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A JOURNAL FOR ALL WHO WRITE
The Writer!
Month!
Continuing THE PHOTOPLAY
Edited by
J. BERG ESENWEIN
VOLUME VII
JANUARY, 1916
NUMBER I
IN THIS NUMBER
Lively Facts About
Brett Page: Criticism
and Revision of Verse:
A Few Hints For the
Wise: An Interview
With Pat Howley: A
Word About Setting:
Besides Eight Departments
THE HOME CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL
Springfield, Mass.
1 » 1
15 Cents a Copy • • \ $1.00 a Year
REAL HELPS FOR WRITERS
The seven volumes listed below are issued in uniform size and style, printed on
superior antique book paper, and handsomely and durably bound in cloth, with letter-
ing in gold and gilt top. Together they constitute the most helpful series of authorita-
tive working handbooks for the writer's desk. 12 mo., postpaid at prices quoted.
THE ART OF STORY WRITING Esenwein and Chambers. Dr. Esenwein's latest
work on Story Writing. A direct and effective guide to actual fictional narration. The
chapter on plot alone is worth the price of the book to any writer, zi + 211 pp. $1.35.
WRITING THE SHORT-STORY Esenwein. The standard textbook on the technique
of the Short-Story. Widely used in colleges and universities. A complete course includ-
ing theory, models and practice exercises in actual writing, xiv + 441 pp. $1.25.
STUDYING THE SHORT-STORY. Esenwein. A companion book to Writing the
Short-Story. Sixteen short-story masterpieces, with methods for analysis. No writer
and no lover of good stories can afford to miss this well-spread feast, xxxii + 438 pp.
$1.26.
THE TECHNIQUE OF THE MYSTERY STORY. Carolyn Wells. With introduction
by Dr. Esenwein. A complete exposition of the mystery story form. A book that stimu-
lates insight into the methods of successful writers of plotted stories and at the same
time cultivates fertility in the mind of the reader, ix + 336 pp. $1.62.
WRITING THE PHOTOPLAY. Esenwein and Leeds. The standard textbook on
photoplay construction. Recently reported by the New York City Public Library as the
book second in demand, outside of fiction, ix + 374 pp. Illustrated. $2.12.
THE ART OF VERSIFICATION Esenwein and Roberts. A practical working hand-
book of the principles of poetry and the structure of verse forms, xii + 310 pp. $1.62.
THE ART OF PUBLIC SPEAKING. Esenwein and Carnagey. An inspirational
working handbook of instruction for all who would be efficient public speakers. A book
with a "punch" on every page. xi + 512 pp. $1.75.
// on inspection a book is found undesirable and it is returned within ten days, the pur-
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THE WRITER'S MONTHLY, Springfield, Mass.
A Well-Known Writer says:
"Webster's New International
is a marvel of completeness. It is an indispensable
feature of the library of every man who either reads
or writes. There is no matter of land, sea or sky that
does not come within its purview and every topic is
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400,000 Vocabulary Terms. New Gazetteer
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The Writer's Monthly
Continuing The Photoplay Author
A Journal for All Who Write
Volume VII
January, 1916
Number 1
CRITICISM AND REVISION OF VERSE— Francis MacBeath
A WORD ABOUT SETTING— Sara H. Sterling .
IDEAS FOR WRITER-PHOTOGRAPHERS FROM MOTION
PICTURES— A. T. Strong
AUGUSTUS THOMAS ON TEACHING PLAY WRITING .
LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS— XHI— J. Berg Esenwein
BRETT PAGE— Will C. Lengel
A FEW HINTS FOR THE WISE— Bertha Scott .
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS— AN INTERVIEW WITH PAT
HOWLEY— E. M. Wickes
A QUEST FOR ORIGINALITY ...
PISTOLS IN FICTION— S. J. Fort ....
LITERARY BOOKKEEPING— Lee McCrae
AUTHORS AND THE BIBLE
THINKS AND THINGS— DEPARTMENT— Arthur Leeds
CRITICS IN COUNCIL— DEPARTMENT
EXPERIENCE MEETING— DEPARTMENT
PARAGRAPHIC PUNCHES— DEPARTMENT
WHERE TO SELL— DEPARTMENT ....
EDITORIAL
H. C. S. FOLKS— DEPARTMENT
ANSWERS TO INQUIRIES— DEPARTMENT .
3
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18
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26
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Published monthly by The Home Correspondence School, Myrick Building, Springfield, Mass.
Copyright, 1915, by The Home Correspondence School, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Entered at Springfield, Massachusetts, Post Office as Second Class Mail Matter
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TWO UNIQUE NEW BOOKS
ii
The Technique of Play Writing"
By CHARLTON ANDREWS
Author of "The Drama Today," etc.
This notable book, just from the press, is clear, concise,
authoritative and without a rival. It actually takes you
by the hand and shows you how to draft a plot, select
your characters, construct dialogue, and handle all the
mechanics of play construction. Every point in play
writing is brought out with clearness. No such effective
guide has ever been written. XXX + 267 pages. Cloth,
Gilt Top. $1.62 Postpaid.
a
Writing for Vaudeville"
By BRETT PAGE
Author oj ' "Close Harmony "l< Memories ""Camping Days,"
Etc. Dramatic Editor" Newspaper Feature Service" New York
The first and only book on the subject. An expert writer
for the vaudeville stage here shows precisely how every
vaudeville form is written. Nine full examples of the
several types — monologue, two-act, musical comedy, play-
let, etc. — are given by authors of international reputation,
including Richard Harding Davis, Edgar Allan Woolf and
Aaron Hoffman. Valuable chapters on popular-song
writing, and selling vaudeville acts. A mine of informa-
tion. 650 pages. Cloth, Gilt Top. $2.15 Postpaid.
The latest volume of "The Writer's Library"
THE HOME CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL
Springfield, Mass.
Please mention The Writer's Monthly when writing advertisers.
Vol. vii January, 1916 Number 1
The Writer's Monthly
Continuing The Photoplay Author
A Journal for All Who Write
Criticism and Revision of Verse
By Francis James MacBeath
Lucky is the writer — especially lucky the poet — who has a
friend to stand between him and his literary faults; one with intelli-
gence to discover the defects, courage to give honest opinions, knowl-
edge to suggest corrections and interest to devote sufficient time to
the criticism. Granted the ability, who will do all this for us unless
we be something more than friends — and in that case how shall we
guard against a prejudice in our favor that in his eyes may raise our
work almost above adverse criticism?
Few writers have the ability to judge correctly their own work;
they are most likely to overlook their habitual faults — else how could
they have become habitual? Carried away with enthusiasm, the
poet too often believes that he has given his thought and feeling
adequate expression, when to the reader certain or even all of his
lines convey but a vague suggestion of what their author saw in them.
Only by keeping his verses until he can regard them from a fresh
viewpoint is it possible for the poet to improve them unassisted.
Kipling is said to keep some of his poems in his desk for years, re-
touching them at intervals. Thomas Gray began his Elegy more
than seven years before he authorized its publication. Unless you
possess similar genius and patience, you need some other critic to
assist you.
To meet this requirement, the Home Correspondence School
has designed a new, advanced course in Poetics and Versification.
It consists of twenty lessons, which will be devoted to the criticism
and revision of ten short poems; the idea being to return each sub-
mitted poem to the student, with a practical criticism that will
enable him to revise the lines — so that the actual work may be his
own. In the next lesson the same poem, revised by the student, is
again sent to the instructor, who will once more criticize it, and
suggest what further alterations he thinks it needs to fit it for possible
publication.
In pursuing this course of study the student not only should
complete ten poems with a degree of finish that otherwise he might
not give them, but he should discover and eliminate his most com-
4 CRITICISM AND REVISION OF VERSE
mon literary faults, and also he should form the valuable habit of
criticizing his own work. To illustrate the practical working of this
system, the following poem, which recently was submitted for
criticism by a student, is published with her permission. It is selected
for this purpose partly because it is short, and also because it con-
tained a good poetic thought with several effective lines, yet had
some defects that might have prevented its publication. The num-
bered criticisms and suggestions are the instructor's part of the first
lesson.
A wounded dove,(l) with pinion broken,
With breast all marred, (2) lies at my feet.
Oh voiceless (3) bird with song unspoken (3)
Now silent (3) are thy love notes sweet.
And from a hedge a (4) dove is singing
A last song to his stricken mate;
While all my soul in grief is winging
To my lost love, (5) Oh, cruel fate! (6)
E. B. F.
(1) To intensify the pathos of a bird bereft of power to sing and fly, I should substitute for
the dove the lark — "That singing still dost soar, and soaring, ever singest."
(2) The word "marred" is open to criticism as here used — better use a color — to describe a
scene in colors is to present it more vividly to the imagination of the reader.
(3) Repetition approaching the ludicrous.
(4) Make it clear at once that this is the mate of the wounded bird.
(5) The climax of your poem, which should end it. The words might be repeated for
emphasis.
(6) This should not be expressed in words — it is the impression you desire to leave in the mind
of the reader; tell the story but do not at the end explain that it is sad.
To the layman this criticism may seem to suggest almost a new
poem, yet the instructor is careful to preserve so far as he can the
thought and feeling of the original verse. Few great poems have
been written hastily; studied care gives the effect of spontaneity.
We must pass through art to nature, studying the technicalities until
we have mastered their use and made their application a habit —
then we can afford to forget them.
As it happens, the poem quoted was handled in the regular course
in Versification; had it been submitted in the new advanced course,
for a second lesson it might have been returned to the instructor in
some such shape as this:
A wounded lark, with pinion broken,
And crimson(l) breast, lies at my feet.
Poor, stricken bird (2) with song unspoken,
Now(3) silent are thy love notes sweet.
And from a hedge your (4) mate is singing
A song that soars to heights above,
While all my soul in grief is winging
E'en to the skies, to my lost love. (5)
(1) Unless used in the past tense, "crimson" might suggest that the lark, like the robin, had
a red breast. "Crimsoned" would be better.
(2) This might be left to the imagination of the reader. Why not dwell on the thought of the
"song unspoken" — that is suggestive.
(3) "Now" would be more effective at beginning of second stanza.
(4) "Thy" used elsewhere — one or the other form should be used consistently through a poem.
(5) For simplicity let the yearning of the poet, and of the bird, be directed together to the
ekies — the lost human love and the living bird both calling to Heaven.
A WORD ABOUT SETTING 5
With the criticisms as noted, the poem is returned by the student
in the following form:
FATE
By E. B. F- —
A wounded lark, with pinion broken,
And crimsoned breast, lies at my feet.
How eloquent thy song unspoken!
All silent are thy love-notes sweet.
Now from the sky thy mate is singing
To lure thee to the heights above:
Like thine my tortured soul is winging
To my lost love, to my lost love !
A Word About Setting
By Sara H. Sterling
Every writer knows that there are three things necessary to
every good short-story as to every good novel: Plot, Characters,
and Setting. It matters not how interesting your characters, how
full of atmosphere your setting, if your short-story lacks a plot, it
is a short-story only in name, or in your opinion of it. You may
have a most spirited plot, but if your characters are mere puppets,
with the strings that move them very obvious, still you have not a
real short-story. Lastly, you may have both a stirring plot and
characters that seem actual flesh and blood, but if your setting, no
matter how lightly sketched, is false or unconvincing, your public,
if you ever reach it, will feel that something is lacking in your short-
story, even though they may not be able to define wherein that lack
consists.
Of these, setting seems to be the most difficult for a young writer
to make effective. Nine times out of ten, the reason is that he has
not a clearly defined idea as to what setting means. Asked by way
of an exercise to outline a setting, he may write something like this:
"The shop was dark and low-ceiled. Clocks, ticking busily,
stood on the shelves that lined the walls, and watches of many kinds
rested in the glass cases upon the counter. An old man with a long
gray beard sat near the door."
Now, this is setting, after a fashion; but when you have finished
the paragraph, have you in your mind's eye a clear picture,
or merely a somewhat confused mass of details? Here is the real
test of an effective setting: Does the reader get a distinct mental
image of the place you describe? Remember, you must yourself have
that picture vividly in your mind's eye before you can make it live
for him.
6 WARNING
Let us take the paragraph just given, and see whether he can
make it somewhat better.
"As Richard entered the clock shop out of the bright sunshine,
twilight seemed suddenly to descend upon him. Shadowy, ghostly
figures haunted the gloom, ranged in menacing rows upon the shelves
around him. They seemed to mock or warn, in their monotonous
ticking voices. Fainter voices, too, echoes as it were of the stronger
ones, came from the glass cases on the counter. And who but the
guardian spirit of the place — old Father Time himself, he seemed —
sat near the door as ready to challenge."
Comparing these two versions, you will see first of all that no
new detail has been added, though a character has been introduced,
and the setting described from his point of view — always an effective
method, although by no means absolutely necessary. We have used
figures of speech to give vividness; and we have tried to create
atmosphere rather than give merely a list of details. In other words,
we have sketched a picture, not made a catalogue.
This illustration is, of course, a very brief and simple example of
the point in question. Study Cynthia Stockley's stories, and note
the unmistakable African atmosphere. Go to Kipling, naturally,
for India; to Jacobs for the English sea coast town. Come nearer
home, and read Mary E. Wilkins for New England, Thomas Nelson
Page for Virginia, or any one of the numerous writers who have drawn
so successfully for us the many and varied aspects of our great country.
Read them critically; not only feel their effects, but see how they do
it. And, here as elsewhere, note always that suggestion, although
more difficult, is always a finer method than detail.
Warning
Patterning after the methods of certain publishing concerns, a
company now offers to make photoplay productions for authors for
"a little more than $300 per reel," pointing out that film commands
as much as $1.50 a foot or $1500 a reel. This looks like a chance to
get rich almost overnight, but authors should avoid this seemingly
generous offer.
It is entirely true that film negative does command as much as
$1.50 a foot for exceptional stuff, but the run in price for good negative
is more apt to be from seventy-five cents to one dollar per foot, and
even in the case of professional producers this is supposed to cover an
occasional rejection, and one large purchaser of negative recently
rejected twelve thousand feet of comedy produced by a well-known
concern. The foregoing applies only to contract work. In the open
market much smaller prices prevail, since there is so little demand
for outside footage, and one buyer recently stated that he could, if he
desired, obtain a half million feet of negative at less than the cost of
raw stock.
Obviously, personal production is no short road to wealth.
Ideas for Writer-Photographers from
Motion Pictures
By A. T. Strong
All writers need good photographs with which to illustrate their
articles. An article susceptible of illustration yet unaccompanied
by photos is very likely to be returned as "unavailable for present
use," while good photos actually often sell articles of a mediocre
merit. A great many writers have cameras and some understand
how to make salable photographs. But, judging by what I see in
even the best magazines, the average writer is sadly deficient in
photography, not only in technical work, but in composition.
Has it ever occurred to writer-photographers that the moving-
picture screen offers unlimited opportunity for studying photography
in general and composition in particular? Why, a modern moving-
picture drama abounds with ideas for improving one's pictures! It is
a veritable living photograph, pulsating with life and showing an
endless variety of groupings and poses from the opening scene to
the censorship tag. Many of the scenes present artistic gems which
we should like to see in permanent form, only the next instant to
fade or flash into a scene of even greater beauty.
The lessons to be learned from watching the films are many;
but my space permits treating of only a few.
That most motion-picture cameramen are lovers of art is ap-
parent in the carefully chosen settings which in themselves are often
exquisitely beautiful. And the figure work shows masterly handling,
too. The wide-awake cameraman usually sees to it that when one
or two figures appear in a scene, especially a scene in which some
natural grandeur forms the background, they occupy a position of
strength — a little to one side of the center and well up in the fore-
ground. Figures posed thus add greatly to the beauty and interest
of a scene — they seem to have come naturally into the picture and
do not appear to be posing. This applies to the " still" photograph
as well.
Another little ruse is that of throwing the background slightly
out of focus, which gives the effect of depth or distance in the picture.
It also causes the figures to stand out in bold relief.
Most humans — I might say all — are more or less self-conscious
when facing the camera. The searching eye of the lens seems to exert
a mystic power which causes normally refined, intelligent people to
photograph ridiculously — they rarely look natural. The camera does
not portray even our friends as we know them. It captures but a
fleeting expression, which, unless care has been taken to render it a
pleasant one, or at least one of ease, is very apt to be recorded as a
fixed stare, or what is worse, a meaningless grin.
8 IDEAS FROM MOTION PICTURES
The moving-picture actors are trained to ignore the presence of
the camera and, while often forced in the action of the play to look
directly into the lens, the experienced actor never stares as does the
average person.
In " still " pictures, women photograph more easily and naturally
than men. But results are always better if the attention of the
subject posed is directed to something a little to one side of the
camera. The photographer can often secure a pleasant, natural
expression by making some facetious remark and then snapping the
picture just as the subject is about to open his lips in reply.
Buildings appearing in the films present material for study.
Note the effect of bright sunlight on buildings casting delicate shadows
from cornice, gables and decorations, just as the architect would, no
doubt, represent the same structure in his drawings. Compare this
scene with one in which a similar building has been photographed on
a sunless day.
Watch animals — horses particularly — in action. Observe that
when a horse at short range is coming toward the camera, his head
and shoulders are disproportionally large. Also that the body is
elongated to an incredible length. Note in particular the effect when
the animal turns broadside to the camera, and, I'll venture to say
you will no longer take pictures of horses or other large animals
"head on."
Many of you, no doubt, have attempted to photograph swiftly
moving objects — express trains, speeding automobiles, etc., often
with disappointing results — usually a blurred picture little resembling
the original. The cinematograph operator will show you how to do
that successfully, too, for be it remembered that while sixteen or more
photographs are taken every second, the actual exposure (time) given
each separate picture is relatively small, and if he did not exercise
good judgment in selecting the point of view, his pictures also would
be blurred. A little study will show that he evidently chose a position
in front and a little to one side of the approaching train or motor,
and even then, blur is noticeable when the moving object gets too
close. The same train or motor appears to be moving much more
slowly when viewed at a considerable distance.
Perhaps nowhere is the effectiveness of selection more apparent
than in some of the motion-picture landscape scenes. Here, a bit of
roadway winds gracefully into the haze of distant hills. A rustic
fence follows the course of the road on one side, and a row of stately
trees on the opposite side further emphasizes the composition — all
the lines lead the eye into the picture; there is nothing discordant in
the whole scene.
Next may appear a scene along the seashore. If it is pleasing,
it will be something more than a few yards of sand in the foreground
and an indeterminate expanse of sea and sky beyond. It will show a
charming stretch of gently curving beach mellowing into the distance,
a boat or group will be in the foreground, while incoming waves break
in a succession of minor curving lines which further contribute to the
composition.
AUGUSTUS THOMAS ON TEACHING PLAY WRITING 9
When, in the course of a play, a small number of film actors form
into a group it is usually a pleasing one. When John approaches the
rustic bench upon which Pauline and Harry are sitting, he does not
"plank" himself down beside them, no indeed! More than likely he
will remain standing at one end of and back of the bench, while Harry,
out of deference to his friend, will arise and assume a leaning attitude
over the back of the bench or lounge carelessly on the arm at the
opposite end. Thus the picture tells its own story. We readily under-
stand that the men are friends, though rivals for the hand of the
vivacious girl who constitutes the principal figure of the group. No
subtitle is needed. Nor is this solely due to the fact that they
are acting " parts." The director and the man behind the camera
have learned that three heads in a row, and all of the same height,
do not constitute a group in accordance with the dictates of art.
Augustus Thomas on Teaching" Play
Writing
Mr. Augustus Thomas, the distinguished American playwright
who has been made artistic director of the company formed to carry
on the work of that lamented victim of the Lusitania tragedy,
Charles Frohman, is interested in the development of the American
drama from a novel standpoint. His new position has made it in-
cumbent upon him to get plays of merit, and the dearth of available
material, because of the war, has quite naturally turned the pro-
ducer's attention to home sources.
We reproduce here his statement, recently given to the metro-
politan newspapers, not only for its intrinsic interest, but because it
is in direct line with the new course in Practical Play Writing just
announced by the Home Correspondence School, to be given by
Prof. Charlton Andrews, of New York University — himself a success-
ful playwright. Professor Andrews' earlier book, "The Drama
Today" is well known, and his new volume, "The Technique of
Play Writing," is so thoroughly in harmony with Mr. Thomas'
idea that the coincidence constitutes a notable endorsement of the
new method.
"Since August, 1914, play writing has been extinguished in seven
nations," said Mr. Thomas. " The theatres of six countries are closed.
Previous to that August sixty per cent of the dramas, comedies and
operettas shown on the American stage came from Europe and
England. America, which has always made the greatest demand of
all countries for theater entertainment, must hereafter produce its
own supply. Play writing is paralyzed throughout Europe for five
or ten years to come. Except the plays we have from Maugham,
Barrie, Pinero, Besler, Chambers and Morton, no plays will even
come out of England for years to come.
10 AUGUSTUS THOMAS ON TEACHING PLAY WRITING
"But in this fact is the American playwright's golden oppor-
tunity. Not since the night the first theatre in America threw open
its doors have the writers of American comedies, satires, farces and
musical operettas been yielded such an absolutely clear field. A
nation of eighty million must hereafter look exclusively to its own
writers for its theater entertainment. As the art directing head of
the huge Frohman institution, I am forced to realize that for many
years to come there is an end to the practice of managers seeking
plays abroad. This, therefore, enforces the policy of hastening the
development of home products.
"The total paralysis of play writing in Europe is one reason
behind my plan for stimulating American play writing, but it is only
one reason," Mr. Thomas continued.
" I have long held and frequently expressed the opinion that the
potential dramatist is first a newspaper man, because the newspaper
man has that indispensable training, not elsewhere found, in dia-
logue, in character study, and has the flare for the dramatic. I
believe that the future of the American drama has its finest promise
in such products as shall come directly from the soil; such stories as
shall be indigenous to the communities which they express. Our
country is so large that we may never produce what may be definitely
called 'The Great American Play/ but the great sections are so dis-
tinctive and individual that many great sectional plays will be
evolved.
"The material for these plays now lies in the minds and may be
on the tables of many ambitious young men in the local rooms of the
newspapers, and if a method however imperfect can be devised for
calling this material into l shape' the theater and the nation will be
the gainers.
"Allow me to illustrate my theory by example. During the last
winter, after lecturing before Professor Baker's class in drama at
Harvard, I made a second visit to the university for the purpose of
working in collaboration with the students. We proceeded on the
assumption that a definite order had been received from a manager
for a play. Then the class addressed itself to the task; decided upon
the actor or actress for whom the play was to be written; started
with either a suggestion or an idea and built a working scenario lead-
ing from that idea.
"The experiment was successful, and in two morning sessions
of three hours each, Professor Baker's class of thirty-five produced
what can be recorded as an excellent story for a play.
"The story was left in the custody of the class, which was to
appoint a small committee for its amplification into a proper play.
"The reported result of the experiment was so heartily received
by the Society of American Dramatists that the society voted to try
similar experiments among its own members, and for several con-
secutive Saturday nights during the season those members met and
worked after the same fashion, first under my leadership and then
under others. In this work two stories were evolved and given to
committees for their development into plays.
LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS 11
"These dramatist pot-boilers have not yet made their appear-
ance and the committees of dramatists appointed to work upon them
were not always in agreement, but something more valuable than
the production of the pot-boilers resulted from the collaboration.
Some members of the committee decided to work on their own account
on the stories presented; others began to work in pairs, which is per-
haps the most satisfactory allotment for collaboration, but the
whole society was energized by the idea, and its various members
went to work with renewed vigor.
"The success of the experiment at Harvard and in the Drama-
tists' Society and especially the practicability of work in that manner,
indicate that if in centers of the great sections, let us say, Philadel-
phia, Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, St. Paul, Chicago, New
Orleans, Boston, St. Louis, Detroit, and other cities, a sufficient
number of newspaper men could be found to form a little working
coterie to which company I or others might come who are familiar
with the work; such a company of writers could successfully collabo-
rate upon a play. I do not think that this play would necessarily be
great or even successful, but I do believe that after it was produced
the men who had been instructed by its production would employ
the same methods to make plays of their own subjects about which
they no doubt feel deeply and are thoroughly informed."
Letters to Young Authors
THIRTEENTH LETTER
Dear Mr. Carson,
Every man has his pet indoor sports. I am going to confess to
only one of mine — that of looking for inner meanings in words which I
have long accepted as standing for conventional ideas. Take "figura-
tive" as a case in point. The rhetorics and the dictionaries define it,
of course, and we most of us think no farther, yet the word itself
wears its meaning quite openly — that which suggests a figure, a
form, whether spiritual or physical. The French use this word
"figure" interestingly. Figurez vous, they say — "picture to your-
self." So figurative language is really picturesque language because
it calls up a figure, a form, a picture — mostly, so that by imaging a
picture we may gain a conception which it would require many more
words of a direct sort to make clear to our minds' eyes. Sometimes
these figures are set up to stress points of likeness, sometimes points
of contrast, but always the aim is to treat a picture in the mind.
What am I driving at? Throughout, the story you sent me
seems too direct in language to be striking. Your delineation of
character for example, is cataloguey, rather than vivid, and I choose
now to speak of characterization because it is chiefly through pictur-
esque conceptions that humans are made to seem interesting to us in
fiction. What they say, what they do, what others say to and of
12 LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS
them, what others do to them, how they receive the actions of others —
all these vital parts of character-play in story are made real to us
when we are made to see the character in question by means of some
revealing spot-light.
Let us look at your opening characterization :
"Martin Ellicott was as austere a man as his father before him,
and his father's fathers, to remote generations. His long, narrow
face never seemed to smile, his deep-set black eyes bored straight
ahead, no glow warmed his seamed cheeks, and his step never quick-
ened with enthusiasm. 'Straight' was the word to delineate him.
Straight was every lock of his dry, black hair; straight were the
creases in his doe-skin trousers; straight dangled his lank arms as he
forged straight ahead, discarding all obstacles, as he methodically
paced to his office. Even his speech was straight, and betokened a
dour impatience of anything that might have modified the keen
directness. "
To be sure, you have drawn a clean-cut picture here, and I do
not quarrel with it, because the physical traits inevitably show us the
inner man by suggestion, but when you follow the same direct method
with Arthur Risley, Ellicott's young partner, and again with at least
three other characters, and also describe minutely the scenes of the
action, I begin to weary. This is the method of the old-time novelist,
not that of the vivid story-teller. It is conscientious work, I grant
you, and leaves a telling impression, but you have only a few thousand
words in which to tell your story, therefore it will not do to pause
before each portrait to catalogue the details of what you see. " Enough
is sufficient," as the darkey preacher said.
All sorts of things besides physical appearance may be picturized
for us by figurative language. Lately I've been re-dipping into
Stevenson's "The Wrecker." Here are several random samples of
the picturesque: "From the den of this blotched spider, etc." —
characterizes an infamous shyster lawyer. A certain vocal effort was
"an acid strain of song." The dome of an unfinished state capitol
was "encaged in scaffolding." To these three let me add a fourth,
just remembered. From the bay one night the narrator saw San
Francisco, its buildings "swollen in the fog."
It seems to me that absolute fitness — the fitness that makes
one wonder why he himself did not think of such likenesses — marks
all these pictures. And the beauty of it is, each figure starts the
mind off with a bound to supply parts of the envisioned scene which
the writer has allowed to remain implicit. We simply cannot stop
with the idea of an aspiring dome being " encaged in scaffolding," or
end with the "blotched spider" — we ourselves become picture
painters on the instant.
O. Henry was particularly apt in his figurative characterizations,
of both persons and situations. Take this double-one from "The
Whirligig of Life." "Ransie was a narrow six feet of sallow brown
skin and yellow hair. The imperturbability of the mountains hung
upon him like a suit of armor. The woman was calicoed, angled,
snuff brushed, and weary with unknown desires. Through it all
LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS 13
gleamed a faint protest of cheated youth unconscious of its loss."
And this, from the same masterpiece, for it is nothing less: "Obeying
the flap of his rope, the little red bull slowly came around on a tack,
and the cart crawled away in the nimbus arising from its wheels. "
O. Henry also gives us this gem; it is from " Phoebe": "I
noticed, without especially taxing my interest, a small man walking
rapidly toward me. He stepped upon a wooden cellar door, crashed
through it, and disappeared. I rescued him from a heap of soft coal
below. He dusted himself briskly, swearing fluently in a mechanical
tone, as an underpaid actor recites the gipsy's curse." And again:
"Bad luck may be like any other visitor — preferring to stop where it
is expected."
Besides the fitness of these comparisons, notice how informally
they are made. As I recall my struggles with the rhetoric text-books,
it seems to me that the figurative speeches cited as examples were
mostly starched and prim, on the one hand, or extravagant on the
other. Informality — there's the key to the brisk, startling compari-
son. "In came Mrs. Fezziwig, one vast, substantial smile." I never
tire of quoting that miracle from the Christmas Carol. It is not only
a picture of a person but of a lively, moving, radiant personality —
even the breezy inversion, " In came, " is a hundred-fold more vigorous
than would have been, "Mrs. Fezziwig came in. "
But figurative speech must no more be overdone than the
Cratchit's goose. Your sophomore sprays his English with pictures,
and loses sincerity of effect. Study the masters — only now and then
do they flash a comparison when they are telling a story; in the
essay, picturesque phrases are much more frequent. Obviously, this
is due to two reasons : We use few figures in natural dialogue, and the
essay is a more leisurely form than is prose narration.
How may one learn to originate picturesque comparisons? Not
so much by premeditation as by meditation. It is an attitude of
mind, not a trick of the pen. One must see pictures before writing
them. The habit of seeking for fresh likenesses will prove most
diverting — on a journey, walking the thoroughfares, looking in a shop
window. Be a severe critic of your inventions — bite each coin that
drops from your mill to see if its glitter is after all only leaden. Begin
with the picture-evoking adjective, like Stevenson's "hill after hill
soared upward." Then try longer comparisons, such as his charac-
terization of the stream: "Ay, it has a long trot before it, as it goes
singing over our weir, bless its heart. " — both these figures from "Will
o' the Mill."
So by seeing into things — and doesn't one come to see by much
thoughtful looking? — we exercise our fancies ; for in the end it is all a
matter of imagination, of imaging and re-imaging, until at last
appears an image that is at once new yet genuine, striking yet appar-
ent, suggestive yet inclusive. And that will be our sought-f or figure
of speech.
Cordially yours,
Karl von Kraft.
]Mw them Better
XXVI. Brett Page
By William C. Lengel
"The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth" is no
longer a form, but a formula. It reads well, but is not guaranteed
under the Pure Food and Drug Act. It has so fallen into desuetude,
if not disrepute, that even court attendants mumble it as a phrase of
mysticism. Were a biographer to follow its precepts, the descendants
of the subject would cause him to lead a most unhappy life, if a life
at all.
When the subject of a chronicle such as this is alive, and very
much so, and possesses a nature that is so modest and unassuming
that the well-known and much-heralded violet, in comparison, is a
forward, flaunting self-advertiser, the problem is almost as difficult
as the unravelling of this complex sentence. But no matter, we shall
hew to the line, let the chips fall where they may (where have I seen
that before?), and if Brett Page doesn't like it, he may move farther
into the wilds of Brooklyn, which he haunts between one a. m. and a
shamefully later hour.
But come to think of it seriously, Brooklyn is undoubtedly one
of the reasons for Mr. Page's calm, precise and unruffled demeanor.
Manhattan, the capital of the land of neuresthenia, has as its foil the
Borough of Babes, Churches, and Rubber Plants. Mr. Page gathers
his vividness from Broadway, and Brooklyn serves as a bromide, all
of which is an irrelevant prelude to the declaration that "Brett Page
is one of the best informed authorities in this country on matters
relating to the vaudeville stage." This statement of a veteran
vaudeville producer applies not only to the writing end of the game,
but to the producing, staging, acting, management and financial
ends as well. With such a heavy equipment of knowledge Mr. Page
simply had to unload some of it in his latest success, "Writing for
Vaudeville."
B. P. possesses that soundness of judgment which enables him to
make decisions and act quickly. The uninitiated call it taking
chances. In reality, it is putting knowledge to work. Mr. Page's
experience has taken him into all phases of the newspaper and maga-
zine games as well as into the theatrical business. Therefore when his
knowledge works it is a very versatile knowledge indeed. He has at
his finger-tips information and data that have proved invaluable to
him at times when he has been called upon to produce a bit of writing
in short order — a capital way to lasso the agile buck.
BRETT PAGE 15
About two years ago, a writer who had written a playlet or two
was in need of some technical information on the subject and applied
for it at the Public Library. Among the scores of books about the
stage in general, he could find nothing at all on the technique of
writing one-act playlets for the vaudeville stage. He presented his
predicament to Ray Long, Editor of the Green Book, and was com-
missioned to prepare three articles on the subject of writing and
producing playlets. The first two articles " caught on" and the
series was extended to run for a period of eight months. To have
gone out and gathered the material needed would have taken much
more time than was allowable. Who, then, was the one person from
whom could be obtained all the information necessary for the many
different articles? Brett Page; none other. A telegram was suffi-
cient to get B. P. to work, and in a little over two weeks the remaining
six articles in the series were in the hands of the writer in question,
and with little trouble, he adapted them for the purpose intended.1
This series of vaudeville articles attracted such wide attention,
and brought so many requests for additional information that could
not be included in the contents of a magazine article, that Mr. Page
finally decided to enlarge and amplify the material, making it suit-
able for publication in book form. He took the rough manuscript to
the then Editor of Lippincott's Magazine, who, being at once struck
with the value of and need for such a work, suggested that Mr. Page
have his book become a unit in the Home Correspondence
School's " Writer's Library." Mr. Page consented, and the
volume entitled " Writing for Vaudeville" has just been issued.
Voild, as they say in Sweden. Further, Mr. Page will conduct a
class in vaudeville writing, a new course which is now ready for
aspiring writers. When this course gets working, there will be no
more poverty on Grub Street.
That Mr. Page's book has been brought out by the Home
Correspondence School brings to light an interesting coincidence.
Not many years ago, Mr. Page made his first dollar; several of them
in fact. He performed this historical feat by selling copies of "The
Century Book of Facts," published by the King-Richardson Com-
pany, of Springfield, Mass., from which concern the Home Cor-
respondence School developed. He accumulated so much cash
in the first three weeks on this work that he quit his job, and it
should be remembered that this happened in the days when the
Income Tax Law was not in effect, and he really had nothing to
fear. He was attending college at the time, however, and it is quite
possible that the mere thought of money bored him a bit. Since
then, however, several of his friends have clubbed together and
have sworn to relieve him of his forth-coming royalties and thus
drive all future boredom away.
This disregard for money is evidently the reason why Mr. Page
decided upon the newspaper game as a means of livelihood. He
!Mr. Lengel himself is too modest to say that he is the astute writer who collaborated with Mr.
Page on these articles on vaudeville. At last we have coralled a modest author!
16 BRETT PAGE
determined to learn the business, from the press room in the basement,
to the art rooms on the top floor beneath the skylight. He graced
the pay roll of the Des Moines Register and Leader for a year, and
during that interval shed the light of his brilliance on many depart-
ments. They still cherish his finger marks on the old office towel.
Think of the price the Metropolitan Museum will some day pay for
that ebony relic!
Even this newspaper experience did not cure his lack of interest
in the elusive dollar, but when — at so tender an age that it would
not be fair to make mention of it — B. P. was appointed advertising
manager of a large coal mining concern, with headquarters in Des
Moines, he spent the largest appropriation ever given an advertising
manager in the Middle West up to that time. Spending one's own
money is a bad habit and should be frowned upon; spending other
people's money is an art and worthy of intense thought and cultiva-
tion. Mr. Page distributed the cash allotted him both wisely and
well, and proved that it pays to advertise.
At length New York held out its gay white lure, and Mr. Page
hied himself thither. (Expression copyrighted — many years ago.)
Were this a fictional narrative, it would be the cue at this juncture
for slow music and the entrance of the sob squad. Here would be
told the tale of the struggles of the boy from the West for a foothold
in the seething metropolis. The ambition of the present chronicler
is to find that fictitious person who walks from Yonkers all the way
down to Bob Davis's sanctum in the Munsey offices and sits in fear
and trembling while Mr. Davis reads his story. Until he stands
forth in open view and shows his face, the story does not go. It's
not being done in our best families.
However, Mr. Page wore out no shoe leather in such gambles — or
ought we spell it gambols? He started in at once to write newspaper
feature stories for the New York Sunday papers, and he not only
wrote 'em, but he sold 'em, which is not always the same thing. Then,
in his own unobtrusive, persuasive manner, he induced several news-
paper syndicates to gamble on his stories.
Now, dear reader, keep your seat; read the paragraph of this
sketch in which it was promised to tell the truth, the whole truth,
etc., etc., etc. If Mr. Page should once grasp you by the hand and
look into your eyes and speak to you softly in his aforesaid persuasive
and convincing manner, and yet with compelling tone, you would
"fall" just as those helpless editors did. At any rate, Mr. Page
spent a summer in Europe and the following winter in Bermuda — all
on the proceeds of his syndicate work. Be not led astray, however,
by the lightness of these remarks. His "stuff" had the earmarks of
greatness; that's why it was accepted. Royalty time is almost here,
let the subject of this eulogy please take notice.
What Robert Daly declared to be "one of the fastest, cleverest,
one-act farces" he had ever read, "The Room Next Door." was
Mr. Page's next effort, and his first real attempt at writing for the
stage. The playlet was done in collaboration with Robert C. Aulman,
at that time the manager for Joseph Jefferson. The De Mille Com-
BRETT PAGE 17
pany accepted the playlet, but when an offer came which promised a
speedier production, the author bought back the producing rights,
with real money. Mr. Page was compelled to refuse seven different
offers for the sketch, from actors who were privileged to read it.
Did you notice that " privileged? "
That incident blew him into the theatrical game on a big breeze.
He opened an office in the Gaiety Theatre Building, New York, and
was at once commissioned to write materials of all kinds for the
vaudeville stage. A list of his successful playlets would read like a
catalogue, but among his tabloid musical comedies will be remembered
" Camping Days," "The Bell Boy and the Belles," "The Little
Shaver," and many others.
With Cecil De Mille, he wrote a three-act melodrama which had
a run of two years, and he produced "The Escape," a one-act play
of the thriller type, which played for three years.
It was about this time that Mr. Page arranged for the production
of William C. Lengel's first playlet, "The Game," which has been
played almost continuously for five years. The editor insisted that I
should ring this in.
To this list of accomplishments may be added Mr. Page's
success as a song writer, his most recent effort in this connection being
the popular ballad entitled "Memories," the music for which was
written by Sol Levy.
Now for some more dark history. Mr. Page, be it known, is
largely responsible for the present dance craze. It was he who
brought to America Countess de Swirsky, the famous Russian
dancer, and by a clever bit of publicity work made her a society
favorite at Newport, before presenting her at Hammerstein's in her
daring barefoot dances. Later, she toured the country with extraor-
dinary success. She was the forerunner of the foreign artists who
have made dancing our favorite indoor sport. You see, B. P. has
much to answer for.
In presenting Beatrice Irwin, in collaboration with the late
Henry B. Harris in her "Color Poem" matinee at the Hudson
Theatre, Mr. Page made another artistic success, and brought the
art of theatrical lighting to the highest point reached at that time.
Then Mr. Page became an "act scout" and play doctor, dis-
covering plays and playlets that were near-successes and transforming
them, through the aid of his magic, into real successes. This he did
for a combination of two of the largest vaudeville organizations in
the country. Meantime, his short-stories were appearing in many of
the magazines, his picture-plays being produced on the film, and in
collaboration with the same retiring William C. Lengel, he wrote
"Showing the Way to Photo-Play Writers," which appeared serially
in the Green Book Magazine, winning high praise and some simoleons.
It seems a rather natural evolution that Mr. Page should have
developed into a dramatic critic and a newspaper syndicate editor.
In this way, he is rounding out his fund of information, and only now
starting on his real career.
All of which is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the
truth. Further affiant sayeth not.
A Few Hints for the Wise
By Bertha Scott
Thanks to the journals now designed to help the struggling
author, the way is constantly being made somewhat easier. Since
we must always trudge afoot it can never be a royal road, but the
experience of other writers helps us over many places that might
prove stony.
Even the advice given by professional writers, however, must
sometimes be taken with the proverbial grain of salt. For example,
I have frequently read the statement that an author should never
submit a manuscript to a magazine he has never seen; in fact, that
he should buy a number of copies of the magazine and make himself
familiar with its policy. The writers of these warnings even go so
far as to advise very solemnly against the folly of sending an article
on planting rye to the needlework magazine ! If the poor author goes
very far wrong in that direction, his deficiency in intellect would
render all of his articles unavailable for any publication whatever.
My experience has been that the magazines I have read regularly
since childhood, and with whose policy I vainly nattered myself that
I was familiar, have very courteously returned my offerings. My
acceptances have been almost invariably from magazines with
"whom" I had only a bowing acquaintance. The essential thing is
to know the general kind of material used, and to exercise common
sense as to the suitability of your manuscript.
To illustrate : I once took some photographs of an unusual camp,
after seeing a notice in the Ladies' Home Journal that photographs of
camps were wanted. I had read every copy of the magazine for years,
and although it was my first article outside of newspaper specials, the
return of the manuscript was a surprise. In trying to decide what to
do with the article I remembered that my father sometimes bought a
copy of a magazine called Recreation, the pages of which I had
skimmed over in odd moments. So there I sent my article and photo-
graphs, though the disappointment of my first rejection was too keen
to allow me even a faint hope. Consequently when Mr. Cave
promptly accepted the article I mentally gave him a halo which he
will wear to the end of time.
And so it has been with all my writings since. I reason that the
editor of a publication devoted say to the house and garden will read
interestedly any well- written article on a subject within its require-
ments, and if he rejects it it is usually from reasons such as overstock-
ing, which the author could never have fathomed. Even if I have
never seen more than one copy of the magazine, I do not hesitate to
submit appropriate material.
I hope I am not storing up trouble for any editor when I say that
a number of my stories and articles have been sold, on their first trip
A FEW HINTS FOR THE WISE 19
out, to publications with which I was totally unfamiliar. Under this
class come stories for girls, photographs and sketches of curious
objects, as well as material for the women's magazines. The house-
hold magazines all use the same general type of material, dealing with
the entertainment and betterment of the family as a whole; the
Sunday School and other juvenile publications want stories with a
definite moral or principle, cleverly disguised; the newspapers as
well as various magazines devoted either to nature or science are
always glad to get photographs of oddities of almost every kind — and
so it goes.
The only pitfall in sending out manuscripts in response to edi-
torial statements given in a literary publication, is that one may be
tempted to send material to a publication of which he knows abso-
lutely nothing. No, I am not contradicting myself — it is not neces-
sary to be familiar with the publication itself, but it is the better part
of wisdom to be familiar with its reputation for honorable dealing.
I have yet to see a copy of the Chicago Daily News to which I occa-
sionally send storiettes, yet I know that it is both prompt and reliable
— also that it pays slightly better prices than the average newspaper.
On the other hand, if I read that The Lantern has recently been
organized and desires manuscripts of all kinds, I keep all my brain-
children safe at home.
Other advice frequently given is that the young author should
not scorn writing for the smaller publications. It would be better
stated, if you wish to be famous eventually, and to subsist meanwhile,
do not scorn selling to the minor publications, but always write for
the best ones. Suppose, for instance, you have written a story intended
for the Youth's Companion, and that excellent periodical cannot use
it — remember that the same type of story is used in all of the religious
publications, and if St. Nicholas or another high-grade juvenile
magazine frowns on it, send it the rounds, even if you must finally
accept the dollar-fifty per thousand words paid by one religious
publication. It is amazing to see in what good company you find
yourself: many of the writers for such magazines as the Century and
Harper's have very short stories for the tots in the Sunday School
Times. At any rate, do not write "down" for anything. Write for
the best — and sell wherever it is possible. Whether or not your best
is appreciated, your apprenticeship is shorter for the effort.
As to the number of times a manuscript should be submitted,
before giving up, opinion seems to vary greatly. My idea is never
to give up so long as you have faith in your manuscript and the list
of suitable publications is not exhausted. Only yesterday I sold a
story which had traveled intermittently for five years, and which
had been twice re-typed but not revised. I have gone back among my
first manuscripts that had met with bad luck, and have gradually
sold all but two stories — written during my high-school days. These
my later experience recognized as very faulty, but they're safely
put away for further use, since the plots are quite as good as new.
One well-known writer says that if her manuscript is rejected
as many as three or four times by magazines of the same type she
20 PHOTOPLAY PEPIGRAMS
is sure the story is faulty, and either revises or destroys it. Revise
as many times as you have the time and patience, but do not destroy
anything — not even the Valentine verses you wrote when you were
fifteen! As you grow more experienced a use will suggest itself for
every idea you have written down. Sometime, when you write your
big novel, perhaps you will want to invest a part of it with the spirit
of youth — and when all else fails, you can bring out your little sheaf
of Valentine verses, and voild, once more you see the dazzling sun-
shine, dream the wonderful dreams, and feel the almost tearful long-
ing of Youth itself!
To sum up — save all the time and energy possible, for you will
need both. Do not spend hours cramming your brain with useless
information and worthless stories trying to fathom the mysteries of
various editorial tastes; do not waste both time and postage sending
manuscripts to publications of mushroom growth; and unless you
find plots difficult, do not revise short manuscripts after a few rejec-
tions. Give all that time to your bigger, newer work, and thereby
gain added facility of expression.
As I have intimated, the foregoing advice is not in accordance
with the suggestions usually given. In fact, there is only one point
on which writers agree unreservedly — and that is, to succeed, you
must write, write, re-write — and then perhaps still re-write. And of
course that is the best rule of all.
Photoplay Pepigrams
By S. Raymond Jocelyn
Scenario building is to classic writing as shorthand is to spelling.
It is the nightmare of conventionality and custom.
Technicalities are infernal bugbears as well as supernal
requisites.
Simple, concise language is forever blessed.
The photoplaywright visualizes, thinks in dramatic pictures;
but he must also work not in flourishes of language but in words of
action.
The film manufacturers are a thousand feet removed from the
legitimate dramatist and his producer, and always will be. It is
decreed.
Experience has taught the practical dramatist that the only way
in which he can hope to secure good construction is by determining
definitely, before beginning to write at all, what is to be the end of his
play and how that end is to be attained. Among the principal
dramatists (for the legitimate stage) there is absolute unanimity:
each constructs his last act in every detail before beginning to write,
and one or two are known to write the dialogue of the last act
before writing a line of the first.
Help for Song Writers
AN INTEKVIEW WITH PAT HOWLEY
By E. M. Wickes
Once upon a time three wise men put their heads together for a
conference pertaining to the publishing of popular songs, and as a
result the firm of Howley, Haviland & Company was established.
The third member was the late Paul Dresser, author of "The Pardon
Came Too Late," "The Banks of the Wabash," "The Blue and the
Gray," and other successes.
Prior to this meeting, the popular song game had been played
in a hit-or-miss fashion. A song was published and offered to jobbers
and dealers, and if the public fancied it, the publisher added to his
bank account, and if the public ignored it, the publisher frowned,
swallowed his chagrin, and then turned his attention to another
possible hit.
Pat Howley argued that the best method would be to create a
demand for songs by concentrating most of the combined efforts on
performers, and his partners finally agreed with him. Mr. Howley,
also, was in favor of an open house for writers — that is, he did not
believe in staff writers, although he was in favor of giving preference
to writers with reputations. In order to prevent others from getting
the impression that the firm would depend upon staff writers, Mr.
Dresser's name was omitted from the sign, for when the firm started
in business Dresser was set down to do most of the songs at the
beginning. The firm grew and eventually became the largest pub-
lishers of popular sheet music in the country, and until the day it
dissolved it always kept an open house, as well as an open purse for
every Tom, Dick, Jane or Mary who had a good manuscript to offer.
One may safely say that the firm started more new song writers on
their careers than any other three firms combined.
Today a popular publisher considers himself well off if he has
one hit going, and yet when Howley's firm was well established, two,
three, and four hits at one time was the rule rather than the exception.
Howley, Haviland & Dresser published dozens of hits, including,
"On the Banks of the Wabash," "Just Tell Them that You Saw Me,"
"In the Baggage Coach Ahead," "Bill Bailey," "Ain't Dat a Shame,"
"Good By Dolly Gray," "I Can't Tell Why I Love You," "Mamie,"
"Annie Moore," "Story of a Rose," "A Little Boy in Blue," and
"The Blue and the Gray." Now a man who could pick winners
year after year, and whose firm did a monthly business of something
like $40,000, should be able to give some valuable advice to the
struggling song writer.
