credit where it's due. Sometimes your prose requires editing (to conform to guidelines or to length requirements or whatever). Sometimes your writing needs/needed more help than you are normally willing to admit. If that's the case instead, suck it up.
A lot of authors are bigger asses: If/when you do throw a fit, do it mindfully, because editors often think of authors as prima donnas, and you'll be playing to a stereotype if you do throw a fit. So do it mindfully and strategically and make sure it gets you what you want it to.
Know that the publishing industry has a long memory: I mean it when I say you need to think strategically. Think about everything you do, and make sure you don't burn bridges. Wait until you have some real power/influence before you throw a prima donna fit. Make sure that what you do will enhance your career and reputation, whatever it is. The publishing industry is so driven by drama and gossip, that you don't want to be played by it, but instead want to play it. This is all the more important the more well known you get.
Know your market: The Writer's Market book is a really good guideline to get you started knowing markets, knowing editors' names, knowing where to find submission guidelines. Use that resource if at all possible, and any other resource you can get your hands on. Find out what kind of writing you do well and try to get as close a match as possible in your initial submissions.
I hope these guildeines/suggestions help.
posted by
on August 26, 2008
If you can get an agent, get one:
Even if you are versed in contracts and are competent to manage your own paperwork, agents have the networking and the infrastructure to do this stuff for you.
I'm going to respectfully contradict this bit of advice. At the level of a trying to sell your first major piece to a periodical, the "contract" is pretty straight-forward: the publication pays X amount per word, and either pays on acceptance or on publication. They either buy all rights, or allow the writer to retain the rights. That's about it. Nothing that you need to give 10 percent of your 12 cents a word to an agent for. When you're negotiating your first book deal, that's when you might want to think about getting an agent.
posted by
Oriole Adams
on August 26, 2008
That's true. Often if you have a
agent, he/she will absent him/herself from negotiating for you on very small payout amount contracts.
posted by
on August 26, 2008
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stevenwoodworth said...
I'm going to have to disagree. It felt wrong to give warriors a handicap with armor penetration when the whole point of a warrior is the feeling of being able to power through everything with pure physical damage, to require us to use armor penetration to me made it feel like we weren't really doing it on our own anymore. I hate having the handicap. I want to go back to that kick ass feeling that I'm pounding and slicing away without having to have something extra special then my own strength then anything else.