While "Pat" Howley has not been seen in the foreground much
of late, he has kept in touch with the business, and it is very likely
22 AN INTERVIEW WITH PAT HOWLEY
that he will branch out again and become as large as he ever was in
the past. So well did he know the public's taste that some of the
songs he published years ago are still good sellers today — one espe-
cially, "Dear Old Girl." And the soldiers in the trenches, according
to press reports, have tired of "Tipperary" and substituted "Good
By Dolly Gray."
Knowing the world of song lore that Howley must carry behind
his wide-awake, dark eyes, I dropped into his office for a chat about
past and present conditions.
"What do you think of a person's chances of breaking into the
song game now?" he was asked.
"It's not as good as it used to be in the old days," said Mr.
Howley, "But there are always a few of the big fellows willing to
take a chance on a newcomer if he can deliver the goods; otherwise
we never would have any new writers. The staff system is bad for
the business in general, for most of the staff writers fall into a rut and
drag the publishers into it after them."
"Do you think a person is wasting his time trying to write
popular songs?"
"It all depends upon how he goes at it. You know New York
isn't the only place in the world. I know one fellow out in a western
city who makes a good living by depending upon local trade for his
sales. Of course, if a man has not the natural knack for writing
songs he won't make much headway; but if he can turn out the kind
of stuff that appeals to the public some publisher sooner or later will
take him up."
"Do you think it a waste of time for a publisher to examine
songs that come from unknown writers in distant states?"
"A publisher who refuses to examine the manuscripts that come
to him through the mail is not a very wise person. We purchased
more than a dozen hits from unknown writers. You know, you never
can tell where a genius will spring up. Some years ago two writers
who lived out West sent us in a batch of songs. We accepted two,
and shortly after they sent in another stack. We immediately saw
that they possessed ability, and were anxious to obtain their best
efforts."
"On what basis did you do business?"
"We always offered a royalty contract — two-and-a-half cents a
copy to the lyric writer, and the same to the composer. We seldom
tried to buy outright, unless a man was in need and was anxious to
sell.
"One of my partners in his willingness to assist two new writers,
the two I just mentioned, lost out on two big hits. My partner
wrote a letter to the newcomers suggesting that they would do well
to offer their songs to other publishers, provided we could not use
them. Now the writers, who happened to be Kenneth and Udyle,
misinterpreted the letter, thinking that we did not care to consider
any more of their work for the time being and submitted a batch of
songs to Witmark, and in this manner we lost the chance to get hold
of 'Just One Girl' and ' Just as the Sun Went Down.' After that we
AN INTERVIEW WITH PAT ROWLEY 23
never told any one to go elsewhere, and we used to spend even our
Sundays going over the manuscripts that came in by mail.,,
"How did you judge a song, Mr. Howley?"
This query appeared to make the veteran pause for a moment.
Then he put down his half -smoked cigar and replied:
"I always was in favor of a song that carried a complete story,
or an incident that suggested a complete story. If you have paid
any attention to Mr. Dresser's songs you will see that every one of
his songs carried a story, one that appealed to the heart; and Mr.
Dresser was one of the most popular and most successful song writers
of his day. We did not invent the story song. It was popular with
the masses long before we were born."
"And why do you believe that a story is so essential in a song?
Some of the present-day writers have no faith in it."
"Yes, and the public puts little faith or money in their songs.
History will show you that mankind has always been interested in
stories — a child grows up on them ; the lovers can't get enough good
story songs; and when a touching story is blended with a pretty
melody, the song will, if properly handled, find a welcome from the
public. A song can arouse just as much emotion in the breast of
man, and cause just as many tears to flow, as the best book or play
that was ever written.
"When we were 'plugging' 'Just Tell Them that You Saw Me,'
I saw dozens of women performers while trying to learn the song
suddenly burst into tears. And if the story in a song will affect per-
formers who are supposed to be more or less immune to this sort
of emotion, imagine the effect one will have on the heart of the
average young woman."
"What is your opinion of the present crop of songs?"
"It's the same old story. The heart-interest story songs like
'The Trail of the Lonesome Pine,' 'The Tulip and the Rose,' 'Tennes-
see,' are bringing in thousands of dollars, while the inane junk is
taking out thousands."
"But these inane songs occasionally become popular."
"Because you hear a song whistled and hummed is not proof
that the song is a winner. The public does not buy every song it
hums or whistles. I know that from experience. And I know what
it means to spend ten thousand dollars on a song that does not bring
in more than five thousand in sales. Money and clever 'plugging'
will make a song fairly well known, but all the money in the world
won't force the public to buy when it does not like the song."
"What advice could you give to one trying to break into the
business?"
Mr. Howley's face broke into a smile before he offered any
comment :
"I'd tell him to keep away from the ideas that had been done to
death," he answered, "and also to keep in touch with the business
by reading the trade papers. He should study the life about him,
and listen carefully to the utterings and mutterings that come from
his friends and neighbors. We had to do it as publishers in order to
24 AN INTERVIEW WITH PAT ROWLEY
meet the changing taste of the public. Then, too, a man or woman
who wants to be a popular song writer should always bear in mind
that simplicity and euphony are big factors in a song's success."
''But how did you manage to have hits going all the time?"
"Because writers knew we kept an open house; that we gave
quick decisions, and never haggled over a few dollars' advance
royalty. And we pushed the songs that looked promising, whether
they had been written by a new or an old writer."
"Do you think you could do the same thing again, Mr. Howley?"
"I certainly do."
"Do you think you will ever try it?"
This inquiry brought a smile into his eyes — a smile that carried
a great deal of hidden thought.
"Later on I'll answer that question," he said.
"But with all your experience and liberal policy, Mr. Howley,
you finally went out of business."
" 'Went out' is correct," he shot back. "But we did not fail.
Furthermore, when we did quit we had two hits going, 'Dear Old
Girl,' and 'On A Good Old Five Cent Trolley Ride.' Why we quit
is another story."
"Well, to get back to the subject of the discouraged writer —
many, you know, maintain that they have first-class songs but can't
find a publisher."
Howley objected with a vigorous shake of his head.
"They think they have," he laughed. "They bunch together
a few rhymes and think they have a song. These they sing to their
friends, and you know it takes a really good friend to tell you just
how poor your work is. The friends' opinions are usually accepted
as final. Then the trouble begins."
"But why should not a friend's opinion be as valuable as that
of a publisher?"
"Because a publisher spends his days and nights studying, just
what will please performers and the public. Now, candidly, you
don't suppose that a sane publisher will reject a song in which he
sees, say a profit of five or ten thousand dollars? Every publisher
makes mistakes, but if a song really contains a ' punch ' it will land
somewhere and get the money."
Howley stopped in his talk to look into his desk. A minute
later he drew out a sheet of paper.
"Here is a lyric that was sent in by a friend of mine," he said.
"He says it is as good as any of the songs on the market and wants
me to find a market for it. I wrote him yesterday telling him why it
had no value, so I don't suppose he will object if it appears in print.
Then Howley read:
"At night when the stars are shining, and the birds have gone to rest,
I wander down a shady lane, the place I love the best.
In my fancy I can see her, standing by the garden gate,
Just a pretty little country girl, my dearest sweetheart Kate.
And many years have passed away since we parted by the stream,
And yet I always see her for she comes in nightly dreams."
A QUEST FOR ORIGINALITY 25
"That will do," he said. "The chorus is worse. It tells about
some mountain that has nothing to do with the verse. How can you
expect any person to become interested in that sort of jumble? You
know as much at the end as you did at the beginning. He starts out
with the moonlight without having any definite idea to convey, and
then jumps to a shady lane that naturally conjures up day and sun-
shine. Having a desire to introduce the girPs name he shifts the
scene to the garden gate so that he will have a rhyme for Kate.
Later he buries her, not knowing that this style of song has been
obsolete for years. And he is but one of the many thousands who
complain that publishers are in league to keep them from their just
deserts."
"What would you advise a man of this sort to do to improve his
work?"
" Study the lyrics of real songs writers such as Ingrahm, Mahoney
Sterling, Al. Bryan, Will D. Cobb, McDonald, and Anita Owen.
When the beginner can write on a level with these writers he will have
less cause to complain and more money to spend."
A Quest for Originalty
For months we have been trying to find original contributions
to literature which have been written during the last thousand years.
John Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress" is one of the very few stories
written since the year 1000 that cannot be traced to an earlier source.
Our last correspondent defies us to prove that "Rip Van Winkle"
is not original. This is easy. All we have to do is turn to Washington
Irving' s autobiographical writings and we find that he acknowledges
that he obtained the idea for the story from the Dutch pioneers in
New York state. Irving merely plays the part of the story-teller
and not the original story-writer. But let us not stop here.
In reading the writings of Diogenes Laertius, the biographer of
the Greek philosophers, we find some fabulous stories told about
Epimenides, the poet and prophet of Crete. To quote the biographer :
"Epimenides was sent by his father into the field to look for a
sheep, turned out of the road at midday and lay down in a certain
cave and fell asleep, and slept there fifty-seven years; and after that,
when awake, he went on looking for the sheep, thinking he had been
taking a short nap."
If we did not have the letters of Washington Irving today, we
could easily imagine that this story of Epimenides suggested the story
of Rip Van Winkle to him.
Wasn't it Oliver Wendell Holmes who said: "A thought is often
original, though you have uttered it a hundred times?" — The Quill.
Pistols in Fiction
By S. J. Fort, M. D.
For the benefit of writers who are long on their ability to write
short-stories and short on their knowledge of firearms, the following
information concerning several frequent errors is respectfully sub-
mitted. The automatic pistol has come to stay, and since its advent
has become the favorite weapon with which to arm heroes, heroines
and villains. The term "automatic" as applied to the pistol is sanc-
tioned by usage, though the term " self-loading " (Selbstlader, as the
Germans term them) , would be more descriptive, albeit less euphoni-
ous. The term " revolver," as applied to the pistol, means a revolving
pistol, or a pistol having a revolving cylinder as part of its mechanism,
which contains the cartridges, each cartridge being automatically
brought into line with the bore of the barrel when the hammer is
cocked. The automatic pistol has no cylinder, the cartridges being
contained in a magazine carried in the handle of the weapon, a spring
beneath the column of cartridges feeding them singly into the re-
ceiver, and the slide being actuated by the retractor spring, carrying
them into the chamber of the barrel ready for firing. For this reason,
the common error of using the term "automatic revolver" is incor-
rect as usually applied. There is a foreign-made automatic, or self-
loading revolver, but the weapon is not only very intricate in design
but very expensive, and I doubt if there are half a dozen in this
country, and certainly the average hero or villain would never have
one.
The Maxim silencer is a device which has been applied to rifles
with considerable success as a reducer of noise and recoil and appar-
ently with little effect upon accuracy. It is not a physical impossi-
bility to make and place such a device upon a revolver or a pistol,
but its application to either of these weapons would interfere with the
usefulness of any hand-gun, and we have it upon the word of Mr.
Maxim, the inventor of this device, that none have been made for
this purpose.
The term "caliber" as applied to small arms is the diameter of
the bore of the weapon measured between the lands. American
revolvers and pistols have the following standard calibers and no
others:
Revolvers: .22, .32, .38, .41, .44, and .45
Automatic pistols: .22, .32, .35, .38, .380, and .45
Errors made in miscalling calibers are not infrequent — sometimes
typographical errors, perhaps, but more likely due to ignorance.
Literary Bookkeeping
By Lee McCrae
Every business requires bookkeeping; and when one is making
a business of writing short articles some system is necessary. The
financial end of it demands books and the overburdened brain wants
to be free to do creative work instead of trying to remember that
which has been done. We all realize this.
Probably, therefore, you have formulated your own record book,
or have one of the kind published for writers; but perhaps you may
get a bit of an idea from my system, which, like that of many a corner
grocer, has just evolved itself out of growing needs. So I venture
to tear out two leaves — figuratively speaking:
For two books are necessary, as I see it; one a manuscript record
in which each article or story has its separate page, and the other a
mailing record in which I can see at a glance just how many are
"out," where, and what have been recently returned. Oh, yes, mine
frequently come back, but the postman must merely carry them out
again, possibly in the next mail, allowing me just time enough for
examination and any needed revision.
Each book is of regular memorandum size, 3x7 inches, to fit
the pigeon-holes of my desk. A leaf from the "MSS. Record" looks
like this :
The left-hand dates indicate the time of sending; the right-hand
ones date of return, while the cash marked in the center of the page
No.
of
MS.
TITLE
"The
Autumn Garden
!»
No.
of
word
s Date of
writing
800
May,
1915
June
8
'15
, Garden Mag.
July Z
, '15
July
5 =
»15
Sprague Co.
$6.50
acts as a big period to the story's wanderings, the price paid, in
this instance, by the Sprague Company — of course the details on
this specimen page are fictitious.
28 LITERARY BOOKKEEPING
Often one sending is enough; but sometimes the column goes
down the leaf, thus moving the beautiful period nearer the bottom.
Why are the prices placed in exactly that spot? No reason
whatever, merely the habit, and possibly the desire of seeing them
easily as I turn the leaves of the little book.
I am filling my fifteenth record book, so you may know the plan
has been satisfactory.
The other book, the " Mailing Record," is needed to keep tab
on what one has sent out. It is a crude affair, but such a source of
quick information that I consult it much more frequently than the
separate entries. A leaf from it would resemble this:
May
Stamps
Rec'd
May 2;
"A Piller of Eire"
Meade Co.
4
$7.00
" 5;
"His View-point"
American B
oy 8
6.50
I" 7;
"Building a Plot"
Writer's World
4
" 8;
"Joy Stories"
Acton Co.
4
This May record of mailing ( incomplete, of course ) shows me
exactly the amount of work sent out in that time, the cost of postage,
and what the work has brought in. The black line down the side
marks "goods returned. "
In this, the first two were taken and netted $13.50, the third
was sent back, and the fourth is still to be heard from.
At the end of the month the postage column is added, but often
it takes many months before the last can be set down, thanks
to time-taking editors.
At the close of a year it is a simple matter to take a blank leaf
next to the December record and balance my year's work, both as to
cost, remuneration, number of manuscripts sent, number accepted.
Another thing I am beginning to do to save labor: When an
article is newly written and fresh in mind, I pencil on the MSS.
Record a number of places where it might be sold if it should meet
rejection on its first voyage; then, months later, when I am busy
on something else, I do not have to re-read it before sending it out,
or let it go at a venture. This is merely pencilled so that the sugges-
AUTHORS AND THE BIBLE 29
tions may be erased when it has, like Noah's dove, found "a rest for
the sole of its foot."
These little schemes have helped me and have been born of
necessity, so they are passed on that others may formulate their own
books, incorporating just the ideas that appeal to them.
Authors and the Bible
Many an author is indebted to the Bible for a title to a novel.
Hall Caine makes good use of it with "The Woman Thou Gavest Me,"
"The Prodigal Son" and "The Scapegoat;" Marie Corelli culls
"Wormwood" and "Barabbas;" Miss Braddon "One Thing Need-
ful," and "Thou Art the Man."
The late Walter Besant got "Children of Gibeon" from the same
inexhaustible supply, as well as "The Fourth Generation." The
author of "John Halifax, Gentleman" has a novel entitled "A Life
for a Life;" John Hocking has one "All Men Are Liars;" Henry
Seton Merriman, "The Tents of Kedar;" David Lyall, "The Corner
Stone;" E. M. Jameson, "A House Divided," and "Rita," "A
Woman of Samaria."
"Joseph's Coat" is a memorable novel, and so is Marion Craw-
ford's "Whosoever Shall Offend." William Le Queux has a novel
called "As We Forgive Them," and Thomas Hardy names another
"The Laodicean."
Older readers will recall Whyte Melville's "Black, but Comely,"
and William Black's "Daughter of Heth" is a minor classic.
Andrew Balfour has written "Vengeance Is Mine," and
Blundelle-Burton's "The House of Bondage" and "The Sword of
Gideon" are two fine titles. L. G. Moberley has "In the Balances,"
Charles Marriott "The House on the Sand," and Mrs. Coulson
Kernahan, "An Unwise Virgin" and "The Graven Image."
Harold Begbie is fond of Biblical titles. Among others are
"Tables of Stone" and "In the Hands of the Potter." Richard
Bagot uses "The Just and the Unjust," and one of the most popular
novels of the day is "The W^ay of an Eagle."
How many readers can tell just where these titles occur?
— Houston Chronicle.
A Hint of Plagiarism
"And why do you spurn this child of my brain?" asked the dis-
appointed author as he received his manuscript back.
"Because," replied the editor coldly, "certain familiar passages
it contains led me to suspect that it is an adopted child."
— Birmingham Age-Herald.
Thinks /^SxThings
Mr. Arthur Leeds has resigned his position as Editor of Scripts for Thomas A. Edison, Inc.,
it being his desire to return to freelance writing. Mr. Leeds has the utmost confidence in the
possibilities offered in the field of the photoplay. At the same time, he is interested in both
fictional work and legitimate play building, and as an active member of the Ed-Au Club, the
Playwrights, the Society of American Dramatists and Composers, and kindred organizations, we
are glad to announce that he will continue to write for our readers these interesting and informa-
tive paragraphs on what is taking place in moving picture, publishing and dramatic circles. —
Editor.
In connection with the fact that I have just resigned my posi-
tion as Editor of Scripts for the Edison Company, I should like to
make two statements which I believe will interest photoplaywrights
in general. In the first place, the Edison Company has just with-
drawn from the General Film Company. Quoting from the Morning
Telegraph, "This leaves Edison releasing no films whatever through
the General Film program, but the Edison studio will go on, as
usual, devoting itself to the production of five-reel features, released
through the Kleine-Edison Feature Service. Manager Leonard
McChesney is silent on whether the studio will hereafter produce
any shorter films than these five-reelers, and is also silent on the
cause of the Edison withdrawal from the General Film Company."
So far as writers are concerned, the important point is that, as stated
in the "Where to Sell" department of this magazine, this month,
Edison is temporarily, at least, out of the market, except in the case
of a few writers whose work they have purchased or who are known
to be capable of delivering the goods. The writers who have been
tried and have not been found wanting may still sell to the firm, and
for good prices. President Carl Lsemmle, of the Universal, believes
that the feature picture is waning in popularity, and that the day
of the one- and two-reel story is returning; but that is, after all,
only the opinion of one man, albeit a man who knows the game and
what is going on in it. Most writers who are selling will tell you that
at present , at least, they are trying to turn out stuff that will " catch"
the big feature concerns, as this means not only a broader recognition
but a bigger remuneration. In other words, the real writers are out
to do big things and get as "big money" as is possible.
My experience with the Edison Company showed me that — as
Mr. Sargent has said — the failure of the average writer to study the
markets and so know what each company is really buying is what
keeps so many, many aspirants from making good in the work.
You simply cannot submit haphazard today. You must know the
policy of the concern to which you wish to sell and then you must
consistently write only the best and most attractive stuff you can
turn out. If you have taken the trouble to find out what stars a
certain company is trying to provide vehicles for, you should study
the work of those stars on the screen, and read the magazines which
THINKS AND THINGS 31
publish fictionizations of the screen stories in which they appear.
Get it into your head right now that, throughout 1916 and thereafter,
it will be a case of the survival of the fittest in the script-writing
game. This is not an attempt to discourage the amateur — quite the
contrary. But the amateur must "smoke up" and cease to be an
amateur just as quickly as possible. There are still many companies
that want — and pay very fair prices for — one- and two-reel stories.
Still others want threes, and some require fours. But everything
you write must be your very best, and remember that, although
technique is a big asset, the fresh, interesting story is the thing that
the editors are after. Give the screen the biggest and best that is in
you, and you will find that the manufacturers appreciate your efforts
and pay the prices. Personally — and this is my second statement —
I am delighted to be once again a "free lance." Without any undue
optimism, I say that the market is better today than it has ever been
since motion pictures came into existence. No writer who can turn
out "the stuff" need fear that it will not sell. The coming year will
be one of big accomplishments in every branch of the industry, and
the capable writers will get their good share of the general prosperity.
But to get you must give — the very best you have, at all times. Get
away from the trivial and the morbid, the salacious and the pessi-
mistic. Put your soul into what you write, and put humanity,
kindly humor and optimism into every script you turn out. You
are one of the pioneers in a business that is, even yet, only in its
infancy, and as you build, so will the business grow. Be a laborer
worthy of your hire. And start now.
Columbia University now has a course in photoplay writing.
In a circular, the aims are expressed as follows: "This course aims
to equip the student with a knowledge of the new dramatic possibili-
ties as well as mechanical limitations of the photoplay; the specific
demands and the tastes of the typical audience as conditioned by
time and place of performance; and the technique of scenario writ-
ing. Each student is expected to confer regularly with the instructor
for criticism of scenarios. The course includes a visit to a studio."
The course is in charge of Professor Victor O. Freeburg, who has for
years been interested in the drama, and who has a book on the
Elizabethan drama just off the press. Feature films will be run in
the classroom, and in discussing the pictures twelve questions will
be put to the students, among which are: "Is it novel, and why?";
"If it isn't novel, what does it remind you of?"; and "Why was this
scenario bought by the producer?" It will be remembered what a
remarkably poor showing was made by college students as a whole
in the Edison College Scenario Contest of last year — a result which
was a very great surprise to the Edison judges, who expected to find
some exceptionally good stuff written by college men throughout
the country. However, in offering this new course, Columbia shows
that recognition is being given to one of the most popular literary
forms in the history of authorship, and I hope that Professor Free-
burg's pupils may eventually be able to turn out some scripts that
will make jaded scenario editors sit up and take notice.
32 THINKS AND THINGS
I enjoyed Brother Epes Winthrop Sargent's "Saving Postage"
article in the December issue, particularly the paragraph which called
attention to the difference between the one-reel pictures of three or
four years ago and the thousand-foot films of the present day. To
utter a bromide, " there's no comparison" — and the reason is plain.
Looking back to the days when even two-reel subjects were unknown
— I was then lecturing on every dramatic subject which I ran in the
picture theatre I was then managing — I can remember think-
ing how really wonderful it was to see a classic such as, for instance,
"The Count of Monte Cristo" compressed into, and logically worked
out in, one thousand feet of film. Well, to be shown at all, it just
had to be shown in a thousand feet of film, and that was all there
was to it. Consequently, both the scenario writer — whether staff
man or free lance — and the director, had to use all their skill in
reproducing the main points of the elaborate and intricate plot in
ten hundred feet of celluloid. Similarly, the writers of original
dramas knew that, no matter how good their story might be, nor
what its possibilities, it had to be "put over" in a single reel. And
the answer was — MEAT! Nine times out of ten the story was
decidedly "there!" Pathe's "The Hand" and "The Grandfather"
were two Parisian-made pictures that were as thoroughly artistic
from start to finish as one of Poe's short-stories, and had I the space
I could name scores of one-reelers by American producers which
were equally artistic and satisfying. Putting on one-reelers in those
days was much like writing "short" short-stories in the recent Life
prize contest : you first of all tried to find a real story, and then you
worked over it until it was short enough to be just long enough.
Today, the one-reel story that is really good is such a rarity that
when you find it on the same bill with a feature, you go out of the
theatre thinking more about the unusual one-reel story than of the
feature. I will go so far as to say that, during the past year, not one
writer in a hundred has put his best work into one-reel stories, if
he wrote them at all, for the simple reason he knew that if he had
the "makings" of a strong single-reeler he could, with but little
effort, "elaborate" (synonymous for "pad") it into a two-reel or
even a three-reel picture. Those who understand just how much
padding has been done in most of the so-called features released
during the past year, know that I am not exaggerating in the least.
There is not one single feature-producing company that can truth-
fully claim that none of their pictures have been padded. Again and
again has been heard the comment, " Good picture, all right, but made
in five reels when it should have been a three." To sincere writers,
the dropping of the two-reeler by many companies was a reason for
deep regret. Two reels is the logical length for many splendid plots
that are too elaborate to be put into a thousand feet of film and
which still do not contain quite enough real "meat" for a three-reel
subject, and certainly not for a five. Of course, the most regrettable
thing of all is the fact that any picture is confined to one or another
arbitrary length. The day may yet come when a story will be allowed
to run its logical length in photoplay, just as it has always done in
fiction. Then we will have stories — free from padding and unspoiled
THINKS AND THINGS 33
by cutting. In the meantime, as Mr. Sargent points out, the one-
reel story " isn't what it used to was." They are not masterpieces —
they are nearer to being just pieces.
At the last meeting of the Playwrights' Club, the president,
Mr. Stoddard, answered a member who spoke of "style" in current
dramas by stating that, in his opinion, there was no such thing as
" style." He meant that, in the theatres of a city like New York,
although we hear a good deal of talk about the vogue of " crook"
plays or the vogue of " society" dramas, one need only glance down
the columns of theatrical advertising to discover that, although there
may be two or three plays with somewhat similar themes, the theatri-
cal bill-of-fare is really one of infinite variety. As a proof of Mr.
Stoddard's contention, New York theatres at this writing are offering
one pirate play ("Treasure Island"), one business play, with a
woman lead ("Our Mrs. McChesney," with Ethel Barrymore), one
business play with Jewish characters ("Abe and Mawruss"), one
anti-saloon comedy ("Hit-the-Trail Holliday"), one English comedy-
drama of society ("The Liars"), another English play, a melodramatic
mystery story ("The Ware Case"), one thrilling drama of the present
war ("Under Fire"), one drama of a never-was-anything-but-good
woman's fight against fate ("The House of Glass"), one drama of a
woman-who-went-wrong's similar struggle ("Common Clay"), one
play of never-say-die youth making the world pay the living it owes
("Rolling Stones"), one comedy of theatrical life ("The Great
Lover"), an excellent comedy of love and jealousy ("The Boomer-
ang"), one drama of what-its-name-implies ("The Eternal Mag-
dalene"), a tense drama of a woman without morals or conscience
("The Unchastened Woman"), a comedy of Lancashire life
("Hobson's Choice"), a celebrated German drama (Hauptmann's
"The Weavers"), and several others. Surely this list ought to bear
out Mr. Stoddard's statement that what the public wants is a good
play, regardless of the particular type.
For an example of careful work in scenario writing — resulting
in the director's following each scene almost exactly as written — I
should like photoplay fans and photoplaywrights to keep an eye open
for the forthcoming Heine-Edison five-reel feature drama, "The
Crucifixion of Philip Strong." It is founded on the well-known novel
of that name by Rev. Charles M. Sheldon, and is what I call a thor-
oughly well prepared script. Through an error, credit for the screen
adaptation was given to Francis M. Neilson. Full credit for the
screen version is due to Everett McNeil, a photoplaywright and
fiction writer of long experience, who has been selected by Mr. L. W.
McChesney to devote himself exclusively to the production of
adaptations and original stories for director Richard Ridgely. The
wisdom of giving credit when and where credit is due should be
apparent to every studio manager who has the good of his firm at
heart.
jincj In
Council
It has long been my opinion that whereas the average American
author of the first class can write a thoroughly convincing story of
English life, the average English author — also of the first class —
either cannot or does not try to make his stories of American life
really convincing — to American readers, at least. Richard Harding
Davis can write a story of London life that, if it were not signed,
would easily pass for the work of an English writer; his "In the
Fog" might be cited as a good example. On the other hand, take
"The Mistake of the Machine/' a story in "The Wisdom of Father
Brown," the second volume of stories detailing the adventures of
that delightfully entertaining priest-detective, by Gilbert K. Chester-
ton. This story is supposed to take place in Illinois, and mixed in
with references to "convict settlements" and American detectives
with "lanky legs" we read of "petroleum" (in the sense in which it
is here used we call it oil, coal oil or kerosene in America), "rum"
(meaning odd), and "barmaids." Chesterton uses, of course, the
American who l 'reckons " that such-and-such is the case, and who also
says "I know you don't cotton to the idea," but the landscape is
covered with "hedges" — as it might be in England, though hardly
in Illinois, "on the edge of the prairie," as the author describes it.
In an American newspaper paragraph street urchins are called by
the distinctively British name of "larrikins." Though the story is
placed in 1895, there is a reference to the electrical (sic) chair, and a
"motor garage." Twenty years ago garages and motors were far
from common. Finally the story ends with an account of a man
stepping "into the steering seat of a pretty high-toned Panhard" to
go out for a "joy-ride." Few of us, I imagine, heard much about
Panhards — or Fords, even — and "joy-rides" in the year 1895!
Altogether, as an attempt to write a story with an American back-
ground and American local color, this particular "Father Brown"
narrative is decidedly unconvincing, and for that reason much less
interesting than others in the book in which the writer shows that he
knows his field and does not use terminology that is foreign to his
locale. — Arthur Leeds.
The following sentence appears in the December Cosmopolitan,
in a story called "Out of the Sky," by Holworthy Hall. It seems to
me an example of obscuring the real meaning by straining for origi-
nality of expression.
"Two minutes later entered the man whose card had lent
the impression that his name was John H. Brady."
In reality the man was John H. Brady, but my first impression
was that a piece of deception was being practised. I had to read
CRITICS IN COUNCIL 35
further to see that this was not so — that the writer did not so intend
it, and that it was simply a catchy way of bringing in John H. Brady.
— Lilian W. Smith.
In Richard Harding Davis' charming story, "The Log of the
Jolly Polly/' in the October Metropolitan, the narrator lands at New
Bedford with a valise which he "checks at the office of the line."
Later, when about to rescue "the lovely lady" from an approaching
automobile, he drops the "suitcase" and "jumped into the street."
Surely, those writers with "names" make mistakes, too.
— A. T. Strong.
Irwin Cobb's "Blacker Than Sin," in The Saturday Evening
Post for November 27, contains one sentence in which the split
infinitive is used: "From the beginning there had been pity for the
woman who, the better to everlastingly parade her shame. . . ."
Perhaps this mistake was made in the printing, as Mr. Cobb studi-
ously avoids the awkward form. — A. T. Strong.
Ha, ha, I've caught you tripping! In your humorous criticism
of a sentence in J. Phillips Oppenheimer's "The Hillman" (see
Critics in Council, Writer's Monthly for November), you miss the
the fact that the "corn" is a kind of generic term, inasmuch as it is
applied to any cereal grain, and is generally used to mean the pre-
vailing grain of that special country — thus, corn in Scotland means
oats, in England, wheat, in the United States, maize. (See Century
Dictionary, Corn, 2.) So it was just as right that Mr. Oppenheimer
should say the sheaves of wheat stood in the cornfields as that you
might say the shocks of maize stood in the cornfields. But I grant
you that you hedged very successfully in your modest disclaimer of
interest in agriculture. — Mary Davoren Chambers.
The Editor acknowledges the corn, but alleges, in extenuation, that Mr. Oppenheimer's story-
was printed in America, as well as in England, and here we do not recognize the generic term when
applied in so unusual a way.
In "A Specimen Script" by Arthur Leeds, in the September
Writer's Monthly, I notice (page 90) a leader, "He's Broken His
Leg in Falling from His Horse."
The hero, a young western rancher, breaks his leg in falling from
his horse. There are two defects apparent in this leader: First, a
westerner, supposedly familiar with horses and used to riding, would
not be caught falling from his horse. He might be thrown from his
horse or the horse might fall with him. Second, in case he actually
did fall from his horse, he would be much more likely to sustain a
broken arm or collar bone than a leg. This also would be the case
if he chanced to be thrown from his horse, but should the horse fall
with him, a broken leg might be the result. I never have written a
photoplay but I have been thrown from a horse or two and have had
different horses fall with me, but to fall from a horse — that would be
eternal disgrace. — George W. Tintinger.
I have learned to make over my stories until they are salable.
"We do not consider it very plausible," wrote an editor in rejecting a
story, "for we cannot imagine a boy so young in a situation of this
sort and emerging from it in the manner in which he does."
The editor was mistaken as to the essential plausibilty of this
story, for when I rewrote it from a boy's viewpoint it was accepted by
the editor of a youths' magazine. There is no better judge of plausi-
bility, and no keener critic,than the youth of from fourteen to eighteen.
Again, "I am afraid this is a little bit too conventional and
ordinary in its idea to quite hit the mark," resulted in another make-
over that did hit the mark, with a boys' weekly. A story whose
characters were a man and a dog was declined by the same editor
because it was "too long-drawn-out." One of the characters was
changed to a youth, the action expanded and the story "drawn out"
to twice its original length. It was snapped up with avidity by a
youths' publication.
I do not wish to criticize "my friend the editor" for his persistent
rejection of my efforts; rather I have to thank him, for the little
success I have met with in writing fiction is largely due to his encour-
aging rejections. No less than nine of his personal letters of rejection
are before me. Surely a busy editor who would take the time to
write those letters would not do so unless he saw promise in my work.
I never have succeeded in pleasing this particular editor with a
short-story, although he did take several short articles. One of my
early efforts elicited the opinion that "it is rather well done, and
you ought to be able to do something worth while with a better
idea," and some time later he asked for "something bigger and more
dramatic," saying, "I am sure that you can do it."
With the belief that my work was not " ripe " — that I lacked expe-
rience and needed a drill in character development — I turned my
attention to the field of juvenile fiction where the action need not be
so tense so long as there is action. This seems to me to be the
natural way of developing — growing up with one's characters, so to
speak. I have been moderately successful with juvenile fiction, and
incidentally, I have disposed of several stories of the more mature
type.
The moral to be drawn from my experience is that one who would
write a "big" story must have lived a life of wide and intense expe-
rience. Writing juvenile fiction at the beginning is a means of
growing up logically. But to write boys' stories one must have been a
boy. You cannot "write down" to a boy any more than you can
"write up" to a man. — A. H. Dreher.
Proposition I., from the Writer's Euclid!
The more articles you have rejected the more you will be likely to sell.
EXPERIENCE MEETING 37
For, a large number of rejections, and getting used to their
coming, should result in an attitude of ease and indifference to them
on your part, so that instead of this "scrap of paper" taking the light
out of the day and making you so depressed you are not fit to work for
a week, you will now be able both keenly and. impartially to study the
returned manuscript. If it is bad — and by the time it is returned you
should have cooled off sufficiently to recognize its faults — you will
plan its revision ; if it is good — and unless you know when your stuff is
good you will never succeed as a writer — you will feel sorry for the
editor who could not use it, and you will select another whose maga-
zine is of the right sort for this fine work. Thus both your work, and
your discretion about placing it, should steadily improve. Hence :
The more articles you have rejected the more you will be likely
to sell, which was to be proved.
— An Oft-Rejected Seller
After having sold "The Awakening Hour" to the Essanay Com-
pany I submitted a photoplay to the Famous Players Company for
Mary Pickford. It was returned with a letter saying that if I could
strengthen it, putting in more drama, etc., it would stand a good
chance, as it was a capital idea. So you see I am not working entirely
in the dark. Besides, I have learned to "play the game," even if I
do see the same plot that I have had returned, released by the same
company a few months later with all the Catholic touches, even to
the wording of a letter-insert which I had in mind. But the older
writers all insist that nearly everyone who writes thinks of the same
things, so I have learned to burn my plots after such occurrences and
start on new ones. — Anne Scannell O'Neill.
The Authors' League of America has adopted a system for its members by
which they may have copies of their photoplays filed and registered. This will
be prima facie evidence of any such infringement as the above. Only when
writers have protected themselves in some such way as this will dishonest pro-
ducers be brought to book. — The Editor.
In reading over your very instructive volume, "Writing the
Photoplay," I came upon a description of how to get the title or any
other wording exactly in the center of the page. Your book says
that one should take a separate piece of paper and "guess" what it
would approximately be. I happen to know that there is an absolute
rule by which you can find this information. Here it is :
To get the title or other wording exactly in the center of the
page, count the number of letters, including spaces, in the title; sub-
tract this from the total amount of spaces on the space bar, and
divide by two the balance that is left. This will give you the exact
number on which to start your title. For example, let me take the
title in the book, "The Rajah's Heir." Including the spaces, there
are 33 spaces in this title. Subtract this from the number of spaces
on the space bar of an ordinary typewriter, which is 75, and you
have 42. Divide this 42 by two, and you have 21. If you start
your title on 21, it will come exactly in the center of the page — that
is, if your margin on each side of the machine is the same.
— Henry M. Lethert.
The first, and the longest, step toward achieving distinction in
writing is to think distinguished thoughts — the most clever technique
imaginable cannot totally cover their absence. — J. B. E.
Next to the typewriter, a good camera should be the most
important tool in the writer's shop. That writers in general do not
own and intelligently use a camera is apparent, as we glance at the
pages of the best magazines. Most of the photo-illustrations bear
the copyright of the well-known New York photograph brokers.
— A. T. Strong.
Perhaps I never understood compression until my companion
and I found ourselves in England with the trunks full of stuff which
we had brought across the Atlantic. In London we prepared for a
winter's walking tour in France, where it was necessary to substitute
haversacks for trunks. Let the haversack represent the short-story.
We had to remember that whatever we packed must be carried, and
every ounce counted at the end of a day's march. It was necessary
to cut out every article not absolutely needed and yet to retain suf-
ficient to look presentable when we applied for rooms, or spent a
week-end in town. — Eunice Buchanan.
As the tree, ambitious to send its branches high in the air, sends
its roots deeper, and grips more firmly the soil from which it derives
its energy, so does the wise writer devote himself earnestly to keeping
himself in splendid physical trim — avoids stimulants, takes plenty
of exercise, and, in order to become mentally athletic, first does what
he may to become physically so. Strong, well-balanced work cannot
come steadily and regularly from one physically neglected or abused.
— Ellen E. de Graff.
This contributor is right. Stevenson was a chronic sufferer and Csesar, a victim of epilepsy,
but each triumphed over handicaps by nursing what bodily strength he had. — Editor.
The beginner describes, the expert characterizes. The former
tells, the latter vivifies. The one gives time to detail and specifica-
tion, the other concentrates a revealing light on the one significant
element in character that makes it solely itself and not another.
— Karl von Kraft.
Read more than you write, think more than you read.
— A. L. Burian.
Mere facts do not make a story real. Truth may have no resi-
dence in facts, for truth is something that lies within. A lie may be
a fact, and hence real enough, but truth inhabits all realism that is
worthy of the name. — R. N. Tate.
The plot builder must ask himself these three questions, and not
stop short of the last: Is my every plot incident possible? Is it
probable? Is it plausible? And plausibility is the most necessary
quality of all.— M. C. C.
The Blue Moon: We have received several serious criticisms of the methods
used by Mr. Alexander Jessup, the editor of The Blue Moon, whose announce-
ment appeared in a previous issue of The Writer's Monthly. We suggest that
our readers write to Mr. Jessup's references before sending in material to this
magazine. We have seen one letter from his publication which seems to indicate
that the chief purpose in securing a reading of manuscripts is to suggest that the
writer pay for criticism of his work. We cannot commend any such system as
this and wish our readers to understand our attitude as being unqualifiedly
against the exploitation of contributors.
The following statement was received from Hugh J. Hughes, editor, Farm,
Stock and Home, Minneapolis, Minn.: "We are not in the market at the present
time for stories or special articles of any kind outside of the matter which is pre-
pared by our own staff. We receive a great many stories, poems and a considera-
ble volume of agricultural matter, which we are compelled to return, and we wish
to make it clear that the only material that we can use is agricultural matter
prepared by practical farmers on farm topics relating to agriculture in the North-
west."
The Popular Science Monthly, 239 Fourth Ave., New York, is published in
the interest of a very wide reading public which has no technical knowledge, but
which is deeply interested in scientific and industrial matters. Hence articles
submitted must be simply worded and must be free from technical expressions.
Pictures are indispensable in order to drive home the new point described. A
reasonable amount of imagination may be exercised in discussing new inventions
and scientific discoveries, particularly in commenting upon their possibilities,
but the writer should never go so far as to arouse distrust. The fullest credit
should be given to inventors and discoverers, so as to fasten announcements upon
the person who is responsible. The magazine is also interested in curious hap-
penings and curious phenomena, but here too photographs or pictures of some
kind are indispensable. Payment is made on acceptance at the rate of one cent
a word for text matter, and from $1.00 to $3.00 for photographs.
The American Bee Journal, Hamilton, 111., is a monthly publication devoted
to the interests of the honey producers. Fiction, poetry and general articles,
outside of beekeeping, are never used. Articles to be acceptable must be timely
and of a practical nature. New methods in honey production or marketing, new
equipment, or practical short-cuts, are especially desired. Good photographs
are always acceptable. Pictures of beehives or apiaries, unless they illustrate
some special point, are not desired. In general, material is reported on promptly
when submitted, and payment is made on publication. The rate of payment
depends entirely on the value of the material.
Ainslee's Magazine, New York City, is in need of short fiction under 5,000
words, and novelettes of from 25,000 to 30,000 words in length. Love stories
of the present day, with an American interest either through setting or one or
more of the characters, are preferred. In general, manuscripts are reported on
within two weeks and payment is made upon acceptance.
Rat Long, editor of the Green Book, Red Book and Blue Book Magazines,
Chicago, writes: "We use serials of 80,000 to 100,000 words in length, and short
fiction of 4,000 to 7,000 words. Verse or special articles are not used, but anecdotes
of theater or writing folk are available. We need book-length novels of 40,000
to 65,000 words. We would like to see someone 'spring something new' in the
40 WHERE TO SELL
way of humorous fiction. It is more difficult to find than any other kind. We
report upon manuscripts submitted within eight days, and pay upon acceptance."
Youth's Companion, Boston, Mass., can use short stories of 2,000 to 3,500
words in length. The stories should be of and for American boys and girls, but
not really juvenile stories. They also use humor and anecdotes. Manuscripts
are reported on within a month, and payment is made upon acceptance.
The following statement is sent by The People's Popular Monthly, Des Moines,
la.: "We use very little except stories. These should be, preferably, western
stories of adventure and from three to four thousand words in length. We also
use a few pictures of unusual people or objects, each picture to be accompanied
by a write-up of from 100 to 200 words."
Serials of from 20,000 to 22,000 words in length, in six installments, are in
demand by The Designer, New York City. The magazine is also much in need
of verse. Manuscripts are reported on within ten days, and payment is made
upon acceptance.
People's Magazine, New York City, occasionally uses serials of 60,000 to
80,000 words in length. At present they are in need of short fiction of from 1,000
to 5,000 words in length. This must contain adventure, mystery, strong heart
interest, and humor suitable for male readers. Manuscripts are reported on within
five days, and payment is made upon acceptance.
Love stories of from 3,000 to 4,000 words in length are in the greatest de-
mand by the Woman's Home Companion, 381 Fourth Ave., New York. Serials
of any length, from two to seven or eight installments (each installment not
exceeding the length of a short-story) are also needed. A few special articles,
no humor or anecdotes, no serious poetry, and only a small quantity of lighter
verse are used by this magazine. They are never over-supplied with any kind of
material. Manuscripts are generally reported upon within two weeks and pay-
ment is made promptly on acceptance.
The Sloan Syndicate, Inc., 303 Fifth Ave., New York, are in the market
for short-stories of not less than 1,500 words, and not over 2,000 words, and for
the exclusive rights to these stories they will pay a price for each paper that uses
it in accordance with the size of the city and will guarantee the writer a small,
but reasonable amount. Payments are made weekly following publication date,
at which time the writer will be supplied with a list of the papers using the story.
Canada Monthly, London, Ont., Can., frequently uses short fiction of from
2,500 to 3,500 words; also special articles, dealing with live and interesting
Canadian subjects. This last point is imperative. Manuscripts are reported
on within thirty days, and payment is made upon publication.
Verse, dealing with motion pictures, of not more than twenty-five lines each,
and special articles that can be illustrated, about motion pictures or players, are
in demand by the Picture Play Magazine, New York City. Manuscripts receive
prompt reading and decision, and payment is made upon acceptance.
Miss Grace George announces that she will award a prize of $1,000, for
the best play submitted to her by a college student. The prize-winning
play will be produced by Miss George and her repertory company, which she has
established at the Playhouse, New York. In addition to the $1,000, the author
will be paid royalties according to regular arrangements. The judges selected by
Miss George include a metropolitan dramatic critic, a well-known playwright,
and a recognized stage director, whose names will be given out later. The only
conditions governing the contest are that the subject of the play must be American
and modern, and the author must be a bona fide student in an American college
or university up to the time the contest closes, which will be at the end of the
current college year, June 1, 1916. Students should have authorization from their
faculties to enter the contest.
WHERE TO SELL 41
Mr. L. W. McChesney, Manager, Motion Picture Division, Thomas A.
Edison, Incorporated, Bedford Park, N. Y., advises us that they are not buying
scripts for the present — "with the exception that we are in position to give con-
sideration to an occasional five-reel drama of exceptional merit."
A competition is offered by The National Security League for a prize of
$250 to be awarded to the author of the best essay on the subject, "National
Security as it Involves the Preparation and Use of the Citizenry."
Following are the rules of the contest : 1. Competition is open to all. 2. The
essay shall consist of not less than 4,000 and not more than 5,000 words. 3. Each
competitor shall send three typewritten or printed copies of his essay in a sealed
envelope marked "Militia Essay," to reach the League on or before February 1,
1916. The essay must be strictly anonymous; the author shall adopt some nom
de plume and sign the same to the essay, followed by a figure corresponding with
the number of the pages of MS.; a sealed envelope bearing the nom de plume
on the outside and enclosing full name and address, must accompany the essay.
This envelope will be opened in the presence of the Executive Committee after
the decision of the Board of Award has been received. 4. The prize shall be
awarded upon the recommendation of a Board consisting of three suitable persons
chosen by the Executive Committee, who will be requested to designate the
essay deemed worthy of the prize; and also in their order of merit those deserving
of honorable mention. 5. The essays submitted shall be the property of the
League which reserves the right to publish any or all thereof. Address National
Security League, Inc., 31 Pine Street, New York City.
Three prizes of S750, $250, and $100 each are being offered by The National
Educational Association for the best essays on the subject of Thrift. An out-
line of a method by which the principles of thrift may be taught in our public
schools should be included. Any one wishing to compete for these prizes
should notify at once the Secretary of The National Educational Associa-
tion, Ann Arbor, Mich., of their intention. All essays must be in the hands of
the Secretary not later than March 1, 1916. Essays must not exceed five
thousand words and six typewritten copies must be presented. Those wishing
further details should write to the Secretary.
North American Corporation, 111 Broadway, N. Y., wants one-, two-
and three-reel dramas, and one- and two-reel straight comedies.
World Advance, 32 Union Square, New York, states that they are interested
in securing photographs showing freaks of nature, pictures from foreign countries
of exceptional interest, oddities, new inventions, new discoveries, etc., to be used
in the department entitled, "The World's Picture Gallery," which contains a large
number of photographs with only a few words of description. For such photo-
graphs as they accept they pay attractive prices on publication.
The Countryside Magazine, 334 Fourth Ave., New York, is in the market for
special articles dealing with the human side of countryside fife and work;
home-building; interior decorating experiences; the garden; the greenhouse;
the poultry-yard ; and subj ects on architecture, agriculture and horticulture. These
subjects should all be well illustrated, though sometimes articles are accepted
without illustrations. No article should contain more than 2,500 words. Manu-
scripts are usually reported on within thirty days, and payment is made on
publication. Rates of payment vary with the merit of the article or illustration, and
their position in the magazine. Paragraphs are used for fillers.
The Poetry Journal, published by The Four Seas Company, Boston, has
announced a prize of $100, donated by the Players' Producing Company, of
Chicago, for a one-act play in metrical verse or vers libre; the play to be American
in subject or substance, and to be actable. Decision is to be made by the staff
of Poetry and the donors, who reserve the right to withhold the prize if no suita-
ble plays come in. The prize-winner will be published in the magazine, and the
Players' Producing Company will have the acting rights, customary royalties
being given. All plays must be received at the office of The Poetry Journal before
February 1, 1916. The manuscript must not be signed, but a sealed envelope
must accompany it, containing the title, the name of the author, and a stamped
self-addressed envelope for return.
The Writer's
Monthly
Continuing
The Photoplay Author
A Journal for all Who Write
Edited by
J. Berg Esenwein
Entered at the Spring6eld, Massachusetts,
Post Office as Second Class Mail Matter.
Copyright, 1915, by The Home Correspond-
ence School, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Price 15 cents a copy; $1.00 a Year; Canada
$1.25; Foreign $1.50.
Published monthly by The Home Corre-
spondence School, Myrick Building, Spring-
field, Mass.
Vol. VII January, 1916 No. 1
Our friends continue to pour
in words of commendation for
The Writer's Monthly — we
could fill an issue with such
gracious expressions. Three,
however, ought especially to
interest our readers, and they
mightily please us. Here they
are:
Month by month, copies of The
Writer's Monthly, edited by that
literary veteran, J. Berg Esenwein,
are swimming into my ken. It is
crisp, comprehensive, able — a highly
valuable help for the young writer —
yes, helpful to all writers regardless of
age. — Edwin Markham.
I find The Writer's Monthly full
of helpful material for all who aspire to
write. I am particularly glad to com-
mend it as a helpful guide to writers
who do not feel able to walk this diffi-
cult path alone. — Jack London.
I used to own and edit a magazine
for writers — The Magazine Maker of
the dear, departed days — and so I
appreciate what it means to get out a
magazine that is of real help and in-
spiration to the writing craft. Let me
tell you, as a former publisher, that
your magazine has the heft; it's thick
through the shoulder. Looking at it
professionally, it is still in its first shoes
— but one of these days it is going to be
sloshing around in a pair of Number 9's
of its own. — Homer Croy.
To get letters of this sort is
even better compensation than
our incredibly large salary check.
The "Book List" has been
omitted this month — the depart-
ment has not been discontinued.
A short story, say the writers of text-
books and the teachers of sophomores,
should deal with but a single episode.
That dictum is probably true; but it
admits of wider interpretation than is
generally given it. The teller of tales,
anxious to escape from restriction, but
not avid of being cast into the outer
darkness of the taboo, can in self-justi-
fication become as technical as any
lawyer. The phrase "a single episode "
is loosely worded. The rule does not
specify an episode in one man's life;
it might be in the life of a family, or a
State, or even of a whole people. In
that case the action might cover many
lives. It is a way out for those who
have a story to tell, a limit to tell it
within, but who do not wish to embroil
themselves too seriously with the august
makers of the rules. — Stewart Ed-
ward White, in "The Tide," a story
which appeared in the Oct. 16, 1915,
number of Collier's.
It would be interesting to
know where the gifted Mr.
White found this sweeping rule.
If by "episode" he means " inci-
dent' ' — and the two words are
not in the least cognate — we
know of no such dictum. If by
"episode" he means "situation"
— though why the one should
connote the other is hard to con-
jecture— the "rule" might be a
good one, if there were such
things as valid rules for writing
fiction. How long will it take a
certain type of writer to learn
this fact: When critics try to
show the development of a
single situation (not necessarily
merely a single incident) in such
a way as to show a crisis and
reveal its outcome, the whole
resulting in a single impression,
we have a short-story. The
critic does not say you must or
even should write a short narra-
tive according to such a formula ;
what he says is that stories writ-
ten with regard for unity of situa-
tion, well-defined crisis, satisfy-
EDITORIAL
43
ing outcome, compression of treat-
ment, and singleness of effect, are
so clearly in a class by them-
selves that we are justified in
calling them short-stories, and
not merely stories that are short.
No critic whose word is worth
considering would venture to
say that a straight-forward chain
of events, without clear crisis
and its resolution, could not be as
fascinating a story as any plotted
yarn that was ever spun, and the
fact that the critic calls the
former a tale and the latter a
short-story is making merely a
distinction, not trying to hamper
writers. To aver anything else is
idle.
The conclusion of the whole
matter seems to be that Mr.
White had a rambling tale to tell
and he wished to prepare an
"alibi" for fear some silly techni-
cian might arise to call him to
book. Mr. White has carefully
set up a straw man and — hasn't
even knocked him down.
oughly readable house organ, Mr.
Lengel is winning notice.
When all our readers show a
practical interest by sending us
fresh items about markets, brief,
polished " Paragraphic Punches,"
pertinent criticisms for "Critics
in Council," and experiences of
all helpful sorts for "Experience
Meeting," The Writer's
Monthly will be more your own
indispensable magazine than
ever.
William C. Lengel, whose de-
lightful raillery of Brett Page is
quite in harmony with preceding
articles in our "So You'll Know
Them Better" series, is a close
friend of the subject of his appre-
ciation-lampoon. As the editor
of Hoggson's Magazine, a thor-
Have you noticed the eight
extra pages this month? And
would you like us to add them as
a permanency? Then help us
grow by sending us a new sub-
scriber— and try not to stop with
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writers to which you belong;
ask the teachers of literary art in
any form in your local university,
college or school to recommend
it to his pupils; send us a list of
those who are genuinely inter-
ested in writing and let us send
each a specimen copy. What
responsibility do you feel in the
matter of having your magazine
grow?
In our November issue we
printed a poem entitled "An
Encomium". The editor of The
Editor informs us that this
verse appeared some time ago
in his magazine. It is due both
to The Editor and The Writer's
Monthly that we should say
that we had no knowledge of this
whatever, as we bought the poem
from its author and made regular
compensation. It is needless to
say that we regret the occurrence,
for which, however; we feel no
responsibility. It is also due the
author to publish her explana-
tion, which is that, having re-
ceived from The Editor a letter
saying they did not print
contributions from non-subscrib-
ers, she inferred that her poem
would not be used and therefore
offered it to us. The Writer's
Monthly believes this error to
have been an entirely innocent
one.
H. C. S. Folks
G. W. Smith, Jr., of Maud, Pa., contributes to the Mutual
Magazine an interesting article descriptive of the Railroad Teleg-
raphers Contest which was conducted at the Panama-Pacific Ex-
position in San Francisco, August 27, 1915. Mr. Smith won the
first prize for receiving messages, over a large field of contestants.
Cora Drew, of Los Angeles, appeared in the Mutual release
(Dec. 8th) "Her Mother's Daughter," having a prominent role. She
has also appeared in several Griffith productions recently.
Mary Eleanor Roberts, Philadelphia, has an unusual story in
January McCall's. It is entitled "A Shepherd of the Lord."
William Morgan Hannon, New Orleans, has produced an inter-
esting and valuable little book in "The Photodrama — Its Place
Among the Fine Arts." The volume is published by The Ruskin
Press, New Orleans. Mr. Hannon is the scenario editor of the Nola
Film Company of that city and is also a careful student of the short-
story form.
M. B. Miller, of Johnson City, Tenn., has a lively story in a
recent issue of the Woodworker, entitled "The Blue Package."
Mrs. Cora B. Pierce, Newtown, Conn., has a charming little
love story in the Chicago Tribune for October 2nd.
Dr. John J. Mullowney, Paxtang, Pa., has gotten out a very
attractive "Peace Calendar and Diary" for 1916. The profits for
this enterprise will go to help the Peace Movement and the war
victims of Europe. The price of this calendar is $1.00, or eighty
cents to members of peace societies, the clergy, or teachers.
Edith M. Cleaver, of Philadelphia, has sold more than twenty
stories during the last twenty-six months.
Mrs. Will McGinnis is the author of "Liza's Christmas Box"
a two-act play which was recently presented by The Lyceum Com-
pany in East St. Louis, 111.
Alice Gray of Pittsburg is joint-author with Blair Hall of a two-
part novel, "The Other Half of the Loaf," which was featured in the
two November issues of Snappy Stories. Miss Gray is connected
with the Fox Film Corporation in the Pittsburg division.
Philip H. LeNoir as secretary of the Las Vegas Commercial
Club, originated and launched a unique campaign in the moving
H. C. S. FOLKS 45
picture journals " playing up" the scenic and climatic advantages
of Las Vegas for photoplay work. The campaign was so successful
that it was practically instrumental in bringing to the New Mexico
city the Selig Western Company, and also was the means of having
the National Bible Play Society, a million dollar corporation, estab-
lish its headquarters at Las Vegas. The latter company will insti-
tute a Sacred Play somewhat after the order of Oberammergau.
The November number of The Sample Case, contains a short
story, "How Bill Lost His Girl/' by Berta M. Coombs, of Oklahoma
City. Miss Coombs is corresponding secretary of the Oklahoma
Authors' Club.
L. H. Cobb, Kansas City, Kans., has written over five hundred
articles in the last twenty-six months, and has sold over two-thirds
of them, receiving checks from twenty-five different papers. " Win-
dow Garden Bulbs" is the title of one which appeared in the Novem-
ber Holland's.
Earl G. Curtis, Richmond, Va., has a short-story entitled "The
Marksman," in the December Ten Story Book.
S. A. Van Petten, Chicago, is the author of three current photo-
play releases; "The Baby and the Leopard," a Selig, Jungle-Zoo
drama; "A Tangle in Hearts," a casino star comedy; and "Lillian's
Husbands," a Vitagraph star feature.
The December Woman's Magazine contains a Christmas play
for young people, "When Santa Claus Went Bankrupt," by Anna
Phillips See, of Brooklyn, N. Y.
Emma Gary Wallace, Auburn, N. Y., has an article, "Marrying
a Man to Reform Him," in the December Mother's Magazine.
W. Dayton Wegefarth, Philadelphia, has a poem, "The Christ-
mas World" in the December number of The Book News Monthly.
Mr. Wegefarth's charming dog story of his pet "bum," which
appeared lately in the same magazine, has been brought out by Sully
and Kleinteich as an illustrated book.
Chesla C. Sherlock, Des Moines, la., has a short editorial en-
titled, "Those Who Work" in the November Modern Methods;
also an article, "Paint and Polish," in the December Fra.
Anne Scannell O'Neill, St. Louis, Mo., is doing some particularly
clever feature work for the St. Louis Republic in both its daily and
Sunday issues. She is also the author of the recent Essanay release,
"The Awakening Hour."
Arthur Peabody Bond, Hillsdale, Md., has a short story in the
Ten Story Book for January.
James De Camp, the Managing Editor of The Highland Park
Herald, Cleveland, is not only contributing clever editorials to his own
paper, but is doing effective feature work for The Los Angeles Times.
No questions can be answered by mail, nor can we supply names of players taking part in
oertain pictures. Questions relating to the writing, sale, and production of photoplays and other
literary forms will be answered in this column, but readers are asked to make their letters brief
and to the point.
CHAPTER "A," MINN.— We suggest that you try Mrs. Rachel West
Clement, 6646 Germantown Ave., Philadelphia. We believe this literary agent
to be reliable. She requires a reading fee of $1.00 for 5,000 words or under which
includes a short criticism.
C. N. J., SAGINAW. — The technical difference between a tale and a short-
story is this: A tale, strictly speaking, consists of a chain of incidents without
any plot complication — merely a succession of events which lead from one point
to another. For instance, a series of interesting happenings in anyone's life
might be made into a tale. A short-story, as we understand the term technically
today, must have a plot, by which we mean some clash of wills or of interests that
results in a struggle. How this struggle turns out really constitutes the plot of
the short-story.
JACK WRIGHT. — We decidedly think that a successful newspaper experi-
ence would be valuable in either short-story writing or photoplay writing, because
human interest and ability to "see a story" lie at the foundation of both of these
arts.
A. D. W., PITTSBURGH.— (1) You probably mean the number of words
to be used in the synopsis of a five-reel subject. There is no limit. Do not waste
a word, do not use unnecessary words. Tell the plot of your story in a clear,
comprehensive way. If the story has vitality and freshness your synopsis will be
read, regardless of (reasonable) length. (2) Since each Bust is a separate scene,
each must have its own number. (3) The Vision is written in as a part of the
scene. When the man in the dining room is shown as looking at the vision which
fades in at one corner, and then fades out, the effect is termed a vision. What
you probably mean, from the question's wording, is the fading out of the dining
room scene, then the fading in of the hospital room, this in turn fading out to
fade in the dining room again — is called the fade-out and fade-in. In using the
vision, it is written as a part of the scene. In using the fade-out and fade-in, each
of the three scenes is consecutively numbered, each being a separate scene.
(4) Your question is not clear. As the vision is explained above, you will see that
no matter how many are used, they are simply a part of the scene or scenes into
which they are introduced. (5) "Back to scene" is not used after a vision. You
merely say that the vision fades out or disappears. "Back to scene" is used
after a cut in leader or other insert in a scene. (6) Your meaning is not quite
clear as to the "little dashes." In leaders, as well as in stories (fiction) dashes
are often introduced to indicate that the speaker hesitates or is under great
emotional stress, as "He is — gone!" indicating a gasp or pause to command some
great emotion at discovering the fact stated. In the example you give, the dashes
could not be used instead of the word "love" ("My, how I her!") for the
blank might mean hate or any other word. It would be thus if the intent is to
indicate hesitation, "My, how I — love her." (7) A careful study of the screen
would be a far better way to answer for yourself which companies use male leads.
Also, read the trade papers, which record the stories of the films and the plans
and movements of the actors and manufacturers. As to addresses, the " Moving
Picture World's Photopiaywright Department" will send an up-to-date list for
a stamped, self-addressed envelope.
Short-Story Writing
A COURSE of forty lessons in the history, form
structure, and writing of the Short-Story taught by
Dr. J. Berg Esenwein, formerly Editor of Lippin-
cott's Magazine.
Story-writers must be made as well as born; they
must master the details of construction if they would
turn their talents to account.
May we send you the names of students and gradu-
ates who have succeeded? And the success their let-
ters prove is practical. It means recognition, accepted
manuscripts and checks from editors.
One student, before completing the les-
sons, received over $1000 for manuscripts
sold to Woman's Home Companion,
Pictorial Review, McCall's, and other
leading magazines.
Dr.. Esenwein
We also offer courses ic Photoplay Writing, Poetry
and Verse Writing, Journalism; in all over One Hundred Home Study Courses, many of
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therefore, our charge for this service will
be TWO DOLLARS FOR THE FIRST
REEL AND ONE DOLLAR FOR
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the only difference between this and our
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WRITING THE PHOTOPLAY
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©f the new and standard work, "Writing the Photoplay," by J. Berg
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of the opinions expressed by leading photoplaywrights and editors
all over the country:
It is a careful and exact treatise handled intelligently, comprehensively and with authority.
It will be helpful to all students of photoplay and should find a place in all libraries on
technique. It is creditable in every way. — Epes Winthrop Sargent
Thia week and next my department in The Moving Picture News will contain compli-
ments for your Photoplay Correspondence Course and for the book. The book is the
best that has come to my attention. As author of the first text-book of any pretensions
placed on the market for photoplaywrights I desire to congratulate Messrs. Esenwein
and Leeds. — William Lord Wright.
"Writing the Photoplay" is issued uniform with "Writing the
Short-Story," "The Art of Versification," and other volumes of
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SONG LYRICS AND
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THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
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articles and helpful information for writers. Among the interesting
features in these numbers of the magazine are the delightfully readable
personality sketches of Epes Winthrop Sargent, William Lord Wright,
Marc Edmund Jones, F. Marion Brandon, Horace G. Plimpton, Maibelle
Heikes Justice, Frank E. Woods. George Fitzmaurice, Russell E. Smith,
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tion," by J. Berg Esenwein and Arthur Leeds, running through many
numbers, should be read by everyone who is seeking to perfect his technical
knowledge. "Diagnosis and Culture of the Plot Germ," by John A. Mc-
Collom, Jr., is a series of six articles that will prove invaluable to the
writer who experiences difficulty in developing the "plot habit," that most
necessary equipment to a successful literary career. Scores of special
articles by the most prominent editors, critics, and photoplay writers of
the day make these issues of the magazine a veritable working library of
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While they last, we offer these twenty-five numbers to our readers for
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THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
SPRINGFIELD, MASS.
The Art of Story Writing
By J. Berg Esenwein, Lit.D., author
of "Studying the Short-Story," "Writ-
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ed by Mary Davoren Chambers, M.A.,
Professor in Rockf ord College.
This is Dr. Esenwein's latest and most
authoritative word regarding the subject
on which he is recognized as the leading
specialist — the Short-Story. Beginning
with the anecdote, this work simply and
clearly leads the writer up by easy stages
to the writing of the complete short-story.
Every phase of the subjeot is treated so
fully and in such a delightfully lucid
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DANNY'S OWN STORY
By Don Marquis
" I been around the country a good 'eal, too, and seen and hearn of
some awful remarkable things, and I never seen no one that wasn't more
or less looney when the search us the femm comes into the case. Which
is a dago word I got out'n a newspaper and it means, ' Who was the dead
gent's lady friend?' "
Danny enters upon the scene nameless, a baby in a basket, abandoned before
the door of Hank Walters, the blacksmith. From that very minute the fun
begins — such real, delicious, irresistible fun as only Mark Twain and 0. Henry
have hitherto furnished the world.
Autobiographically, Danny says: "There wasn't nothin' perdicted of me, and
I done like it was perdicted. If they was devilment anywhere about that town
they all says: 'Danny, he done it.' And like as not I has. So I gets to be what
you might call an outcast."
The boy runs away presently with a peripatetic "Doctor," whose mission is to
make known the wonderful powers of "Siwash Indian Sagrah" : and he plunges
into the kaleidoscopic life of the patent-medicine fakir, small circus shows, and
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are quite amazing. Illustrated irresistibly by E. W. Kemble.
Fixed price, 81.20 (postage 12c.)
Published by Doubleday, Page & Co., in Cloth Binding
Some Dannygrams
"You ain't never comfortable with
a person you know is more honest
than you be."
"I was wondering whether she is
making fun of me or am I making fun
of her. Them Irish is like that you
can never tell which."
"A man has jest naturally got to
have something to cuss around and
boss so's to keep himself from finding
out he don't amount to nothing."
"Helping of things grow, he said
is a good way to understand how
God must feel about humans. For
what you plant and help to grow,
he says, you are sure to get to caring
a heap about."
"What you want in poetry to
make her sound good according to
my way of thinkings is to make her jump lively and then stop with a bang on
the rhyme."
" Another prominent citizen has the idea mabbe ws is figgering on one of these
inter-Reuben trolley lines."
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A JOURNAL FOR ALL WHO WRITE
The Writer's
Monthly
Continuing THE PHOTOPLAY AU
\
-j5\
rJ
Edited by
J. BERG ESENWEIN
VOLUME VII
FEBRUARY, 1916
NUMBER 2
1
I
I
IT is indisputably evident that a great part of
every man's life must be employed in collecting
materials for the exercise of genius. Invention,
strictly speaking, is little more than a new combina-
tion of those images which have been previously
gathered and deposited in the memory: — nothing
can come of nothing; he who has laid up no materials
can produce no combinations. The more extensive
therefore your acquaintance is with the works of
those who have excelled, the more extensive will be
your powers of invention, and, what may appear
still more like a paradox, the more original will be
your conceptions. — Sir Joshua Reynolds.
THE HOME CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL
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REAL HELPS FOR WRITERS
The seven volumes listed below are issued in uniform size and style, printed on
superior antique book paper, and handsomely and durably bound in cloth, with letter-
ing in gold and gilt top. Together they constitute the most helpful series of authorita-
tive working handbooks for the writer's desk. 12 mo., postpaid at prices quoted.
THE ART OF STORY WRITING. Esenwein and Chambers. Dr. Esenwein's latest
work on Story Writing. A direct and effective guide to actual fictional narration. The
chapter on plot alone is worth the price of the book to any writer, zi + 211 pp. $1.35.
WRITING THE SHORT-STORY Esenwein. The standard textbook on the technique
of the Short-Story. Widely used in colleges and universities. A complete course includ-
ing theory, models and practice exercises in actual writing, xiv + 441 pp. $1.25.
STUDYING THE SHORT-STORY. Esenwein. A companion book to Writing the
Short-Story. Sixteen short-story masterpieces, with methods for analysis. No writer
and no lover of good stories can afford to miss this well-spread feast, xxxii + 488 pp.
$1.25.
THE TECHNIQUE OF THE MYSTERY STORY. Carolyn Wells. With introduction
by Dr. Esenwein. A complete exposition of the mystery story form. A book that stimu-
lates insight into the methods of successful writers of plotted stories and at the same
time cultivates fertility in the mind of the reader, ix + 836 pp. $1.62.
WRITING THE PHOTOPLAY. Esenwein and Leeds. The standard textbook on
photoplay construction. Recently reported by the New York City Public Library as the
book second in demand, outside of fiction, ix + 874 pp. Illustrated. $2.12.
THE ART OF VERSIFICATION. Esenwein and Roberts. A practical working hand-
book of the principles of poetry and the structure of verse forms, xii + 810 pp. $1.62.
THE ART OF PUBLIC SPEAKING. Esenwein and Carnagey. An inspirational
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THE WRITER'S MONTHLY. Springfield. Mass.
A Well-Known Writer says:
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The Writer's Monthly
Continuing The Photoplay Author
A Journal for All Who Write
Volume VII February, 1916 Number 2
EDWIN MARKHAM'S POETIC METHOD— Henry M. Bland . 51
BLENDS IN FICTION— Hapsburg Liebe 53
CHARLTON ANDREWS— PLAYWRIGHT, AUTHOR, CRITIC AND
TEACHER— THE EDITOR 55
WRITING FOR THE AGRICULTURAL PRESS— Frank G. Davis . 59
WHY EDITORS DEMAND TYPEWRITTEN MANUSCRIPT—
Arthur T. Vance, Editor, Pictorial Review .... 60
LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS— XIV— J. Berg Esenwein . . 61
IN QUEST OF COPY— Arthur W. Beer 63
MARION CRAWFORD ON "CHARACTER ANALYSIS" ... . 64
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS— SONG MARKETS— E. M. Wickes . 65
THINKS AND THINGS— DEPARTMENT— Arthur Leeds . . 69
CLIPPINGS AND COMMENTS— Maidee B. Renshaw and Anne
Scannell O'Neill 73
CRITICS IN COUNCIL— DEPARTMENT 78
EXPERIENCE MEETING— DEPARTMENT 80
THE WORD PAGE— DEPARTMENT 82
THE BULLETIN BOARD— DEPARTMENT 84
WHERE TO SELL— DEPARTMENT . . . . . 85
EDITORIAL 88
H. C. S. FOLKS— DEPARTMENT 91
THE WRITER'S BOOK LIST— DEPARTMENT .... 92
ANSWERS TO INQUIRIES— DEPARTMENT 9
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TWO UNIQUE NEW BOOKS
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The Technique of Play Writing"
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ii
Writing for Vaudeville'1
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The latest volume of "The Writer's Library"
THE HOME CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL
Springfield, Mass.
Please mention The Writer's Monthly when writing advertisers.
Vol. vii February, 1916 Number 2
The Writer's Monthly
Continuing The Photoplay Author
A Journal for All Who Write
Edwin Markham's Poetic Method
By Henry Meade Bland
My attention was especially attracted to Mr. Markham's
practice in writing poetry by the care with which I saw him scru-
tinize " Greece Re-arisen/' his recent sonnet, the first printed copy
of which he had received. He seemed to sit in judgment upon every
letter and mark. He tested every word to see if it could be bettered.
He runed every line to be sure of correct rhythm. He conned every
thought, and measured its emotional impression. Here was a bit
of his art — art he intensely desired to live through centuries, and
he would use every effort to impregnate it with his soul :
GREECE RE-ARISEN
Greece is not dead, however it may seem!
For on our golden shores she still survives;
Here is the violet sea, the murmuring hives
Of green Hymettus, the Parnassian stream,
And here the whispering Groves of Academe;
Here is Olympus, here the Delphian shrine
Where Lord Apollo pours his lyric wine
And builds in man the glory of a dream.
And here within our dim Olympian glen
The griefs of Hellas stir the world again —
The crash of Agamemnon's mighty years,
Medea's madness and Cassandra's cry,
Orestes' vengeance and Electra's tears —
Sorrows that are too beautiful to die.
— Edwin Markham.
After an hour he left the poem without making a change; and
this is not to be wondered at, because, in original preparation, he
had worked a week, thus using already every final test.
Here was a sonnet finished, and read before a great concourse;
printed in a metropolitan daily, and in a magazine; approved by
critics of standing as worthy of Keats; and yet the writer was in-
52 EDWIN MARKHAM'S POETIC METHOD
defatigably at work again testing out line by line. He made it an
unvarying rule, he afterwards told me, to do this.
For Edwin Markham the first step in writing a poem is the dis-
covery of a burning thought. The second is the beginning of the
expression in a majestic or beautiful first line; and the first requisite
of this line is that it shall have singing qualities, "the lyric leap,"
which, it must be noted, is one of Mr. Markham's most striking
powers. It is true, this power to select the musical word is inborn;
yet he continually studies the poets. He holds himself up to his
fine qualities by constantly refreshing his mind with the great touch-
stones of literature : those short lines from the bards — fines that have
stood the test of ages — which Tennyson says are
"Jewels, five words long,
That on the stretched forefinger of all time,
Sparkle forever."
And here is the first lesson out of the Markham method. The
humblest singer can begin to build in himself "the music and the
dream" by nursing the great standards of poetic expression. Mark-
ham says there are not more than a thousand of these immortal
touch-stones, even if all literatures are drawn upon. The problem
is to find and absorb.
The second point to observe in "The Method" is that the poet
has a verse-form all his own into which he most easily and naturally
drops. While he is a close student of all forms and can give an
exquisite turn to an ode or a sonnet, as in the "Lyric of the Dawn,"
or the "Wharf of Dreams;" and while he is at home in the splendid
blank verse of the "Hoe-Man," some of his most exquisite touches
come in the four-accented rhymed couplet, as in "The Shoes of
Happiness;" or in a double alternate-rhymed quatrain of four and
three accents, as in "Virgila;" and it is into this he most naturally
falls in moments of intense inspiration. It is as if he had trained
himself to the four accent line as his own special mode of expression.
This line is not by any means the conventional mechanical verse of
the "Lady of the Lake;" but it is varied by certain esthetic laws
which have a real Markhamish flavor.
If this line were definitely described we should say it is a mixture
of iambs and ansepests and ending sometimes in amphibrach, thus:
"And the world had been but a foam-soft feather."
Again he often breaks the exact march of the iambic with an
extra syllable, as in "The rift of dawn, the reddening of the rose,"
from the "Man with the Hoe." The "en" in reddening might have
been elided, but leaving it in makes, as the poet explains, "a pleas-
ing ripple in the line."
A third and vital point in Markham versification is perfection
of rhyme. A fine, naturally musical ear he supplements with an
exhaustive study of rhyme words — a study that is never-ending.
Hence, in his work one often finds rhymes scarcely heard of, as in the
second and fourth lines of the following:
BLENDS IN FICTION 53
"There is never a shadow that mars;
Nor a place in the heart where remorse is,
When we drink the bright wind in his glittering cars,
Whirled on by his wonderful horses."
Nor is any corner of English verse too humble for him to look
into for new suggestions, as his library in his Staten Island home,
New York, no doubt one of the finest libraries in America, will
show. He literally digs into the verse-makers of all classes.
And lastly it is fundamental to the Markham method that the
poet seeks to express in his verse the hidden beauty both of nature
and of the varying phases of humanity.
Hence the necessity of broad, careful and deep study upon
and communion with world-aspects, to the end that thought may
continue to be new, vigorous, and interesting. Dead tragedy is to
be avoided. The sorrows we deal with must be "too beautiful to
die." We must try to body forth the triumphant note.
Happy is the poet who strikes the new vein. The character
created in the "Hoe-Man" still continues to crop out in new phases
in Markham's work, as in his unpublished "The Martyrs of the
Commune," and in the "Rock-Breaker," and this personage still
lends Titanic strength to his thought. He is still at war with all
evil and especially the evil of human oppression: The man,
"Bowed with the weight of centuries,"
is always before him. Thus he interprets the sculptor Rodin's " Le
Penseur" as the "Hoe-Man" beginning to think.
This short sketch, which is intended merely to be suggestive,
may appropriately be closed with the poet's definition of poetry:
"It is the imaginative expression of the unfamiliar beauty of the
world — the beauty which is the smile on the face of truth. Poetry
is the cry of the heart in the presence of the wonder of life." One
of the poet's favorite ideas of the poetic is from Poe: "The origin
off poetry lies in a thirst for a wilder beauty than earth supplies."
Blends in Fiction
By Hapsburg Liebe
A story is a great deal like a painted picture ! Neither is very
interesting if done all in one color — unless it comes from a master, a
Jack London or a Montgomery Flagg, and then it may be too fine to
dilute. But there are not many Jack Londons and Montgomery
Flaggs. The story from the pen of the average writer suffers heavily
when it has no mellowing tint. Do you know what it is that best
relieves the story of pathos, the cold-blooded business story, the melo-
dramatic story, the adventure story — in fact, almost any story?
Humor. That's what : Humor. One funny character, anyway. Not
you, you understand, but the character himself must be funny. 0.
Henry could be funny himself; but you and I — we are not O. Henrys.
54 BLENDS IN FICTION
The usual trouble with funny characters is that they are not funny
enough in an original way; too many of them are merely " smart
alecs, " which the reader won't receive.
The humorous character should be characterized as nicely as
your heroine, your hero, or your villain. Give him one strong trait,
and play on that continually without overdoing it. A mere trick of
manner isn't enough. A red head, or crossed eyes are not enough.
Don't make him a type; make him a man apart from all other men.
You might give him a twisted belief, a crude philosophy all his own;
make him desperately firm in his convictions, and his sincerity will
carry him through.
Take " Tingerless' Fraser" out of "The Silver Horde,' ' and you'd
miss him! He's a bad man. He's a crook, with little principle. But
he's funny; he's originally and delightfully funny. He mellows and
relieves. How many books one might name that would be immeasur-
ably less interesting without their " 'Fingerless' Frasers"!
And the "Tingerless' Fraser" serves still another purpose; he
forms a method of contrast. Do you think that Boyd Emerson would
be half as strongly drawn, half as splendid a man, if the crook were not
present everywhere to show him up? You wouldn't know white was
white, if you never saw black.
Where will you get your funny character? Make him? Don't do
it. The chances are that he'll be either wooden or a "smart alec."
Get him from life. Life teems with " 'Fingerless' Frasers." There
are millions of these odd characters. I'll tell you how I got one. A
mountaineer living near here changed his name to Jack Townsend and
determined to be a writer. He couldn't spell any ten words of any
language correctly — but he determined to be a writer ! That amused
and interested me. I tried to discourage the idea, even after he had
sold enough wild hides to buy a ten-dollar typewriting machine. He
said to me this, good-humoredly : "Damn your soul, if you can make
money a writin' stories, I know I can!"
I went after him right then. I learned his twisted philosophies of
life. I learned that he hated preachers and frogs with a queer hate.
I noted that his drooping mustache muffled his voice, and I noted
that when he stopped in the laurel-lined trail he invariably set the
butt of his rifle carefully between his toes. In the story I named him
Sam Heck, and another character soon nicknamed him "By". Then
I had "By Heck. " By Heck could make twenty-year-old yellow corn
whisky in a day and a half.
Humor blends easiest and best with pathos; hardest and worst
with tragedy. Tragedy has its place in fiction; but if there's much of
it, only a strong pen should handle it. Tragedy is to fiction what
minor notes are to music; just enough has a wonderful and sympa-
thetic charm, while too much is as doleful as the death-chant of a
Moro.
Most arts require long study and application.
— Loed Chesterfield.
]Mw them Better
XXVII. Charlton Andrews, Play-
wright, Author, Critic and Teacher
By The Editor
They have been quarreling so long over the birthplace of Homer
that it seems wise to put it on record for all time that the subject
of this truthful story was born in Connersville, Indiana. His parents'
name was Andrews, and with an ear for euphony they named the
prettiest baby on the block Charlton; it remained for his associates
thirty years after to give him the middle names he has ever since
deserved — Independent Thinker.
You must not, however, picture the Johnson of this Boswell as be-
ing in any respect like-mannered to the Great Cham of Literature, even
if he has a gossiping biographer. Mr. Andrews does not wear his
independent-thinking apparatus like a green umbrella and go about
poking it in every fellow's eye; he is as gentle as an old shoe. The
whole of it is, he knows what he thinks, explains clearly why he
thinks it, and is right about ninety-seven per cent of the times he
opens his mouth. I leave a small margin for safety.
The conscienceless personal historians who, as shameless hire-
lings, have written the preceding sketches in this series and grown
rich thereby — actually rich — have not ventured to dwell on the
physical appearance of their subjects. I have no such fear. Even if
C. A. refuses to pay me a stiver for this veracious account, I do not
hesitate to tell my readers that the plans and specifications on which
he was built are Romanesque. His marble dome is thatched with
plenty of dark hair, and his eyes — which twinkle properly, and,
alas, sometimes improperly, behind glasses — are blue and sincere.
The only quarrel I have with Andrews is that he has enfringed his
well-cut chin — this is not a tonsorial reference — with a whiskerette
in the very style his Boswell has long affected, thus indicating a
shrewd desire to soften the rigors of the biographic pen, but as he
has not yet succeeded in inducing his imperial to grow any other
than black hairs, his infringement of patent rights shall be generously
forgiven.
Five-feet-ten is a proper height for one hundred fifty pounds
of playwright, up-standing and elastic. Let all aspirants take
notice. He won the intercollegiate record for breaking hearts in
Indiana when he was an undergraduate at De Pauw University;
and here, after writing for the college and local journals, taking an
56 CHARLTON ANDREWS
active part in dramatics, and winning all the other honors that were
not nailed to the old college door, he was graduated at a dizzying
height among a large class of world beaters.
I scorn to ring in the old allusion to seeking new worlds to con-
quer, but somehow I must get the youthful Andrews across the
water, so "we now," as the old-time histriographer used to say,
"find our hero in Paris." In the Capital of Europe he wrote letters
on the French drama for many American newspapers, thus follow-
ing preferences shown in college for the double calling of journalist
and dramatic critic. He was fortunate in seeing all of that brilliant
series of plays which glorified the French stage some twenty years
ago, notably the inimitable Coquelin ainee in the first run of Cyrano
de Bergerac, and the other great ones. This extended experience
settled his foundations in sound dramatic thinking, and the results
are constantly apparent in increasingly good work.
After Mr. Andrews had turned Paris inside out, he began to
suspect what America was missing and came home. Dramatic
criticisms of insight and trenchant in expression from now on ap-
peared in various metropolitan journals, and doubtless it was while
serving this trying apprenticeship that C. A. became master of that
condensed yet brilliant style which marks all his writings.
Somewhere under this man's shirt front has always lurked the
teacher; not the pedestal pedagogue, but the unassuming friend
who is at once glad and able to take a pupil by the button hole and
lead him, not shove him, along the you've often read the rest of
this sentence. So it required only an election, seconded by our old
friend Good Salary, to bring him to the principalship of an Indiana
high school. He had hardly got settled in the town when, by being
called to a chair in the State College of Washington, he earned the
right to be named — but he looks black at you when you call him
professor.
Sometime before this Charlton Andrews had committed matri-
mony. The partner of his plaudits and rejection slips is an alto-
gether charming comrade for her many-sided husband, is his most
judicious critic, and enters with enthusiasm into his work. Long
may they wave!
Mr. Andrews never succeeded in chasing the dramatic bee from
his bonnet. In fact, his two hobbies are his pupils and the stage —
he loves them both and has wooed the latter successfully. While
head of the Department of English in the North Dakota State
Normal, one of the largest institutions in the Northwest, our play-
wright submitted a play manuscript in competition for the first
MacDowell Fellowship in dramatic competition at Harvard and
won over a field of several hundred also-rans. Though notice of his
success came only a few days before the opening of the academic
year, C. A. suddenly remembered that he had intended some day to
annex a Harvard M.A., secured a leave of absence from his trustees,
tossed back his hair, and set off to hunt the festive bean in its native
lair.
CHARLTON ANDREWS 57
While the guest of John Harvard he wrote a masque, The In-
terrupted Revels, which the MacDowell Club produced at its annual
riot at the Plaza, New York. In the cast were Walter Hampden,
Mabel Moore, Douglas J. Wood and other noted players. In the
audience was Charlton Andrews. The New York critics printed
capital commendations. Thanks, boys.
State Line, a one-act farce, was also written during this period
and produced by the famous Harvard Dramatic Club, both in
Cambridge and in Boston.
It was at Harvard, while doing special work in the technique of
play construction, that an incident occurred which was both inter-
esting and exasperating. Mr. Andrews wrote a play of dissociated
personality which he called Polly. Being based on the medical and
psychological reports of Drs. Hyslop, Sidis, Janet, Prince, and others,
this play used as the protagonist (I learned this word from C. A.
himself) the character of a young woman who was a sort of scientific
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. After months of work on the play and
after it had been presented to various producers and received
much approving notice, it was accepted and was about to be pro-
duced. Suddenly appeared The Case of Becky — which knocked
Polly into the traditional cocked hat!
And now appears the best evidence that C. A. can take allo-
pathic doses like a good sport. Although his manuscript had been
for a time in the office of Mr. David Belasco, our author did not
accuse any one of having plagiarized from Polly, but realized that
the foundation idea of his play was common property. After gnash-
ing his teeth in the secrecy of the third story back room, C. A. grinned
several times to show that he still could, and set to work on a new
play — which made a hit. There isn't a bittei streak in this man's
heart. Of how many world-tested men can you write this honestfy?
In due time C. A. earned his Master's degree in Arts at Harvard,
and this he did without acquiring the accent — which shows much
self-restraint. When I say further that he admits Dartmouth can
play football and that he never casts aspersions upon the University
of Pennsylvania, we need look no further for evidences of a broad
mind.
His Majesty the Fool, his next big dramatic work, had its premiere
in the famous "Little Theatre" of Philadelphia during its brilliant
1913-1914 season. The press notices before me are warm enough to
delight an Esquimau. Everywhere this romantic drama was
acclaimed, not only for the finely repressed acting of Edward E.
Horton, Jr., as "Chicot" and for that of Helen Holmes as "Diane,"
but for the strong work of the playwright.
The story of the play deals with the intrigue of the Gascon
jester Chicot — made famous by Dumas the elder in La Dame de
Monsoreau — who in real life played a considerable part in the under-
ground politics of France during the troublous reign of King
Henry III. Chicot foils a villainous conspiracy to dethrone Henry
and to set up the latter's brother, the Duke of Anjou, as king. The
jester also renders great service to Diane de Meridor, the young
58 CHARLTON ANDREWS
heroine out of Gascony, although she has failed to reciprocate his
tender passion. After saving the life of her lover, the Count of
Bussy, and making a widow of the girl who has been trapped into a
false marriage, Chicot brings them together at the final curtain.
There is much comedy mixed with the tense dramatic action through-
out.
Mr. Andrews was actuated in the writing of His Majesty the Fool
by a desire to witness a return to the stage of the idealistic romantic
drama which formerly held so large a place in the public esteem, but
which has lately been crowded aside by excessive realism, often
trivial and sometimes disgusting. He has not made Chicot the con-
ventional King's fool, but "a character," as the Philadelphia Ledger
said in its favorable notice of the Andrews play, "with many of the
attributes of a crafty statesman."
I am not concerned here with much besides C. A.'s work in and
for the drama, but lovers of prose romance will remember his "A
Parfit Gentil Knight" as a vigorous historical novel which helped
to put Chicago on the map — it was published by McClurg.
When Mr. Andrews returned to teaching he produced the second
of his trio of really good books — "The Drama Today." It was
published by the J. B. Lippincott Co. while I was serving as literary
adviser, and won an instant success, not only popularly but as a
text book in our larger American universities as well. It is a de-
lightfully readable yet soundly critical survey of present tendencies
in playdom and is illustrated throughout by apt references to present-
day drama. His publishers requested a second book, but pressure
of work prevented it, and when later a further volume was written,
the present Boswell secured it for "The Writer's Library."
The lure of New York next drew Charlton Andrews. For about
a year his editorial work on the Tribune gave him fresh opportunities
to study the drama as it is, but, newspaper work again proving not
so attractive as his beloved teaching, Andrews became instructor
in English in New York University, and lecturer in English in the
Polytechnic Institute, Brooklyn. These posts he still holds, and
with all the pressure on his strength he still finds leisure to conduct
a notable course in Play Writing for the Home Correspondence
School. In doing this he finds plenty of play for his rare teaching
gifts and friendly sympathies.
Charlton Andrews has been a constant contributor to the
periodical press. His papers on dramatic art which have appeared
in The Theatre, The Dramatic Mirror, The Green Book, and other
periodicals devoted to the drama, have been particularly notable.
But, marked as have been his earlier successes, Mr. Andrews'
greatest work is his recently published book, "The Technique of
Play Writing." This volume of analysis and instruction furnishes
blue print and specifications, as a dramatic critic has expressed it,
for all who would write plays. It charts the whole subject of play
construction and by definite degrees leads the reader — who of course
must be a worker — step by step from theme selection, through theme
WRITING FOR THE AGRICULTURAL PRESS 59
development, plot expansion, character delineation, dialogue, and
what must be shown and what omitted on the stage, to the com-
plete writing, criticism, re-writing and marketing of the play.
But a fuller expose* of the " innards'' of this book would be only-
carrying coals to a well-known English port, for everybody nowa-
days is writing a play, so everybody must sooner or later help to
turn the beloved Andrews into that sad type of bloated bondholder,
the plutocratic casher of royalty checks.
Writing for the Agricultural Press
By Frank G. Davis
If a young writer strictly adheres to fiction he will often have
to wait a long time, perhaps several years, before he has a single
acceptance. This is likely to prove discouraging, and for this reason
hundreds give up writing who might eventually meet with success.
I believe a young writer makes a mistake by writing fiction all the time
when it is unsalable. Because he expects to become a fiction writer
is no reason why he should not branch out into other lines as well.
Almost every beginner has better success at writing short articles
than in any other field. There is always a broad market for " fillers' *
as nearly every publication uses material of this kind. Of course,
as in fiction, the needs of each publication differ. Though the price
received for work of this kind varies according to your market and
your material, the check received usually repays the writer for the
time, thought and energy expended on its preparation.
But aside from the financial return, this sort of work furnishes
practice in composition and often leads to something better in the
same general sort of writing, for after the experience gained at writing
this short stuff one learns more about editorial requirements and can
turn out long articles that are salable.
To a writer who lives in a small town or the country there is
always "something doing" in the way of material for agricultural
journals. There is a large number of these publications and they
must all have material from somewhere, so if the beginner has some-
thing interesting to relate he can get a ready audience from publica-
tions in this class. Though I have had but a short experience in
writing I have found out a thing or two about the agricultural article.
In the first place, I have learned that the experience article is
the one that sells. Now and then you may succeed in getting another
kind of article by the editorial desk, but it is seldom, and even then it
must be especially interesting. But the experience article, if timely,
is almost sure to find a market. The rejection slip from some publica-
tions bears the statement that "the Editor wants experience articles,
what you or your neighbor is doing."
60 WHY EDITORS DEMAND TYPEWRITTEN MANUSCRIPT
One thing required in the agricultural article is brevity. The
average editor wants short, snappy articles. Of course if you have
an interesting feature-article he is glad to get that also, but the cry
is for articles of from four hundred to eight hundred words in length.
The gathering of material for this kind of work requires minute
observation on the part of the writer. He must be wide-awake to
what is going on about him. He must get about over the neighbor-
hood, and above all he must talk with the farmers. One can often
get tips on some subject from these conversations that when used in
articles will help sell them. It is a good idea to carry your notebook
with you all the time, even if you do not expect to use it, as things
are constantly turning up that can be used in some articles but which
will be lost if not jotted down at the time.
A good photograph will often sell an article. This does not
mean that a photograph will sell poor work, but where other chances
are equal it will swing the balance in your favor.
Of course there are but comparatively few who make their living
by writing these articles, yet every writer can add a goodly sum to
his income if he keeps his eyes open to the news value of the things
going on about him.
Why Editors Demand Typewritten Manuscript
By Arthur T. Vance, Editor Pictorial Review
The average young writer doesn't seem to understand why
editors demand typewritten manuscripts, and this applies not only
to beginners, but to some of the old-timers who ought to know better.
The objection from the editorial point of view to hand- written
manuscripts is well taken. It is not only because handwriting is
harder to read, but because the author doesn't give himself a fair
chance. This may sound strange, but it is true, and can be explained
on a mechanical basis. When you read a typewritten line, just as
when you read a printed line, the eye does not stop to read it letter
by letter, or even word by word. The skilled reader takes in the whole
line, ofttimes two or three lines, at a glance. The reading is made
easy, and the mind more readily grasps the effect or the impression
the author is striving for. On the other hand, when you read hand-
written manuscripts, you have to read every word separately and
frequently have to spell out the words letter by letter. It is so
laborious a task that the illusion is almost certain to be lost. It is
just the same thing as when you studied Latin in school. Old Virgil
wrote some fine stories — interesting, inspiring, thrilling — but when
you had to translate a word at a time, it became a bore — a task — and
you got so you hated the sight of the book. You didn't appreciate
the story of it at all.
I hope the young writers, and the old writers, will see my point.
I would say off-hand, that a manuscript which is typewritten has
five times the chances of being accepted and published that a hand-
written one has.
Letters to Young Authors
FOURTEENTH LETTER
Dear Friend of Many Years,
If Carlyle had lived — and gibed — today he would have said that
the population of the United States consists of some hundred mil-
lions— mostly writers; therefore I refuse to be surprised by the
announcement that you are about to "take your pen in hand."
And since you feel within you some scores of stories clamoring to be
let out, perhaps you can do no better than study the methods of at
least one spinner of yarns whose story-fabrics you must approach
in beauty and in fineness if you are at length to sit down in the front
room of fame — which may the immortal gods grant you, my dear
Jack!
Study 0. Henry, who attained to the degree of Past Master of
the Twist; indeed, I may say that he was the Past Grand Master of
the whole fraternity in America. What is a Twist, say you? It
is that turn in the course of story-telling which leads the listener to
see unexpectedly a new aspect of the problem, a sudden obstacle in
the way, an unsuspected significance in what has gone before, a
surprising possibility in the situation, a vital element of change in
character relations — in short, a twist in the strands that may mean
anything and everything to the outcome of the story.
Now "outcome" was evidently a big word in O. Henry's con-
ception of story-planning, if not in his vocabulary, for no ingenious
plot-twist is likely to occur — I do not say can occur — unless the
weaver work backward from the outcome and thus plan for his final
effect. While, as I have just inferred, not all good stories contain a
twist, all good story tellers of today are good twisters, and 0. Henry
put the unexpected, yet the entirely expectable, into most of his
little fictions. So, at the risk of having you crack our prep-school
joke and wag your finger at me with the words, "Tu docet — Thou
tea chest!" — I am going to play the pedagogue and pluck apart
"The Whirligig of Life," one of O. Henry's master stories, so that
together we may see how he handled his delightful twists.
The story opens with Justice of the Peace Benaja Widdup
sitting in the door of his omce on the main street of the little " settle-
ment.'' * "Up the road came a sound of creaking axles, and then a
slow cloud of dust, and then a bull-cart bearing Ransie Bilbro and
his wife. The car stopped at the justice's door, and the two climbed
down. Ransie was a narrow six feet of sallow brown skin and yellow
hair. The imperturbability of the mountains hung upon him like a
suit of armor. The woman was calicoed, angled, snuff-brushed, and
wear}r with unknown desires. Through it all gleamed a faint pro-
test of cheated youth unconscious of its loss." The pair had come
down from the Cumberland Mountains to get "a divo'ce."
62 LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS
The justice, after listening to their mild-mannered recrimina-
tions, which contrasted humorously with their epithets, decided
that though "the law and the statutes air silent on the subject of
divo'ce as fur as the jurisdiction of this co't air concerned, accordin'
to equity and the constitution and the golden rule, it's a bad barg'in
that can't run both ways" so the divorce would be granted.
Ransie Bilbro had "sold a b'arskin and two foxes fur a five-
dollow note," and announced that this was all the money they had,
whereupon the justice said promptly, " 'The regular price of a
divo'ce in this co't air five dollars.' He stuffed the bill into the
pocket of his homespun vest with a deceptive air of indifference."
The decree, a marvel of frank construction, recited that Ransie
and Ariela "promises that hereinafter they will neither love, honor,
nor obey each other, neither for better nor worse," under solemn
adjurations both legal and moral. The justice was about to hand
one copy of the paper to Ransie when Ariela bobbed up with twist
number one, for O. Henry was not always satisfied with a single
turn but often made the twist duplicate, triplicate, and even multi-
plicate, and all without offending argus-eyed Probability. The
divorced wife suddenly demanded her "rights" before her former
partner should get his "paper" — she must have "ali-money." Five
dollars was all she asked for — she needed "a pa'r of shoes and some
snuff and things besides" to comfort her on her way up Hogback
Mountain, where lived her brother Ed.