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Categories > TV > CSI: Miami > A New Beginning:Miami Style
The Last Ultimatum0 Reviews
You know the drill
Horatio watched helplessly as his daughters were dragged from the back of the van into the warehouse. Beside him Eric gasped.
"I thought..."
Horatio shook his head.
"No. The girls are no use to them dead. Not yet anyway."
Eric caught Becki's eye as she and V were brought over to join them. The signal was clear. Get the hell out of here.
He gave a small nod, then he, Nick and Horatio watched as the pair were forced to their knees in front of them.
The gags were removed, but instantly replaced with a clammy hand. A large serrated blade was drawn swiftly in front of each girl's terrified eyes.
What it came down to. They were in an ultimatum. No one was coming. The end of the line.
The leader, Cameron, came to stand in front of Horatio. He bent his face close to the ex-Lieutenant.
"So Mr Caine. What will it be? Will you give me the information, or do I let my men start their work?"
Horatio shook his head.
"No. And you won't touch my daughter's either, or it will be the last thing you ever do."
Cam laughed.
"Oh really? And how do you plan to stop me Caine?"
He kicked Horatio in the ribs, causing him to double up. He laughed.
Ignoring Horatio's groans, he turned on Eric.
"How about you then? Will you persuade the old man, or do I start removing your little girlfriend's fingers?"
Eric opened his mouth, then a thought struck him. Could he buy them some time?
"She's not..."
He trailed off, leaving the words hanging, hoping they would take the right-
"Really? She's not?"
Eric nodded fervently, the lie tumbling out.
"We broke up. Did your men not see it?"
Cam frowned, then a smile lit his face.
"So she means nothing to you? You don't mind if I just...?"
He raised a finger and the man behind Becki pulled the rope from her wrists, splaying one hand on the hard concrete floor. Her muffled screams of terror were all it took.
"Well, not nothing as such."
Eric spoke too quickly, keep one eye on the blade as it got closer to her fingers. Cam smiled again, his arm dropping to his side. The knife was retracted and her hands swiftly retied. She shot Eric a look that was half grateful, half disappointed. Cam laughed.
"Nice try kid."
Eric hung his head and the men laughed.
"Are you going to try and help us? Last chance."
Eric shook his head, hating himself. Cam smiled, waving his hand.
"I'm done with that one. We'll make him talk. Get rid of her."
Two more men appeared and the three of them pulled Becki to her feet. Her muffled screams were drowned as she was half dragged into a small room off the main area. For a minute or so there was silence.
And then the screaming started.
It was the longest few minutes of all of their lives. The screaming didn't go on for long. It was quickly replaced with pleading, her voice begging for them to stop, for Eric to talk to her father, for her father to give up.
Horatio's head also hung low, tears coursing down his cheeks as he heard his youngest daughter begging for her life. V's cheeks were also wet, and she was struggling fiercely with her captor in the hope of reaching her sister. But all in vain.
After almost half an hour the pleading were replaced with sobbing, and finally. Silence.
The three men filed out of the room, one of them wiping blood off his hands with a scrap of cloth. Eric craned his neck to try and see into the room, but the door was quickly pulled closed.
One of the men whispered something to Cam, who nodded. He then turned back to Eric.
"You willing to help us out now? Your girl's dead, do you want to be the next to die for the old man? Do you want to die like your whore did, ignorant and in pain?"
His words cut Eric like a knife and he struggled to pull himself free of his bonds. He was cruelly laughed down, and eventually subsided.
A sudden clatter broke the laughter as V aimed a wild kick at the man holding her back. He just laughed, pushing her roughly to the floor. But she managed to catch Eric's eye. They were wide, not with terror, but knowledge. And then Eric knew. They might be able to trick him, they could trick Nick, even Horatio. But not V. They could take her away from them, but V could still reach her sister.
She was alive. And she was ok. Not great, but she was ok. That was all he needed.
The laughter finally subsided and Cam turned his attention to Nick. Eric seized his chance, hissing to Horatio.
"Stall. She's ok."
His words seemed to lift Horatio. He straightened up, calling out to Cameron.
"Leave them alone. I'll talk."
V tried to shout to him, tell him to stay quiet, but she was quickly silenced. Cam turned to Horatio with interest.
"So. We were right. The weakness of the great Horatio Caine. You've got one daughter left Caine. One kid, one chance. Don't mess this up."
He nodded to Eric.
"This clod lost you your youngest Caine. Will you risk her sister?"
Horatio shook his head. All the men seemed to relax, settling back. The one holding V retied her gag, anticipating trouble, then secured her to a ring in the wall beside Nick. Nick pulled her into his arms, whispering frantically in her ear. Her eyes grew very wide.
Cam gave Horatio a toothy smile.
"So come on Caine. Spill." He crossed his arms ready.
And it was right then when the rest of the team burst in through the door.
Authors Notes: Note to self. Do not place self in imminent danger. Does not do good things for ego. Now, where was I?


text:
A program that executes instructions written in a high-level language. There are two ways to run programs written in a high-level language. The most common is to compile the program; the other method is to pass the program through an interpreter.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
One time late at night when I was drunk I decided to hope on my warrior and do a few quests in Loch Modan. It was my first character, he was level 12 or 13 at the time, and I was getting killed over and over again by troggs. I was impatient and aggroed too many too quickly, died, rezzed, and did it all over again. I finally gave up and quit when my rez timer reached 5 minutes. I hate troggs.


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Following in the footsteps of other authors, I will be donating $1 to the Red Cross for every book sold between October 31 and November 7.
You can find my backlist here at Dreamspinner, and here at Riptide.
I will be participating in this, too. Details for my book can be found on my blog!