Ransie was nonplussed at the demand for a second five, his last
dollar having gone to pay for the divorce, but he reckoned he "mout
be able to rake or scrape it up somewhars" by tomorrow morning.
The justice allowed the time, adjourned the case till then, and the
only-partially separated couple left together to spend the night at
Uncle Ziah's!
After having remained at his little office to read until moon-up,
the justice at length started home — whereupon appears the first
turn of the second twist, inextricably interwoven with the last thread
of the first twist. "The dark figure of a man stepped from the
laurels and pointed a rifle at his breast." With few words the masked
highwayman forced the justice to curl the lone five-dollar bill he had
and stick it into the barrel of the gun.
"The next day came the little red bull, drawing the cart to the
office door." As Ransie Bilbro handed to his wife a five-dollar bill,
Justice Benaja Widdup "sharply viewed it. It seemed to curl up as
though it had been rolled and inserted into the end of a gun barrel."
But he said nothing, though he "watched the money disappear with
mounful eyes behind his spectacles."
Now that the parting of the ways lay before them, Ariela felt
qualms. She began to give Ransie directions as to where to find the
food in their cabin. Other timid suggestions followed, until soon
they began to see that they were not far apart in spirit after all, and
suddenly Ransie "reached out a big hand and enclosed Ariela's
thin brown one. Her soul peeped out once through her impassive
LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS 63
face, hallowing it." They would not accept the divorce, after all,
but would go back together to the little cabin in the Cumberlands !
Another twist — not altogether unexpected.
But 0. Henry has a final twist for us, just when the course of
the story seems to have reached its straight-away, with the track
clear to the wire. Justice Widdup felt that he must interpose.
"In the name of the State of Tennessee," he said, "I forbid you-
all to be a defyin' of its laws and statutes." The couple are divorced
but may be re-married — for the same old magical five-dollar bill!
And when the re-uniting words had been said by the diplomatic
justice, and the curled-up bill once more lay safely in the pocket
of the homespun vest, "The little red bull turned once more, and
they set out, hand-clasped, for the mountains."
What is that saying, Jack, about the course of something-or-
other that never did run smooth? Was it love — or just a love story
— that the maker of sayings was talking about? Perhaps a twist or
two is needed in both to add to the savor. Perhaps even a number
of twists. I declare, there seems to be no rule.
Your sincere friend,
Kakl von Kkaft.
In Quest of Copy
Since Sue first got this writing craze
Her folks have spent most strenuous days,
For Sue has the most artful ways
Of getting what she sweetly says
Is material.
With pencil sheathed within her hair,
She takes her note book everywhere;
Ill-natured gibes she does not fear,
But scours the country, far and near,
For material.
Now when dear Sue I go to see,
She listens most attentively
To my warm words; but, here's the key:
'Tis simply that she sees in me
Material.
When the last trump o'er earth shall break,
No doubt have I that Sue will wake
And copious notes begin to take:
A front-page story it will make —
Material !
Arthur W. Beer.
Marion Crawford on "Character
Analysis"
Very young men are nowadays apt to imagine complications
of character where they do not exist, often overlooking them alto-
gether where they play a real part. The passion for analysis dis-
covers what it takes for new simple elements in humanity's motives,
and often ends by feeding on itself in the effort to decompose what
is not composite. The greatest analyzers are perhaps the young and
the old, who, being respectively before and behind the times, are not
so intimate with them as those who are actually making history,
political or social, ethical or scandalous, dramatic or comic.
It is very much the custom among those who write fiction in
the English language to efface their own individuality behind the
majestic but rather meaningless plural, "we," or to let the characters
created express the author's view of mankind. The great French
novelists are more frank, for they boldly say "I," and have the cour-
age of their opinions. Their merit is the greater, since those opinions
seem to be rarely complimentary to the human race in general, or
to their readers in particular. Without introducing any comparison
between the fiction of the two languages, it may be said that the
tendency of the method is identical in both cases and is the conse-
quence of an extreme preference for analysis, to the detriment of the
romantic and very often of the dramatic element in the modern novel.
The result may or may not be a volume of modern social history for
the instruction of the present and the future generations. If it is not,
it loses one of the chief merits which it claims; if it is, then we must
admit the rather strange deduction, that the political history of our
times has absorbed into itself all the romance and the tragedy at the
disposal of destiny, leaving next to none at all in the private lives of
the actors and their numerous relations.
Whatever the truth may be, it is certain that this love of minute
dissection is exercising an enormous influence in our time; and as
no one will pretend that a majority of the young persons in society
who analyze the motives of their contemporaries and elders are suc-
cessful moral anatomists, we are forced to the conclusion that they
are frequently indebted to their imaginations for the results they
obtain and not seldom for the material upon which they work. A
real Chemistry may some day grow out of the failures of this fanciful
Alchemy, but the present generation will hardly live to discover the
philosopher's stone, though the search for it yield gold, indirectly,
by the writing of many novels. If fiction is to be counted among the
arts at all, it is not yet time to forget the saying of a very great man :
"It is the mission of all art to create and foster agreeable illusions."
— From "Don Orsino."
Help for Song Writers
Song Markets
By E. M. Wickes
In another part of this magazine there is a department, and a
very good one, called "Thinks and Things." If the underlying
philosophy of the caption were assimilated and digested by the
"leaners" in the writing game, the latter would have less cause for
complaint. A " leaner" is one who lacks real backbone, self-confi-
dence, and ingenuity, and is always looking for another to smooth for
him the pathway leading to success. He is too tired or too timid to
strike out for himself, expects all assistance gratis, and still believes
that he is qualified to survive among the fittest. The "leaner" is
found in all walks of life, and to a bothersome extent in the writing
craft.
A man or a woman willing to think and act, eventually comes into
possession of things. The "leaner" desires to obtain the things with-
out considering the thinks, and he usually travels backwards from
things to thinks, makes the painful discovery that one cannot do much
without doing some real thinking, and then begins at the proper place,
provided he has a little gray matter and logic somewhere in his head.
Very often when he sees others who started at the same time as he
did leaving him far in the rear, he quits "cold" and enlists in the
"sour grapes" army.
The "leaner" dashes off a lyric in the heat of inspiration, or that
of a furnished room, and then pesters his friends to find a market for
it, urging them to exercise for his sole benefit whatever little prestige
they may have.
A short time ago a "leaner" entered a music publisher's office
where two real writers were racking their brains to find markets for
some of their own work. He had only a speaking acquaintance with
the writers, nevertheless he approached them as if he had known them
for years. " I have a peach of a lyric here, " he said, tapping his coat
just above his heart. "Do you know where I can get rid of it? "
The two writers gazed at him for several seconds, then one of
them stretched out his foot and pushed a waste paper basket in front
of the "leaner" and nodded to it. The "leaner" colored crimson,
turned and beat a hasty retreat.
Ten years ago if a new writer were unable to induce a publisher
in New York or Chicago to take his work he felt that it was useless to
try elsewhere. This condition resulted from the new-comer's lack of
logical thinking. Of late, however, a new element has sprung up — men
who do not concede that New York and Chicago represent the entire
country, and to verify this one has but to examine the song column of
The Billboard. The announcements indicate that new publishers are
springing up all over the country, and many of them have a monopoly
on local trade by co-operating with local dealers.
66 HELP FOR SONG WRITERS
Sometimes writers who have been unable to place their work
with the big publishers print and market their own songs and inci-
dently open a market for another unknown. After they have issued
one or two numbers and have made connections with local dealers,
they discover that it is just as easy to do business with six as with two
songs. Another chap with no money, but a keen eye, who has been
watching them, comes along and offers his work, and if it should
promise a profit he is very likely to receive some offer.
Song writing is a commercial business. There are no niches
waiting in the hall of fame for the man capable of turning out one or
more hits. The public is willing to pay you for your work, and it is
just as willing and ready to forget you as soon as you are through.
The most important thing to do is to get a start — some way, any way,
except that of allowing some trickster to delude you into paying him
money to give you a false start. Opportunities can be made by those
capable of thinking and planning. Success is a synonym for deter-
mination— plus some ability.
The average man cannot afford to publish his own book, story,
photoplay, or stage his drama, as the expense of production is too
large and the possible market too small; but by using common sense
he can print a song and sell it at a profit. Hundreds are doing it every
day. One man in Brooklyn who owns a printing shop composes,
publishes, and sells his work to the jobbers and stores. He earns more
from his work than some of the writers under contract. He is unknown
to song writers and never has written a " hit. "
Another man living in Ohio who tired of receiving rejection slips
from publishers, printed three of his oft-returned songs and then
started out to dispose of them at fairs and carnivals. From fair to
fair he went, renting a booth in each, and offered two of his own songs
and one popular hit for a quarter. At the expiration of two months
he had cleared up six hundred dollars. For a month after the close of
the fair season he received orders from practically all the towns he
has visited, as well as from some he had not. John Williams, for
instance, purchased three songs for his little girl; his neighbor who
had not been to the fair saw the music and was anxious to secure three
for his daughter, hence the new orders.
Now had this energetic fellow sat down and hurled pretty names
at the publishers, he would still have his manuscripts. By devising
and making a market he earned more in two months than he had
been accustomed to make in a year at ten dollars a week. He began
with thinks and wound up by gathering in some of the things.
A splendid illustration of what a sagacious and determined person
can accomplish may be drawn from the struggles of an aspiring lyrist
who found the New York publishers cold and indifferent, as Laura
Jean Libby would say. After having sent his manuscripts on the
rounds he sat down and made a careful analysis of his immediate
assets. The only possibility that loomed up on his uninviting horizon
was an eighteen year old cousin. She was pretty, and playing in a
stock company in the next town. To the " leaner" she would have
represented a cipher. Now this pretty cousin had a very wealthy
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS 67
young man among her many admirers. The scheming young author
reasoned that if he could interest his cousin in his songs, either he or
she might eventually induce the rich swain to publish them. But the
town was no place to publish songs, not to his way of thinking. He
would have to shift the scene to New York, which necessitated a
shift for the leading lady. The lyrist was confident that the leading
man would naturally follow.
The author finally interested his cousin in his songs, then talked
her into going to New York for engagements. He followed and the
Romeo trailed behind. The cousin became enthusiastic about the
song business and in the end persuaded the rich young man to go into
the publishing business. The cousin returned to stage work after
having promised to marry the rich young man. She sang the songs
written by her cousin and published by her fiance\ Before many
months had passed the entire country was singing one of the songs
and the trio was making money.
Scores of instances could be cited where men succeeded by using
their brains and making opportunities where none appeared to exist.
The trouble with the majority is that they cannot see an opportunity
unless they stumble over it, and even then some do not recognize it,
unless it is labelled in black-faced type.
The year that has just gone into the discard was not a very
profitable one for the popular-music business. The war was chiefly
responsible for the falling off of sales. The public thought that a
money stringency was due and tightened up on the purse strings.
Publishers are one of the first to feel the effects of business depression,
for as soon as the public senses hard times ahead it begins to curtail
the purchase of luxuries, and popular music is looked upon as a
luxury. When times are prosperous the masses buy to the limit;
when hard times approach they limit the buying.
The temporary business depression forced the publishers to play
a close game, and none cared to take chances with newcomers. The
jobbers, as well as the syndicates, ordered just enough to cover imme-
diate needs, refusing to stock their shelves, with the idea of forcing
the surplus over the counters, as is the custom in good times. A
number of publishers were compelled to close up, while some of their
rivals spent sleepless nights devising ways and means to keep the
sheriff from closing the doors for them.
However, the lean year has vanished with all its troubles, and the
present one promises to make all publishers happy and rich. Pat
Howley, who always kept an open house, has started in again on a
large scale. He intends to deal with well-known writers, but he will
always have time to examine the work of new writers. He does not
believe in tying up with any one. His new address is 146 West 45th
Street, New York City, and if you have a real song he will be only too
pleased to see it.
One correspondent writes in to ask where he can obtain a copy
of a magazine that carries a list of reliable publishers. No doubt
hundreds of others would appreciate the same information.
The New York Clipper and The Billboard carry a large number of
68 HELP FOR SONG WRITERS
publishers' advertisements from which one can obtain names and
addresses. Then there is Jacob's Orchestra Monthly, published in
Boston. This is a good medium for publishers who make a practice of
putting out orchestrations, and a house that does this has to have
some sort of bank account. Jacob's Orchestra Monthly also contains
some very valuable information dealing with the technique of music
construction, and has a "Help Wanted" column that might appeal
to budding composers.
In a recent number the following advertisements appeared:
Wanted — Musicians of all kinds; can place at once a barber
who is a good clarinetist.
On 'the surface the advertisement looks like a joke abstracted
from a monologue. Another one reads :
Wanted — A foreman for an auto shop — one who takes up music
as a side line.
The advertisements printed above are jokes for those to whom
they do not appeal; but to some one they hold out an opportunity.
For the man who hails from Missouri here is proof:
Several years ago a young man living in a small town, who
longed to become a popular composer, read the following in a news-
paper :
Wanted — A good waiter who can fake piano.
He could "fake" a piano just as easily as he could break one with
his pounding. He knew less about waiting than he did about playing,
but he possessed nerve and determination, and he reasoned out that if
he could get in touch with a place where a pianist was needed he would
eventually come in contact with singers, then with publishers. He
applied for the position, and as no one else put in an appearance, he
got it. Later he made the acquaintance of a singer who ached to be a
lyric writer. The pair collaborated on some songs and six months
after their first meeting they found an appreciative publisher. Today
both are staff writers and enjoying the real things of life. He who
shuns the cup with thinks, will find no things in what he drinks.
PEPIGRAMS ON SUCCESS
The secret of success has been fairly well kept, considering how
many people are anxious to tell about it! — Puck.
Success does not depend so much on external help as on self-
reliance. — Abraham Lincoln.
Self-distrust is the cause of most of our failures. In the assurance
of strength they are the weakest, however strong, who have no faith
in themselves or their powers. — Borll.
Mr. Arthur Leeds has resigned his position as Editor of Scripts for Thomas A. Edison, Inc.,
it being his desire to return to freelance writing. Mr. Leeds has the utmost confidence in the
possibilities offered in the field of the photoplay. At the same time, he is interested in both
fictional work and legitimate play building, and as an active member of the Ed-Au Club, the
Playwrights, the Society of American Dramatists and Composers, and kindred organizations, we
are glad to announce that he will continue to write for our readers these interesting and informa-
tive paragraphs on what is taking place in moving picture, publishing and dramatic circles. —
Editor.
By Arthur Leeds
It is gratifying to see the Motion Picture News come out with a
protest against the ravings of sundry press agents. Just as it is true,
and generally admitted, that you can no longer throw a poor story on
the screen and make the picture-going public believe it is a good one,
it is true that the day is past for trying to thrust down the throats of
exhibitor and patron a wild press agent's yarns, whether they be of
some unusually lavish expenditure on the part of the director while
putting on the picture, or of stupendous and often impossible sums
paid to ex-theatrical " stars" upon coming into the pictures. It is
about time that some of these press agents realized that the space
granted them by the different trade papers could be used to far
better advantage than by telling exhibitors and patrons things which
they do not believe and in which they are not, in most cases, even
interested. Speaking as one who has had experience in the exhibiting
end of the game, I can see nothing interesting in the fact that the
celebrated legitimate stage star, Mr. Iva Smallpart, is to receive a
salary of five thousand dollars a week for three months' work with the
Croesus Film Company. One reads these high-flown announcements
in the trade papers, and a few weeks or months later, on the street or
in the club, one hears the work of that very high-salaried stage star
in the "specially written screen masterpiece" slowly picked to pieces
— and not by rivals or idle-tongued "knockers," either, but by men
and women who are capable critics and regular photoplay fans, and
who are simply telling the truth about "another" commonplace
picture which "features" yet "another" noted artist of the legitimate
stage who is not, in the drama of the screen, worth what he is being
paid — judged by the results on the screen.
With regard to these sky-rocket salaries, as the News remarks,
" True or not, let's keep quiet about them. . . As things stand at pre-
sent, an ordinary youth with a pleasant countenance, a full set of teeth,
two legs — in short, the physique which most parents give us, and an ex-
tra change of clothes — can suddenly acquire through tremendous
newspaper and screen advertising, and through disastrous competition
between producers, a salary greater than that of the President of the
United States."
70 THINKS AND THINGS
These remarks might seem out of place in a department of this kind
were it not for the fact, as those writers who are close to the heart of
the producing game have long recognized, that the sooner manufac-
turers pay less attention to the unwarrantably high-priced star and
the popular novel, the picture-right prices for which are out of all
proportion to the value of the story in photoplay form, the sooner
they will commence to pay more attention to the thing which is of real
importance : these stories written especially for the screen, by trained
photo-dramatists, that will hold the attention of the audiences; and
the matter of a real, worthy-of-the-effort salary for the staff writers
who, if the famous novel or stage play is a success on the screen, are
largely responsible by reason of their painstaking and capable work
in making the adaptation. As the News sums the matter up: "The
exhibitor (and patron) doesn't want to know, he doesn't care 'two
whoops ' about, the salaries. He wants pictures made from stories so
good and true, and pictures so ably directed, that the star and every-
body else in them will act to the limit of their ability — as well as and
better than they have ever acted on the speaking stage. "
A bill has been introduced into Congress by Senator Boies Pen-
rose, of Pennsylvania, contemplating an amendment of the copyright
laws so as to include scenarios. The picture News has a readable
editorial on the subject, but I would advise writers to get the Moving
Picture World of January 15 and read the facts in connection with the
bill as printed on page 431. This is a matter of vital importance to
every photoplaywright, and worthy of serious consideration. It will
be remembered that Mr. William Lord Wright, of the Dramatic
Mirror, was one of the very first to try to bring about scenario copy-
right, through his representative from Ohio. The matter has hung
fire for a long time, and I suppose that every script writer and writer
on the photoplay has "done his bit" to try to hasten the day when
photoplay scripts shall enjoy the same protection that is given to all
other literary forms. Doubtless most writers who know that this bill
is being introduced are praying that it will go through ; personally, I
am as strong for script copyright as ever; yet the fact that there are
undoubtedly two sides to every question was brought home to me
again just the other evening in connection with this very matter. I
had the pleasure of giving a little shop-talk on the photoplay before
several of the members of the Society of American Dramatists, and
presently the question of protection for the writer of scripts came up.
Mr. Augustus Thomas asked what I thought of Senator Penrose's
bill. I replied that it was a measure for which many of us had long
been striving. " But, " said Mr. Thomas, "don't you see that, if such a
bill is put through, there is at least the possibility of its having a
tendency to paralyze creative effort on the part of really legitimate
literary craftsmen, since the unknown and utterly impossible writer
will be given exactly the same protection, in return for his copyright
fee, as the writer who makes his living, and really belongs, in the field
of literature?" Continuing, Mr. Thomas pointed out that the most
illiterate and hopeless aspirant for photoplay writing honors might be
able, backed up by his copyright of an otherwise quite impossible
THINKS AND THINGS 71
script, to tie up any amount of theme variations, plot situations and
ideas, so that a writer or dramatist of acknowledged ability and
reputation might find himself in the position of having to throw aside
an extremely good single situation, or a plot development which he
had believed to be absolutely original with him, because some
unknown would-be author had happened — and we all know how
easily such a thing might happen — to " beat him to " in imagining that
one particular situation or plot development, even though the " would-
be's" script was, otherwise, quite worthless and impossible. This at
least is true; and there is also the possibility of any successful writer's
being compelled to face an infringement of copyright charge brought
by some ex-chamber maid or truck driver who has suddenly decided
to become an author. After all, everyone, from the boot-black to the
college professor, is given to imagination; the humblest man or
woman may conceive a situation which, imparted to a skilled drama-
tist or story writer, might prove the nucleus of one of the world's
greatest stories or plays, when properly worked out and elaborated
upon by the trained mind. The possibility we will all face, should this
bill go through, will not be that of being given the opportunity to buy
from the "creator" of the situation or plot idea that which he has
created through his imagination; we shall face, on the other hand,
the constant possibility, even probability, of working up an idea which
we believe to be original, only to be suddenly confronted with the
charge of plagiarism by someone who, having also thought of the same
thing, has embodied it in a "script" so utterly worthless on account
of its illiteracy and lack of logical sequence in the working out that it
is absolutely valueless to the writer as a salable piece of property,
thus leaving the author very much in the position of a literary dog in
the manger, unable to make use of the idea for his own profit and yet
snarling legally at the capable author who would also make use of it.
Without repeating in full the bromide about there being just so
many really original plots, and all others being variations of them, we
know that the magazines and moving pictures would have died out
long ago had it not been for the way in which "situations" have been
used over and over again, in slightly varied forms. As an example,
take the idea of entombing a man while alive, a "sure fire" situation,
to use a theatrical slang term, that has been utilized by Poe, Conan
Doyle, Balzac and Edith Wharton — and probably by a few others!
Suppose the particular one of this quartette of famous authors who
first made use of this situation had been able to copyright and, in
that way, "tie up" the situation in question; literature would have
been denied three other very excellent stories. But the fresh twist
that each of the three others gave to the original "living tomb" idea
was directly responsible for four excellent and entertaining narratives
being given to the world. In the field of the photoplay, here is another
example. Vitagraph, about four years ago, released a picture called
"The Light That Failed," which many people thought was to be
an adaptation of Kipling's well-known novel. It turned out, however,
to be the story of a man, the leader of the strikers in a certain big city
lighting plant, who cuts the wires, thus throwing the entire city into
72 THINKS AND THINGS
darkness, just as a surgeon, without the father being aware of the
fact, is in the act of operating on his injured child, as a result of which
the child dies, and the terrible consequence of taking the law into his
own hands is brought home to the father. Incidentally, at the time
Vitagraph made this picture, there was, if I remember rightly, some
slight stir about it, as it was claimed that it was a plagiarism of a
story called " Sabotage," previously published in Smart Set. There
was also another magazine story, the title of which I cannot recall,
which closely followed the general outline of both the Vitagraph pic-
ture and the Smart Set story. And now (Lubin, released January 10)
we have "The City of Failing Light, " by Anthony P. Kelly, in which
the same situation of the cut wires and the sick child is used, with the
capital-against-labor idea prominent throughout the story. Kelly
has given his scenario not one, but several, new twists, and to me it
seems fully entitled to be called an original story — provided you are
willing to acknowledge the truth of the saying that "every new story
is simply an old story with a new twist. " Now, for all I know, Kelly's
scenario was entirely born of his own brain, but whether that was so or
whether he got the idea for his main situation from one of these other
three stories, the point is that, under the copyright law which they are
attempting to put through, he would be liable to a heavy fine, when
any impartial observer would surely be willing to admit that, although
two or several wrongs do not make a right, if anything wrong was
done Kelly has surely committed no greater breach of literary ethics
than did three of the famous literary lights who "got away" with the
entombed alive situation. Be that as it may, so far as scenario copy-
right is concerned, as Epes Winthrop Sargent once said about screen
credit, "it works both ways — for or against you, according to the cir-
cumstances." The question at present is, will Senator Penrose's
copyright bill go through?
Maxims
Our greatest glory consists, not in never falling, but in rising
every time we fall. — Oliver Goldsmith.
Those who take the honors and emoluments of mechanical
crafts, of commerce and of professional life, are rather distinguished
for a sound judgment and a close application than for a brilliant
genius. — Henry Ward Beecher.
Literature is the Thought of thinking souls. — Thomas Carlyle.
Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learn-
ing is perilous.— CHINESE MAXIM'S
Style is the dress of thoughts. — Lord Chesterfield.
Clippings and Comments
CURRENT MAGAZINE ARTICLES OF INTEREST
TO WRITERS
By Maidee Bennett Renshaw
''Strategy and Tactics in the Drama," by Clayton Hamilton; Book-
man, Dec, 1915.
For writers, this is easily the most helpful article of the month;
it is practically a study in perspective. Mr. Hamilton demonstrates
the primary value of strategy, or broad plot outline, and shows
the secondary importance of tactics or motivation (i.e., the manner
in which happenings are accounted for). American writers, Mr.
Hamilton believes, excel in tactics — management of detail; foreign
authors in strategy — big, universal plot ideas.
"What the Day's Work Means to Me," by Louise Closser Hale;
Bookman, Dec, 1915.
Mrs. Hale says that the prime requisite to success in one's
vocation is "rhythm;" and that this means regular and uninter-
rupted hours of work.
"Stephen Phillips," by Padraic Colum; New Republic, Dec. 25, 1915.
Every able criticism of an author may be turned as a search-light
upon one's own work. Mr. Phillips possessed, says Mr. Colum,
"journeyman's knowledge" — that is, he knew how to build scenes
that delighted the crowd, and make verses that actors could speak;
but "none of the personages in his plays ever says anything that is
finally and absolutely their own."
"Rupert Brooke," by John Drinkwater; The Forum, Dec, 1915.
An illuminating criticism.
"The Realism of Arnold Bennett," by Stuart P. Sherman; The
Nation, Dec. 23, 1915.
A helpful analysis of Mr. Bennett's methods.
"Remy De Gourmont," by Ezra Pound; The Fortnightly Review,
Dec, 1915.
This is one of Mr. Pound's pungent paragraphs: "I even hope
that intelligence, in writers, is coming back, if not into fashion, at
least into favor with a public large enough to make certain kinds of
books once more printable."
"The Easy Chair," by William Dean Howells; Harper's Magazine,
Dec, 1915.
In his own delightful, leisurely fashion, Mr. Howells comments
on the passing of "the short Christmas story." He persuades us
that even the characters themselves, the "Motley Crew" of the old
tales, would not have back again the "strong objective incidents and
unquestionable motives and unmistakable denouements which
have always [in the past] brought down the house."
74 CLIPPINGS AND COMMENTS
"Poetry for the Unpoetical," by Henry Seidel Canby; Harper's,
Jan., 1916.
"The prose [of magazine] is too frequently sensational or senti-
mental, vulgar or smart. The verse, even though narrow in its appeal,
and sometimes slight, is at least excellent in art, admirable in execu-
tion, and vigorous and unsentimental in tone." Mr. Canby's article
is throughout an elucidation of what readers want — and do not get.
"Editor's Study," by Henry Mills Alden; Harpers, Jan., 1916.
Towards the end of Mr. Alden's talk, there is a paragraph relat-
ing to the influence of modern science upon fiction: "Inert matter
and the commonplaces of life yield our modern surprises. Our
novelists owe their realism for the most part to the trend of science
and, in the best of fiction, to the fact that they have, more or less
unwittingly, become psychologists."
"Art and the War," by John Galsworthy; Atlantic Monthly, Nov.,
1915.
A study of art in its relation to humanism. " 'Art for art's
sake ' was always a vain and silly cry. The task of artists is to kneel
before life till they rive the heart from it and with that heart twine
their own; out of such marriages come precious offspring, winged
messengers." Since the utility of art is to broaden men's hearts,
and confirm their faith in the unknowable, it follows that "when
the war is over the world will find that the thing which has changed
least is art."
"War and Creative Art," by J. D. Symon; English Review, Dec,
1915.
A further discussion of the subject treated by Mr. Galsworthy.
"Exceptions to the Rule of Easy Writing and Hard Reading;"
Dial, Dec. 9, 1915. In "Casual Comment."
"Unhappy Endings;" Atlantic Monthly, Nov., 1915. In "The
Contributors' Club."
A humorous little admonition that writers who would sell had
better look to their endings. It is the happy, not the artistic, de-
nouement that is "in demand."
"On Authors;" Atlantic Monthly, Nov., 1915. In "The Con-
tributors' Club."
To be read when we are tempted to take ourselves too seriously!
"In Movie Parlance," by Paula Jacobi; Harper's Weekly, Dec. 4,
1915.
Miss Jacobi is clever and caustic. "Cut up your ideas," she
says; "remember that you are writing for the 'average man'."
" Moving Pictures Today," by Harold E. Stearns; Harper's Weekly,
Dec. 11, 1915.
"What is the Cleverest Crime on Record?" A Symposium of Well-
Known Criminologists. Strand, Dec, 1915.
"Big Moments of Big Trials," by Irvin S. Cobb; McClure's, Nov.,
1915.
CLIPPINGS AND COMMENTS 75
It is worth while to run over the foregoing two articles because
they abound in plot germs.
"The Illuminated Platform/' by George Jean Nathan; "A Literary
Behemoth," by H. L. Mencken; Smart Set, Dec, 1915.
It may seem a far cry to drag into this review these two articles;
yet, surely, they belong! Any writer who would avoid the trite, the
commonplace, the bromidic, who would beware of sentimentality
and gush and theatricalism, can do no better than to read regularly
Mr. Nathan and Mr. Mencken. They are warranted to shake any-
one out of time-honored ruts!
If the mellow Mr. Howells sits in his "Easy Chair" and stings
the literary bungler with a graceful rapier, Mr. Nathan and Mr.
Mencken strip for the arena, and strike the bad artist knock-out
blows with their bare fists.
OTHER ARTICLES OF INTEREST TO WRITERS
Collated by Anne Scannell O'Neill
VERSE
"The Poetry of the Great War," Richard Le Gallienne, Munsey,
Jan., 1916.
"A Study of Old English Song and Popular Melody," Frank Kidson,
Musical Quarterly, Oct., 1915.
"Evolution in Hymnology," Charles H. Richards, Forum, Dec,
1915.
"Some Aspects of Rupert Brooke," Benjamin Horton, Eliot Literary
Magazine (Washington University), Jan. 1, 1916.
"Greek Poetry in English Verse," J. E. Page, Quarterly Review, Oct.,
1915.
"The War and the Poets," Quarterly Review, Oct., 1915.
"The Poetry of Gabriele D'Annunzio," Nineteenth Century, Oct.,
1915.
"The New Movement in Poetry," The Nation, Oct., 1915.
"French War Verse," Literary Digest, Nov., 1915.
"Emile Cammaert; a Belgian War Poet," Review of Reviews, Oct.,
1915.
"Rupert Brooke," John Drinkwater, Contemporary Review, Dec 15,
1915.
"Will Ragtime Save the Soul of the Native American Composer?"
Current Opinion, Dec, 1915.
"Sidney Lanier — a Study," Henry H. Harman, South Atlantic
Monthly, Oct., 1915.
"Straws — and Cannon Balls: Impressions of Some Recent Poetry,"
Katharine Bregy, Catholic World, Jan., 1916.
"Recent Poetry," R. M. Alden, Dial, Jan. 6, 1916.
"Voices of the Living Poets," Current Opinion, Jan., 1916.
76 CLIPPINGS AND COMMENTS
DRAMA AND MOTION PICTURES
"On Poetic Drama," W. G. Hole, Poetry Review, Nov.-Dec, 1915.
" Filmland as It Is and Was," Charles Van Loan, Collier's, Dec. 18,
1915.
"The Men Who Make the Movies Move," Charles Van Loan,
Collier's, Jan. 1, 1916.
"Vaudeville and Its Needs," Homer B. Mason, Dramatic Mirror,
Dec. 25, 1915.
"Why Wheels Turn Backward in Movies," Illustrated World, Jan.,
1916.
"What Is To Become of the Theater?" Robert Anderson, Illustrated
World., Jan., 1916.
"Moving Pictures Today," Harold E. Stearns, Harper's Weekly,
Dec. 11, 1915.
"Why Don't They Sell?" William Parker, The Script, Sept.-Oct.,
1915.
"Spain's Greatest Dramatist," Dr. Julius Bronta, The Drama, Nov.,
1915.
"Ibsen's Treatment of Guilt," Rev. Principal Forsyth, D.D., Hibbert
Journal, Oct., 1915.
"Psychology of the Movies," Literary Digest, Dec. 4, 1915.
"Drama and Music," Lawrence Gilman, North American Review,
Jan., 1916.
"The Life of Charles Frohman," Daniel Frohman and Isaac Mar-
cosson, Cosmopolitan, Feb., 1916.
"Selling Machinery by Motion Pictures," John M. Torr, Engineering
Magazine, Jan., 1916.
GENERAL ARTICLES
"Some Aspects of Literary Production," Arthur W. Spencer, Mid-
West Quarterly, Oct., 1915.
"Oscar Wilde as a Critic," Alice I. Perry Wood, North American
Review, Dec, 1915.
"John Galsworthy," Louise Collier Wilcox, North American Review,
Dec, 1915.
"What is there in the Occult?" Bailey Millard, Illustrated World,
Jan. 16, 1916.
"A Parcel-Post Library System," Fred D. Holmes, Review of Reviews,
Dec, 1915.
"The Master of Prose," Aloysius J. Hogan, Catholic World, Nov.,
1915.
"The Advance of the English Novel, Part 3," William Lyon Phelps,
Bookman, Dec, 1915.
"The Magazine in America," Part 10. Algernon Tassin, Bookman,
Dec, 1915.
"Some Bookman Contributors of 1915," Bookman, Dec, 1915.
CLIPPINGS AND COMMENTS 77
" French Idealism and the War," W. M. Fuilerton, Quarterly Review,
Oct., 1915.
"Some Recent German War Literature," M. Epstein, Hibbert
Journal, Oct., 1915.
" Aliens, Wedgewoods, and Darwins," Humphrey Ward, Quarterly
Review, Oct. 15, 1915.
"The Humour of Thackeray," Bishop Frodsham, Cornhill, Dec,
1915.
"French Criticism of Poe," George D. Morris, South Atlantic Quar-
terly, Oct., 1915.
"Everyday Lessons from New Books," John F. Faris, Book News
Monthly, Dec, 1915.
"Selma Lagerlof," Harvey E. Maule, Book News Monthly, Dec, 1915.
"Mary J. Watts — an Impression and a Comment," Montrose Moses,
Book News Monthly, Dec, 1915.
"Religion and Literature in War Time," W. H. Kent, Catholic World,
Jan., 1916.
"Modern Hungarian Literature," Joseph Remenys, International
Magazine, Dec, 1915.
"Have Magazines and Newspapers Blunted our Appreciation of
Literary Values?" Current Opinion, Dec, 1915.
"The Librarian as a Literary Critic," Bernard C. Steiner, Dial,
Nov. 25, 1915.
"The Vocation of a Reporter," Peter Clark MacFarlane, Fourth
Estate, Dec. 4, 1915.
"The Power of the Playlet," Tor De Arozarena, Dramatic Mirror,
Dec. 11, 1915.
"The Past Year's Poetry," Literary Digest, Dec. 4, 1915.
"Stevenson on the Stage," Clayton Hamilton, Bookman, Jan., 1916.
"Portraits of American Authors" — II. Walt Whitman., Gamaliel
Bradford, Bookman, Jan., 1916.
"Speeding-Up the Author," Florence Finch Kelly, Bookman, Jan.,
1916.
"In Fiction's Playground," Grace I. Colbron, Bookman, Jan., 1916.
"Books and Authors," Living Age, Jan. 15, 1916.
"The Younger Generation of American Genius," Professor Scott
Nearing, Scientific Monthly, Jan., 1916.
"Great Women's Daughters," Florence Leftwich Ravenel, North
American Review, Jan., 1916.
"The Biggest Newspaper 'Spoof on Record" — Illustrated —
"Carlton," Strand, Jan., 1916.
"Unrecorded Cases." "Can you solve them?" Henry Dudeney,
Strand, Jan., 1916.
"Literature on the Job," James H. Collins, Saturday Evening Post,
Jan. 15, 1916.
"Fact, Truth, Fiction and the Story," H. W. Boynton, Dial, Jan. 6,
1916.
"Literary Affairs in London," Dial, Jan. 6, 1916.
"Eyestrain and Literature," George Gould, Dial, Jan. 6, 1916.
The cover drawing of the Normal Instructor and Primary Plans
for February shows a lad in khaki uniform — presumably that of a
boy scout — about to raise the American flag in front of a schoolhouse.
The flag lies upon the ground. This is contrary to all military
practice, and should be contrary to any other practice, as the national
emblem is never allowed to touch the ground, either in raising or
lowering it. — V. W.
One of the greatest charges against magazine artists is that their
illustrations fail to live up to the descriptions and facts printed in
the reading matter. Giving physical attributes and facial expres-
sions to characters at entire variance to the author's delineation of
them, is one of the most notable examples under this head. Louis
Rogers, illustrating "A Christmas on Russian Hill," in the De-
cember Sunset, certainly produces a drawing at variance with the
description of the author (Louis J. Stellman). The old man's face
is described as " sweet," " placid" and " saintly," but on referring
to his pictorial representation any fair-minded critic certainly would
not find a man in keeping with this word depictation.
By long odds his face is far from being sweet — actually it ap-
proaches the fierce, it is so gaunt, grizzled and piercing. The ad-
jective "placid" surely is a misnomer judging by the picture. True,
there is calmness — but there is as much difference between this old
man and a "placid" one as between a monkey-wrench and a kangaroo!
"Saintly" certainly cannot apply to a face that is both lacking in
sweetness and placidity. To the contrary, the face registers trickery,
cruelty and selfishness. — An H. C. S. Folk.
In the November, 1915, issue of Smiths Magazine is a story,
"The Revenge," that illustrates many defects to be avoided by the
story writer. Tudor is a student, who, as a boyish prank, cuts the
words, "Hastings is a louse" in the window pane. After the Pro-
fessor's correction he works his revenge.
The story abounds in many colloquialisms and obsolete words.
One of the paragraphs beginning, "I am Prat, and Tudor and me
were in the lower third . But there was a great difference in
Tudor and me, because I was at the top of the lower third and he
was at the bottom." Aside from the ludicrous self -introduction,
one hesitates to venture a guess at the meaning. In the last half of
a medium length sentence the author uses the word "Brown" or
"Brown's" five times. Surely he "done it up brown" here. Several
paragraphs in succession are introduced by, " I said; " or, " He said; "
or, "Well." Perhaps this is the most wearisome tautology in the
CRITICS IN COUNCIL 79
whole story. The revenge is Tudor's stealing the Professor's glasses,
which injures him in no way and causes but slight inconvenience.
If the author intends satire or burlesque, his attempt is unwieldy.
— L. L. Nichols.
In "The Paper Windmill," by Amy Powell, in the Century
Magazine for December, 1915, appears the following sentence:
"Down stream slowly traveled a long stream of galiots piled with
crimson cheeses. " This is hardly possible, as the cheese of Holland,
as carried back and forth to market, is not crimson, but bright yellow.
Only after the balls of cheese are taken to the wholesale packing
houses are they shellacked with a crimson preservative preparation.
Being thoroughly dry, they are then wrapped and packed for foreign
shipment. My experience with the Holland cheese markets covers a
period of six years. I have never yet seen a red or crimson cheese in
Holland, but tons and tons of yellow. My experience has been con-
firmed by conversing with many cheese merchants in Holland.
In Dr. Esenwein's translation of Daudet's "La Derniere Classe"
page 141, paragraph 14, of "Studying the Short-Story," appears the
expression, "silk embroidered breeches." I have traveled in Alsace
yet I have never once seen embroidered breeches, but black silk
embroidered caps galore. So I looked the matter up in nine editions of
"La Derniree Classe" and I found only "son jabot plissS fin et la
calotte de soie noire brodee," etc. Evidently the translator mistook
calotte for culotte — cap for breeches. — Ella Augusta Johnson.
My critic is entirely right and I am glad to acknowledge the error. — J. B. E.
In the story " By a Flash in the Night, " by Harold Brown Swope,
January Munsey's, the following expression occurs on page 544;
"The long twilight of the tropics " It is a matter of common
knowledge, even among those who have never lived there, as I have,
that there is no such thing as twilight in the tropics — the setting sun
seems to carry a blanket of darkness in its wake.
In the same issue occurs the following, in "Nothing but the
Truth," by Octavus Roy Cohen and J. U. Giesy, page 642: "One
block from the factory Kamura swung from the rear end of the car.
He remained motionless until the car again stopped at the plant."
What the writers evidently meant was that Kamura remained motion-
less until the car again stopped — this time at the plant. — Austin
Arnold.
In Hall Caine's "The Eternal City," a Famous Players feature
film, the same automobile and the same license number are used in
two scenes which are years apart in story-time. — C. M. E.
In "Blackbirds," a Lasky feature, "English Jack" wears a straw
hat in the scene in which he meets "Leonie" at the railway station.
Leonie is in a fur coat. — N. E. W.
All the earth is full of tales to him who listens and does not
drive away the poor from his door. — Rudyard Kipling
The Everywomarfs World item in " Where to Sell" in December
interested me very much because I sent a story to that magazine in
September and received no word from it although I enclosed a stamped
return envelope. War is being blamed for so many inconveniences
that I gave them a rather long time to report, but at length I sent out
a request for a verdict on the story. I am still waiting for a reply to
the second letter. — Phoebe Lowrie.
This note was dated January 7. — Ed.
In the November issue of The Writer's Monthly, the Manag-
ing Editor of Leslie's in his helpful article, " First Faults in Manu-
scripts/' tells us that "some manuscripts make the mistake of
invading the editor's office in the company of their writers." He
makes it clear that he strongly favors such manuscripts as bear the
credentials of the United States postage stamp.
I read and grew curious.
There is a story of an old German woman who up to her eightieth
birthday had never been out of her own township. Her unique
provincialism came to the ears of the Emperor, and he, desiring to
have her remain a sort of curiosity, as it were, forbade her to go beyond
the boundaries that had hitherto proved so satisfying. Immediately
that contrary frau became enamored of travel and set out, bag and
baggage, upon a journey! Even so, up to the moment I read Mr.
Splitstone's article, it had never occurred to me to "invade" the
editorial sanctum; but no sooner had the mystic "verboten" shad-
owed the doorway, than straightway I felt a desire to beard an
editor in his den.
An opportunity soon arose. I saw in a Monday evening paper
that there had been a most destructive fire on Catalina Island. As I
had visited Catalina not a month before and moreover had some good
views of it, I was sure my hour for a timely "story" had struck. I
resolved to "beard the lion."
Tuesday morning I made the typewriter hum, and Tuesday
afternoon, taking a firm grip on my article and my courage, I started
for editorial lairs.
The first editor was very pleasant — and very firm. He told me:
First, that everyone knew everything about Catalina because it had
been so much written up. Second, that no one knew or cared anything
about Catalina because it was so far away that few could ever hope
to go there. Third, that if by any chance he wanted an article about
Catalina, he could gather enough material from the encyclopaedias.
Now his first two statements, seemingly so contradictory, were
perfectly correlated by the simple fact that the idea of an article on
Catalina did not appeal to him.
EXPERIENCE MEETING 81
I tried to tell him that I had been able to work a certain amount
of local interest into my story, and that it really did not belong to the
encyclopaedia class — but he shook his head, and I found myself
again in the elevator.
He had not even glanced at my manuscript.
My second experience was even more discouraging. A long and
tedious wait made me regret the things I might have been accom-
plishing at home. The sight of others, also waiting, and as eager as I
to sell their wares, made the whole game, somehow, seem disheart-
ening.
When I did get in to the editor he was tired out. He did not
roar at me, exactly, but he would have liked to. He did not even
pretend to listen to me ; said he had too much of everything on hand.
The interview did not last two minutes.
By that time I had wasted a whole afternoon, to say nothing of
carfare and energy. "Bearding" appeared unprofitable. I came
home.
But that article was good; too good for the waste-basket! If
only an editor could be persuaded to look at it! I bethought me of
the "credentials of the postage stamp." "Catalina" was put into an
envelope and sent off to a third editor.
And he accepted it.
To draw conclusions from a single experiment may seem unfair,
yet how often a solitary straw will show the direction of the wind!
Of course some writers argue that they go to editors to find out
what articles would be likely to prove acceptable, to glean suggestions
of editorial policy, and to gather ideas. Yet queries may be forwarded
by mail, policy may be studied from publications, and, as to ideas,
they are exactly what is most scarce in this business of writing, and it
is hardly fair to expect the editor both to supply them and to pay for
them.
Why then should a writer waste both time and energy in an effort
to beard the lion? Why not, safely at long distance, bombard him
with manuscripts, and placate him with postage stamps? — Maidee
Bennett Renshaw.
I have found it an excellent plan to use a rubber stamp bearing
my name and address in very small letters with which to stamp every
page of my manuscripts. In several instances I have been saved the
loss of valuable pages. — Arthur H. Riggs.
He who would have full power must first strive to get power over
his own mind. — Alfred the Great.
The Word
Conducted by the Editok
In this little Department will be found from month to month such notes, observations, and
criticisms on the values and uses of words as may be contributed, or provided by the Staff of The
Whiter's Monthly. No offerings can be considered that are not brief, pungent, and accurate.
Not alone the authoritative word-books but also good usage will be taken as the standard.
It is interesting to notice now and then that certain words are
used oftener incorrectly than accurately. Lurid is one such. Ask a
roomful of people and the great majority will tell you that the word
means red — flaring or even flaming red. The Standard Dictionary
gives the following definition:
"1. Giving a ghastly or dull red light, as of flames mingled with
smoke, or reflecting or made visible by such light ; by extension,
giving uncertain or unearthly light of any kind; as, lurid
flashes of lightning; a lurid atmosphere. 2. Botanical. Of
a dingy, dirty brown color; grayish orange. 3. Figuratively,
ghastly and sensational; as, a lurid tale."
Webster's International gives us this :
"1. Pale yellow; ghastly pale; wan; gloomy; dismal. 'There is a
leaden glare peculiar to clouds, which makes the snow and
ice more lurid.' J. A. Symonds. 2. Appearing like glowing
fire seen through or combined with cloud or smoke; as,
lurid lightning. ■ Fierce o'er their beauty blazed the lurid
flame.' Thomson. 'Wrapped in drifts of lurid smoke.'
Tennyson. 3. Harshly or ominously vivid; ghastly; sensa-
tional; grimly terrible; often, marked by violent passion
or crime; as, a lurid fife; a lurid story. 4- Brown tinged
with red."
March's Thesaurus gives:
"Giving ghastly or dull red light; gloomy; dismal.
None of the other word books, whether dictionary or book of
synonyms, gives any essential variation of the foregoing, yet how
many would have read a connotation of bright red into the word?
It may be merely the prejudice of a purist, but I have long dis-
liked the use of the word claim as a perfect synonym for maintain. We
claim as a right that which is ours, as, He claims the throne; but it is
loose and colloquial, some lexicographers to the contrary notwith-
standing, to say: I" claim that Darwin is wrong.
It is a good exercise to make lists of words in an increasing or a
decreasing strength of meaning, including all shades possible. Begin
with whisper, for example, and work up to the loudest of vocal
sounds, carefully observing the gradations. Perhaps you may want
to fork your list, ending one at the most piercing sound and the other
THE WORD PAGE 83
at the heavier vocal noise, but be careful where you divide the stem of
theY.
The pupils in our schools would love words more and find greater
satisfaction in word studies if they were not forced to worry over
them at too early an age. When the mind is mature enough to see the
value in words — to realize their importance in contracts, treaties,
advertisements, letters, poems, and the like — is the time to dwell
upon their niceties and dig into origins. There is a period in our men-
tal development when we must learn that some things are so because
they are so ; that is the period of memorizing. Later dawns the era
when all — or most — things may be brought to the tests of reason. We
who are devoted to the delights and profits of the printed page are in
that time of life. Happy for us if our memories have been stored with
enough language roots to make plucking words apart a second nature,
for then we see many shades gleaming or hiding in words which to
others suggest only the most primary ideas.
But even those to whom "the languages" are sealed books may
form the habit of dividing larger words into smaller entities. An
hour's study in some old-fashioned grammar will refresh our knowl-
edge of beginnings and endings in word construction and so throw
new light on words long carelessly used. Imagination becomes a
more real word when we think of it as image making. Kindness is
more significant as we remember that they are full of kind-ness who
are tender toward human kind. There is a whole chain of related
meanings in this word alone. Think of all the shades of value in our
word spirit. Connect it with its original, breath; then add all the
prefixes and suffixes — all the beginning, ending and variation sylla-
bles, and you have a little mental journey of delight and profit.
The uses of that and which as relative pronouns confuse many.
Sometimes they are quite interchangeable, but oftener the use of one
or the other is clearly indicated by the nature of the sentence. One
simple method is this : Use that, not preceded by a comma, to restrict
a descriptive word or expression closely; as, The field that lies by the
river is his. We use that to restrict the meaning sharply to one special
field. Which is a looser relative pronoun and is better used to intro-
duce an explanatory or descriptive clause than in a restrictive sense.
For this reason it is often preceded by a comma; as, The field, which
is the finest in the county, lay by the river. Omit the intermediate
expression introduced by which, and the sentence is still grammati-
cally complete.
Or take as illustrations sentences which are alike except for these
two words: I sold my horse that is lame. Here I restrict the meaning
definitely to the lame horse, and by so doing suggest that I have at
least one other horse; but when I say: I sold my horse, which is lame,
I have made no such suggestion but have merely added a descriptive
clause — a " relative" and "dependent" clause, as grammarians call it.
Some writers of good English do not observe this distinction, but
seem to use that and which by a sense of sound, being content to keep
their sentences from bristling with iithats.,i It is well, however, to
be aware of this discrimination.
BIRMINGHAM WRITERS' CLUB
Birmingham, Ala.
. OFFICERS
Meetings at 3 P. M. the first and third Tuesdays of each month, at
The Newspaper Club
Mrs. J. A. Rountree President
Mrs. John B. Reid 1st Vice-President
Mrs. John D. Head 2nd Vice-President
Miss Myrtle Miles Recording Secretary
Mrs. John D. Elliott Corresponding Secretary
2111 14th Ave., South
Mrs. Ned McDavid Treasurer
Mrs. Sumter Bethea Critic
Mrs. Flournoy Rivers Philologist
VICTORIA WRITERS' CLUB
Rochester, N. Y.
Meetings on Friday evening at the Victoria Theater.
OFFICERS
Mrs. Adele Budd Ltjig President
Miss Marguerite Gavin Vice President
Mr. William O 'Brien Treasurer
Mr. Earle Snyder Secretary
THE SCRIBES
Seattle, Wash.
Flora Huntley Maschmedt President
Anne Ridley Sutton Secretary
Alice I. Jenkins Manuscript Secretary
Sarah Jane Ritter Librarian
THE PLAYWRIGHTS' CLUB
New York City
Meetings on every third Friday, {from September to June, inclusive),
at 8 P. M. in the Council Room of the Actors' Equity Association.
OFFICERS
Robert Stodart President
Leo Seidman . Secretary
2940 Broadway
George M. Nelson Recording Secretary
J. Van Velsor Smith Treasurer
Matthew White, Jr Publicity Man
Gustav Blum General Committee Member
The membership list is open to all who are engaged in writing
plays intended for professional production. No one, however, can
become a member until he or she has attended at least two meetings.
TO
5ELL
The Writer's Monthly will buy no more manuscript of the larger sort before
May, 1916, as the supply of accepted material is large. There is, however, present
and constant need for departmental material, for short, pertinent paragraphs.
Payment is made only in subscriptions or extension of present subscriptions.
Popular Mechanics Magazine, Chicago, is ready to consider good views and
brief manuscripts on any subjects related to science, mechanics, invention and
discovery. They also publish some lengthy articles, and are open to suggestions
as to interesting subjects at any time. They make two important requirements:
Subject matter must always be NEW and INTERESTING to the majority of
their readers.
Boy Life, Terrace Park, Ohio, is at present crowded, having sufficient material
on hand to run for months.
The Household Guest, 141 W. Ohio St., Chicago, is not in the market for MS.
save a few short articles and poems for use in their "Golden Hour" columns. No
stipulated sums are paid for manuscript. In departments where prizes are offered,
the "best" are awarded prizes. Articles which do not win prizes become the
property of the Household Guest to use or destroy as their judgment dictates.
The American Boy, Detroit, Mich., is always in the market for serials for boys.
Stories may be from 30,000 to 60,000 words in length. At present they have an
unusually large stock of serials and a story must have unusual merit to find a
place. Fiction of from 2,000 to 3,000 words is needed, though stories of 5,000
words are accepted if they are really worth the space. Only humorous verse is
used. They have a heavy stock of special articles, but will always make room for a
particularly timely and interesting article. Photographic illustrations are pre-
ferred. Love stories, stories of girls, or stories of or for little boys are not wanted.
Their readers average fifteen years of age. Photographs, accompanied by a brief
statement, of the odd, the unusual, and the distinctly interesting can be used in
their department "Novel Inventions and Natural Wonders." Accepted manu-
scripts are usually reported on within two weeks. Their base rate is $7.00 per
thousand words for manuscripts, but they pay a considerably higher rate for
short-stories and material of particular merit. Payment is made on acceptance.
At present the greatest need of the Boys1 Companion, Chicago, is for short-
stories of 2,000 words. They want bright, snappy, interesting stories that are
clean and wholesome, and that picture some interesting feature of boy life. They
also like special articles on gardening, poultry raising, money making, manual
training, etc. However, being issued by a philanthropic society they are notable
to pay well, and consequently have to depend upon contributed manuscripts.
Some verse, jokes and anecdotes are used, but these are paid for only in subscrip-
tions. It is their custom to accept or return manuscripts promptly.
The Farmer's Wife, St. Paul, Minn., is always glad to examine fiction which
has a warm, bright, human appeal. As the name of the periodical indicates, this
appeal must be made to farm women, though that does not mean that the stories
must be given a rural setting exclusively. Manuscripts are reported on within a
week or ten days and payment is made on acceptance.
The Vitagraph Company of America, East 15th St. and Locust Ave.,
Brooklyn, N. Y., is in the market for strong drama or melodrama of the finest
quality and of unusual plot, of three, four, or five reels; also for one-reel comedies
for Sidney Drew. They have a very good market for the best in the slap-stick line.
Mr. J. C. Miller, editor of the George Kleine motion pictures, 805 East 175th
St., New York City, writes: "We are, at the present time, in the market for five-
reel society dramas, modern and American in atmosphere and locale, and nothing
else."
86 WHERE TO SELL
The Selig Polyscope Company, 58 East Washington St., Chicago, is not
now in the general market for photoplay stories.
Gaumont Co., Congress Ave., Flushing, N. Y., wants only five-reel scripts
which can be produced at its Jacksonville, Florida, studios. They prefer to con-
sider finished scenarios, but will consider synopses from inexperienced writers. A
big dramatic theme is essential.
The Keystone Film Co., 1712 Allesandro St., Los Angeles, is in the market
for brief synopses of strong situations upon which comedy may be built. They are
looking for big dramatic and melodramatic combinations, and not for light
comedy stories. They read and consider very carefully everything that is submit-
ted.
The Annex Motion Picture Co., National City, Cal., has retired and will
not operate again.
Home and Country, Cincinnati, Ohio, is in need of humorous, sentimental
fiction of 2,500 to 5,000 words in length, and special articles, well illustrated, on
travel, uplift, household, etc. They also use a small supply of verse. Manu-
scripts are reported upon within two weeks.
The following statement has been received from Marion Stevenson, Editor-
in-Chief, Bible School Literature, Christian Board of Publication, St. Louis, Mo. :
" I take this method of saying to the host of writers who have been kind enough to
submit manuscripts to us that we find ourselves supplied with material for 1916
for all our papers, Little Ones, Young Evangelist, Round Table, Social Circle and
The Front Rank. We wish to save our friends from disappointment and delay in
submitting matter to us at present. Manuscripts for 1917 will be quite welcome
about the first of August, 1916. However, we are in the market for Special Day
Stories of not over 2,000 words, for such days as Easter, Mothers' Day, May Day,
Memorial Day, Flag Day, Commencement Day, etc. Special Day Stories should
be in our hands three months ahead of date of publication. We will endeavor to
read and report promptly. We are always ready to read a good serial of ten to
fifteen chapters, about 2,000 words to a chapter. Serials are paid for on publica-
tion. Short stories are paid for soon after acceptance. Please enclose stamps and
not stamped envelopes for return of manuscripts."
Mrs. Clara E. Bickford-Miller has taken the managing editorship of the
Housewives1 League Magazine, with editorial offices at 450 Fourth Ave., New
York. Mrs. Miller intends to reorganize entirely the editorial policy and make
this periodical one of the leaders in the women's field. It will occupy a distinctive
position, devoting itself wholly to special articles on how to reduce the cost of
living; how to buy economically; how to manage the various departments of
the home; and similar matters that are vital to the problem of housekeeping.
These articles may be illustrated with photographs. The price paid will depend
entirely upon the value of the article to the housewife. Mrs. Miller is the wife of
Dr. Francis Trevelyan Miller, the author and historian, and has entered the
magazine field for the purpose of developing a sphere hitherto unoccupied. Mrs.
Francis Bowe Sayre, the daughter of President Wilson, is Honorary Vice-President
of the Housewives' League, of which this magazine is the official organ.
The Canadian Courier, The Courier Press, Ltd., Toronto, states that they
confine themselves to the work of Canadian and British writers and therefore
material from American writers is not desired.
The Christian Herald, New York City, is always ready to consider good
serials of 45,000 to 80,000 words in length, and short-stories of 2,000 to 3,000
words. Being a religious weekly family paper, it draws the line at certain classes
of fiction, but within its own domain it can use stories that take a wide range. It
is constantly overcrowded with special articles, but it is glad to consider any
really good articles on special topics and will welcome any suggestions to furnish
articles from writers who know their field thoroughly and are expert. Manu-
scripts are reported on within a week to a month, unless there is a good cause
for longer delay. Payment is usually made on publication, though exceptions are
sometimes made to this rule.
WHERE TO SELL 87
Drama, 736 Marquette Bldg., Chicago, is always glad to have articles, from
1,000 to 3,000 words, on new phases of drama production, the play, stagecraft,
and the like. The style should be suited to a dignified quarterly. Manuscripts
are reported on within two weeks, and payment at the rate of $10.00 per thou-
sand words is made on publication.
Everybody's Magazine, New York City, is in need of both short and long
serials, of from 40,000 to 50,000 words, and from 80,000 to 100,000 words. They
must be fast-moving action stories, containing a love interest. They also want
short, romantic love stories, of 4,000 to 7,000 words in length. Humor and anec-
dotes can be used in their " Chestnut Tree " department. Manuscripts are reported
on within ten days and payment is made on acceptance.
Dry Goods, New York City, will consider short-stories of 2,000 words if they
have a strong bearing on efficiency work in a dry goods store. Everything must
have a bearing on the sale of dry goods, buying, selling, advertising, wrapping,
delivery, window trimming, etc. Special articles on dress fabrics, laces, knit
goods, and ready-to-wear garments can also be used. Reports on manuscripts are
made promptly and payment is made on publication.
Woman's Magazine, New York City, is in the market for short-stories of
2,000 to 3,000 words, which are full of action and probability. They can be about
man or beast, but must be bright and clean. Personality sketches with photos,
especially of women and children, are acceptable. They need short articles on
things for children to do, also practical housekeeping and homemaking articles.
Rejected manuscripts are reported on within ten days, accepted manuscripts
within one or two weeks. Payment is made on acceptance.
Popular Magazine, New York City, uses serials of 60,000 to 100,000 words,
and short fiction of 3,000 to 20,000 words in length. It is distinctly a man's
magazine and it uses adventure, detective, humorous and business stories. All
the stories must be excellent in the qualities of technique, realism and character-
drawing, and must contain action. Popular Magazine also purchases reliable
editorials for their "Caught in the Net" department. Manuscripts are reported
on within ten days, and payment is made on acceptance.
Everyday Life, Chicago, uses serials of 10,000 words and short fiction of 3,000
words in length. These must be love stories, containing a detective interest.
Manuscripts are reported on within three weeks, and payment is made on
acceptance.
For the best 3,500 word essay on "Alcohol and Economic Efficiency"
written by any student in a Baptist college or seminary a prize of $100 in gold is
offered. Contributions should be sent to Rev. Quay Rosselle, D.D., 1701 Chest-
nut St., Philadelphia, before April 1, 1916.
The Committee of One Hundred offers a series of prizes, aggregating $1,000,
for poems on Newark, N. J. and its 250th Anniversary, and plans to publish the
best of the poems submitted in a volume to be entitled, "Newark's Anniversary
Poems." In this competition all of the poets of our country are invited to par-
ticipate. Manuscripts must reach the office of the Committee on or before
April 10, 1916. The Free Public Library will gladly furnish to any inquirers
further particulars of the contest, as well as information about Newark's past,
present and future.
Sterling Motion Picture Co., Hollywood, Cal., wants one or two-reel
comedy subjects, and will pay top-notch prices for something along new lines.
The Universal Film Company, Universal City, Cal., is in* the market for
one-, two- and three-reel dramatic subjects, and one-reel comedies. All their
features are written by members of the staff.
i
The Writer's
Monthly
Continuing
The Photoplay Author
A Journal for all Who Write
Edited by
J. Berg Esenwbin
Entered at the Springfield, Massachusetts,
Post Office as Second Class Mail Matter.
Copyright, 1015, bv The Home Correspond-
ence School, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Price 15 cents a copy; $1.00 a Year; Canada
$1.25; Foreign $1.50.
Published monthly by The Home Corre-
spondence School, Myrick Building, Spring-
field, Mass.
Vol. VII February, 1916 No. 2
We are happy to announce
that Mr. Van Buren Powell, who
teaches Photoplay Writing in
The Home Correspondence
School, has recovered from a
short but serious illness and has
now joined the Vitagraph staff.
Mr. Powell was for years Scenario
Editor of the Colonial Film
Company but lately has been
doing free-lance work and adding
to his already large list of suc-
cessful photoplays. More power
to his arm!
A word should be said in de-
fense of prominent writers who
are criticised for not replying
definitely — if at all — to letters
sent to them by literary aspirants
in search of help. Almost with-
out exception, writers who have
won their way by years of dis-
couraging work are really sym-
pathetic, but do young writers
realize how much it cuts in on
the time of a busy man to read
letters, let alone answering them?
Many times the correspondent
writes at length — sometimes at
exasperating length — and tucks
in an inquiry about three-fourths
of the way through. Or he asks
the author's opinion about a
story which he may not have
read. Or he wants what amounts
to a legal opinion on a question
of contractual rights or of copy-
right.
Time is not only a commercial
asset to the author but a spiritual
— a nerve, a thought, an inspira-
tional— asset as well, and we
should be slow to impose need-
less tasks upon those who must
conserve their moments if they
would write well or even write
at all.
If you write to an author
observe these seven rules:
1. Be brief. If you can't be
brief, don't write.
2. Don't write of anything
that merely shows an egotistic
wish to explain your own feelings,
family history, and personal
troubles.
3. Put any question you may
ask in such form that it may be
easily separated from your letter
and answered by a few words
written on the same sheet.
4. Don't fail to prepay the
postage fully. A two-cent stamp
will carry a sealed packet from
San Francisco to Boston, but
the recipient will have to pay
the postage due at the Boston
end.
5. Don't fail to enclose a
stamped, addressed envelope if a
reply is requested.
6. Don't ask for free criticism
of your work unless you ask your
dentist or your tailor for free
service. Authors live by their
pens, or want to.
7. Don't write at all unless on
second thought you think it right
and wise.
We might add one more don't,
on our own account: Don't be
thin-skinned; The Writer's
EDITORIAL
Monthly cannot help those who
take offence when the truth is
spoken kindly.
We have never known a
mother to announce that she had
a homely baby. No more should
a young writer tell an editor that
the work sent is probably worth-
less but is sent in the hope that
some slight merit — and so forth.
Though the editor never judges
a manuscript by its author's
opinion — for if he did he'd bank-
rupt his publisher in three fort-
nights— it is unnecessary to pro-
fess a modesty one cannot rea-
sonably be expected to feel.
On the other hand, is it not
natural for an editor to discount
the manuscript which is accom-
panied by the writer's earnest
assurance that it is better than
many he has seen in that editor's
magazine? Common sense should
dictate a wise course when offer-
ing a manuscript. The author
who neither lauds nor depreciates
his offering is likely to be the
one who lets his manuscript do all
the talking.
We are prone to think that the
wise counsels of those who advise
writers on sundry points of
practice are over-wise and not of
so much importance as the sev-
eral journals for writers would
make out. The editor of The
Writer's Monthly has had
frequent occasion to put many of
these bits of counsel to the test,
and he feels their importance
more and more.
A case in point is the value of
having a carbon copy of one's
manuscript and, what is even
more important, noting on that
carbon all the emendations made
on the first copy, so to call it.
This is especially important in
compositions where great care
has been given to polishing. The
great poets have left numberless
records which show that a single
word in a poem has been changed
year after year until the line
stands faultlessly expressive of
the poet's thought. The fact
that such changes have not been
made on all available manuscript
copies has sometimes occasioned
confusion, if not worse.
Less than two years ago an old
friend came to town and I called
to see her. "How is your new
book coming on?" I asked. The
lady could scarcely tell me, so
great was her sense of loss. This
was the story: She had just
returned from South America.
While taking a native dugout at
the Barbadoes to carry herself
with her belongings to the north-
bound liner, the boat had cap-
sized in the surf and she escaped
with her life, and the clothes on
her back. In her luggage was
the one copy of her latest novel,
for which her publishers were
waiting, and all her jewelry, be-
sides wearing apparel and sou-
venirs du voyage.
I condoled with her for the loss
of the jewels and such, but after
all they were replaceable; what
could I say, however, to comfort
my friend for the loss of two
years of work! And such work
as I knew it to be! Every word
patiently wrought like so much
fine gold — each line so weighed
and altered that she had quailed
before the task of transferring
the changes to a carbon copy, if
there had been one — and there
had not been. There was no
course left but to do what Carlyle
did when a careless servant
bundled a valuable manuscript
90
EDITORIAL
into the fire — set to work and
write it again. But the job was
mountainous. Today Caroline
Lockhart's "The Man from the
Bitter Roots" testifies not only
to the author's unusual courage,
but to the wisdom of having at
home a carbon copy of one's
manuscript, even if on that
carbon are not noted all subse-
quent changes.
It seems a shame to point a
moral with so painful a tale, but
the service its recital may do to
some one will perhaps justify its
use.
The gentle art of literary theft
is not new, witness this polite
reminder from the pen of Martial,
whose epigrams so bitterly stung
the Romans:
Why, simpleton, do you mix your
verses with mine? What have you to
do, foolish man, with writings that
convict you of theft? Why do you
attempt to associate foxes with lions,
and make owls pass for eagles? Though
you had one of Lada's legs, you would
not be able, blockhead, to run with the
other leg of wood.
Aside from Martial's delicate
modesty, this gem is worthy of
repetition. Was it, we wonder,
as effective as a modern lawsuit
would be?
When the epigrammatist said
that epigrams are made at the
expense of truth he himself made
an epigram that must be tested
by his own dictum. Yet how
much we owe to the terse state-
ment of a striking truth — all the
more striking, often, because it is
collocated with its opposite. The
fact is that nearly all views of
truth are one-sided, but that
quality does not lessen the value
of vivid epigrams, if only the
onesidedness be allowed for. Take
Longfellow's advice: "Give what
you have. To someone it may be
better than you dare to think."
Treat these sentences as the old-
time parson did his texts — dwell
on them word by word, test them,
amplify them, turn them, apply
them, and a score of spirits will
arise from their hearts to cheer
you on to write your best.
Anne Scannell O'Neill is con-
cerned lest the note over her
name in the January Writer's
Monthly convey the impression
that she accused the Famous
Players Company of improper
conduct. But her note did not
so impress us, nor, we surmise,
did it so impress others. She
writes: "The incident I cited
happened three years ago when
submitting to a minor company
whose reader, I suppose, was not
very scrupulous."
Our new department contain-
ing lists of articles of interest to
writers, from the current maga-
zines, ought to prove popular
because helpful.
It is odd that contributors to a
journal for writers should so
often neglect to enclose postage
for the return of manuscript, yet
the frequency of this practice
compels us to say that we cannot
report on offerings unaccom-
panied by return postage.
Have you some experience
which has taught you a valuable
lesson? Come, share it with us
by speaking out briefly and
pointedly in our new depart-
ment, " Experience Meeting."
Send us timely items for "H. C. S.
H. C. S, FOLKS 91
Folks" When and where have stage, with title, medium and
your contributions appeared? date. We read many magazines,
Don't simply tell of acceptances— but not all, so a score of H. C. S.
we can announce only work Folks escape mention every
which has appeared in print month because they are too
or on the screen or on the timid to send us word promptly.
H. C. S. Folks
Anne Scannell O'Neill, St. Louis, Mo., is the author of a book of
charming short stories which has just been brought out by the
Society of the Divine Word, Techny, 111., under the title "The Little
Shepherdess and Other Stories."
Mrs. Harriette Gunn Roberson, Spokane, Wash., has just been
engaged to deliver lectures in eighty western cities during the coming
season. She lectures on subjects of inspiration to young people.
Mrs. Charles C. Townsend, Washington, D. C, has an interest-
ing story in January Young's Magazine, "Seeing Red."
F. Annette Jackson, Demorest, Ga., has a well written dialect
story in the January issue of Black Cat. It is entitled "The 'Stiller's
Rock House."
Mary Coles Carrington, Richmond, Va., has a charming poem in
the January issue of the Southern Woman's Magazine. She has also
made a very unusual contribution to the January St. Nicholas. It
consists of a five-page poem entitled "A Little Boy's Friends." The
publishers have brought it out effectively with a series of twenty-six
illustrations. The poem is one of the most ingenious that we have
lately seen.
Mattie T. Cramer, Cascade, Mont., has an informing illustrated
article in the Sunday issue of the Great Falls Tribune. The article
discusses gold mining in the Little Rockies.
W. Dayton Wegefarth's poem "Be a Man" is printed with an
illuminated border in the January issue of the Book News Monthly.
Alix Kocsis Anderson, Washington, D. C, has a poem, "The
Star of Mother Love" in The Royal Cross for January. The same
magazine also publishes a delightful little poem by the same writer,
entitled "How Oats, Peas and Barley Grow."
Jane Burr, Chicago, whose verse is seen frequently in All-Story
Weekly and other magazines, has sold over five hundred poems in
the past four years.
Mrs. Maidee Bennett Renshaw, Edgewood Park, Pa., has a
lively story in Breezy Stories for January. It is entitled "Motors
Versus Margins."
F. L. Battles, Erie, Pa., has a characteristically cheerful automo-
bile story in Motor Print for January entitled "A Merry Oldsmobile."
Mrs. Margaret Denny Dixon, Richmond, Va., has a helpful
article entitled "How I taught my Children to Read in Six Weeks" in
the November number of the American Primary Teacher, Boston.
The Writer's Book List
Prepared by the Editorial Staff of The Writer's Monthly and Continued from Month to Month
A good working library is an essential for the writer who would succeed. If you cannot have a
large library, you can at least have a good one, small though it be. It may cost some present
sacrifices to own the best books, but the investment will pay abundantly before long.
Each volume in the following list of "Specially Recommended" books, and those which were
specially recommended in succeeding issues, has been carefully chosen as being the best in its class
and for the purpose designed, and is known to us as reliable and adequate. Each book covers
either its field entire or a distinct phase of its special subject, as indicated by the notes, so that the
several specially recommended books in any one class overlap in scope just as little as possible.
Therefore the entire list of specially recommended books on any one subject — and they are few in
number, in every instance — form a complete working library on that theme.
The "Other Good Books" listed are all valuable, and hence worth reading and owning, yet
in our opinion they are not so necessary as the specially recommended titles. In most instances
they either cover much the same ground as some of the books included in the former list, or are
suited for the special study of minor divisions of the subject, and are here recommended for those
who wish to go into the matters more completely, or who wish to possess more than one treatise
on the subject.
Any book will be sent by The Writer's Monthly on receipt of price. The prices always
include delivery, except when noted. Send all remittances to The Writer's Monthly, Myrick
Building, Springfield, Mass.
English Grammar and Usage
Specially Recommended
Grammar and Its Reasons . $1.65
By Mary H. Leonard. This volume pre-
sents the best modern thought on the sub-
ject of English grammar. The chapters
are short, definite and easy of reference;
it is a handy, helpful book for the teacher,
the student, and the writer. Not a dry
text-book, but pleasingly written. XV +
375 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
A Working Grammar of the English
Language - . $1.64
By James C. Fernald. A lucid explana-
tion of the principles of grammar. VIII +
333 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
Other Good Books
Maxwell's Advanced Lessons in En-
glish Grammar . $0.70
By William Maxwell, Supt. of the New
York City Schools. It embraces the theory
and practice necessary during the last two
years of a grammar school course or through-
out a high school course. It is intended to
serve as a text-book, and as a book of reference.
334 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
The English Sentence . $0.75
By Lillian G. Kimball. All the forms
are clearly illustrated by profuse quotation.
A carefully graded book. 244 pp. Cloth.
Postpaid.
The English Language . $0.80
By Brainerd Kellogg and Alonzo Reed.
A brief history of its grammatical changes
and its vocabulary, with helpful light
thrown on the use of prefixes, suffixes, and
synonyms; also word analysis, and word
building. V + 170 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
A Primer of Essentials in Gram-
mar and Rhetoric $0.30
By Marietta Knight. A good condensed
treatise. 64 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
Composition and Rhetoric
Specially Recommended
English Composition . $1.50
By Barrett Wendell, Harvard. Proba-
bly the most inspiring and delightful book
on the subject ever written. In the form
of lectures. No exercises. X + 316 pp.
Cloth. Postpaid.
English Composition in Theory and
Practice . . . $1.35
By Henry S. Canby and others. A thor-
oughly practical book of directions for good
writing, based upon sound principles ; exten-
sive collection of examples. Revised edition.
XIV + 465 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
Thought-Building in Composition
$0.90
By Robert W. Neal. A training-manual
in the method and mechanics of writing,
with a supplementary division on journal-
istic writing as a means of practice. VII -f-
170 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
The Rhetorical Principles of Narration
$1.25
By Carroll L. Maxey. An illuminating
analysis of the three rhetorical elements of
narrative: setting, character, and plot;
together with some comments on the short-
story. 279 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
The Working Principles of Rhetoric
$1.40
By John Franklin Genttng. An ex-
traordinary, fascinating and helpful book.
This is the best advanced rhetoric ever
written. XIV + 676 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
Other Good Books
Elements of Composition $1.10
By Henry Seidel Canby and John Baker
Opdycke. A complete manual for the
study of composition, whether in schools
or without a teacher. About forty pages
are given to the writing of fiction and one
hundred pages to a thorough review of the
the principles of letter writing, spelling,
capitalization, punctuation, figures of
speech, prosody, proof reading and gram-
mar. The rest covers the subject of com-
position. X + 593 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
English Composition for College
Women .... $1.35
By Elizabeth Moore, Dora Gilbert
Tompkins and Mildred MacLean. Deals
specifically with a number of subjects not
usually found in text-books: the lecture,
the demonstration, the club paper, the book
review, story telling for children, and the
interpretation of pictures. XI -j- 314 pp.
Cloth. Postpaid.
The Essentials of English Com-
position .... $1.10
By James Weber Linn. A practical
treatise with a large number of exercises
and examples. Helpful especially to
writers. Mr. Linn is himself a successful
short-story writer. XIV + 186 pp.
Leather. Postpaid.
THE WRITER'S BOOK LIST
93
Illustrative Examples of English
Composition . $1.10
By James Weber Linn. Contains a large
number of examples from established
writers, grouped under exposition, argu-
mentation, description and narration.
Helpful models for the writer. X + 246 pp.
Leather. Postpaid.
How to Write
$0.50
By Charles S. Baldwin, Yale. A pungent
little volume containing sound advice on
"How to Prepare a Speech," "How to
Prepare an Essay," "How to Tell a Story,"
and "How to Describe." 200 pp. Cloth.
Postpaid.
Practical Rhetoric
$1.12
The Way into Print
$0.25
By John Duncan Quackenbos. Clear,
simple and philosophical. 477 pp. Cloth.
Postpaid.
. $1.20
By Adams Sherman Hill, Harvard. One
of the best rhetorics ever written. 431 pp.
Cloth. Postpaid.
The Principles of Rhetoric
The Art of Writing English $1.30 The Writer's Book
This booklet, the contents of which are
encyclopaedic, contains practical articles
on many phases of writing by such authors
and editors as Jack London, Albert Bigelow
Paine, Amos R. Wells, Robert H. Davis,
L. W. Quirk, Edward Broderick, Horatio
Winslow, Elliot Walker, Walden Fawcett,
Arthur T. Vance, Frank Putnam, and
James Knapp Reeve. 48 pp. Paper.
Postpaid.
$2.50
By Rollo Walter Brown and Nathaniel
Waring Barnes. A practical discursive
rhetoric based upon the work of two suc-
cessful college professors. 382 pp. Cloth.
Postpaid.
Principles of Composition and
Literature . $2.10
By Robert H. Fletcher, Grinnell Col-
lege. In two parts. Composition, com-
prising 160 pages, and literature, comprising
355 pages. The two parts coordinate and
cover their respective subjects clearly and
well. The treatise on literature is confined
to the theory of its various forms rather
than to a discussion of authors. XII -f-
515 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
The Study of the Paragraph . $0.60 The Art of Authorship
By James Knapp Reeve (founder of The
Editor). A work designed to afford writers
an insight into certain technical, commer-
cial and financial aspects of the profession
of letters as followed by the general writer
for current publication. It discusses in
brief and interesting manner a host of sub-
jects in which newspapermen and authors
are interested. 141 large pp. Cloth. Post-
paid.
$1.50
Practical Authorship
By Helen Thomas. A complete exposi-
tion of just how paragraphs are formed,
together with full exercises for the develop-
ment of skill in paragraph writing. 125 pp.
Cloth. Postpaid.
A compilation of the most helpful and
practical articles on all phases of author-
ship which have appeared in The Editor
magazine. 414 large pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
$1.25
Edited by George Bainton. A remarka-
ble record contributed personally by nearly
every great modern English and American
author (prior to 1890), telling how they
learned to write. X -f- 355 pp. Cloth.
Postpaid.
The Art of Writing in General success in Literature
$1.25
Specially Recommended
The Craftsmanship of Writing $1.30
By Frederic Taber Cooper, Columbia.
Eight direct and discriminating articles on
such important topics as talent, self-
criticism, form, clearness, style, etc. 275 pp.
Cloth. Postpaid.
Talks on Writing English — First and
Second Series . each $1.30
By Arlo Bates. Two volumes of rare
good sense and distinct helpfulness — full of
meat and inspiring vigor, covering the
whole range of authorship. Over 300 pp.
each. Sold separately. Cloth. Postpaid.
Other Good Books
The Author's Craft
$0.85
By Arnold Bennett. Four essays on
Seeing Life, Writing Novels, Writing Plays,
and The Artist and the Public by a popular
English story writer and playwright.
124 pp. Boards, cloth back. Postpaid.
By William Morris Colles and Henry
Cresswell. A connected collection of
comments on the subject by experienced
writers of all time. 360 pp. Cloth. Post-
paid.
Studies in Structure and Style $1.10
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gestive studies based on seven great modern
English essays. XII + 280 pp. Cloth.
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How the French Boy Learns to
Write . . ' . . $1.35
By Rollo Walter Brown, Wabash Col-
lege. Seeing that the superiority of the na-
tive of France in the art of writing is not
confined to the masters of literature but
holds also among the schools, Mr. Brown has
made a full study of the methods by which
composition is taught in France. The
results are sure to be helpful to those who
are teaching themselves to write as well as
to teachers in our schools. IX + 260 pp.
Cloth. Postpaid.
No questions can be answered by mail, nor can we supply names of players taking part in
certain pictures. Questions relating to the writing, sale, and production of photoplays and other
literary forms will be answered in this column, but readers are asked to make their letters brief
and to the point.
C. R. OHIO. — The Black Cat is published by the Short-Story Publishing
Company, Loring Ave., Salem, Mass. They want clean, clever, original stories
ranging from 1,000 or less to 5,000 words — stories so unusual and so fascinating
from beginning to end as to interest everyone. They particularly wish stories
that are free from padding, commonplace and foreign phrases. No story can be
considered that has appeared in print in any other way, either wholly or in part.
They do not use verse, plays, translations or dialect stories, neither do they use
illustrations. The Black Cat makes it a condition of the purchase of a manuscript
that they acquire all rights thereto of whatsoever nature when buying the story.
We always advise that an author examine several copies of a publication before
offering stories.
A. O. H. — Our opinion is that it would militate against the sale of a novel if
it were first produced on the screen unless the screen version became very famous
and then a book publisher would be likely to feel that its popularity as a photo-
play would serve as a good advertisement for the book. For some years some of
the less prominent publishing houses have been "novelizing" plays from the
legitimate stage, but this is very rarely done in the case of the photoplay, except
in great feature subjects which have had worldwide publicity.
SQUIRES, ALBANY. — No, it is not wise to send an editor newspaper
clippings about yourself and your work. His employer pays him to read and edit
manuscript, therefore, he has no time for such matters until you have shown him
by sending him a salable manuscript that you are a "comer" — then he will ask
you for personal details if he can use them in an advertising way. Notwithstand-
ing all exceptional instances — and doubtless there are such — you must rely upon
the merit of your work and not upon newspaper puffs.
COLLEGIAN. — We know of no "school of authorship," except the Uni-
versity of Hard Knocks, of which Fra Elbertus used to speak and from which he
was graduated — summa cum laude, as they say at Princeton. There are several
excellent schools of journalism in different parts of the county and the better
equipped colleges all offer courses which more or less directly equip the student
for practical literary work. Besides, The Home Correspondence School gives
actual working courses in Poetics and Versification (two distinct courses), Short-
Story Writing (three separate courses), Play Writing, Photoplay Writing, Vaude-
ville Writing, Journalism, and courses in all the preparatory and college English
studies — each taught personally by a recognized authority. From this array of
practical teaching you should be able to select an institution and studies that
would give you the needed preparation. But with it all you will need to write
and write and write.
RUBY MAYNARD, TEXAS.— It is impossible to say how many words a
short-story should contain, as we know of short stories which contained less than
500 words and are perfectly well done, whereas we know of others that contain
10,000 words and are equally well done. It is however, a fact that there is small
chance for a story of over 5,000 words, unless the story is supremely well done.
3,500 words is a good commercial length.
AN OLD SUBSCRIBER: — In the theatre, as in literary criticism, it is not
always possible to make definitions cleave sharply. A sketch is a short play which
leaves no highly unified impression — it lacks the compact organization of the true
playlet. A skit is merely a light, humorous sketch — often a bit of burlesque. Your
other question will be answered next month.
Short-Story Writing
A COURSE of forty lessons in the history, form
structure, and writing of the Short-Story taught by
Dr. J. Berg Esenwein, formerly Editor of Lippin-
cott's Magazine.
Btory-writere must be made as well as born; they
must master the details of construction if they would
turn their talents to account.
May we send you the names of students and gradu-
ates who have succeeded? And the success their let-
ters prove is practical. It means recognition, accepted
manuscripts and checks from editors.
One student, before completing the les-
sons, received over $1000 for manuscripts
sold to Woman*s Home Companion,
Pictorial Review, McCalVs, and other
leading magazines.
Dr. Esenwein
We also offer courses in Photoplay Writing, Poetry
and Verse Writing, Journalism; in all over One Hundred Home Study Courses, many of
them under professors in Harvard, Brown, Cornell, and other leading oolleges.
250-Page Catalog Free. Please Address
THE HOME CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL,
Department 78, Springfield, Mass.
The Art of Story Writing
By J. Berg Esenwein, Lit.D., author
of "Studying the Short-Story," "Writ-
ing the Short-Story," etc., etc., assist-
ed by Mary Davoren Chambers, M.A.,
Professor in Rockf ord College.
This is Dr. Esenwein's latest and most
authoritative word regarding the subject
on which he is recognised as the leading
specialist — the Short-Story. Beginning
with the anecdote, this work simply and
clearly leads the writer up by easy stages
to the writing of the complete short-story.
Every phase of the subject is treated so
fully and in such a delightfully lucid
style that the self-instruoted student finds
the best story-writing methods open
before him like a page of large print.
Cloth, postpaid, $1.35. Order of
THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
Springfield, Mass.
OUR SCRIPT
CRITICISM SERVICE
Up till now our charge for giving an
expert criticism on any and all scripts,
regardless of length, has been two dol-
lars. In announcing a change we do not
do so because others are charging more,
but because we find it absolutely neces-
sary in view of the increased number of
multiple-reel scripts which are being
sent in for criticism. In the future
therefore, our charge for this service will
be TWO DOLLARS FOR THE FIRST
REEL AND ONE DOLLAR FOR
EACH ADDITIONAL REEL. Writers
will continue to receive the very best
and most careful criticisms and sugges-
tions that Mr. Powell can give them.
We reserve the right to return any
script that we deem absolutely un-
worthy of criticism, making a charge of
one dollar for reading the script and
giving the writer an expert opinion of
the script's merits and short-comings.
Such a letter will equal the "criticism"
given by many who offer such service,
the only difference between this and our
full criticism service being that Mr.
Powell will not examine and comment
upon each and every scene in detail.
(Fees do not include return postage which
should always accompany manuscripts).
The Writer's Monthly
Springfield, Mass.
Please mention The Writer's Monthly when writing advertisers.
WRITING THE PHOTOPLAY
Everyone interested in Photoplay Writing should have a copy
of the new and standard work, "Writing the Photoplay," by J. Berg
Esenwein and Arthur Leeds. The following excerpts are typical
of the opinions expressed by leading photoplaywrights and editors
all over the country:
It is a careful and ezaot treatise handled intelligently, comprehensively and with authority.
It will be helpful to all students of photoplay and should find a place in all libraries on
technique. It is or edit able in every way. — Epts Winthrop Sargent
This week and next my department in The Moving Picture News will contain compli-
ments for your Photoplay Correspondence Course and for the book. The book is the
best that has come to my attention. As author of the first text-book of any pretensions
placed on the market for photoplaywrights I desire to congratulate Messrs. Esenwein
and Leeds. — William Lord Wright.
"Writing the Photoplay" is issued uniform with "Writing the
Short-Story," "The Art of Versification," and other volumes of
THE WRITER'S LIBRARY. IX + 374 pp. Illustrated. Postpaid
$2.12.
The Home Correspondence School
SPRINGFIELD, MASS.
What
New Thought
Does
It dissolves fear and worry.
It brings power and poise.
It dissolves the causes of disease,
unhappiness and poverty.
It brings health, new joy and
prosperity.
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velopment.
Ella Wheeler Wilcox Knows
the value of New Thought; and she tells
about it in the little booklet, "What I Know
About New Thought." More than 50,000
persons have sent for this booklet.
FOR 10 CENTS you can get the above
booklet and three months' trial subscription
to Nautilus, leading magazine of the New
Thought movement. Edwin _ Markham,
William Walker Atkinson, Orison Swett
Marden, Edward B. Warman, A. M.,
Horatio W. Dresser, Paul Ellsworth, Kate
Atkinson Boehme, Lida A. Churchill and
many others are regular contributors.
Elizabeth Towne and William E. Towne
are the editors. Send now and for prompt
action we will include the booklet, "How
To Get What You Want." The Elizabeth
Towne Company, Dept. 960, Holyoke,
AMERIKA ESPERANTISTO
(The American Esperantist)
$1.00 per year
An international monthly in English
and Esperanto, — the international
language.
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Send 10c for sample copy and receive
a "Key to Esperanto" FREE.
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Dept. W
WEST NEWTON, MASS.
SONG LYRICS AND
MELODIES
Why try to market a lyrio or
melody that possesses no oommero a
value? Why become a victim to the
honeyed words of the song shark?
A good song by a beginner may not
bring a fortune in royalties, but if
properly marketed it will bring some
financial returns and afford the tyro a
start.
The Writer's Monthly for a small
fee will examine your lyric or song, give
you a frank and detailed criticism on it,
tell you whether it has any commercial
and poetical value, and give you a list
of publishers most likely to purchase it.
Should the song contain sufficient
merit, our Song Department will
market same for you on a 10% com-
mission basis, provided you are willing
to sell your work outright.
Reading fee for separate lyric . 1.50
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COMPLETE YOUR FILES OF
THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
We have on hand a few complete files of THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
new series, from May. 1913 to May, 1915 (June-July, 1913, being a special
double number). Tnese twenty-five monthly numbers, placed in your
working library will give you 840 large pages crammed with instructive
articles and helpful information for writers. Among the interesting
features in these numbers of the magazine are the delightfully readable
personality sketches of Epes Winthrop Sargent, William Lord Wright,
Marc Edmund Jones, F. Marion Brandon, Horace G. Plimpton, Maibelle
Heikes Justice, Frank E. Woods, George Fitzmaurice, Russell E. Smith,
James Dayton, Hettie Gray Baker, C. B. Hoadley, Arthur Leeds, William
E. Wing, Henry Albert Phillips, John Wm. Kellette, Catherme Carr,
Phil Lonergan, Raymond L. Schrock, Beta Breuil, Gilson Willetts ana
A. Van Buren Powell. Many of our readers have declared that this
monthly feature is alone worth the price of a year's subscription. The
department, "Thinks and Things," has also helped to make this helpful
little periodical famous. The series of articles on "Photoplay Construc-
tion," by J. Berg Esenwein and Arthur Leeds, running through many
numbers, should be read by everyone who is seeking to perfect his technical
knowledge. "Diagnosis and Culture of the Plot Germ," by John A. Mc-
Collom, Jr., is a series of six articles that will prove invaluable to the
writer who experiences difficulty in developing the "plot habit," that most
necessary equipment to a successful literary career. Scores of special
articles by the most prominent editors, critics, and photoplay writers of
the day make these issues of the magazine a veritable working library of
photoplay knowledge.
While they last, we offer these twenty-five numbers to our readers for
$2.00. Send your order to
THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
SPRINGFIELD, MASS.
CORRECT ENGLISH-
HOW TO USE IT.
A MONTHLY MAGAZINE.
Josephine Turck Baker, Editor.
Your Everyday
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HELPS FOR SPEAKERS
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and many other subjects
Sample copy 10c.
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THE
DRAMATIST
A Magazine devoted exclusively
to the Science of Play Con-
struction.
Current plays analysed in such
a way as to afford the student
a grasp of applied dramatur-
gic principle.
Endorsed by all leading Play-
wrights, Managers and In-
structors.
Subscription $L00 a Year
Specimen copy 10 Cents
The DRAMATIST
EASTON, PENNSYLVANIA
A JOURNAL FOR ALL WHO WRITE
The Writer
Monthl
Continuing THE PHOTOPLAY AUTHOR
Edited by
J. BERG ESENWEIN
VOLUME VII
MARCH, 1916
NUMBER 3
J.
IN THIS NUMBER
Pin - Money - Writing
for Girls: Where to
Get Plot -Ideas: The
Censor Talks: Writing
for Health Magazines :
Other Good Articles
And Ten Departments.
>-
THE HOME CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL
Springfield, Mass,
15 Genu a Copy $1.00 a Year
REAL HELPS FOR WRITERS
The seven volumes listed below are issued in uniform size and style, printed on
superior antique book paper, and handsomely and durably bound in cloth, with letter-
ing in gold and gilt top. Together they constitute the most helpful series of authorita-
tive working handbooks for the writer's desk. 12 mo., postpaid at prices quoted.
THE ART OF STORY WRITING. Esenwein and Chambers. Dr. Esenwein's latest
work on Story Writing. A direct and effective guide to actual fictional narration. The
chapter on plot alone is worth the price of the book to any writer, xi + 211 pp. $1.35.
WRITING THE SHORT-STORY Esenwein. The standard textbook on the technique
of the Short-Story. Widely used in colleges and universities. A complete course includ-
ing theory, models and practice exercises in actual writing, xiv -f- 441 pp. $1.25.
STUDYING THE SHORT-STORY. Esenwein. A companion book to Writing the
Short-Story. Sixteen short-story masterpieces, with methods for analysis. No writer
and no lover of good stories can afford to miss this well-spread feast, xxxii + 488 pp.
$1.25.
THE TECHNIQUE OF THE MYSTERY STORY. Carolyn Wells. With introduction
by Dr. Esenwein. A complete exposition of the mystery story form. A book that stimu-
lates insight into the methods of successful writers of plotted stories and at the same
time cultivates fertility in the mind of the reader, ix + 336 pp. $1.62.
WRITING THE PHOTOPLAY. Esenwein and Leeds. The standard textbook on
photoplay construction. Recently reported by the New York City Public Library as the
book second in demand, outside of fiction, ix + 374 pp. Illustrated. $2.12.
THE ART OF VERSIFICATION. Esenwein and Roberts. A practical working hand-
book of the principles of poetry and the structure of verse forms, xii + 810 pp. $1.62.
THE ART OF PUBLIC SPEAKING. Esenwein and Carnagey. An inspirational
working handbook of instruction for all who would be efficient public speakers. A book
with a ''punch" on every page. xi -f 612 pp. $1.75.
// on inspection a book is found undesirable and it is returned within ten days, the pur-
price, less postage, will be refunded.
THE WRITER'S MONTHLY, Springfield. Mass.
A Well-Known Writer says:
"Webster's New International
is a marvel of completeness. It is an indispensable
feature of the library of every man who either reads
or writes. There is no matter of land, sea or sky that
does not come within its purview and every topic is
handled by a master."
4-OCS ,0OO Vocabulary Terms. New Gazetteer
12,00© Biographical Entries. 2700 Pages.
Over 6000 illustrations. Colored Plates
Regular Edition. Printed on strong book
paper of the highest quality.
India-Paper Edition. On!y half as thick,
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More Scholarly, Accurate, convenient, and Au-
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Please mention The Writer's Monthly when writing advertisers.
The Writer's Monthly
Continuing The Photoplay Author
A Journal for All Who Write
Volume VII
March, 1916
Number 3
WRITING FOR HEALTH MAGAZINES— L. E. Eubanks
GLEANINGS— Anne Scannell O'Neill ....
PIN-MONEY-WRITING FOR GIRLS— George J. Thiessen
THE POET'S PIPE— George Allan England
A WORD FROM THE CENSOR— Earle Phares .
MR. GUITERMAN WRITES TO POETS
A CLUB THAT IS DIFFERENT— M. Pelton White
WHERE TO GET YOUR IDEAS FOR PLOTS— Glenn H. Harris
LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS— XV— J. Berg Esenwein
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS— HINTS FOR THE BEGINNER
E. M. Wickes
COUNSEL FOR AUTHORS— Karl von Kraft
THINKS AND THINGS— DEPARTMENT— Arthur Leeds
THE WRITER'S MAGAZINE GUIDE— DEPARTMENT—
Anne Scannell O'Neill .
H. C. S. FOLKS— DEPARTMENT .
EXPERIENCE MEETING— DEPARTMENT
CRITICS IN COUNCIL— DEPARTMENT
PARAGRAPHIC PUNCHES— DEPARTMENT
WHERE TO SELL— DEPARTMENT
EDITORIAL
THE WRITER'S BOOK LIST
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Published monthly by The Home Correspondence School, Myrick Building, Springfield, Mass.
Copyright, 1916, by The Home Correspondence School, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Entered at Springfield, Massachusetts, Post Office as Second Class Mail Matter
PRICE 15 CENTS A COPY: : : $1.00 A YEAR
CANADA $1.25; FOREIGN, $1.50
TWO UNIQUE NEW BOOKS
u
The Technique of Play Writing"
By CHARLTON ANDREWS
Author of " The Drama Today, " etc.
This notable book, just from the press, is clear, concise,
authoritative and without a rival. It actually takes you
by the hand and shows you how to draft a plot, select
your characters, construct dialogue, and handle all the
mechanics of play construction. Every point in play
writing is brought out with clearness. No such effective
guide has ever been written. XXX + 267 pages. Cloth,
Gilt Top. $1.62 Postpaid.
a
Writing for Vaudeville'1
By BRETT PAGE
Author of "Close Harmony" "Memories" "Camping Days"
Etc. Dramatic Editor" Newspaper Feature Service" N ew York
The first and only book on the subject. An expert writer
for the vaudeville stage here shows precisely how every
vaudeville form is written. Nine full examples of the
several types — monologue, two-act, musical comedy, play-
let, etc. — are given by authors of international reputation,
including Richard Harding Davis, Edgar Allan Woolf and
Aaron Hoffman. Valuable chapters on popular-song
writing, and selling vaudeville acts. A mine of informa-
tion. 650 pages. Cloth, Gilt Top. $2.15 Postpaid.
The latest volume of "The Writer's Library"
THE HOME CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL
Springfield, Mass.
Plea»e mention The Writer's Monthly when writing advertisers.
Vol. vii March, 1916 Number 3
The Writer's Monthly
Continuing The Photoplay Author
A Journal for All Who Write
Writing for Health Magazines
L. E. EUBANKS
To write for the health magazines one does not have to be a
doctor, nurse, scientist or gymnasium director. Every person knows
something about health in general and his own health in particular.
What you know may be highly interesting and entirely new. The
body affords a field for study as boundless as the science of astronomy.
The knowledge of health you have gleaned from experience is
peculiarly your own. The most learned physician or expert physical
culturist may not have encountered the particular combination of
conditions which makes up your life.
These "been there" articles usually find a market. Ours is
decidedly a practical age; there is a premium on first-hand informa-
tion. The health journals in particular are very partial to "personal
experiences." Experimentation in health matters has always been
popular, and if you have any knowledge along this line and can dress
it in literary clothes, you can sell it.
The market is not large, and many of the papers receive their
matter gratis. I find that, as a rule, the editors in this field are fair,
and send back work, with explanations, if they do not pay. Some
even offer to give the manuscript literary finish if the writer cares to
submit his contribution in skeleton form. Physical Culture, Flatiron
Bldg., New York City, the leader of its kind in America, has always
stood ready to help contributors in every possible way, and very
rarely uses a stereotyped rejection-slip. If your manuscript is not
entirely hopeless, Editor Brenton will write you a "just why" letter.
Physical Culture likes articles of about two thousand words on diet,
exercise, sexology, etc. Short stories are used occasionally, and a good
virile serial is kept going. Payment comes about the middle of the
month following publication, at the rate of five dollars a printed page,
three-quarters of a cent a word.
Health, formerly edited by Chas. A. Tyrrell, in New York City,
was merged with Physical Culture two years ago. Dr. Tyrrell paid
only half a cent a word, but was a "prince" to deal with.
Good Health, Battle Greek, Mich., uses mostly staff material.
They are always glad to examine manuscripts, with a view to buying,
and treat writers courteously. Particularly interested in vege-
tarianism.
100 WRITING FOR HEALTH MAGAZINES
Health Culture, Passaic, N. J., likes personal experience articles
on diet, exercise, etc. The editor is Dr. Elmer Lee; but the proprie-
tor, Albert Turner, negotiates for the contributions. He prefers to
pay in books, subscriptions, health appliances or advertising space,
at the rate of half a cent a word. Usually, a writer can dispose of
the books to a dealer for about half the list price. Money is sometimes
paid for suitable photographs.
Life and Health, Washington, D. C, does not pay for unsolicited
matter; neither does the Journal of Outdoor Life, 287 Fourth Ave.,
New York City. The latter confines itself pretty closely to the
subject of tuberculosis.
Healthy Home, Athol, Mass., is a market for short contributions
of three or four hundred words. Long articles are seldom considered.
The rate of payment is not fixed; the editor prefers to pay for qual-
ity, not quantity. Much of the matter is quoted from other papers.
Journal of Public Health, Evansville, Ind., and the Health
Gazette, 1100 Wabash Ave., Chicago, possible markets of the past,
have discontinued publication.
Though a bit discouraging, it is best to know when it is useless to
send your work to a certain periodical. If it is in abeyance or does
not pay, professional writers cannot afford to waste time with it.
Sanitorium, Wyoming Bldg., Denver, Colo. A Jewish concern
and strictly honest, though the rates are low. Tuberculosis and its
treatment is their main subject. Some fiction is used.
Naturopath and Herald of Health, 112 East Forty-first St., New
York City, is a "back to nature magazine." The editor might ar-
range to pay for unsolicited matter, if the appeal justified.
Mind and Body, Germantown, Philadelphia, Pa., is devoted
principally to athletics and gymnasium work. Most of the contribu-
tors are teachers of gymnastics, playground instructors, etc.
National Food Magazine, Monolith Bldg., New York City, likes
to receive reports of domestic science schools on the pure food
crusade and household matters, menus, recipes, etc. A serial story
and some juvenile matter are used.
Critic and Guide, better known, perhaps, as The Dietetic and
Hygienic Gazette, leans decidedly to the medical viewpoint. The
editor is Dr. William J. Robinson, and most of the contributors are
physicians. I am not very familiar with this magazine; but it seems
a bit too technical for the general writer.
There are other health magazines in America, but I have men-
tioned the principal ones accessible to the average writer. In Eng-
land there are several with which I have done satisfactory business.
English editors insist particularly that manuscripts be typewritten,
and they prefer that the sheets be fastened together at the corners.
Most of them will not refuse to return a manuscript unaccompanied
by return postage if the contribution covers only a few pages; but
it is better not to risk it, especially if the package is heavy. One can
procure international reply coupons at most post-offices now. These
are exchangeable for stamps.
GLEANINGS 101
It is better, though not imperative, to submit an outline of the
article you wish to write, and get the editor's suggestions. This plan
is much more popular in England than with us.
Health and Vim, 46 Gray's Inn Road, London, W. C, pays cash
on publication for available matter. The editor prefers that the
writer name a price for his article, though he will, in the absence of this
stipulation, pay at the rate of two or three dollars a thousand words.
Recently, the editor intimated that the war had caused a reduction
of their rates.
Health and Strength, Windsor House, Kingsway, London, W. C,
is a weekly. It uses about the same kind of material as Health and
Vim — articles on exercise, diet and hygiene. A little fiction with a
strong physical culture motif is used. Their rates are low, and it
takes good " stuff" to bring a cash remuneration. They prefer to
pay in books, subscriptions, etc. Courteous people to deal with.
Vitality, formerly published in London, has discontinued, and
I think the same is true of Apollo's Magazine. These were among
the best of their kind.
The Herald of Health, London, is made up largely of staff con-
tributions. The "man at the wheel" is a woman, a clear-headed,
vigorous champion of youth-preservation and hygienic living. She
is glad to read articles, and might use an outside contribution that
struck the right chord.
The outdoor and sporting magazines sometimes accept health
articles, if they are not too technical, and have a strong outdoor
flavor. To illustrate, I placed an article on the physical benefits of
recreation, with Outdoor Life.
And it sometimes pays to drop a health article or story into the
field of general magazines. Health is such a vital matter that you
are certain of at least a respectful audience from any quarter. One
of my greatest surprises came when a certain high-class magazine
devoted to fiction and travel, accepted a " spasm" of mine on muscu-
lar exercise. Moral: Never say die.
Gleanings
By Anne Scannell O'Neill
Mr. Simon A. Baldus, managing editor of Extension Magazine,
Chicago, is offering a splendid opportunity to the writer of Catholic
fiction. For a really big story of from three thousand to eight
thousand words he offers to pay $100, $200, or even $300. In a
pithy editorial in the February number of his magazine he writes a
number of things which will interest the average author.
" Short-story writing is an art that can be acquired," he informs
us. "If you have a modicum of talent, you can develop that talent
if you are patient and persevering, and willing to study and work
and have a determination to succeed. Intelligent work and de-
102 GLEANINGS
termination constitute the great secret. Remember that in order
to write a good, clever, big short-story, you must serve an appren-
ticeship. No man or woman without previous thought, practice,
study and experience can sit down and dash off an acceptable story.
It can't be done. It is absurd to imagine that it can be done. You
must train yourself. The greatest writer of short-stories served a
seven years' apprenticeship under the severest of masters.
"The method of the writer of to-day, his manner of telling a
story, is different from the manner and method that prevailed two
or three decades ago — a fact which many of our Catholic writers
altogether disregard.
"The story that's told — the narrative style of story — is out of
date; and the story that is ' worked out' by the characters before
the reader's eyes has taken its place. To write the latter is vastly
more difficult and means that the man or woman who desires to
excel in modern short-story writing must master the technique, the
mechanics, etc., that enter into story construction.
"I feel certain that most of my readers are familiar with the
stories of such writers as 0. Henry, William Allen White, Fanny
Hurst, Edna Ferber, Montague Glass, Bruno Lessing, and a half
hundred other writers of modern short fiction. Why, I ask, can not
we develop some of our Catholic men and women so that they will
become to us what these writers are to the secular magazines?
"Do not ask me what kind of stories to write. Nobody told
these masterly delineators what kind of stories to write or where
to find their material. Remember that the men and women for whose
stories the secular editors are vying, and willing to pay big prices,
are not writers of ordinary stories; they had originality enough to
depart from the conventional standards of fiction, the ingenuity to
discover new types' of character, and inventive ability to evolve
new surroundings.
"There are unsounded depths for a new kind of fiction — clean
stories of modern life, with real men and women in them. Look
about you, and perhaps you will discover within a stone's throw
from where you live, or work, a corner of the world still unexplored,
and types of character still unexploited. Richard Harding Davis
Actionized his experiences and observations as a reporter; Myra
Kelley found her material in the classroom, Bruno Lessing in the
Ghetto, Mary Synon in the North Country; and 0. Henry every-
where— in the streets, in the restaurants, in the social highways and
byways, whether in New York, South America, or Kalamazoo."
An editorial in The Notre Dame Scholastic, published by Notre
Dame University, Notre Dame, Indiana, calls attention to the lack
of originality in college papers and stories written by students :
"A western editor raised his voice in condemnation recently
after he had acted as a judge in a college essay contest. Out of three
hundred papers he found almost two hundred that were sufficiently
alike to be easily traced to the nearest encyclopedia. In a few cases
the writers had stuck in an original phrase or two to take the curse
GLEANINGS 103
off." The editor goes on to say that second-hand stuff is never worth
while. If the student must turn to reference books for every essay
he pens, or if he has to copy his speeches, stories, reports, it proves
his intellect is sadly deficient. And the same might be said of and to
the aspiring author. Anybody can copy. "Originality alone merits
success."
That the war has exerted the greatest influence on fiction and
other branches of writing is not to be disputed, with our magazines
teeming with war material and our book marts turning out shoals
of war books. But it remained for Charles Rann Kennedy, author
of "The Servant in the House," and "The Terrible Meek," to re-
mind us that the war affected literature five years ago. To quote
from an article by Joyce Kilmer in the New York Times Magazine:
"The literature of the first decade of the twentieth century was
more thoroughly and obviously influenced by the war than will be
that of the decade following. Think of that amazing quickening
of the conscience of the French nation, a quickening which found
expression in the novels of R6ne" Bazin, the immortal ballads of
Francis Jammes, and in the work of countless other writers! These
people were preparing themselves and their fellow-countrymen for
the mighty ordeal which was before them.
"It is blasphemous to say that the war can only affect things
that come after it; to say that is to limit the powers of God. There
are, of course, some writers who can only feel the influence of a thing
after it has become evident; after they have carefully studied and
absorbed it. But there are others, the manikoi, the prophetic mad-
men, who are swayed by what is to happen rather than by what has
happened. I'm one of them."
John Masefield, the famous English poet, author of "The Ever-
lasting Mercy," etc., who is again in America, once worked at the
Columbia Hotel, where for ten dollars a month he cleaned glasses,
served beer and cigars, and incidentally cared for the saloonkeeper's
baby. This was in 1902. The New York Post gives an impression
of Mr. Masefield as he appears on the lecture platform today:
"He is a plain, strong-looking man, very simple in manner,
very gentle in speech He accepts his own gift as a part of
the general scheme, the general unexpectedness of things, for which
a thoughtful and glad gratitude is the only possible return. One
finds in him the same simplicity, the same love of beauty and search
for truth which is in the most beautiful of his poems." His latest
book "Good Friday and Other Poems," has recently been published
by the Macmillans.
An interesting question is raised by the remarks of Dr. Robert
Underwood Johnson, Permanent Secretary of the American Academy
of Arts and Letters, who, as editor of the Century Magazine, had
Mrs. Dora Knowlton Ranous as an editorial assistant. (Mrs.
Ranous recently committed suicide when confronted with the terror
of blindness.) Dr. Johnson wonders why some wealthy man or
104 PIN-MONEY-WRITING FOR GIRLS
woman has not endeavored to establish a fund for the use of impover-
ished writers? The New York Times Magazine (Jan. 30) writes an
interesting article anent the subject recalling the medieval patron-
age system in vogue during the early history of English literature.
A recent publication is entitled "A Dictionary of Simplified
Spelling." The book contains 12,000 words and was compiled by
Dr. Frank H. Vizetelly from the "New Standard Dictionary," and
based on the publication of the United States Bureau of Education,
the Rules of the American Philological Association, and the Simpli-
fied Spelling Board.
Pin-Money- Writing for Girls
By George J. Thiessen
Some years ago when I was city editor of a newspaper, I received
a letter from a young lady asking what the chances were for her to
earn some pin money by writing. As it is not unusual for an editor
to receive such letters, especially if he happens to sell an article or a
story of his own once in a while, I was about to tell her that the
untrained writer stood little show at all of making any money and
clinch the argument by reference to the many years of apprentice-
ship the successful writers had to serve. In fact, I was reviewing
Jack London's career, so that I should be armed with facts to con-
vince her that with talent she would have to toil years, perhaps,
before she sold a manuscript; and lacking this God-given ability —
a bitter struggle paid for only by a knowledge of failure. However, I
did not write that letter.
For the time being, the request I had received lay upon my desk,
forgotten in the rush of the day's work. When later I took it up
again, the words "pin money" arrested my attention. Since most
of the would-be writers feel confident of producing a "best seller"
at their very first attempt, the modest aspirations of my interrogator
led me to suggest a personal interview. At the appointed time she
entered my office and took the chair I placed for her.
"Miss Helen Brown" was a typical American school-girl, per-
haps seventeen or eighteen years old. I learned that her parents
were neither rich nor poor, but of the comfortable middle class. Her
father earned a salary of about two thousand dollars a year as clerk
in a bonding company. There were two other children in the family,
a brother and a sister, both younger.
"So you want to write?" I questioned, after she had given me
this information.
"Yes," was the answer.
"Any experience?"
To be frank, I expected to hear of the prizes she had won in
English; the praises of her Rhetoric teacher; the story or poem she
PIN-MONEY-WRITING FOR GIRLS 105
had written which her friends had pronounced " perfectly lovely."
Instead, she informed me with perfect candor that she had no knowl-
edge of the work at all, but thought she could learn. So unusual was
this that I decided she would prove an apt pupil.
The first few days I put her to work studying the columns of
the daily papers and rewriting the news items. It was a tiresome
task but she stuck to it with determination. Systematic labor
enabled her to forge ahead rapidly, and at the end of the next week
she was able to express her thoughts understandingly in simple,
terse language. When a month had passed, she was given in charge
to the society reporter of our paper and under her guidance developed
into an efficient assistant. Today, after three years of apprentice-
ship, she is on the staff of a well-known publication, drawing a good
salary. Her spare time is devoted to writing a thousand and one
things, most of which eventually find their way into the magazines
as " fillers." They are well paid for, considering the time spent in
composition. Sometimes, too, I see a story or an article from her
pen, showing she is going forward and winning greater success. But
even better than the money that she makes is the knowledge of her
progress; the satisfaction of seeing her name in print and knowing
that her brain is responsible for the instruction and entertainment
of hundreds of thousands each year.
What "Helen Brown" did any average girl can do, provided
she has the ambition to learn, and is limited only by the number of
openings. The beginner in the large city has more chances than her
sister in the small town for coming into contact with real news, or
ideas to develop into material for publication. The markets of a
metropolis, too, are more numerous for literary wares, but on the
other hand, competition among writers is greater. To offset these
advantages — if such they be — is the interest of the kindly country
editor. He is always ready with useful words of encouragement and
advice to the aspiring writer.
As intimated before, the novice must acquire a workable vocabu-
lary of English as it is written in the newspapers and other publica-
tions today. Fine writing — the use of big words — is fatal to success.
Brevity and accuracy are absolutely essential. Know, when writing
for the papers, what is news and what is not. For instance, the fact
that Miss Rich, of Farmville, Iowa, spoke on woman's rights before
the "Four Hundred" of that place, would not, unless she was a
national figure, have any special significance to the editor of the
New York World. On the other hand, depending upon how well
she was known, many of the larger Iowa dailies might devote some
space to her and her views. To the Farmville Advertiser, Miss Rich's
speech would be important and undoubtedly featured. Therefore,
to know what to write and what to omit is one of the "tricks of the
trade" which fortunately is not hard to learn. Common sense, in
most cases, is an infallible guide.
Generally speaking, after a girl has mastered a reportorial style
and knows what is news and where to look for it, her next step is
to secure a job or assignment. Where regular work is desired, this
106 PIN-MONEY-WRITING FOR GIRLS
is usually difficult, especially in the cities. Perhaps the writer who is
inexperienced will find no better way than studying the paper or
magazine, and submitting, in so far as is possible, the kind of material
the editor is interested in. Success in this will usually lead to a staff
position.
One woman whose name is well known to the reading public,
departed somewhat from this method and wrote a series of human-
interest stories dealing with the slums. This subject, by the way,
has been done to death in most places, but in every city of any size
there are interesting topics awaiting the pen that discovers them.
A successful writer in another place started her career by making
arrangements with smaller dailies in the state to supply them with
interesting bits of gossip which she was able to pick up among the
state officials. Fortunately, she lived in the capital city and knew
the governor, which gave her the opportunity to meet senators and
representatives. The news she sent, needless to say, was the unusual:
the traits and stories of the men themselves rather than their public
work. Incidentally, some of her best material often found its way
to the magazines, where it was better paid for than by the papers.
The village weekly should be the first goal of the girl in the small
town. In many cases there will be little or no financial return. But
the editor will usually be able to tell of city dailies near by who want
a correspondent, and from this, provided the writer is capable, it is
but a step to better things. The rates paid a correspondent vary
according to the size and prominence of the paper, depending also
upon the importance of the writer's community.
Some member on the staff of the small daily usually sends the
news of his city to the larger papers. Those that have no representa-
tive, however, will gladly pay for what they publish.
So much for the press, daily and weekly. I have spoken of it as
the school training for the would-be writer. Beyond this field is a
broader marker — hundreds of publications glad to purchase the
wares suited to their columns. Particularly are the farm papers,
the poultry journals, and the magazines for women looking for
articles of interest to their readers. The literary qualifications are
not high, generally speaking, for it is the ideas that are wanted.
Most of these periodicals prefer manuscripts of five hundred words
or less, although longer ones are often published.
Briefly, typewritten work is essential. Some editors even refuse
to read an article or story set down with pen and ink. Strive, above
all, for neatness. Mail manuscripts flat, never in a roll. Enclose
a stamped envelope for return in case of rejection.
Do not despair at your rejections. Whatever you write that
is really good can be sold. Some authors report acceptances after
twenty or thirty refusals. Therefore, do not consign a manuscript
to the fire until all possible markets have been tested — and even
then it is well to lay it aside to be worked over later.
Beyond this sphere — or perhaps I should have said in the same
sphere as the better magazines for women — lies the fiction periodicals.
Success with the short-story usually precedes the novel. But to
THE POET'S "PIPE" 107
climb to the heights of literary excellence demanded by the high-
grade publications, requires hard work — and much of it. Therefore,
do not be discouraged if recognition comes too slowly.
And even should you never write a "best seller," the knowledge
you have gained, and the satisfaction you have gotten from your
work, will compensate you for your time, even though the checks
are small and far between.
The Poet's "Pipe"
(A Pindaric Ode)
By George Allan England
The Poet, he dreamed a dream.
He thought that the time had come
When every old line
That he wrote, went fine
At a dollar a word, by gum!
He dreamed that his files were full
Of orders from magazines,
And eke that huge wads
Of opulent scads
Reposed in his tailored jeans.
He dreamed that the word "Regret"
Was stricken from out his road;
He blissfully dreamed
The editors screamed:
"Hurry up with that latest Ode!"
He dreamed he could lie and smoke,
Dictating his fancies fair
To a gumless girl
With a natural curl
In her perfectly ratless hair.
Acceptances, ton by ton,
Were brought him, by parcel-post.
No papers so rash
As to hold back the cash;
No critics now dared to roast.
He dreamed of a spindle, full
Of bills, every one marked "Paid."
He dreamed with a zest
He could throw a chest
Like a gentleman, unafraid.
The Poet rolled off his back,
Awoke with a ghastly yell.
And the word that he said,
As he leaped out of bed,
Was upper-case
H-E-L-L !
A Word from the Censor
By Eakle Phares
The photoplay writer who has received only rejections for his
"realistic" scenarios, or his scripts telling a story tinged with "real-
ism," may learn something of a way to dodge rejections from the
Censors. Dr. Ellis P. Oberholtzer, of the Pennsylvania State Board
of Motion Picture Censors, when interviewed by a Pittsburgh Gazette-
Times reporter, mentioned a few of the reasons why the Board had to
condemn scripts — and naturally those which would be condemned
by them would hardly pass the script reader.
"When it is possible, we always have regard for the art in a film,
if it has any art in it, and for the story which the writer and the stage
director are trying to tell. But some things are impossible. We are
constantly condemning or making cut-outs in white slave and drug
pictures. Warden McKenty of the Eastern Penitentiary, in Phila-
delphia, recently said that moving pictures brought more men into
his prison than any other influence. He can prove it by the state-
ments of the men themselves. We try to take out of pictures every-
thing which can give an onlooker a hint or suggestion as to the method
of committing a crime. Then we also eliminate grewsome and horri-
ble scenes. "
Again: "Lately, in talking to some of our inspectors, who see
films constantly in our projection rooms, I said that one-half of the
pictures seemed to be under the old dime-novel influence. They
thought this estimate was too small. Just recently we have ordered
out of pictures scenes showing men strapped to logs to be minced up
in moving saw mills, tied to railroad irons in front of moving trains,
held in traps for wolves to devour, or to be stung by serpents, buried
alive, etc. Do any of us know ladies who keep revolvers in their
boudoir table drawers, or carry pistols and knives abroad in their
blouses for instant use, or men who strike each other and wrestle on
the floor? I fancy not. Yet disturbance and violence are everywhere
in film. We have something in our Rules and Standards about
creating a 'false glamour' and setting up 'false standards of conduct.'
What numbers of pictures violate this rule!"
This last paragraph, while being strict in the sense that it places
another limitation on the imagination of photoplaywrights, is food for
thought for the photoplaywright who would sell the scripts he writes.
We could answer Dr. Oberholtzer by saying that no one knew such a
person as Margot in Maupassant's "Margot's Tapers," but no one
doubts that such a person might have existed. Dr. Oberholtzer forgets
that the photoplaywright, as well as the fiction writer, is entitled to
exaggerate his conditions. Pictures as well as stories would become
" dry" if they were built only on things and incidents which we know.
Our own scope of friends and adventures is narrow, it is the dreamer
MR. GUITERMAN WRITES TO POETS 109
who gives us our fiction. But since what has been quoted was said by
a member of a State Censor Board, and it is through him and his
associates that our work sees, or does not see, the light of day, we
must keep our conditions and scenes within his restrictions. And
since the script readers are endeavoring to select scenarios that will
meet little or no opposition, we can profit by what Dr. Oberholtzer
has said.
Mr. Guiterman Writes to Poets
We rarely fill our pages with reprint material, but now and then
appears an article so full of meat that those of our readers who have
not seen it in its original medium ought to read at least the gist of
the message. Here is a quotation of a quotation. We reprint from
The Literary Digest for January 29, 1916:
HOW TO WRITE VERSE AND LIVE
One of the most deserted places in the world nowadays is the
poet's garret. There is an even deeper than poetic gloom up
there in the mansard, and the property crust of bread and wine-
bottle candlestick reign in silent desolation shrouded in the dust
of years. For the poet has quit the chimney-pots of Bohemia
for the flesh-pots of Philistia, and has learned the art of Making
Verse Pay. Alfred Noyes does it and Walt Mason does it, as
do Berton Braley, John Masefield, Franklin P. Adams, and
numbers of others — poets, lyricists, versifiers, and even "vers
librettists." One of this number is Arthur Guiterman, whose
bread was formerly won on the staff of Life. His verse varies,
but the unforgettable title of one characteristic effusion is "The
Antiseptic Baby and the Prophylactic Pup." His "Laughing
Muse," recently published by Harpers, contains a variety of
proofs that the poet of to-day need not starve. Interviewed by
Joyce Kilmer for the New York Times, Mr. Guiterman admits
that there are still a few obstacles in the way of the beginner,
and agrees that a poet determined to devote the whole of his
first few years to the composition of an epic might well have
difficulty in finding sustenance; but on the whole, he insists,
poetry pays, and he gives as the result of his own experience a
few hints how to make certain of this :
I suppose the best thing for the young poet to do would be to write on
as many subjects as possible, including those of intense interest to himself.
What interests him intensely is sure to interest others, and the number of
others whom it interests will depend on how close he is by nature to the
mind of his place and time. He should get some sort of regular work so
that he need not depend at first upon the sale of his writings. This work
need not necessarily be literary in character, altho it would be advisable
for him to get employment in a magazine or newspaper office, so that he
may get in touch with the conditions governing the sale of manuscript.
He should write on themes suggested by the day's news. He should
write topical verse; if there is a political campaign on he should write verse
110 MR. GUITERMAN WRITES TO POETS
bearing upon that; if a great catastrophe occurs, he should write about
that, but he must not write on these subjects in a commonplace manner.
He should send his verses to the daily papers, for they are the publica-
tions most interested in topical verse. But also he should attempt to sell
his work to the magazines, which pay better prices than the newspapers.
If it is in him to do so, he should write humorous verse, for there is always
a good market for humorous verse that is worth printing. He should look
up the publishers of holiday-cards, and submit to them Christmas, Thanks-
giving, and Easter verses, for which he would receive, probably, about $5
apiece. He should write advertising verses, and he should, perhaps, make
an alliance with some artist with whom he can work, each supplementing
the work of the other.
The province of the interviewer is to draw his victim out,
and then, when he is gaily cavorting in the midst of generalities,
to plunge into him the harpoon of the interrogative embarrassing.
Thus it is that Mr. Kilmer takes this moment to ask the busi-
nesslike poet if he would give such advice as this to Keats. But
the deadly gaff fails to penetrate. "Yes, certainly," answers
Mr. Guiterman. and continues:
Please understand that our hypothetical poet must all the time be doing
his own work, writing the sort of verse which he specially desires to write.
If his pot-boiling is honestly done, it will help him with his other work.
He must study the needs and limitations of the various publications.
He must recognize the fact that just because he has certain powers it does
not follow that everything he writes will be desired by the editors. Marked
ability and market ability are different propositions.
There is high precedent for this course. You asked if I would give this
advice to the young Keats. Why not, when Shakespeare himself followed
the line of action of which I spoke? He began as a lyric poet, a writer of
sonnets. He wrote plays because he saw that the demand was for plays,
and because he wanted to make a living and more than a living. But be-
cause he was Shakespeare his plays are what they are.
There are at least sixteen commandments for the poet who
would eke out his existence at verse. They are as follows :
Don't think of yourself as a poet, and don't dress the part.
Don't classify yourself as a member of any special school or group.
Don't call your quarters a garret or a studio.
Don't frequent exclusively the company of writers.
Don't think of any class of work that you feel moved to do as either
beneath you or above you.
Don't complain of lack of appreciation. (In the long run no really good
published work can escape appreciation.)
Don't think you are entitled to any special rights, privileges, and im-
munities as a literary person, or have any more reason to consider your
possible lack of fame a grievance against the world than has any shipping-
clerk or traveling-salesman.
Don't speak of poetic license or believe that there is any such thing.
Don't tolerate in your own work any flaws in rhythm, rime, melody, or
grammar.
Don't use "e'er" for "ever," "o'er" for "over," "whenas" or "what
time" for "when," or any of the "poetical" commonplaces of the past.
Don't say "did go" for "went," even if you need an extra syllable.
Don't omit articles or prepositions for the sake of the rhythm.
Don't have your book published at your own expense by any house that
makes a practice of publishing at the author's expense.
Don't write poems about unborn babies.
Don't — don't write hymns to the Great God Pan. He is dead, let him
rest in peace!
Don't write what everybody else is writing.
A Club that is Different
By M. Pelton White
A few years ago I joined a writers' club in a western city. No
social, card, travel, literary, or philosophical club — I've first-hand
knowledge — can afford half the pleasure and profit derived from
this sort of organization.
"How did it start?" I asked a bright-eyed little woman whose
juveniles are appearing in a dozen different religious publications.
" Rather a humble beginning," she replied, laughing. "Half
a dozen matrons in our block had a sewing club. As is usual in such
cases, we tried to out-do each other in the matter of refreshments.
Also, our tongues wagged rather freely about neighborhood affairs.
'Jolly Gossips,' some one suggested as an appropriate name. Down
in our hearts we were not quite satisfied with our Thursday meetings.
We all had cooking and sewing enough at home. What we needed
for recreation was change.
"One afternoon our hostess read aloud while the rest of us
worked. The story caused a good deal of discussion. Most of us
were sure we could write a better one without half trying. The
up-shot of the matter was that we sharpened our lead pencils and
filled our waste baskets frequently during the next week.
"Our failures were laughable, but we had considerable sport
in the making of them. Discussing them left us no time for gossip
and sewing, or partaking of refreshments that invariably spoiled
our appetites for the home dinner afterward."
"Did your literary attempts leave you time to prepare meals?"
I twitted slyly.
The little woman dimpled. "Most of us can find time for a
couple of hours reading in the evening after the children are in bed.
We decided to devote that time to the study of the short-story.
"Great was the rejoicing when one of our members finally landed
a story in a southern publication. The check of nine dollars was a
veritable gold nugget.
"By studying the magazines we discovered that the short-story
was not the only marketable material. Articles and paragraphs
on all sorts of subjects were salable.
"At the end of the first year Mrs. M. was our only member to
declare that she positively couldn't write anything that would be
accepted. 'I am as tickled as you are over your successes,' she told
us, 'and I'll give you a spread now and then to celebrate them if
you'll only let me come to the club.'
" 'That's a bargain,' Mrs. B. assured her, 'if you'll make us
one of your salads now and then. I never ate such delicious salads
as you make. I wish you'd write the recipes for my niece — you know
she's to be a June bride? '
112 A CLUB THAT IS DIFFERENT
"Mrs. M. did as requested and the designing Mrs. B. wrote her
benefactress' name and address in the upper left-hand corner and
straightway mailed the collection to a woman's magazine.
"One of the most surprised individuals that ever opened a letter
was Mrs. M. when an acceptance for salad recipes accompanied by a
check for three dollars slipped out of an envelope a month later."
"Tell me where you get your many ideas for little tot stuff,"
I.begged.
"Mostly from the bosom of my family," she answered mis-
chievously. "A mother of four never lacks copy. I plan the story
while dish washing and sweeping, tell it to the kiddies at the bed-
time hour, and if it is properly received whip it into shape on my
typewriter during the evening. You know we all saved our first
earnings for typewriters — most of them second-hand."
The little woman looked thoughtful for a minute. " I think that
is about all there is to the 'start.' You know the rest."
And that?
The beginning made by the sewing club has grown into a club
of thirty-odd members, men and women varying in age from twenty-
one to sixty. The weekly meetings are held in the evening, the first
and third being devoted to study, the second and fourth to the
regular program.
Anyone who is willing to work is eligible for membership to the
study class. A short-story course is taken each year. Last season
Dr. Esenwein's text book was used, the year before "The Editor"
course. The works of Pitkin, Cody, Hamilton, and other writers on
the short-story have afforded much help to the class.
The officers of the club are a President, Recording and Manu-
script Secretaries. The dues of twenty-five cents a year for each
member are not sufficiently burdensome to make a treasurer neces-
sary. The sum, however, covers postage, a subscription to a writers'
magazine, and now and then a reference book for the club's library.
A candidate for membership must visit one or more meetings
and submit an original manuscript. A secret committee appointed
by the President decides upon the desirability of the applicant. If
the decision is favorable the candidate's name is submitted to the
vote of the club.
Four original MSS. and at least two written criticisms are required
from each member during the year at such times as the MS. Secretary
designates. If the author wishes a written criticism he must turn
in his material to the MS. Secretary two weeks before the date for
reading. The Secretary will send the story to the critic without
the author's name. After the MS. has been read in club and a "round
robin" criticism offered, the critic will give the written criticism.
No matter how severe the criticism may be, the writer feels
that it is quite impersonal as the Secretary is the only one who knows
his identity. A list of possible markets is included in the criticism.
Sales of MSS. are reported at each regular meeting. Each one
of us feels an ownership in part in the MSS. produced by club mem-
bers. We've heard them read, made suggestions, criticised them,
WHERE TO GET YOUR IDEAS FOR PLOTS 113
and perhaps suggested the right market. Is it any wonder that
we're elated when they are successfully landed? A sale is a spur to
the laggard. It gives him a if-he-can-do-it-I-can-too feeling.
If my memory serves me rightly some one claims the following
as the three motives for writing: self-culture, mercenary, and the
exploiting of a pet hobby. All of our club members acknowledge
themselves benefited by the first motive, many have tasted the
sweets of the second, and a few are experimenting with the third —
and be it whispered that usually this class receives checks for small
sums at very long intervals.
Where to Get Your Ideas for Plots
By Glenn H. Harris
A great many photoplay writers pay considerably more atten-
tion, to the writing of the scenario than the method of obtaining the
idea for the outline of the plot. The scenario is emphatically a tech-
nical proceeding which follows clearly outlined rules in the making.
But since the scenario is dependent upon the idea for its very exist-
ence, it may be interesting to examine the best methods for the
discovery and practical use of ideas.
Believe me, if you intend to make a little or a great deal of money
by photoplay writing, you will not find it conclusive to success to sit
down and wait for inspiration. Your inspiration should already be
in front of you. In the first place, the more common sources of original
ideas are the newspaper, the law courts, the office, and private lives.
In these you find the germs for the best stories ever written, namely,
those which are real human stories. Take the newspaper, for in-
stance. In practically any edition one finds material and suggestions
for a dozen first rate plots.
Glancing at a paragraph in a paper the other day, I was attracted
to the heading "The Forgotten Bite." It was only the story of a
snake charmer who was severely bitten, but so enthusiastic was he
over his work that he forgot all about the bite and paid the penalty
with his death. But what a splendid title and what possibilities there
are in the theme.
Having scanned your newspaper carefully in the morning, mark
with a blue pencil the paragraphs that suggest good plots. At the
end of the day you can cut these out and paste them neatly in a scrap
book kept for the purpose. If you are of a precise mind, you may
index your suggestions in a variety of headings, embracing drama,
comedy, farce, etc. But it may happen when you are on a car that
ideas for plots present themselves. The best method is to make a
rough note on a pad for the time, but when you reach home it is
advisable to enter the idea in a small notebook which you may call
your "Suggestion Book." This means that when you have a couple
114 LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS
of hours to devote to your favorite hobby of plot writing you have
before you well-stocked books containing the pith of the ideas culled
from your own experience and observance instead of having to spend
fifty per cent, of the time in racking your brains for the elusive idea.
Letters to Young Authors
FIFTEENTH LETTER
My dear Friend,
Thank you for letting me see that charming story. Your writ-
ings in recent years have been so altogether a la Saturday Evening
Post that I confess to having forgotten that you could find so much
joy merely in doing a beautiful thing — a thing of sheer " sweetness
and light" — with thoughts of making it salable put for the time into
the background.
Your story may not sell. Not more than five magazines would
consider it for more than six minutes, were it not for your growing
reputation; and each of those five may be so crowded that your
work may fail to elbow itself in — that is really what selling amounts
to in these days of much writing. But if it does find acceptance it
will be because some editor is fine enough to discern that he has
readers who are as fine as he. Most editors do not believe that of
their readers, forgetting that there is a time for "pep" and a time
for pure spirituality. Could it really hurt the reputation of any
magazine for it now and then to print a thing so delicate, so idealistic
that it would shock its readers by way of contrast? Persistently
holding to the same tone is the vice of small editors. Too much
consistency is monotony.
But you, my unoffending friend, are not an editor, so why
should I send this preachment to you! Doubtless I am writing to
you while "in a mood," as your sister, of lovely memory, used half re-
proachfully to say. Your story is so unworldly, so innocent of
astute detectives, and business coups, and the frou frou of petti-
coats, and illicit whisperings, and breathless dashes along the plot-
route, that it makes me feel as though some old-time lady of quaint
charm had come to visit me in my library, smoothed out her heavy
grey silk with mittened fingers and just smiled a message from long
ago right into my heart.
Do you know, no man could write such a story as this to order?
No man could dream it out and emotionalize it while calculating its
length and breadth and adaptability to markets. When you wrote
that story, writing was not a craft, nor even an art— it was self-
expression. I do not forget that literary self-voicing can never be
perfect in any of us until in some way we have learned both the art
and the craft of authorship; really, a story such as this could have
come from you only after you had served your apprenticeship,
LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS 115
learning your tools and how to handle them without thought over-
much. But what makes me glad for you is that the five or six years
of writing fiction of plot and intrigue have not left your love of
beauty starved.
I know many writers — literally many — who are selling the things
they love least. Every now and then such a one will forget all market
requirements and write the sketch, the story, the poem, he wants to
write. All his heart goes into it. He writes it with tears, with
laughter, with talkings to himself, with — an inward glow. And when
it is finished — though it seems never to be really perfect — he reads it;
and knowing it to be so unlike what his readers have come to expect
from him, he lays it away against that time when a great name will
have won a hearing — Heaven pity us all — for a thing that is not
popular but simply fine!
I know not how long it will take for popularity to kill fineness;
sometimes it seems that a very few years is enough; but I do know
that if you turn sufficiently often to do the thing you love to do,
quite irrespective of its salability, yet all the while keeping your mind
alert and your pen pliable by writing the things the great — by which
I mean merely the large — public can understand, you will by and
by be ready to mingle force with beauty, directness with subtlety,
charm with movement, and lead your public to the heights to which
you have worn a path by your own secret oft-goings.
There is something fitting in such a course, I think. It is well
to lay aside unpublished our early ideas of the lovely and the noble.
After we have won a hearing for ourselves in stories of character-
crisis, of action, and of entertainment, we shall have sloughed off
the bombast, so that the sublimated truth we have been cherishing
and striving to attain and express will at least issue from our hearts
with no over-adornment of perfervid words but with the enchant-
ment of its own exquisite essence.
You must have noticed in the lives of such artists as the elect
Stevenson that they often turned to verse for self-expression rather
than for sales. Indeed, I suppose there never was a great prose
stylist who did not first essay verse. It is an admirable relief for
those emotional upsurgings which come to all who are called to
pen-man-ship, to turn the word to an unusual sense. Besides, the
practice of poetry enriches prose style, cultivates imagery, enlarges
the vocabulary, and is a safety valve to prevent over-compression
and too much emotionalism in prose.
But to go back to my former notion that great writers now and
then do their best when they discard the idea of immediate salability.
Lately I have been thinking of a remarkable writer whose work
reached two quite separate publics. She, I believe, perfectly illus-
trates this idea. I mean Mile. Louise de la Ramee, "Ouida," an
Englishwoman of French extraction who was born at Bury St.
Edmunds in 1840.
What could be more different in tone and purpose than Ouida's
melodramatic romances and her short-stories? Contrast " Moths' '
with "A Dog of Flanders/' or "Othmar" with "Bimbi," or " Under
116 LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS
Two Flags" with "The Niirnberg Stove." There is much pure
poetry in her romances, and much remarkable reality, but not until
you lay aside the extravagance and sentimentality of her longer
work and drink in the exquisite child-spirit shown in her little fictions
do you find this idealistic writer worthy to sit down at last among
the great. Grant that her children do speak a lofty language that
never children spake, is not that true of Shakespeare's child heroes,
and Homer's and Virgil's too? We allow it in the atmosphere and the
setting, and, chiefly, to the spirit of high ideality. Realism must
not set up its standards whereby to judge either the romantic or
the ideal.
It has seemed to me that in "The Niirnberg Stove" there is
both a general and a specific lesson for those who too long subdue
the expression of the beautiful so that they may come to the market
place with salable wares. Let them read this little story and feel its
warmth, so that they too may now and again venture to write as
simply, as beautifully, in as unworldly a mood, as their true selves
may permit, forgetting for the time that such things as rejection
slips exist. Perhaps their "salable" work may profit by such little
side journeys, and it may even be also, that, by all the time cherish-
ing the ideal, they may some day do a masterpiece.
The story of "The Niirnberg Stove" runs like this: In the
Upper Inn-thai in Austria lived August Strehla, a lad of nine. "His
mother was dead, his father was poor; and there were many mouths
at home to feed." Their one possession was a great faience stove,
the masterpiece of Augustin Hirschvogel of Niirnberg, whose work
in majolica made his massive stoves famous in every land.
Things went badly in the Strehla home, due to poverty, but
little August told all his troubles to his dear Hirschvogel, for to him
the stove with its twinkling eyes and wondrously decorated sides
was a friend who was steadfast when even the lad's father was
cross. It seemed to make no difference to Hirschvogel that in the
long ago — for the stove bore the date 1532 and the initials H. R.
H. — it must have belonged to a Highness; over August and 'Gilda
and Dorothea the gilded lion's claws on which Hirschvogel proudly
stood exercised a loving protection.
Imagine, then, the distress of the children when their father,
Karl Strehla, one day announced that the stove had been sold for
much-needed money. They were stunned. In vain they protested,
especially the sturdy August — Hirschvogel must go.
That night little August slept not at all, but he lay all through
the darkness by the stove — and formed a plan.
When at length the time came to move the stove he followed it
at a distance to the goods train on which with bursting heart he saw
Hirschvogel loaded. His plan was to follow the stove, but how, he
did not yet know. So he bought what little food he could and in
the night managed to enter the car and creep into the very fire box
of his dear Hirschvogel. There, almost perishing with cold, hunger
and thirst he remained for days undiscovered, comforted only by
the thought that at least he lay within the arms of his good old friend.
LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS 117
At last Hirschvogel was moved with great care to the shop of
a dealer in antiques in Munich, and after its purchasers had gloated
over their bargain — for they had paid only a beggarly sum to the
wretchedly poor Strehla — they left with the dealer, all was dark and
quiet, and August was alone, curled up inside of Hirschvogel.
"After a time he dropped asleep, as children do when they
weep, and little robust hill-boys most surely do, be they where they
may Midnight was once more chiming from all the brazen
tongues of the city when he awoke, and, all being still around him,
ventured to put his head out of the brass door of the stove to see
why such a strange light was round him What he saw was
nothing less than all the bric-a-brac in motion.
"A big jug, an Apostel-Krug, of Kreusen, was solemnly dancing
a minuet with a plump Faenza jar; a tall Dutch clock was going
through a gavotte with a spindle-legged ancient chair; a very droll
porcelain figure of Littenhausen was bowing to a very stiff soldier
in terre cuite of Ulm" — all around everything was in movement:
rare antiques danced, rapiers clashed, clocks chattered, high-backed
chairs played at cards, dogs, cats and horses of costly ware curveted
in gay riot.
Presently the antiques began to talk or dispute, each after his
nature, and August ventured to put some questions to a lovely little
princess of Saxe-Royale, all in pink and gold and white, and from
her he learned — what it takes the rest of us so long to find out in
life — the difference between imitation and genuine.
In the midst of all this, Hirschvogel had preserved a dignified but
tolerant silence, until a Gubbio plate sighed a wish, soon echoed by
all: "Ah! if we could all go back to our makers I"
"Then from where the great stove stood there came a solemn
voice.
"All eyes turned upon Hirschvogel, and the heart of its little
human comrade gave a great jump of joy.
" 'My friends,' said that clear voice from the turret of Niirn-
berg faience, ' I have listened to all you have said. There is too much
talking among the Mortalities whom one of themselves has called
the Windbags. Let not us be like them. I hear among men so much
vain speech, so much precious breath and precious time wasted in
empty boasts, foolish anger, useless reiteration, blatant argument,
ignoble mouthings, that I have learned to deem speech a curse, laid
on man to weaken and envenom all his undertakings. For over two
hundred years I have never spoken myself: you, I hear, are not so
reticent. I only speak now because one of you said a beautiful thing
that touched me. If we all might go back to our makers! Ah, yes!
if we might! We were made in days when even men were true
creatures, and so we, the work of their hands, were true too. We,
the begotten of ancient days, derive all the value in us from the fact
that our makers wrought at us with zeal, with piety, with integrity,
with faith, — not to win fortunes or to glut a market, but to do nobly
an honest thing and create for the honour of the Arts and God. I
see amidst you a little human thing who loves me, and in his own
118 LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS
ignorant childish way loves Art. Now, I want him forever to remem-
ber this night and these words; to remember that we are what we
are, and precious in the eyes of the world, because centuries ago
those who were of single mind and of pure hand so created us, scorn-
ing sham and haste and counterfeit. Well do I recollect my master,
Augustin Hirschvogel. He led a wise and blameless life, and wrought
in loyalty and love, and made his time beautiful thereby, like one
of his own rich, many-coloured church casements, that told holy
tales as the sun streamed through them. Ah, yes, my friends, to
go back to our masters! — that would be the best that could befall us.
But they are gone, and even the perishable labours of their lives out-
live them. For many, many years I, once honoured of emperors,
dwelt in a humble house and warmed in successive winters three
generations of little, cold, hungry children. When I warmed them
they forgot that they were hungry; they laughed and told tales,
and slept at last about my feet. Then I knew that humble as has
become my lot it was one that my master would have wished for me,
and I was content. Sometimes a tired woman would creep up to me,
and smile because she was near me, and point out my golden crown
or my ruddy fruit to a baby in her arms. That was better than to
stand in a great hall of a great city, cold and empty, even though
wise men came to gaze and throngs of fools gaped, passing with
flattering words. Where I go now I know not; but since I go from
that humble house where they loved me, I shall be sad and alone.
They pass so soon, — those fleeting mortal lives! Only we endure, —
we, the things that the human brain creates. We can but bless them
a little as they glide by: if we have done that, we have done what
our masters wished. So in us our masters, being dead, yet may
speak and live.'
"Then the voice sank away in silence, and a strange golden
light that had shone on the great stove faded away ; so also the light
died down in the silver candelabra. A soft, pathetic melody stole
gently through the room. It came from the old, old spinnet that was
covered with the faded roses.
"Then that sad, sighing music of a bygone day died too; the
clocks of the city struck six of the morning; day was rising over the
Bayerischenwald. August awoke with a great start, and found him-
self lying on the bare bricks of the floor of the chamber, and all the
bric-a-brac was lying quite still all around. The pretty Lady of
Meisen was motionless on her procelain bracket, and the little
Saxe poodle was quiet at her side."
The rest is soon told. Creeping again into the heart of his
wonderful old friend Hirschvogel, August awaited the coming of
the Munich traders, who took the stove to the Bavarian king. And
there the king found the lad, questioned him kindly, rendered justice
to Karl Strehla by giving him the great price which the king was to
pay the crafty dealers for Hirschvogel, and little August was given
his chance to do the thing he longed most to do — learn to be a painter.
"And August never goes home without going into the great
church and saying his thanks to God, who blessed his strange winter's
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS 119
journey in the Nurnberg stove. As for his dream in the dealers'
room that night, he will never admit that he did dream it; he still
declares he saw it all, and heard the voice of Hirschvogel. And who
shall say that he did not? for what is the gift of the poet and the
artist except to see the sights which others cannot see and to hear
the sounds that others cannot hear?"
For me to add more, my dear friend, were to profane a shrine.
Faithfully yours,
Karl von Kraft.
Help for Song Writers
Hints for the Beginner
By E. M. Wickes
In a recent issue of The New York Clipper, Leo. Feist, Inc.,
advertised a new song entitled, " Don't Bite The Hand That's Feed-
ing You." The lyric was written by Thomas Hoier, and the melody
by Jimmie Morgan. Underneath the song lyric appears the fol-
lowing:
AN OVERNIGHT SENSATION
"Some title! Some lyric! and, then besides all that, some
melody! Written by two young fellows that no one ever heard of.
That makes it all the more interesting. It proves that any one, no
matter how obscure, can jump into the limelight instantly!"
An announcement of this nature coming from the most success-
ful popular song publisher of the present time should be encouraging
to the skeptical novices who are confident that no one but a staff
writer has any chance today. It is cogent proof that when a new
writer offers something that appeals to a publisher he will receive
a hearing and an opportunity to get started, regardless of the staff
writer under contract. And Leo. Feist is not the only big publisher
who is always willing to risk his money on songs by new writers.
In the same issue of the Clipper, Feist advertised another song
called "M-O-T-H-E-R." The lyric is the work of a newcomer in
the song writing profession, and Feist is giving the song all the
publicity possible, for he really believes that he has another "I
Didn't Raise My Boy To Be A Soldier" in it; but whether he has
or not, time will tell.
Beneath the song there is a little food for thought on the part
of tyros. A year ago, the writers of the "Tulip and The Rose"
turned in a "mother" song. Feist issued it, but apparently made no
effort to popularize it. And now he takes a "mother" song by a new
writer and prepares to expend thousands of dollars on its exploita-
tion, which would indicate that there is a chance for the beginner,
provided he can produce the kind of material that publishers think
will appeal to the public.
120 HELP FOR SONG WRITERS
The majority of those who have not seen their names on title
pages are too easily discouraged by a few rejection slips. A rejection
slip from a publisher simply means that he does not care for your
song, and his refusal to purchase should not worry the author in the
least. Approximately every publisher in the business has at some
time in his career " turned down" a hit. Only the other day I was
told of how one publisher laughed at the suggestion that he buy up
the American rights of "Tipperary," a song that sold over one
million copies in this country.
Some persons have no innate ability to write songs, and others
are not sufficiently analytical or clever to manufacture them. Song
writing is an art and a knack combined. One learns the art, or the
art is born within him, and the other learns the knack. During the
early part of 1913 I met "John Doe," a young man under eighteen,
whose ambition was to become a popular song writer. Doe did not
have the best idea as to what constitutes a popular song lyric, and
his early work did not manifest any real ability. He selected ancient
themes, antiquated meters, and his diction was crude and unmusical.
But all the ridicule and rejection slips in the world could not dampen
his ardor nor weaken his confidence in his ultimate success.
He read everything he could lay his hands on pertaining to
popular song writing ; he studied the theatrical papers and the lyrics
of those who had arrived. He was ever ready to miss his luncheon
or forego some pleasure if he saw a chance to acquire some new data
on song writing, and he accepted biting criticism on his work with a
thankful smile.
The other day he dropped into my office and showed me royalty
contracts for five songs from real-honest-to-goodness publishers,
and records of six outright sales. He has not made a fortune, and he
has not attainted a reputation, but some day he will enjoy both.
At the present time there appears to be a wave of mother songs
rolling from coast to coast, and as a result of this musical inundation
hundreds of inexperienced writers will permit their thoughts to be
carried away by the parental stream Hundreds, possibly thousands,
of mother songs will be written by novices, and not more than one
out of a hundred will have a chance to be heard. Mother songs have
already become a drug on the market, and the public does not dis-
play any avidity in decorating pianos with them. In one theatre
the audience groaned when a performer started to sing a new mother
song. Two acts on the bill prior to his appearance had also used
mother songs! Unless you can unearth a wonderful idea for a mother
song you will do well to shun that sort now. In many publishers'
offices the word " mother" elicits a laugh — commercially speaking,
of course.
What the public and publishers would welcome now is some
clean novelty song, be it love, philosophical or descriptive. There
should be room for a good juvenile song, white or colored, provided
the lyric carried a heart interest story. It is some time since there
was a juvenile hit, and if some new writer could produce one he would
not have much difficulty in finding a profitable market.
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS 121
Just where the average new writer obtains his information
relative to the writing; of song lyrics is rather difficult to say. His
work seldom shows traces of forethought, care, or coherence. He
selects a title — then while writing his lyric entirely forgets the title.
And if he did not write the word " chorus" above what he intends
to be the chorus, a reader would not be able to tell his chorus from
his verse. One would be inclined to believe that he never took the
trouble to examine the lyrics of popular songs, and how he expects
to meet with success without so doing is another mystery to a normal
mind. The title of a song should appear at least once in the chorus,
and the best method to follow is to have the title begin and end the
chorus. The title in the chorus gives the latter individuality, and its
repetition tends to make a deeper impression on those who hear the
song. And when you write a chorus, write about things that have
a direct bearing on the underlying idea in the title, for the chorus is,
or should be, the developed title idea. If your title or title idea has
to do with a girl, write about the girl herself — keep her in your story.
Do not subordinate her to some uninteresting piece of scenery.
Use scenery and environment only when it will lend charm to your
story.
When you write about your sweetheart or about some one else's
sweetheart, it is not essential for the success of the song that you
record the history of her life; and you do not have to offer the
biography of her father and mother. If you cannot discover an
opening clause with more freshness than "It was on a summer
day I met her," and the like, quit trying to write and turn your hand
to something for which you are better suited. Indicate time and
place when they are necessary, but use a line instead of an entire
verse. Plunge into the story in a conversational tone, as if you were
telling the tale to come confidential friend. Use short, easy-singing
words — words that can be correctly interpreted by a school girl.
The dictionary is filled with them, even if your own vocabulary is
not — and it should be if you hope to become a successful lyric writer.
Another important thing for the novice to bear in mind is that
a music composer does not write music for the second verse. Very
often he never sees the second verse until the song has been printed.
This fact should make it obvious to any intelligent person that unless
both verses are exactly alike in meter and rhythm, the second verse
will not fit the melody. Neither should you expect the melody
writer to turn out a snappy melody when you give him a lyric whose
rhythm and meter are better suited to a funeral march. The melody
writer follows out to a great extent your rhythmical measure — in
fact, it might be said that he is practically forced to do so, unless he
sees fit to take the time and trouble to alter the lyric.
In writing a simple popular song do not introduce all the figura-
tive language at your command, unless the figures of speech are
strikingly in keeping with the central idea. Make each line say some-
thing definite, and do not exhibit your knowledge of versification by
employing run-on lines — lines that carry over the ending of the
phrase to the next line. Make each line a complete phrase. To
122 HELP FOR SONG WRITERS
appeal, a popular song line must be capable of being understood by
a primitive mind the instant it is released from the singer's lips. A
person listening to a song has neither time nor inclination to go back
to re-read a line whose meaning was not perfectly clear, which is
possible in the reading of poetry.
Do not use asinine transpositions, such as, "I could not to him
say good by." Reconstruct the clause or phrase, and if you cannot
obtain the proper rhyme, recast the line whose rhyme has been
broken. Here is where labor on a lyric will prove profitable.
For the benefit of melody writers who lose heart when their
early melodies are condemned by failings to find a market, I want to
say that a poor melody is often no reflection on a composer's ability.
A poorly written lyric does show either lack of ability or carelessness
on the part of the lyrist, but this rule does not apply so fully to the
composer. A lyric writer expresses himself according to his fund of
words and ideas. He uses words, and they are tangible. He can
pick and alter at will — change a line a dozen times and still say the
same thing. The reading of some one else's work will suggest a way
for him to express something he has in his mind. He is able to go
after his material, whereas the melody writer has to wait until the
muse comes to him. And if he is setting to music a lyric written
by another, he is limited by the lyric. With all his thought and effort,
a poor musical setting may be the best that will suggest itself, and
if this should prove to be the case the composer cannot do anything
but wait until the muse becomes more charitable.
The writing of melodies that will please the public is a hit-and-
miss affair. One well-known writer maintains that every composer
has within him a certain number of good melodies and a certain
number of poor ones, and the safest way to do is to write constantly.
Perhaps a good melody will not come until five or six poor ones have
been turned out, and if a man grows discouraged after having written
three he will never know of the good melody that lies dormant
within him waiting for its turn to be called forth. New melody
writers frequently make the mistake of being too easily satisfied.
They accept the first melody that fits the lyric, never dreaming that
they might be able to write another for the same lyric that would
eventually become a hit. Experienced writers do not rush matters
like the new writer. As soon as the beginner has finished a song he
immediately mails it to a publisher. Very often he tries it out on
his friends, and the friends' comments, which are always favorable,
strenghten his opinion that he has a hit. The veteran writer usually
puts his song aside for a few weeks, feeling confident that as the
days pass he will be able to see room for improvement.
Frequently subscribers write in asking if there is such a thing
as an honest publisher in the country. There are dozens of honest
publishers, and there are some dishonest — dishonest in the sense that
they lead writers ito believe that they can accomplish wonders,
which they cannot. Leo. Feist, Pat Howley, Jos. W. Stern, & Co.,
COUNSEL FOR AUTHORS 123
M. Witmark & Son, Hamilton S. Gordon, Harry Von Tilzer, Broad-
way Music Co. — all of New York — and many other popular song
publishers, are perfectly honest, but they do not make a practice of
advertising for song poems. They read what is offered to them and
if they like the songs, they offer to purchase or publish on a royalty
and agree to stand all expense. Few honest publishers can afford
to pay more than one cent a copy royalty, which is divided when
two or more persons have a hand in the writing of the song.
Some of the high class publishers will issue a song at the author's
expense, but they do not make a practice of soliciting this sort of
work, and the songs must be up to a certain standard before they will
have anything to do with them.
Counsel for Authors
By Karl von Kraft
Impropper spelling mars many a good page.
Cut the slang business, it sounds punk.
Too much, punctuation, is worse than none, at all.
It is a very bad practice to use italics frequently.
It is bad form to needlessly split an infinitive.
Sesquepedalian verbiage should be relegated to the paleolithic
era.
A preposition is usually an awkward word to end a sentence
with.
Long, experienced authors use a hyphen to connect compound
words.
A modifying phrase misplaced by the reader is often misunder-
stood.
The use of needless words is not only wasteful but also un-
necessary as well.
Quotations to memory dear are more honored in the breach
than in the observance.
Alas! readers are often bored by the sight of many exclamation
points in the modern magazine!
Many writers seem to regard a foreign bon mot as a piece de
resistance, when really it is de trop.
Never give advice to writers; they make their living by giving
advice to others.
Beautiful it is to understand and know that a Thought did never
yet die: that, as thou, the originator thereof, hast gathered it and
created it from the whole Past, so thou wilt transmit it to the whole
Future. — Thomas Carlyle.
By Arthur Leeds
Lately Editor of Scripts, Thomas A. Edison Co., Inc.; Author of Writing the Photoplay;
Member of The Ed-Au Club, Society of American Dramatists and Composers, Etc.
Script writers have long been indebted to the Moving Picture
World for giving them Mr. Epes Winthrop Sargent's excellent depart-
ment, "The Photoplaywright. " Undoubtedly there are many hun-
dreds of writers who would buy the World each week if only to get the
help and information contained in that one department. In the same
way, a great many writers used to buy the Motion Picture News to
be able to read Mr. William Lord Wright's "For Those Who Worry
O'er Plots and Plays" department. When "Bill" transferred his
allegiance to the Dramatic Mirror, he took most of his readers with
him, and for a short time, while the News under its new management
was getting on its feet, there was comparatively little in it to interest
the photoplay author, since the trade news it contained was practically
duplicated in the World. But Mr. William A. Johnston, the present
editor of the News, is in every sense of the word a "live wire, " and a
man of sound common sense and artistic judgment. I have, during
the past few months, quoted in this department portions of his edi-
torials, which had special bearing on the script writing game. His
editorial observations are invariably interesting and informative,
and he undoubtedly stands for the best interests of the motion picture.
For that reason, and because each week's issue now contains so much
that is good in connection with "the story, " I urge all earnest photo-
playwrights who are not already subscribers to get acquainted with
the Motion Picture News. In this connection, I want to speak of Mr.
Johnston's editorial in the issue of January 15, "Just a Story," in
which he speaks of having witnessed and being held spellbound by a
photoplay that was as far removed from some of the so-called "fea-
tures," as could well be imagined. After seeing it, he explains, he
was interested enough to find out how the story was obtained — for
the whole picture, although excellent in every way, was an example of
how "just a good story" can hold the attention of an audience. "It
was the work, " he says, "of three men: a director who takes his work
seriously and who evidently regards the motion picture not as a beaten
path but as a new art worth working for; a newspaper man who
knows how to set forth a story; and a studio manager, who has a
grip upon his craft from every angle. Let us credit the efforts of all
three. The point is that each has an abiding belief that the story is
THINKS AND THINGS 125
the first essential to a successful picture." Mr. Johnston adds that
the three men who put the story together were especially delighted
over the fact that they had been given sufficient time in which to
work it out properly before starting production, "which preparation, "
he concludes, "is essential to any picture with a good story. You can-
not expect much from a story which is written overnight, because the
salary of an expensive star begins the following morning; nor from the
story of a picture rushed along to catch a release; nor from a picture
padded out to make footage. These fatal mistakes have been made
partly because the story has been considered inconsequential, and
partly because of too hasty organization and a good deal of insincere
production. " AH of which, I say again, is excellent sense and a good
example of the trenchant way in which this very able editor writes.
Most photoplaywrights feel that the. day has passed when they
need hesitate to say, with pride, that they are photoplaywrights. The
earnest and hard-working scenario writer can now feel that he is a
member of just as distinct and worthy a profession as is the novelist,
the poet, or the dramatist. But does the fact that — barring an
occasional re-issue, such as is being done with some of the old Griffith
Biographs — your play will only be seen for a comparatively short
time on the screen cause you to leave out any of the "soul stuff" that
might, if it were a novel or a legitimate drama, make it live — even,
perhaps, live after you? If you do, and if you are not giving your
work — your screen story — the very best you have to give, you are
building a reputation which must inevitably be but transitory and,
rightly considered, fruitless. The writers whose names are remem-
bered are the ones who write because they have a message, who write
because they feel that they must write, and who put into everything
they write something of themselves — of their better selves. One
Sunday afternoon last month I sat in the Hudson Theatre, here in
New York, as one of several hundred who were attending a memorial
to the late Charles Klein, who, with Charles Frohman and other
notable men of the theatrical and literary professions, perished on the
ill-fated Lusitania. Mr. Augustus Thomas presided, and beside
him on the stage sat John Philip Sousa, Percy Mackaye, William
Courtleigh, Margaret Mayo, Daniel Frohman, Howard Kyle and
J. I. C. Clarke. Not far from me sat John Drew, Arthur Byron,
Channing Pollock, Bayard Veiller and scores of other notables of the
theatre, all gathered together to pay tribute to the memory of a
big little man who, starting out as a rather indifferent actor, found his
life work in the dramatist's profession, and having found his work,
went at it cheerfully and with a purpose, putting into it the stuff that
has caused millions of people all over the world to laugh and cry with
him. His plays, "The Lion and the Mouse," "The Music Master,"
"The Third Degree," "The Daughters of Men," and twenty-nine
others — a notable list — stand as monuments to the memory of a man
who worked hard and faithfully in the face of serious handicaps, and
whose own big-hearted optimism and desire to help his fellow-men is
apparent in every line he ever wrote. In a day when so many writers
are working only for the checks they receive, it is well to keep in mind
126 THINKS AND THINGS
the example of this man who worked constantly for the betterment of
those about him. As the Sanscrit poem has it:
He only does not live in vain
Who all the means within his reach
Employs — his wealth, his thought, his speech —
To advance the weal of other men.
Filth in literature, fictional or dramatic, seldom pays, for which
let us all be truly thankful. A certain British producer of comedy
films put out a burlesque on Mrs. Elinor Glyn's novel, " Three Weeks, "
— a story which, it will be remembered, had most of the " broadness"
of the " Decameron" with none of Boccaccio's artistic literary
methods. The picture, called "Pimple's Three Weeks — Without the
Option, " was released in England following the showing in London of
the New York-made feature-picture founded on Mrs. Glyn's book. To
say that Mrs. Glyn was " peeved" is putting it mildly. She at once
instituted a suit for damages, etc., and attempted to have the bur-
lesque production " put out of business. " Mrs. Glyn's claim has been
finally disposed of in Chancery Court by Judge Younger, who handed
out some good, plain truths about "red light" novels and pictures.
"In his decision," remarks the Moving Picture World's London
correspondent, "the judge said, 'the novel, which was published in
1907, was fortunate enough to be condemned by all reviewers and
banned by all libraries, and to give it novelty its episodes were
absurd. The film burlesque is frankly farcical and vulgar to an almost
inconceivable degree. The episodes in the book are grossly immoral,
with a tendency to elaborate incidents of adultery and intrigue and,
in my opinion, copyright cannot exist in works so grossly immoral as
this.' The action, which is not without its moral to aspiring producers
of literary notorieties, was therefore dismissed." The unkind though
well-deserved criticisms which are being handed out to some recently
produced plays, the closing, "on the road," of other questionable
dramatic attractions, the unvarnished critical slams handed out to
salacious films by most of the reviewers, and the fact that some of the
magazines which had turned to a policy of "frankness" have gone
back to their old policy of clean, though out-of-the-ordinary stories,
would seem to indicate that today plays and books on the order of
"Three Weeks" have almost as good a chance, as Channing Pollock
recently remarked, "as a dog with tallow legs chasing an asbestos cat
through Hades."
Doubtless the producing firms have their own good and substan-
tial reasons for putting on adaptations of well-known novels and
plays and giving them, in their screen forms, entirely new names, but
I, for one, cannot see the advisability of it. I am very fond of Robert
Hichens' novel, "The Garden of Allah," and would like to see a
really well-made adaptation of it, but unless the fact of the alteration
in the title were made plain on the announcements shown in front of
the theatres, or in the trade papers, I would probably never go to see
such an adaptation if it were produced under the title of "The Lure of
THE WRITER'S MAGAZINE GUIDE 127
the Desert, " or something like that. Even when it is stated that such-
and-such a screen story is " based on" a well-known novel by a popu-
lar author, the plan does not seem advisable, although, I repeat, the
producers doubtless know their own business better than do the
theatre patrons. World Film is about to release a picture called,
" Life's Whirlpool," featuring Holbrook Blinn. In very small print
in the trade paper advertisement of it, we learn that this is really a
screen version of Frank Norris's novel, "McTeague. " When the
World Corporation first announced that they were about to put on
the Norris novel, I was much interested, since the book made an
impression upon me when I read it some years ago. But I might — and
others who do not read the trade papers or pay much attention to the
theatre advertising probably will — pass by the house that was
showing "Life's Whirlpool" and never even dream that inside was
being presented an interesting screen version of Norris's " McTeague. "
On the other hand, the same firm puts out an adaptation of Clyde
Fitch's play, "The City," giving it its proper title, and here, where
it is not so much needed, since nine out of ten people seeing the title
"The City," would take it for granted that it was a screen version of
Fitch's play, the author's name is given in type just as large as the
title of the play itself. I have even heard prominent theatrical men
and literary agents say that, after paying big money for the motion
picture rights to some of these famous books and plays, the manu-
facturers, as it would seem, deliberately do things that detract from,
rather than add to, the drawing power of the film. I am not denying
that, to most people, "Life's Whirlpool" is a more attractive title
than "McTeague," but surely the thousands of people who read the
book and are familiar with the original title should be taken into
consideration.
The Writer's Magazine Guide
Compiled by Anne Scannell O'Neill
FICTION
"What is a Novel?" A Symposium by James Lane Allen, R. W.
Chambers, Coningsby Dawson, Margaret Deland, Rupert
Hughes, Kathleen Norris, and other novelists, Bookman, Feb.,
1916.
"The Right Use of Books," Laura Spencer Porter, Woman's Home
Companion, Feb., 1916.
"A Spanish Estimate of Kipling," W..Jonius, Bookman, Feb., 1916.
"The Advance of the English Novel," William Lyon Phelps, Book-
man, Feb., 1916.
"The Catholic View in Modern Fiction," May Bateman, Catholic
World, Feb., 1916.
"Treasure Island," Grace Humphrey, St. Nicholas, Feb., 1916.
128 THE WRITER'S MAGAZINE GUIDE
"Horace: An Appreciation," Charles Newton Smiley, Educational
Review, Feb., 1916.
" Foreign Fiction," The American Review of Reviews, Feb., 1916.
" Concerning the Modern Short-Story," Simon A. Baldus, Extension
Magazine, Feb., 1916.
"Making Money," Owen Johnson's Own Chapter, Everybody's,
Feb., 1916.
"The Short Stories of a Year," Edward J. O'Brien, Literary Digest,
Feb. 12, 1916.
"Frank Harris: His Book," Michael Monahan, Forum, Feb., 1916.
"Guide to the Latest Books," Bookman, Feb., 1916.
"The New York of the Novelists," VI, Arthur Bartlett Maurice,
Bookman, Feb., 1916.
POETRY
"London Recollections of Lowell," E. S. Nadal, Harper's, Feb., 1916.
"Lionel Johnson," Joyce Kilmer, Catholic World, Feb., 1916.
"Stephen Phillips," Edith Wyatt, North American Review, Feb.,
1916.
"Poetic Drama and the War," Israel Zangwill, Poetry Review, Jan.-
Feb., 1916.
"Young English Poets," Ruth Shephard Phelps, Mid-West Quarterly,
Jan., 1916.
DRAMA
"Dramatic Criticism," George Jean Nathan, Smart Set, March, 1916.
"The Painted Heart of an Actress," William De Wagstaffe, The
Theater, Feb., 1916.
"Great Acting," Walter Prichard Eaton, American, Feb., 1916.
"My Remembrances," E. H. Sothern, Scribners, Feb., 1916.
"True Chronicles of an Unknown Playwright," Dramatic Mirror,
Feb., 5, 12, 1916.
PHOTOPLAY
"The Development and Evolution of the Silent Drama," Adolph
Zukor, Dramatic Mirror, Feb. 5, 1916.
"How I Filmed the Bombardment of Przemysel," Allen Everets.
Motion Picture, Feb., 1916.
"Where the Big Plums are Falling," Robert Grau, Motion Picture,
Feb., 1916.
"On the New Rialto," Charles K. Field, Sunset, Feb., 1916.
"Trying out for the Movies," Richard Savage, The Theater, Feb.,
1916.
"Making a Scene," Louis Reeves Harrison, Moving Picture World,
Feb. 12, 1916.
"Training Wild Animals for the Movies," Ethel Morris, American
Boy, Feb., 1916.
GENERAL ARTICLES
"Words and Their Uses," Emma M. Bolenius, McCalVs, March,
1916.
H. C. S. FOLKS 129
"A War Correspondents' Village/' Arthur Ruhl, Collier's, Feb. 5,
1916.
"Newspaper Special Editions," Jacob Carlton, Printer's Ink, Feb. 3,
1916.
"What is English?," C. H. Ward, Educational Review, Feb., 1916.
"The Environment and Education," I. W. Howerth, Educational
Review, Feb., 1916.
"Audiences," Victor Murdock, Collier's, Feb. 5, 1916.
"Criticism and the Comic Spirit," G. R. Macminn, Mid-West
Quarterly, Jan. 1916.
" Pre-Raphaelitism and its Literary Relations," Benjamin Brawley,
South Atlantic Quarterly, Jan., 1916.
"A Gossip on Criticism," Edward Garnett, Atlantic Monthly, Feb.,
1916.
"Girls, Boys, and Story-Telling," George Malcolm Stratton, Atlantic
Monthly, Feb., 1916.
H. C. S. Folks
Patrons and students are invited to give information of their published or produced material;
or of important literary activities. Mere news of acceptances cannot be printed — give dates,
titles and periodicals, time and place of dramatic production, or names of book publishers.
Harry Moore, editor of The Free Press, Alvinston, Canada,
has a short-story, "Hockey at Iron Cliff," in the January number of
Canada Monthly.
Idwald Jones, Quartz, Cal., has had three short-stories published
in recent issues of the Los Angeles Times.
Mrs. Frances M. Dean, Brookline, Mass., has a delightful story
entitled "Passive Resistance," in the February issue of The Cape
Cod Magazine.
The February number of Book News Monthly has an interesting
page article about the Graysonians, the movement among nature
lovers headed by Mrs. Neal Wyatt Chapline, of Sarasota, Fla., who
has long been a careful and enthusiastic reader of the writings of
David Grayson. Mrs. Chapline's message to new members is given
in full, and is worthy the attention of every lover of nature.
J. A. Macmillan, who recently accepted the post of secretary
of the Glasgow United Y. M. C. A., after a residence of several years
in Spain, has been adding to his income by contributing studies of
Spanish life to the British press.
Harold Playter, Los Angeles, Cal., has won two prizes in the
"Ad Letter Contest," conducted by the Sunset Magazine. The
latest is published in the February issue. It is entitled, "Old Dutch
Cleanser." The two prizes aggregated $60 and Mr. Playter was the
only contestant to receive two prizes in a single year.
130 H. C. S. FOLKS
M. N. Bunker, Dean of the Department of Commerce, Atlanta
Normal, Colby, Kansas, has an informing article entitled "The
Psychology of Speed and Accuracy in Typewriting," in The American
Penman for December. In The Household Guest for February,
Mr. Bunker has a well conceived short-story entitled " Annette's
History Lesson."
Dr. William P. Brooks, Director of the Agricultural Experiment
Station, Amherst, Mass., has recently issued a bulletin on "Phos-
phates in Massachusetts: Their Importance, Selection and Use,"
which has been reprinted and 26,000 copies distributed by various
agencies interested in soil improvement.
"Forgotten Books of the American Nursery" by Rosalie V.
Halsey, of Princeton, N. J., occupies a field hitherto unexplored and
promises to become the standard book for students of the American
juvenile literature of the past.
"Teaching Literature in the Grammar Grades and High School"
by Emma Miller Bolenius of Lancaster, Pa., recently published by
Houghton, Mifflin Company, Boston, is receiving high praise from
reviewers in the educational journals.
Mrs. Sally Nelson Robins, Richmond, Va., has a new novel in
the Lippincott's list for the late winter. It is entitled "A Man's
Reach." It is a story of deep human interest, the scenes of which
are laid in Virginia, and in its first week broke into the list of "six
best sellers."
Mr. Lucius E. Wilson, East Dorset, Vt., is doing remarkable
work in the service of good government by addressing various trade
bodies throughout the United States. He was formerly secretary of
the Greater Des Moines Committee and the Detroit Board of Com-
merce, and has organized nearly fifty boards of trade in this country
during the past twelve years.
Governor Arthur Capper, Topeka, Kans., has a most interesting
article under the title, "The State of Kansas," in the February issue
of The Fra.
C. L. Gilman, Gheen, Minn., has been living in a tent-shack
while gathering material for outdoor periodicals. His work is appear-
ing frequently in Outing, Arms and the Man, Recreation, Field and
Stream, and other periodicals of outdoor life. He is also contributing
material for many magazines of a special character, such as The
Sporting Goods Dealer, in which he has an article on "Snow Shoes,
How to Use and Sell Them," in the December issue.
Mrs. Cora B. Pierce, Newtown, Ct., has a story entitled "Leo-
pard's Tongue Finds the Old One" in the World-Wide, for January.
Contributions to this department are solicited. Paragraphs must be brief and the material
based not on theory but on experience in any branch of pencraft. Mutual helpfulness and a wide
range of subjects are the standards we have set for Experience Meeting.
Quite by accident I discovered this method, which costs nothing,
for renewing carbon paper. Hold the used carbon paper up to a
lighted lamp, taking care not to get it close enough to scorch the
paper. The heat will cause the carbon to spread over the parts that
are bare, leaving the sheet as good as new. The same sheet may be
renewed a number of times. — Edith Heighton.
It is a hard matter to send photographs through the mails so
that they will not be broken, unless several thicknesses of paste-
board are used, and this of necessity increases the postage required.
One way which came to my notice served its purpose beautifully
and saved considerable postage. Two pieces of pasteboard — not
very heavy — were cut quite a little larger than the photo and stitched
on both sides and one end on the sewing machine. One end was left
unsewed and the photo slipped into it, making a regular, neat,
inexpensive case. The pictures reach their destination without
being in the least soiled or broken. To one mailing many photo-
graphs the saving will be evident.
— Minnie M. Mills.
When I first began to write I made it a habit, while reading stories
in magazines, to jot down in my note book all uncommon sentences
that I came across. The little game became so very interesting that
I bought an inexpensive loose-leaf note book in which to write them
carefully. Soon having sentences under many different headings,
I decided to do it systematically. For an example, I wrote the word
HEART at the top of three pages, and all sentences I found per-
taining to that very important organ, I wrote down on one of the
three. When these were filled I added more pages, the beauty of the
loose-leaf system. The same way I did with the words eyes, nose,
mouth, hair — hate, love, anger — flowers, fields, trees — moon, sun, etc.
I started by giving each three pages, and added more pages when
necessary.
By doing this I have gained some valuable knowledge, and even
now I collect such sentences, for the habit has grown upon me. It
broadened my mind, and made me think uncommon sentences for
myself. Try it, and you will find it a pleasant game, as well as very
helpful . — M ary^L.|Irel and .
Timely, terse, reliable, and good-natured contributions to this department will be wel-
come. Every detail of each item should be carefully verified. Criticisms based on matters of
opinion or taste cannot be admitted, but only points of accuracy or correctness.
In the sentence, " Physics can answer whence goes the candle
flame when it vanishes into blackness ..." ("Sob Sister," by
Fannie Hurst, in Metropolitan February, 1916), whence is certainly
misemployed, as the word connotes direction from. — C. M.
Some authors have the habit of using the same word over and
over to express forms of speech. See, for example, "One of Fame's
Little Days," by Eleanor H. Abbott, Pictorial Review, July, 1915.
In the first chapter, "He" or "She" or Someone "persisted" thirteen
times. "He stammered," or "stammered Hallis," is used eleven
times; besides, the Girl did some stammering, too. "Protested the
Girl," or the "Newspaper Woman," appears seven times, while
Hallis also did some protesting. "Grinned" is used seven times to
accompany some form of speech. — Lena C. Ahlers.
"Grippe," by Holworthy Hall, in the January McClure's con-
tains this sentence: "A little rhinitis and a little aspirin and this
other prescription." This sentence is supposed to be spoken by a
doctor. The author is evidently under the impression that rhinitis
is a drug — instead of a disease. The suffix "itis" means "inflamma-
tion," and acute rhinitis is nothing more or less than a cold in the
head. A physician might prescribe "rhinitis tablets."
— (Dr.) Cora G. Parmelee.
In "Little Pal," a "Famous Players" film, the title roll of which
is played by Mary Pickf ord, an Indian is shown wearing his sheath
knife where a civilian's watch pocket is located. Now from the
Canadian Woods, down, any woodsman, to say nothing of a "real
live injun," wears his knife at his hip, or, in case of its likeliness to
be needed in hurry, at his side, since if worn in front a fall may bury
the knife in its wearer's thigh. Therefore only tenderfoots wear it
in such a position. I know, because I have often worn my own knife,
and "gun" — even while hammering the typewriter! However,
since the director of such a high class company as the Famous
Players allowed the Indian in question to wear his knife in front — a
point which constitutes one of those important details which robs
a story of realism if incorrectly applied — perhaps the Alaskan Indian
(the scene of the play is laid in Alaska) has peculiar knife-wearing
habits of his own. Will not someone who knows Alaska, as does
Jack London, or Rex Beach, enlighten us upon the subject?
— Jules Maurer.
CRITICS IN COUNCIL 133
In Dr. Fort's article, " Pistols in Fiction," which was published
in the January number "for the benefit of writers who are long on
ability to write short-stories and short on their knowledge of fire-
arms/ ' Dr. Fort declares that "American pistols have the following
standard calibers, and no others:
"Automatic pistols: .22, .32, .35, .38, .380 and .45."
It happens that I have owned a twenty-five caliber automatic
for several years. The .25 automatic is a standard caliber, and is the
most popular small firearm made. It is an American pistol. And
I have a friend in Texas who owns a .30 caliber automatic. More-
over, the .38 and the .380 are the same. I have never seen a .22
caliber automatic, and can find none advertised in the catalog of
the largest sporting goods store in Chicago.
All this has nothing to do with story- writing, but the .25 pistol
is such a handy, dependable and vicious little instrument that it
seems a shame to deny it. — Cleve Hallenbeck.
A. T. Strong offers a criticism of "The Log of the Jolly Polly"
(Critics in Council Writer's Monthly, January), saying the narrator
checks his suitcase and later drops it as he saves the lovely lady from
a bloodthirsty automobile. Evidently this contributor overlooked
the paragraph immediately preceding the account of the rescue
which contains the following sentence: "With a light heart, I
returned to the office of the steamboat line and retrieving my suit-
case started with it toward the Parker House." — B. F. C.
In the January St. Nicholas one of our well-known humorists
stumbles, as may be permitted to great and small now and then.
In his clever poem, "Posers," John Kendrick Bangs uses the follow-
ing redundancy, "At 4 a. m. one morning and said." — Helen Reeve.
In "The Woman of the Twilight," a novel by Marah Ellis
Ryan, the following bits of grammar struck me as being incorrect:
1. "And you doubt me acquiring such seamanship?"
2. "If she was a sister of mine "
3. "He wished she was safely settled in life."
The first two were spoken by characters in the story, yet they
were educated people and one of them was a novelist of nation-wide
fame. The third quotation was not enclosed in quotation marks.
I have under-lined the words I believe to be incorrectly used and
would like to have your opinion as to whether or not they are.
I also noticed such a sentence as the second one in Crawford's
Fair Margaret.",' — Herbert Scott.
In the first sentence, me should, without doubt, be my. The correctness of the second clause
— it is not a sentence — depends entirely upon the meaning, and that is governed by what may
follow. It is proper to use were in such a case if the woman's being a sister is merely considered
as a supposed instance and not as a fact. Was would be used correctly in such a sentence as this:
"If she was a sister of mine, why did she not make herself known?" Compare this with the atti-
tude of mind expressed in the following sentence: "If she were a sister of mine I should disown
her." The third sentence is correct, but the addition of the word that would make it a little more
smooth. — Editor.
If you can say a good thing pertinent to any phase of the writer's work, say it briefly and with
pungency — and send it in.
The sense of the dramatic is less to be cultivated in the theatre
than down among men. Those who are looking for big dramatic
ideas will indeed find them on the stage — but they are in use. In
the daily struggle are suggestions for dramatic struggle which are
as fresh as ever came to the hand of Sardou, Ibsen, or Brieux.
— Edwin H. Carpenter.
It is easy to be a trailer, but it is not easy to be a trailer and
succeed. — A. T. D.
The pit digger does not look like a mountaineer, neither does a
groveling mind naturally utter thoughts of distinction. The reason
so many writers write monotonous dialogue is that they have lived
but one life, and that not a vivid one. Tennyson lived a circum-
scribed existence in the flesh, but his mind and fancy roved in all
worlds known and unknown. — Karl von Kraft.
The severest critics of the photoplay are those who see less than
a dozen film productions a year. Perhaps they judge by the in-
artistic and often horrible posters which flame in front of certain
types of photoplay houses. Yet they do not judge Broadway theatres
by Bowery placards. The one process is as fair as the other. When
intelligent and refined patrons demand the best they will get it in
even greater measure than they do today, large as has been the
advancement up till now. — Arthur O'Hara.
No rule of literary art is to be accepted with too great literalness.
Here truly the letter killeth while the spirit maketh alive. — Domine.
Bards who long to be " where they are not" might find subject
for encouragement in the words of John Masefield, the famous
English poet, who says: "The place to be when writing about the
country is in the heart of the crowded city, and it is in the country
alone that one can write best of the surge of the metropolis. One
should write of summertime in winter and of winter chill in the glow
of August."
Therefore ye city bards need not be "in green pastures, where
the blooming daisys nod" to write your "Country Thoughts," nor
ye country bards to be " 'mid the city's hurrying throngs" to write
your "Song of the Mart." — Jules Maurer.
The saying that beauty is only skin-deep does not apply to
literature. Beauty of form is not enough — there must be beauty of
content as well. — H. R. Bear.
m
TO
5ELL
1
Our readers are urgently asked to join in making this department up-to-date and accurate.
Information of new markets, suspended or discontinued publications, prize contests in any way
involving pencraft, needs of periodicals as stated in communications from editors, and all news
touching markets for all kinds of literary matter should be sent promptly so as to reach Springfield
before the 20th day of the month preceding date of issue.
The Writer's Monthly will buy no more manuscript of the larger sort before
June, 1916, as the supply of accepted material is large. There is, however, present
and constant need for departmental material, for short, pertinent paragraphs.
Payment is made only in subscriptions or extension of present subscriptions.
For the best 3,500 word essay on "Alcohol and Economic Efficiency,"
written by any student in a Baptist college or seminary a prize of $100 in gold is
offered. Contributions should be sent to Rev. Quay Rosselle, D.D., 1701 Chest-
nut St., Philadelphia, before April 1, 1916.
The Committee of One Hundred offers a series of prizes, aggregating $1,000,
for poems on Newark, N. J. and its 250th Anniversary, and plans to publish the
best of the poems submitted in a volume to be entitled, "Newark's Anniversary
Poems. " In this competition all of the poets of our country are invited to par-
ticipate. Manuscripts must reach the office of the Committee on or before
April 10, 1916. The Free Public Library will gladly furnish to any inquirers
further particulars of the contest, as well as information about Newark's past,
present and future.
The Department of Commerce at Washington is compiling a list of transla-
tors who are prepared to render idiomatic translations for manufacturers and
exporters. The secretaries of Boards of Trade in various localities have been
asked to recommend names for this list. Nominations of translators with refer-
ences should be made to any local secretary of a Board of Trade, or application,
with certificates of efficiency, may be sent to any of the following district offices of
the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce; New York. Room 409 United
States Customhouse; Boston, eighteenth floor United States Customhouse;
Chicago, 504 Federal Building; St. Louis, 402 Third National Bank Building;
Atlanta, 521 Post Office Building; New Orleans, 1020 Hibernia Bank Building;
San Francisco, 306 United States Customhouse; Seattle, 922 Alaska Building.
Cooperative district offices: Cleveland, Chamber of Commerce; Cincinnati,
Chamber of Commerce; Los Angeles, Chamber of Commerce; Detroit, Board of
Commerce; Philadelphia, Chamber of Commerce.
Snappy Stories offers 68 cash and other prizes for four-line jingles about
"Chaste Lucy;" $100 for the best jingle; $50 for the second best; $25 for the
third best; $10 each for the five next best; and $5 each for the ten next best. The
following jingle is a sample of what is required:
" Chaste Lucy was so pure, so good,
Bad men passed by in haste,
They'd never think of chasing her,
So Lucy was unchased!"
The conditions of the contest are as follows: 1. Jingles must all be about the
same character, Lucy, extolling her virtues in some humorous way. 2. They
must be of four lines, similar in metre to the sample given. 3. Each jingle must be
written or typed on the outside of an envelope, inside of which must be placed a
slip of paper on which is written the name and address of the contestant. The
envelope must be sealed, and it will not be opened until the judges have rendered
136 WHERE TO SELL
their decisions. 4. More than one jingle may be written on an envelope, if desired.
5. All jingles submitted must be addressed Contest Editor, Snappy Stories, 35-37
West 39th Street, New York City. 6. You may send in as many verses as you
like, and a contestant sending in more than one verse is entitled to as many prizes
as his verses can win for him. Until after the decisions are made the judges will
positively not know whether a writer is represented more than once or not. 7. You
may change the form of the first line if you care to ; and while it is not necessary
to put a title to each verse, a clever title may be a deciding factor in the awarding
of a prize.
"A well-known New Yorker, a man who stands high in his profession, read
the article in Pictorial Review for February entitled, 'Who Gets the Most Out of
Love? ' and then sat down and wrote us this letter. He dares us to print it. We
take the dare, and offer $50.00 for the best, most interesting letter in answer to it.
We will pay $25.00 for every other answer that we consider interesting enough to
print. Don't miss this chance to get back good and strong at this presumptuous
mortal, who, incidentally, has been married twice! The letter follows: 'Every
He-husband always realizes that the man gives up far more than the woman in
getting married. Matrimony is women's game. They grow up always intending
to commit it. Men get married only when they are trapped — by a pretty face, a
stunning gown, a home dinner — or something else. And just think how they have
to pay for it. They have to give up : Half their income or more. All their bachelor
friends. All pleasant and stimulating women friends. Much of their time. Most
of their recreations. After marriage their social circle invariably consists of
their wives' friends. If the woman gets tired of it, she gets a divorce and an
income. If the man gets tired, sometimes he can't even get a divorce, and if he
does, there's the alimony forever. Tell your lady readers the truth sometimes. '
"We will pay $50.00 for the best, most interesting letter, and $25.00 for
every other letter that we deem interesting enough to print. This competition
is open to all our women readers. Read the conditions carefully. Typewrite or
write in ink on one side of the paper only. Be brief — the briefer the better. Keep
your answer inside of one thousand words. Do not enclose stamps, as no contribu-
tion in this contest will be returned. Contributors' names will not be published.
Contest closes April 15th. Address manuscripts to MARRIAGE CONTEST
EDITOR, Pictorial Review, 216-226 West 39th St., New York."
One prize of $50, one of $25, and five of $5 — two complete sets, one set for
professional and one for amateur photographers — are offered by the International
Exposition of Photographic Arts and Industries, 241 Engineers' Bldg., Cleveland,
Ohio, in a competition conducted in connection with the Fourth Annual Conven-
tion of the Photographic Dealers' Association of America. All those wishing to
exhibit photographs at the exposition should send at once for entry blanks,
addressing the Print Committee.
The Equitable Motion Pictures Corporation, 130 West 46th St., New York
City, is in the market for strikingly original subjects, preferably strongly dramatic.
Where there is striking originality or unusual merit they do not care particularly
where the story may be set, but in the main they prefer modern stories with at
least a touch of society life, giving an opportunity for elaborate sets and smart
clothing. They prefer a story featuring one character, suitable as the vehicle of
some star. Only five-reel stories are handled.
Emerald Motion Picture Company, 164 W. Washington St., Chicago, is
not in the market for scenarios, as the class of pictures they handle cannot be
written by the general photoplay authors.
Mary H. O'Connor of the Fine Arts Film Co., 4500 Sunset Ave., Los
Angeles, sends in the following statement: "Because of our association with the
Triangle program, our purchase of plays from free-lance writers is most restricted,
especially so as we maintain a staff of writers. However, we are in the market for
five-reel stories for use in Fine Arts Films. The stories must be of a high order
of originality and development. We pay the best market price and give every
WHERE TO SELL 137
script that shows the slightest semblance of being of use to us a careful reading and
consideration. "
The American Film Manufacturing Company, West Mission St., Santa
Barbara, Cal., recommends the observance of the following requirements in sub-
mitting photoplay scripts: " Submit typewritten script with SYNOPSIS of
about 200 words to a reel. Enclose self-addressed, stamped return envelope of
suitable size. Address all scripts to Scenario Department — not to individuals.
The American is not producing Indian, military or costume pictures, but is
interested in strong, original, logical plots of any other type which 'get over' in
action; either one or two-reel drama or comedy-drama (no slap stick), also four-
and five-reel dramas. The price paid depends upon the value of the script. "
New York Motion Picture Corporation, Culver City, Cal., is producing
nothing but five- and six-reel stories with men and women stars, featuring espe-
cially William S. Hart, Bessie Barriscale, and Frank Keenan. They are doing
modern social dramas, comedy dramas, and stories of intrigue, but no costume
stuff is used whatever. All material submitted to the firm is given personal
reading, the author receiving an answer within a week or ten days from receipt of
manuscript.
The Solax Company, Lemoine Ave., Fort Lee, N. J., requires at present
only scenarios based on well-known books or plays, the copyrights for which can
be purchased. Later their requirements may change, but that is the present
state of affairs.
Spare Moments, Allentown, Pa., is in need of short fiction of 3,000 words in
length, dealing with love, adventure and mystery. They also use verse. In
general manuscripts are reported on within two weeks, and payment is made upon
acceptance.
The Delineator, New York City, is in the market for serials of 40,000 to 50,000
words in length, and short fiction of 2,500 to 4,500 words in length. They also
use special articles, and occasionally humorous stories. Manuscripts are reported
on within two weeks, and payment is made on acceptance.
The Metropolitan Magazine, New York City, is looking for short stories not
exceeding 25,000 words in length, and preferably within the 5,000 word limit.
The theme, as long as it is clean, is immaterial. A vigorous, sophisticated style is
desired, and only the best stories are wanted. Manuscripts are almost always
reported on within seven days, and payment is made on acceptance.
B. H. von Klein, of the Bostock Jungle & Film Company, 1919 South
Main St., Los Angeles, writes as follows: "The only kind of scenarios we are
interested in at present are five-reel animal scenarios, with a logical reason for the
animals being introduced into the story; five-reel dramas with a strong, manly
part for Mr. Crane Wilbur; and one-reel comedies suitable to our comedian,
Mr. George Ovey.
Adventure, New York City, wishes serials of 60,000 to 100,000 words in
length, novelettes of 20,000 to 60,000 words in length, and also short stories.
These must all be clean, full of action, and well told. They also use some humor.
Good Housekeeping, New York City, prefers short fiction of 5,000 words in
length. The characters must be clean, worth-while people. No sex stories are
accepted. Manuscripts are reported on within a week, and payment is made
practically on acceptance.
Argonaut, San Francisco, wants short stories of 1,000 to 3,000 words in
length, and is particularly in need of 1,000 word fiction. No sex, prison, uplift, or
juvenile themes, and no mushy love stories are wanted. They require strong,
upstanding tales, and though they desire humorous stories, tragedy, if well done,
is accepted. Manuscripts, when accompanied by stamped, self-addressed enve-
lope, are returned within a week, and payment is made on acceptance.
The Writers
Monthly
Continuing
The Photoplay Author
A Journal for all Who Write
Edited by
J. Berg Esenwein
Entered at the Springfield, Massachusetts,
Post Office as Second Class Mail Matter.
Copyright, 1915, by The Home Correspond-
ence School, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Price 15 cents a copy; $1.00 a Year; Canada
$1.25; Foreign $1.50.
Published monthly by Th» Homb Corbi-
spondknce School, Myrick Building, Spring-
field, Mass.
IMPORTANT NOTICES
Change of address must reach the publisher
before the first of the month. No numbers can
be duplicated when this rule has not been com-
plied with. Subscribers must give old address
when sending in the new, and specifically address
the notice to The Writer's Monthly.
Return postage must accompany all regular
articles intended for publication ; otherwise,
without exception, unavailable manuscripts
will not be returned.
In no case can short items for the Depart-
ments be returned if unavailable, therefore
copies should be retained by the writers.
Notices of accepted material will be
sent promptly with payment on acceptance.
However, items for "Critics in Council,"
"Paragraphic Punches," "Experience Meet-
ing," and "The Word Page" will be paid for
only in shorter or longer subscriptions to The
Writer's Monthly, to be sent to any desired
person. Items for the other departments will
not be paid for.
Vol. VII March, 1916
No. 3
Letters of commendation con-
tinue to reach us daily and we
are most appreciative — we wish
we could answer them all. If you
are one of those who like our
Magazine won't you help us
make it better by extending its
circulation? Surely you have
friends to whom you could send
a copy with a word of praise. Be
a "good fellow" and — Push.
Do you weary of hearing advice
that ought not to be needed? If
so, be patient, for we assure you
that there are an amazing num-
ber of writers who, in the face of
all such counsel, continue to do
little things that stamp their
work as amateurish. Now,
Suppose You Were An Editor
Would you enjoy reading
manuscript written in purple
copying ink, which stained your
cuffs and fingers?
Could you readily fix your
sympathetic attention on a story
the sheets of which were stitched
or fastened so close to either the
top or the side margin that it
required an effort to hold the
pages open?
How would you like to find
that the second and the sixth and
the thirteenth and the twenty-
third and the forty - seventh
manuscript you read on a long
weary day had been compactly
rolled and defied your best efforts
to straighten out the sheets?
Would it add to your ability
to consider a story fairly if it was
written in single space? or with a
pale, over-worked ribbon? or on
paper so thin that the page
beneath showed through?
Would it make you feel that
the writer of a story was success-
ful to find her manuscript deco-
rated with pink ribbons? or with
highly ornamental head and tail
pieces showing his ingenuity with
pen or typewriter?
What would be your language
if when reading a manuscript
you laid it down for a moment
and it fell to the floor and you
found that the mixed pages had
not been numbered?
Would your ability to consider a
story fairly be helped by discover-
ing that the author had craftily
placed several pages of his manu-
script such a way that he thought
he could discover if an editor had
read that far in the story?
These are only a few of the
trials an editor meets in manu-
script reading. Can't you help
him to consider your offering in
circumstances the most favorable
to You?
EDITORIAL
139
On the other hand, what
future punishment is best suited
to an editor who will
Stick pins in your manuscript?
Spill ink on its spotless pages?
Sit on it, not in judgment,
but apparently with a pair of
machinist's overalls?
Lose a sheet out of the middle
of the story — a loss which you do
not discover until the manuscript
has come back from its third
subsequent trip?
Retain your postage stamps
and on the third complaint aver
that you never sent any?
Lose the greatest story of the
age — written by you?
Send back your story when he
is constantly using others not
half so — but now we are getting
on dangerous ground.
If writers who are seeking for
timely themes would look ahead
they might often forecast the
vogue of tomorrow. Instead of
writing war stories why not get
ready for the peace that will
someday dawn? The man who
scores with the timely theme is
the one who gets there first.
Too strong a reliance upon the
timely theme is likely to cramp
invention. The big, fundamen-
tal forces of nature are the same
always — it needs only the fresh
twist in the new setting to make
the story seem original.
Why spend all your time in
getting ready to write? Learn to
write by writing, just as a
youngster learns to swim. Sup-
pose your first attempts are ludi-
crous, you need not print them,
and no editor is likely to persuade
you to. Write much and destroy
much. Many a bad poem may
make good curl papers. By and
by will come the beauty of idea
wedded to beauty of form — then
invest in postage stamps.
In his famous "London Lec-
ture" our American Artemas
Ward solemnly declared that he
did not wish to five in vain — he
would rather, he said, live in
New York. That is a dreadful
alternative to an editor who has
spent a century in Philadelphia
during the last fifteen years, yet
we really are not living in vain
when we add a few harmless
chortles to the repertory of our
argus-eyed readers. One of them,
who signs himself C. F. B.,
notes three errors in one para-
graph— and, of all unholy places
— in January Critics In Coun-
cil! He hopes "that the blame
for this will not be laid at the
door of the painstaking proof-
reader nor the conscientious
printer, for very likely copy was
followed closely."
Dear C. F. B., you have a
discerning mind and a prophetic
hoping apparatus. When the
transcriber wrote "Irwin Cobb"
instead of Irvin S. Cobb, then
heaped ignominy upon E. Phil-
lips Oppenheim by changing his
initial E. to J., and finally
added an offensive er as a wiggling
tail to his name, she got rid of
more errors at one time than she
allows herself in any other ninety-
seven days, by actual count. The
staff of The Writer's Monthly
is not error-proof, of course, and
all who are responsible for this
landslide, from the editor up,
abjectly apologize. Are we for-
given? Thank you!
The Writer's Book List
Prepared by the Editorial Staff of The Writer's Monthly and Continued from Month to Month
A good working library is an essential for the writer who would succeed. If you cannot have a
large library, you can at least have a good one, small though it be. It may cost some present
sacrifices to own the best books, but the investment will pay abundantly before long.
Each volume in the following list of "Specially Recommended" books, and those which were
specially recommended in succeeding issues, has been carefully chosen as being the best in its class
and for the purpose designed, and is known to us as reliable and adequate. Each book covers
either its field entire or a distinct phase of its special subject, as indicated by the notes, so that the
several specially recommended books in any one class overlap in scope just as little as possible.
Therefore the entire list of specially recommended books on any one subject — and they are few in
number, in every instance — form a complete working library on that theme.
The "Other Good Books" listed are all valuable, and hence worth reading and owning, yet
in our opinion they are not so necessary as the specially recommended titles. In most instances
they either cover much the same ground as some of the books included in the former list, or are
suited for the special study of minor divisions of the subject, and are here recommended for those
who wish to go into the matters more completely, or who wish to possess more than one treatise
on the subject.
Any book will be sent by The Writer's Monthly on receipt of price. The prices always
include delivery, except when noted. Send all remittances to The Writer's Monthly, Myrick
Building, Springfield, Mass.
Manuals for Writers
Specially Recommended
The Preparation of Manuscript
By J. Berg Esenwein and Robert
Thomas Hardy. Includes all the essen-
tials— "copy" preparation, editing, proof-
reading, spelling, capitalization, punctua-
tion, hyphenization, etc. In -preparation.
Ready in the autumn of 1916.
1,001 Places to Sell Manuscripts $2.50
Compiled by W. R. Kane. 2,802 markets
for manuscripts are listed and classified.
There are definite statements of require-
ments which will enable the user of this
book to know what kinds of manuscripts
may be submitted to each publisher, editor,
or manufacturer with likelihood of accept-
ance. An invaluable guide. Library
Buckram, interleaved. Postpaid.
Copyright: Its History and Law $5.27
By Richard R. Bowker. Covers the de-
velopment of copyright in all countries,
from the earliest time to the passage of the
new American code of 1909 and of the
British code of 1911; with an annotated
chronological table of laws and cases and a
tabulated conspectus of copyright in all
countries. Cloth. Postpaid.
The Building of a Book
$2.15
Edited by Frederic H. Hitchcock, with
an introduction of Theodore L. De Vinne.
Thirty-seven remarkable chapters by as
many different experts, telling how every
phase of bookmaking is accomplished, from
George W. Cable on "The Author," Paul
Reynolds on "The Literary Agent," down
through type-making, composing, paper-
making, advertising, and every other step,
to "Selling at Retail," by Wanamaker's
manager, Warren Snyder. 375 pp. Cloth.
Postpaid.
Elements of Literary Criticism $0.90
By Charles F. Johnson. Seven excellent
essays on "Unity," "The Power of Draw-
ing Character, " " The Writer's Philosophy, "
"The Musical Word-Power," "The Phrasal
Power", "The Descriptive Power", "The
Emotional Power, " together with a general
introduction. IV + 294 pp. Cloth. Post-
paid.
Other Good Books
A History of Criticism $2.90
By George Saintsbtjry. The chapters
on English criticism taken from the larger
work on general criticism, in three volumes.
A recognized standard work for advanced
students. XI + 549 pp. Cloth. Prepaid.
A Handbook of Literary Criticism $2.00
By William H. Sheran. An example of
literary forms, in prose and verse. XI -f-
578 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
Proof-Reading and Punctuation $1.10
By Adele Millicent Smith. Contains
also much information on typography.
183 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
Preparation of Manuscripts for the
Printer . . $0.83
By Frank H. Vizetelly. Directions for
preparing copy, reading proof, and sug-
gestions for submitting manuscripts for
publication. 148 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
Manual of Style
$1.10
University of Chicago Press. Treats of
capitalization, spelling, punctuation, divi-
sions of words, and all the practices of
literary typography. A full set of examples
of styles of plain and decorative type, orna-
ments, and borders. 118 pp. Cloth. Post-
paid.
THE WRITER'S BOOK LIST
141
Handbook of Style
$0.50
In use at the Riverside Press, Cambridge,
Mass. Similar to the foregoing, but more
condensed. 35 pp. Boards.
The Writer's Desk Book
$0.68
By William Dana Orcutt of the Norwood
Press. A reference volume on punctuation,
capitalization, spelling, division of words,
indention, abbreviations, accents, numerals,
faulty diction, letter writing, postal regula-
tions, etc. 184 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
The Author's Desk Book
$0.68
By William Dana Orcutt. Terse and
authoritative instruction for the author on
all matters pertaining to his buisness rela-
tions with others. Chapters on the mechan-
ics of the book, arrangement of the book and
making the index. VI -f- 164 pp. Cloth.
Postpaid.
Manual for Writers
By John Matthews Manly, University
of Chicago, and John Arthur Powell,
U. of C. Press. Covers the same ground as
the foregoing. 225 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
A Practical Guide for Authors $0.75
By William Stone Booth. Deals largely
with the relations between authors and
publishers; it has chapters on offering
manuscripts to publishers, punctuation,
spelling, proof-reading, etc. 180 pp. Half
Cloth. Postpaid.
Punctuation
$1.25
By F. Horace Teall. Contains also
chapters on Hyphenization, Capitalization,
and Spelling. A valuable little book by an
expert worker on "The Standard Diction-
ary." VII + 193 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
Orthography, Etymology and Punctu-
ation . . $0.60
By S. R. Winchell. Diacritical marks,
vowel sounds, the consonants, rules for
dividing words into syllables, accent, list
of words often mispronounced, rules for
spelling, synonyms and homonyms, ety-
mology, punctuation, abbreviations, etc.
An exceedingly valuable and helpful book.
195 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
Punctuation and other Typo-
graphical Matters . . $0.55
By Marshall T. Bigelow. Contains, in
addition to rules for punctuation a large
amount of material bearing upon the prepa-
ration of manuscripts for the printer. 116
pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
A Punctuation Primer, With Notes on
the Preparation of Manuscript.
By Frances M. Berry. Includes Capitali-
zation, word division, and letter writing.
103 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
Good English : A practical manual
of correct speaking and writ-
ing .... $0.75
By John Louis Haney. Dr. Haney has
prepared this valuable little book as the
outgrowth of his work with the Ladies Home
Journal in answering inquiries on questions
of English usage, and while serving as a
professor in the Central High School of
Philadelphia. XI 4- 244 pp. Cloth.
Postpaid.
A Guide to Good English .
$1.30
By Robert Palfrey Utter, Amherst. A
compact digest of information and rules on
all matters of structure and arrangement of
simple English. IX 4- 203 pp. Cloth.
Postpaid.
The Literary Work shop: Helps for
the Writer . . . $1.25
By Josephine T. Baker. Invaluable to
writers; contains hints on punctuation,
paragraphing, special rules for composi-
tion, with illustrations of their use. 124 pp.
Cloth. Postpaid.
$1.35 Everybody's Writing-Desk Book $0.75
By Charles Nisbet and Don Lemon.
Contains suggestions to beginners in litera-
ture, forms of addresses, directions for the
correction of proofs, etc. 310 pp. Post-
paid.
Write It Right; Blacklist of
Literary Faults . . $0.50
By Ambrose Bierce. This volume should
be in the waistcoat pocket of every profes-
sional writer, proof-reader, teacher, student,
business man, and on the desk of every
stenographer. 73 pp. Postpaid.
The Correspondent's Manual $0.55
By William Hickok. Information for
stenographers, typewriter operators, and
clerks. 224 pp. Postpaid.
The Correct Word, How to Use It $1.35
By Josephine Turck Baker. Discrimina-
tions in the use of English with special
reference to correcting bad usage. 235 pp.
Cloth. Postpaid.
Mistakes in Writing English, and
How to Avoid Them . . $0.55
By Marshall T. Bigelow. 110 pp. Cloth.
Postpaid.
Handbook of Blunders
$0.55
By Harland H. Ballard. One thousand
common blunders in writing and speaking
pointed out. 60 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
Writing to Sell
$0.55
By Edwin Wildman. A text-book of liter-
ary craftsmanship, with practical instruc-
tions for those who would do popular work.
V 4- 111 pp. Limp Cloth. Postpaid.
Where to Sell Your Manuscripts $1.00
By E. F. Barker. A large list of publishers
and dramatic and photoplay producers,
American and foreign, with addresses, all
grouped under classes. No statements of
specific character of material used and
prices paid. About fifty pages. Limp
Cloth. Postpaid.
^N
Pii
■* cJ_n.(juiri e \
^sb&s^^sm,
No questions can be answered by mail, nor can we supply names of players taking part in
certain piotures. Questions relating to the writing, sale, and production of photoplays and other
literary forms will be answered in this column, but readers are aaked to make their letters brief
and to the point.
T. B. O. — (1) In counting words in a story or article all the small words are
counted. When an editor counts words in order to estimate the amount of space
required in the magazine, he counts the short lines as though they were full, and
then leaves a slight margin in excess for additional short lines in the type composi-
tion. (2) The contributor does not have anything to do with the illustrating of a
short-story. If the author is himself an artist it will do no harm to submit illus-
trations, but unless they are thoroughly well done and in the style of the magazine
it would be worse than useless. All in all, it is far better not to send illustrations
with stories. On the other hand, it is always wise to send photographs with
articles if the prints are particularly good and capable of being reproduced. (3)
You probably mean "keep the right-hand margin as even as the left," instead of
the reverse, which you state. There is no reason why the right-hand margin of
manuscript should be more than ordinarily even. (4) It does not matter what
color type you use provided you do not use a copying ribbon, which is apt to soil
the hands of the manuscript reader. The one rule is not to use a pale ribbon
which makes reading hard.
TYRO— (1) You can probably secure a copy of "Just Tell Them That You
Saw Me" by writing to Pat Howley, 146 West 45th St., New York; or you can
ask your local music dealer to order a copy from his jobber. (2) The New York
Clipper, 47 W. 28th St., New York, and The Billboard, Cincinnati, O., carry con-
siderable up-to-date song news. Jacob's Orchestra Monthly might also be of
interest. It is mentioned in the February Writer's Monthly.
A. F. K., SAN BENITO, TEX.— (1) Some agents are reliable and some are
not. You can do just as well by handling your own work. Follow the reports
in the "Where to Sell" department of this magazine. Some agents use it as a
working guide. (2) We never recommend clients to song publishers who advertise
for poems in magazines and newspapers. (3) There are more than fifty music
publishers in this country who publish songs without asking the author to stand
any of the expense. This list will appear in a book on Song Writing which will
come out in the near future. (4) Address your letter to Miss Owen in care of this
magazine and the letter will be forwarded to her.
AN OLD SUBSCRIBER — Broad a is a as in father. Short i is i as in flit.
Dissimilar sounds make contrast. Similar sounds make harmony, but if used too
often they make monotony. If the poetical passages in the chapter on Tone-
Color in "The Art of Versification" are read aloud, the ear cannot fail to detect
the contrasting sounds. The best treatise on the sound of English letters and
their employment in verse is Robert Louis Stevenson's essay "On Some Technical
Elements of Style in Literature. "
W. B., NASHUA, N. H. — (l)Anyone familiar with music cannot write a
good piano accompaniment. Better engage someone who makes a specialty
of this sort of work. (2) A publisher would make necessary revisions, provided
the song appealed to him. (3) The best way to submit a song is in a pasteboard
tube. (4) There is no magazine that we know of that is devoted exclusively to
song writing and song writers. (5) The majority of well-known song writers write
the words and music of the chorus first, and if the chorus does not come up to their
expectations they do not write the verses. Your method of construction would
not make the song hopeless; but we could offer no opinion without having seen
the manuscript.
Short-Story Writing
Dr. Esenwein
and Verse Writing, Journalism;
A COURSE of forty lessons in the history, form
structure, and writing of the Short-Story taught by
Dr. J. Berg Esenwein, formerly Editor of Lippin-
cott'e Magazine.
Story-writers must be made as well as born ; they
must master the details of construction if they would
turn their talents to account.
May we send you the names of students and gradu-
ates who have succeeded? And the success their let-
ters prove is practical. It means recognition, accepted
manuscripts and checks from editors.
One student, before completing the les-
sons, received over $1000 for manuscripts
sold to Woman's Home Companion,
Pictorial Review, McCall's, and other
leading magazines.
We also offer courses in Photoplay Writing, Poetry
in all over One Hundred Home Study Courses, many of
them under professors in Harvard, Brown, Cornell, and other leading colleges.
250-Page Catalog Free. Please Address
THE HOME CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL,
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the only difference between this and our
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(Fees do not include return postage which
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The Writer's Monthly
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THE ART OF VERSIFICATION
By J. Berg Esenwtin and Mary Eleanor Roberts
The most complete, practical and helpful
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THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
Springfield, Mass.
WRITERS OF FICTION AND PHOTOPLAYS
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with a Complete Index and a Progressive
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SONG LYRICS AND
MELODIES
Why try to market a lyric or a
melody that possesses no commercial
value? Why become a victim to the
honeyed words of the song shark?
A good song by a beginner may not
bring a fortune in royalties, but if
properly marketed it will bring some
financial returns and afford the tyro a
■tart.
The Writer's Monthly for a small
fee will examine your lyric or song, give
you a frank and detailed criticism on it,
tell you whether it has any commercial
and poetical value, and give you a list
of publishers most likely to purchase it.
Should the song contain sufficient
merit, our Song Department will
market same for you on a 10% com-
mission basis, provided you are willing
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Reading fee for separate lyric . 1.10
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COMPLETE YOUR FILES OF
THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
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double number). These twenty-five monthly numbers, placed in your
working library will give you 840 large pages crammed with instructive
articles and helpful information for writers. Among the interesting
features m these numbers of the magazine are the delightfully readable
personality sketches of Epes Winthrop Sargent, William Lord Wright
Marc Edmund Jones, F. Marion Brandon, Horace G. Plimpton, Maibelle
Heikes Justice, Frank E. Woods, George Fitzmaurice, Russell E. Smith,
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E Wing, Henry Albert Phillips, John Wm. Kellette, Catherine Carr,
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department, "Thinks and Things," has also helped to make this helpful
littlerjenodical famous. The series of articles on "Photoplay Construc-
tion, by J. Berg Esenwein and Arthur Leeds, running through many
numbers, should be read by everyone who is seeking to perfect his technical
knowledge. "Diagnosis and Culture of the Plot Germ," by John A. Mc-
Collom, Jr., is a series of six articles that will prove invaluable to the
writer who experiences difficulty in developing the "plot habit," that most
necessary equipment to a successful literary career. Scores of special
articles by the most prominent editors, critics, and photoplay writers of
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photoplay knowledge.
•o ™ o^6 t^v la8t> we offer these twenty-five numbers to our readers for
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SPRINGFIELD, MASS.
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THE
DRAMATIST
A Magazine devoted exclusively
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EASTON, PENNSYLVANIA
A JOURNAL FOR ALL WHO WRITE
The Write
Monthl
Continuing THE PHOTOPLAY AUTHOR
Edited by
J. BERG ESENWEIN
VOLUME VII
APRIL, 1916
NUMBER 4
Writing is the one Art in which
Men seek to begin at the Top.
Yet that way lies Failure. He
who truly values Thought and
its Effective Expression will
Labor— with Humility, with
Patience, and with Hope — that
at length he may come to
Mastery
REAL HELPS FOR WRITERS
The seven volumes listed below are issued in uniform size and style, printed on
superior antique book paper, and handsomely and durably bound in cloth, with letter-
ing in gold and gilt top. Together they constitute the most helpful series of authorita-
tive working handbooks for the writer's desk. 1% mo,, postpaid at prices quoted.
THE ART OF STORY WRITING. Esenwein and Chambers. Dr. Esenwein's latest
work on Story Writing. A direct and effective guide to actual fictional narration. The
chapter on plot alone is worth the price of the book to any writer- xi -f- 211 pp. f 1.3S.
WRITING THE SHORT-STORY Esenwein. The standard textbook on the technique
of the Short-Story. Widely used in colleges and universities. A complete course includ-
ing theory, models and practice exercises in actual writing, xiv + 441 pp. $1.26,
STUDYING THE SHORT-STORY. Esenwein. k companion book to Writing the
Short-Story. Sixteen short-story masterpieces, with methods for analysis. No writer
and no lover of good stories can afford to miss this well-spread feast, xxxii + 438 pp.
$1.26.
TEE TECHNIQUE OF THE MYSTERY STORY. Carolyn Wells. With introduction
by Dr. Esenwein. A complete exposition of the mystery story form. A book that stimu-
lates insight into the methods of successful writers of plotted stories and at the same
time cultivates fertility in the mind of the reader, ix + 836 pp. $1.62.
WRITING THE PHOTOPLAY. Esenwein and Leeds. The standard textbook on
photoplay construction. Recently reported by the New York City Public Library as the
book second in demand, outside of fiction, ix + 874 pp. Illustrated. $2.12.
THE ART OF VERSIFICATION. Esenwein and Roberts. A practical working hand-
book of the principles of poetry and the structure of verse forms, xii -j- 310 pp. $1.62.
THE ART OF PUBLIC SPEAKING. Esenwein and Carnagey. An Inspirational
working handbook of instruction for all who would be efficient public speakers. A book
with a "punch" on every page. xi -f 512 pp. $1,76.
If on inspection a book is found undesirable and it is returned within ten days, the -pur-
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THE WRITER'S MONTHLY. Springfield. Mass.
A Weil-Known Writer says:
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The Writer's Monthly
Continuing The Photoplay Author
A Journal for All Who Write
Volume VII
April, 1916
Number 4
KEEPING AT IT— Epes W. Sargent
THE DRAMATIC SKETCH— E. Robert Stevenon
TYPEWRITER FATIGUE— Joseph F. Boyle ....
LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS— XVI— J. Berg Esenwein .
THE WRITER'S MAGAZINE GUIDE— DEPARTMENT—
Anne Scannell O'Neill .......
IMPORTANT PHOTOPLAY FACTS— E. M. Wickes
THINKS AND THINGS— DEPARTMENT— Arthur Leeds
A WRITER'S PRAYER-POEM— Mrs. E. W. Dennstedt
THE WORD PAGE— DEPARTMENT
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS— THE HIGH CLASS COMPOSITION
E. M. Wickes
EXPERIENCE MEETING— DEPARTMENT
CRITICS IN COUNCIL— DEPARTMENT
H. C. S. FOLKS— DEPARTMENT .
WHERE TO SELL— DEPARTMENT
EDITORIAL
THE WRITER'S BOOK LIST
ANSWERS TO INQUIRIES
147
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153
156
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159
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164
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181
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WRITING FOR VAUDEVILLE
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HOW TO WRITE the Monologue, Two-Act Playlets, Musical Comedy, The Popular
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Vol. vii April, 1916 Number 4
The Writer's Monthly
Continuing The Photoplay Author
A Journal for All Who Write
Keeping at It
By Epes Winthrop Sargent
Perhaps nothing about photoplay writing seems to excite more
comment than the fact that in the past five or six years the average of
available stories has not increased. Out of every batch of submitted
manuscripts there will be found not more than five per cent, of real
plays, of which from one-half of one per cent, to two per cent, are
possibly available to the studio in question. At first glance it seems
truly remarkable that this average does not improve with time, for
surely some advancement should have been made in this period.
It does seem strange until you come to consider the situation,
but if you are in touch with authors and editors alike the matter soon
resolves itself into a case of "cold feet" — just that and nothing more.
Not one writer in a hundred seems to stick to the work long enough to
reap the reward, and precisely because writers expect too large a
reward too quickly.
There are more writers making money from photoplay work
today than ever before, but there are fewer free lances who can show a
profit on their work than there were three years ago. This is because
of the demand for studio writers — men and women who can be
depended upon to keep up a certain average of output. As soon as
these are discovered they are apt to be snapped up by the studios,
and so the percentage of good free lances continues to be small. The
average of outside contributions remains the same.
The reason for this is clear, once the conditions are understood.
Probably not more than one writer in a hundred who takes up photo-
play work does so with the intention of mastering his profession. The
other ninety-nine are attracted by the stories of large prices and quick
results. They read the advertising in the photoplay magazines and
are told that photoplay writing is easy. They do not want to write —
they want to receive checks ; and so they start in with nothing but the
check in view. Generally they merely ask for a "sample scenario."
They seem to think that this is all they need. Later on they may buy a
book or invest in a school course, selecting whichever book or course
utters the most gorgeous lies. Still their stuff does not sell, and then
they have their stories "reconstructed" at prices ranging from two to
seven dollars. Still they do not sell Then they give place to others
who follow the same false path to discouragement.
148 KEEPING AT IT
All these writers follow nothing but form. They buy a book
because the sample script must have been wrong. They turn to
reconstruction because the book must have been wrong. Never do
they seem to realize that their plots were not good ones. They can-
not understand that. The plots must be good because they wrote
them, and the man who runs the picture show and the " professor" of
English at the High School both said the story was good. What the
" professor" does not know about photoplay production is everything,
but he pronounces the plot good, and the would-be photoplay writer
accepts the decision because it accords with his own belief. The
"professor" has verified his own suspicions: His plots are good; they
do not sell; either the studios steal the stories or they do not buy
any. In either case it is useless to continue writing. They stop.
It may seem an astounding statement, but I honestly believe
that at least from eight to ten thousand aspirants take up and abandon
the work each year. I have seen estimates that ran as high as a
quarter million, but this includes those who write only one or two
scripts and stop. I am speaking of those who cover the course to the
first jump.
Of those ten thousand, perhaps eight thousand are hopelessly
unfit. They are unlettered and unimaginative. They have not the
slightest chance in the world. Of the remaining two thousand, perhaps
ten or fifteen might make authors of photoplays if they kept at it, but
they work for a year or two on form alone, try to sell on form, fail and
quit. They lose all of the time they have invested — which may not
be much — and they lose a chance of working up to an income of from
$3,000 to $5,000 a year.
I have just laid down a letter from a physician. For a couple of
years he has been working without result. At first he was willing to
take advice and work on plotting, but about six months ago he started
on form. In his letter he says: "I want to see a script of a five-reel
play that brought $100 a reel or more. I want to see what they are
like. I know I can do as well if — " he can only get a form to follow,
and the poor man does not have the sense to accept an earlier letter
in which he was told that he could sell on synopsis if only he has a five-
reel idea.
Another man, this time a newspaper man, has been working on
plots for more than two years. He is willing to work two years more.
He sold one comedy a year ago and then stopped trying to sell for a
year. Now he is turning out plots that are almost good enough to sell,
but he knows, because he has been told, that he must do more plotting
before he can not only write good plots but avoid writing poor ones.
When his education is completed he is going to be a star writer,
because he is getting a good grounding in his work.
It is lonesome work writing year after year and never even show-
ing your work to an editor, but it is about the only way to get ahead.
Unless a person is willing to work at least three years on plotting,
following whatever instruction he receives, it is useless to try to make
a success of photoplay writing, and so few find an immediate success
THE DRAMATIC SKETCH 149
that these are scarcely numerous enough to fill the studio openings as
they are created.
There is not a studio in the country that does not have in its
employ staff-men who can write stories as good as the average and
turn out from one to three reels a week. There is not a studio in the
country that does not employ at least one reconstruction man who
can turn out from an author's script a more intelligent continuity than
the revision bureaus. There is hardly a studio in the country that is
not willing to pay a decent price for a story that is above the average
of their plots, but you must stick to the game long enough to come to
the point where your plots are better than the average. The trouble is
that the free lances seldom prolong their studies to the point where
they can do better than average work. Most of them stop long before
they can equal the average, because they have been told this is a
business of quick returns. It is not. Even the rejected scripts come
home late. If you will realize that and be prepared for "the wait,"
then you'll help to boost the average above the two per cent. You
have perhaps put in two years. Put in two years more, and in the
fifth collect for all five. Do not lose that two-year advantage.
The Dramatic Sketch
By E. Robert Stevenson
The dramatic sketch and the little one-act play that booking
agents find worth putting on their vaudeville programs, must be
built with keen appreciation for the type of entertainment by which
it is surrounded. The average writer who tries to produce this sort
of stuff often strikes failure because he does not realize this fact.
Some of the finest playlets, filled with literary and dramatic merits,
and enthusiastically received by cultured audiences as curtain-
raisers in theaters that sold seats at two dollars, or, perhaps, in
Winthrop Ames's Little Theater in New York, could not stand the
strain of being produced in the middle of a vaudeville program. The
writer who has ambitions to see his one-act play kindly received in a
vaudeville house had best study the entire entertainment of that
class of theater, for in that will he reach an understanding of his
audience.
It is true, in a sense, that your little play stands or falls by itself,
but you cannot dodge the fact that when the curtain lifts upon it, it
will face an audience in a "variety" frame of mind. Perhaps some
clog-dancers have just been swinging them into loud applause by
rhythmic jigging with interpolated new steps. Perhaps a Girl-
and-Boy-act has had their sentiments moving to the tune of a popular
love song. Perhaps two comedians have just left them in roars of
laughter. A trick-animal-act may have been on, or a troupe of
trapeze artists. Whatever one of these acts may immediately pre-
150 THE DRAMATIC SKETCH
cede your little play, it is certain that a number of acts of that sort
will have had the attention of the audience before you attempt to
get it. The effect of these acts on the audience is what I mean by
the "variety" frame of mind.
A vaudeville audience is restless; it is used to variety; and woe
to the playlet that attempts to hold them for too long a time. Long
experience has taught that twenty minutes for this type of play is
the practical dead line. The actor who sees anything longer than
that coming his way will beat a hasty retreat, or will get out a knife
to cut it to the length that the business requires.
This " variety" frame of mind, or restlessness, holds these enter-
tainment seekers to a high pitch that makes its own peculiar demand
upon the one-act play. From the moment that the curtain lifts, the
action must move, and move fast. There is no time for the gradual
introduction of characters that is allowed to the four-act play. The
moments that the longer drama devotes to getting across the foot-
lights peculiarities of character, which give so much color to the work
of our best actors, cannot be wasted in the tabloid drama. Twenty
minutes is preciously short time, the successful one-act-play writer
will assure you. Unless the play is a comedy pure and simple, the
small things that help to give color quirks in the four-act play, but
do not push the action on, must be discarded.
How to grip the attention at the very beginning of the act is a
serious problem. The four-act play in the legitimate theater has it
easy enough, in comparison, at the lead-off. Its audience is fresh in
mind, ready to begin its night's entertainment in comparatively
gradual manner, and set for that special kind of play — often for that
particular production. A gentle start that introduces the story and
gives time to getting the spectators worked into the proper tone or
atmosphere of the piece is all right there. But in the vaudeville
sketch or the playlet this method will not work. Preceding acts
have made minds keenly alert, and speed is required at once.
Speed in the drama at any place, and imperatively at the
immediate opening of the play, calls for action. High tension in
dialogue is secured only when the audience has a clear idea of the
situation. This high tension may be held in the middle of a play
with no action, or practically none, providing the words all show the
burning brain of the speaker, their whip-lash effect upon the hearer,
or clearly throw another twist into the plot complication because in
delivering them the speaker reaches a vital decision. But dialogue of
tame introduction, explaining a situation, is dangerous material to
work with in getting a vaudeville playlet under way.
Action must be used to get the " punch" into the introduction
of the vaudeville sketch. Let me illustrate. Your rising curtain may
discover a disordered room. A man in the act of hiding some article
that is of importance to the plot overthrows a tall, Colonial clock.
The crash brings another character upon the scene, and the struggle
between the two as to the ownership, or disposition, of the hidden
article is set under way. All this, happening rapidly with noise and
TYPEWRITER FATIGUE 151
movement, will catch the attention of a vaudeville audience and pull
their interest into a play. That clock, you will say, is purely a
trick. Yes, but a few tricks must be learned by the dramatist who
confronts the difficulties of gripping a vaudeville audience from the
start.
Again, the curtain may discover two characters intent over some
papers of importance to the plot. A sentence or two gives a hint as
to what they are about. Then comes a sharp, imperative rapping
at the door, with their startled jump into action. Perhaps an effort
is made to conceal one of the persons in the room or to find a place
of concealment for the papers before the person rapping is admitted.
This gives the sort of action that the vaudeville play must have to
set it moving so as to get interest at once. There are, of course, many
other ways of doing it. These are only illustrative examples.
Comedy, to be sure, has a rule all its own. If you can get a
laugh from the start and can keep the fun moving, success is assured.
The ability to write the stuff that will keep laughs coming is a heaven-
sent gift. The writer of that sort of material has no need to sweat
over the effort to grip the interest at the opening, and, in twenty
minutes, drive through in rapid action a story that will reach a
logical, thrilling climax. There is great satisfaction in the accom-
plishment, however. It is hard work, but the joy of sitting in the
audience and seeing it get the effect that you worked hard to attain
in a hard fought-for climax is far beyond the simple pleasure of hear-
ing your fancy fines get the laughs for which you planned.
Typewriter Fatigue
By Joseph Francis Boyle
It is usually a long time before the writer is thoroughly recon-
ciled to the fate of eternally rapping a typewriter. Only a very few
approach the machine with anything like pleasure. Often two or
three hours at the machine sees the writer punching everywhere, and
looking sometimes for a whole half minute for a desired key! This
sounds rather ridiculous, but if the reader will pursue his own writing
long enough he will meet this difficulty, and the futile anger that goes
with it.
And then, there is that tired feeling — sometimes a dangerous
pain at the heart. For a long time I was bothered by these troubles,
but I considered my time entirely too valuable to waste on study of
automatic writing, until the time came when I had to, for comfort
at the machine.
At first I wrote by sight, bent forward over my work, and hurried
along. Two hours of this usually saw me hopelessly tired and dis-
gusted. Since then I have improved these conditions in the following
manner :
152 THE SIMPLE SIMON-PURE
From an instruction book, never used, I cut an exact representa-
tion of the keyboard, and placed it before myself on a small stand.
Instead of looking at the keyboard, I watched the diagram for any
letters that would not come readily. It came hard at first, but
perseverance in that, as it does in everything else, soon brought
results and at the present writing I write comfortably at the machine
without bothering about the keyboard and with thoughts free and
uninterrupted — and this without any commercial school or other
similar training. I do not cite this as a very great accomplishment,
but to show that typing may be made a pleasure and direct-to-
machine-transcribing may be pursued with entire comfort and per-
fect transcribing of the thoughts. In fact, if anything, I am a great
deal more efficient since I left the old method of writing with paper
and pencil.
Sitting back against the chair instead of leaning forward over
the work did away almost entirely with the premature tired feeling
and when I leave off work now, it is only because of the natural
tiredness entailed by the long " grind."
It is decidedly worth every writer's while to learn automatic
writing — that is, touch writing. It makes a pleasure of typing, does
away with trying to do two things at once — thinking and writing, —
and makes the work neater and more speedy of production.
There has been a little controversy over the two modes of com-
posing— pad and pencil, and on the machine. Anyone who has done
the former knows full well its objections of writing, interpreting and
rewriting, while the significant fact is that most of the old-timers at
the game compose directly on the machine. There is some talk about
the distracting influence of the clatter of the type bars. Perhaps this
is justified at first in the case of a new machine, but as the user con-
tinues this method he will find that they distract him less, and later
will find that the music of that clatter is a necessary accompaniment
to his writing !
The following story, which appears in The Westminster Gazette,
London, is going the rounds of the continental papers. That it has
been copied in various Teutonic papers shows that the war has not
killed their sense of humor.
A German and a Dane met recently in Schiller's house in Weimar.
As they stood gazing reverently on the scene the German, swelling
with pride, remarked to his fellow- visit or, "So this is where our
national poet, Schiller, lived."
"Pardon me," said the other; "not national, but international."
"How so?" asked the German, with surprise.
"Why, consider his works," the Dane replied. "He wrote
'Mary Stuart' for the English, 'The Maid of Orleans' for the French,
'Egmont' for the Dutch, 'William Tell' for the Swiss "
"And what did he write for the Germans, pray?" broke in the
other.
Pat came the Dane's answer: "For the Germans he wrote
'The Robbers.'"
Letters to Young Authors
SIXTEENTH LETTER
My Dear Lin:
When your good parents named you after Lindley Murray they
doubtless did not intend that you should ever have to ask of their old
comrade, "What is a sentence?" But, raillery aside, my boy, I con-
gratulate you upon making sure of this little point while you are still
in your 'teens, for I have often seen the writings of those who neg-
lected to settle the question until they had published their first
novels — at their own expense.
A sentence is like an unbroken colt — charged with untold pos-
sibilities. The only rider who can predict its destination is he who
has a good seat, holds an experienced rein, and looks ahead. Your
young fancy may invent other comparisons at pleasure — from the
tone of your letter I judge that most of them might be doleful.
When I was a lad I cordially hated English Grammar — chiefly,
I now think, because my teacher did not allow me to reason about
the why of things, but set before me a penitential book, bound in
forbidding black, and bearing the name of Bullion. I saw no aptitude
in that author's name, you may be assured. But later I came to see
that the countless forms into which, say, fifty selected words may be
turned make up a puzzle problem as fascinating as any ever sold in
a novelty shop. So I have wondered, sometimes, whether the same
boys and girls whose constructive abilities are challenged by " Erec-
tors," dissected pictures, and like useful games, could not be made to
see how much fun it is to take two words, put them together so as
to make them express a thought, and then by adding word after word
make changes and improvements in what is said until the whole stands
as complete as a palace. Sounds simple, doesn't it, Lin?
Well, I am not jesting. It can be done. Some rare teachers are
doing it day by day, and they are opening up delightful fields to their
pupil-friends — fields which are sure all their lives long to yield new
things to the seekers.
You'll not mind my repeating at the start much that you know?
It may help me make clear just what you do not understand.
Single words are the units of ideas. A single word is enough to
express a single idea — I am not going to deal with school-book terms
except as I have to. For example, black carries from you to me an
idea which needs no definition. Now let us see how this very general
idea is narrowed to something definite when we add the word cloud —
black cloud. What have we done? We have called up a mental pic-
ture, more definite than the first, but we have done no more than
make a suggestion. Anything we add further mentally is from our
own imaginations — it does not exist in the two words.
Now this is the simplest form of language. A baby begins to
talk so. He has learned that his brother is called a boy, and also
that when brother is rough with him he is said to be bad, so when
the child wishes to assert that his brother is bad he simply names
the two ideas — bad boy, or perhaps boy bad. This suggests that
brother is bad but it does not actually assert it.
154 LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS
None of us could go much further than this in self-expression
were it not that we have learned to use a number of words which
express one of two things — either action or being, they say what an
object, or an idea, does or is.
With the possession of these two kinds of words — name words
and action or being words — our ability to express ourselves increases
tremendously. The basis of all intelligent speech is here: saying
that, or questioning if, an object or an idea does or is something. In
other words, when we have something to say we must have two things :
a word to name the object or the idea we want to talk about, and
another word to assert or question either an action or a being.
These two kinds of words when put together with sense always
express a thought in simple terms; hence we say that such words
make a sentence — that is, make sense — for that is what the Latin
root means. It does not matter that these words which name an
idea or an object are called nouns when they are real names, and
pronouns when they are a kind of substitute for real names — as Lin
is a noun and you is a pronoun; nor does it matter that the words
expressing action or being are called verbs; the important point is
to remember that in every sentence we must have at least one word
of each of these two kinds — a name word and an action or a being
word, and that these two words must be set in an intelligent relation-
ship to each other.
All this may seem too primary; but wait. Let us begin with
two such words, and by adding word after word, build up an example
from which we may be able to deduce a non-school-book formula to
guide you in building any kind of sentence, and knowing when it is
complete. Perhaps there will be little need for explanations as we go
along — if we take a tight grip on three facts: First, the really vital
parts of any sentence are two — the thing, and what we say about it;
second, each of these parts may contain other words which belong to
it solely; third, when we have completely said what we have to say
about our subject, the sentence is complete.
The storm | rose.
The autumn storm | rose in fury.
The autumn storm, like a squadron of horse charging the enemy, | rose in
fury.
Moment by moment the autumn storm, like a squadron of horse in sheer
joy of slaughter ruthlessly charging the enemy, | rose in fury.
All sorts of variations, you see, are possible, but thus far we have
built each addition upon the subject — the storm, and it is easy to
see that all the words belonging to that subject have been subordi-
nated to the one chief word, for the purpose of bringing out its idea
clearly, forcibly, and completely. If we were to add other words or
groups of words to storm we should want to choose them solely with
the same purpose in view, for it would defeat our object were we to
side-track attention from our big idea, or cover it out of sight with
too many words. It is easy enough for the writer suddenly to dis-
cover an interest in a subordinate idea and allow it to lead him on
until his original purpose is lost in a maze of words. This error is so
LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS 155
common that you can easily expand one of the specimen sentences
to illustrate the folly.
The same common-sense rule of keeping the big idea clearly
uppermost will apply when we expand the action. In order to do this
more clearly we had better express the subject or name idea quite
simply.
The autumn storm \ rose in fury, like the charge of a mad squadron of horse,
trampling, thrusting, smiting, for sheer joy of the battle.
But some sentences contain elements less simple — we may wish
to make more than one assertion regarding more than one subject,
yet keep one subject and one assertion in the foreground, because
it is, for our purpose, the more important.
The autumn storm | rose and the lowland streams \ were soon swollen.
Here the second statement is the more important because we
are concerned with what may result from the swollen streams.
The autumn storm, which had been only half in earnest up till now, | rose in
fury until the lowland streams \ were swollen and every bridge between Meredale
and Ireton | was swept away.
No matter how many statements you may put into your sen-
tence, the one thing necessary is to see that no one of them wanders
away but does its share in saying the chief thing you have in mind.
It will help keep these smaller statements in good order if you
make those which are causes lead up to those which are effects, as
in the sentence just used as an example; or state the effect first and
then show the causes, as in the following:
Between Meredale and Ireton every bridge | was swept away, for the autumn
storm | had been rising in fury until all the streams \ were swollen to reckless floods.
It might interest you to shape and reshape these ideas, varying
the single words but little, until you have gained mastery over many
sentence forms. If you do this, let me utter one caution: Do not
set off — punctuate — as a complete sentence a group of words which
does not definitely finish either an assertion, an exclamation, or a
question.
Verb forms in ing are not enough to furnish the action or
being backbone of a sentence, for the reason that an action or a being
word must clearly express either an assertion or a question in order
to enable the group of words which is organized around it to stand
alone as a thing of complete sense, and therefore be a real sentence.
For instance:
Noticing the swollen condition of the streams,
asserts nothing; it merely suggests, and calls for something to follow,
as:
Noticing the swollen condition of the streams, he \ feared for the bridges
between Meredale and Ireton.
Similarly, groups of words beginning with which, or while, or
whereas, and not containing definite assertions or questions, do not
make good sentences because they really belong to some expression
which has gone before. You can readily supply antecedent expres-
sions to each of the following imperfect groups :
which accounted for the swollen streams.
while every bridge had been swept away.
whereas on the lowland road the bridges were all down.
156 THE WRITER'S MAGAZINE GUIDE
In the last two of these word-groups we have a subject and a
statement about that subject, but since each group opens with a
word that points back to another group of words which logically
ought to precede it, we can easily see how much better it would be
to keep together in a single sentence the ideas that naturally belong
together, and exclude all others. When our ideas on one subject
become too many to handle easily, we had better divide them into
smaller groups, each organized about its own central idea.
To be sure, my dear fellow, this is only the beginning of the
sentence as a grammatical form, but it is the beginning. Fix these
conceptions clearly in your mind and from them you can, by easy
and interesting steps, go on to facility and accuracy in sentence
making. It will both interest and pay you to practice recasting one
sentence into as many forms as possible, being careful always to bring
out the central idea with clearness, force, and what elegance you may.
Faithfully your friend,
Karl von Kraft.
The Writer's Magazine Guide
Compiled by Anne Scannell 0 'Neill
FICTION
"Zelig: the 'Best Short-Story Published in 1915, ' " Benjamin Rosen-
blatt, Current Opinion, March, 1916.
"The New French Kipling," The Literary Digest, March 4, 1916.
"America and Americans in Recent German Fiction," Harvey W.
Thayer, The Bookman, March, 1916.
"List of New Books," The Dial, March 2, 1916.
"Evasive Idealism," Joyce Kilmer, New York Times Magazine,
March 5, 1916.
"The Cream of German Literature," New York Evening Post Maga-
zine, March 4, 1916.
" German- Americans and German Literature," American Review of
Reviews, March, 1916.
"Definition of a Highbrow," Prof. Brander Matthews, New York
Times Magazine, March 5, 1916.
"War's Effect on Two Literary Masters — Gilbert Keith Chesterton,
Anatole France, " New York Times Magazine, February 27, 1916.
JOURNALISM
"A Film Newspaper in the Making, " Alfred A. Cohn, The Photoplay,
April, 1916.
" Delane of the Times, " The New York Sun, March 5, 1916.
"Seven Super-Pens," Arthur Brisbane, Frank Cobb, Robert F. Paine,
and others, Everybody's, March, 1916.
DRAMA
"The Stage," Matthew White, Jr., Munsey, March, 1916.
"On Recent Comedy and Drama," W. D. Howells, in "Editor's Easy
Chair," Harper's, March, 1916.
THE WRITER'S MAGAZINE GUIDE 157
" Scenic Settings in America," Clayton Hamilton, The Bookman,
March, 1916.
" Rallying About Shakespeare," New York Evening Post Magazine,
March 4, 1916.
"Theatres Can Bar Critics," The Fourth Estate, February 26, 1916.
"What is the Matter with American Drama?" Joyce Kilmer, New
York Times Magazine, February 20, 1916.
POETRY
"Another Walt Whitman," The Literary Digest, March 4, 1916.
"America's Golden Age in Poetry," in "Current Comment," The
Century, March, 1916.
"Portraits of the Greatest Living Poets of France," Amy Lowell,
Current Opinion, March, 1916.
"Voices of the Living Poets," Current Opinion, March, 1916.
"Some Unpublished Papers of Robert and Elizabeth Browning,"
edited by George S. Hellman, Harper's, March, 1916.
PHOTOPLAY
"The Picture Battle in Congress," George Wentworth, The Photo-
play, April, 1916.
"Wanted — Moving Picture Authors," Walter Prichard Eaton,
American Magazine, March, 1916.
"Photoplay Faults," Octavus Roy Cohen, Pearson's, March, 1916.
"The New Profession of Beauty," E. Lloyd Sheldon, The Delineator,
March, 1916.
"War Scenes that Never Happened," Edward C. Crossman, The
Illustrated World, March, 1916.
"The Black Magic of the Movie Screen," Charles W. Person, The
Illustrated World, March, 1916.
GENERAL ARTICLES
"Preserving Our Balance," and "Faded Enthusiasms," in "Con-
tributors' Club," The Atlantic Monthly, March, 1916.
"Caste in Criticism," Harvey O'Higgins, The Century, March, 1916.
"An English View of American Literary Criticism, " Edward Garnett,
American Review of Reviews, March, 1916.
"George Bernard Shaw: An Impression," Daniel A. Lord, S. J., The
Catholic World, March, 1916.
"The Persian Influence on European Literature," Charles Leonard
Moore, The Dial, March 2, 1916.
"The Sussex of Rudyard Kipling," William A. Young, The Bookman,
March, 1916.
"Bayard Taylor: Adventurer," Hamilton W. Mabie, The Bookman,
March, 1916.
"In the Homes of Romance," Beulah Marie Dix, Harper's Bazaar,
March, 1916.
"Why are My Photographs a Failure?" 0. L. Griffith, The Ladies'
Home Journal, March, 1916.
"What the Day's Work Means to Me," Ida M. Tarbell, The Book-
man, March, 1916.
158 IMPORTANT PHOTOPLAY FACTS
"Personal Impressions of Henry James," Robert C. Holliday, New
York Evening Post Magazine, March 4, 1916.
" A Talk on the Essay, " Henry Mills Arden, in "The Editor's Study, "
Harper's, March, 1916.
"La Casa de Cervantes," Editorial, The New York Sun, February
27, 1916.
"Gertrude Atherton as Fiction Writer," H. W. Boynton, New York
Evening Post Magazine, February 26, 1916.
Important Photoplay Facts
By E. M. Wickes
The wise scenario writers pay very little attention to the adver-
tisements that appear from time to time in various magazines calling
for scenarios. So many wild-cat concerns spring up over night that
one has to be careful in sending out work. The real information
relative to genuine markets for scenarios is passed from one writer
to another, and the writers obtain this information by taking the
time and trouble to get in personal touch with editors and directors.
At every meeting of "The Photodramatists " — formerly
" The Ed-Au Club " — the members, including photoplaywrights, and
scenario editors, give out any real information that they may have
gleaned. If any particular company shows a lack of courtesy, or a
tendency to be niggardly in remuneration, all the members are made
acquainted with the facts. Editors who are willing to do business in
a business-like manner are also brought up for discussion, and editors
of this type usually have first readings of the members' work.
The latest reports from the club members indicate that Biograph
is in the market for three- and four-reel dramas — synopsis only;
that Metro is willing to pay a hundred dollars a reel for features;
synopsis or complete scenario; that the eastern and western offices
of Vitagraph are looking for single-reel comedies and three- and four-
reel dramas; that Mutual is buying a few three- and four-reel dramas;
that the Equitable is ready to pay a thousand dollars for a five-reel
synopsis with a strikingly original story.
All scenarios intended for the Biograph Company should be
sent to the western office, Gerard and Georgia Streets, Los Angeles,
Cal.
Mr. Proctor, editor of Gaumont, announced at the recent meet-
ing of the Ed-Au Club that he was ready to pay one hundred dollars
a reel for three-, four- and five-reel features, synopses or complete
scenarios. If you play the game according to the rules and do not
receive courteous treatment, just notify the editor of this magazine
and he will have the matter brought to the attention of the members
of the Ed-Au Club.
Thinks /^\Tm in gs
Mr. Leeds has resigned his position as Editor of Scripts for Thomas A. Edison, Inc., in
order to return to freelance writing. As an active member of " The Photodramatists," "The Play-
wrights' Club," "The Society of American Dramatists and Composers," and kindred organizations,
he is in a position to give our readers the benefit of the latest information on matters touching
the photoplay and the drama.
By Arthur Leeds
Most readers of this magazine are familiar with the name, as well
as the aim, of the organization which, up till a few weeks ago, was
known as "The Ed-Au Club." Started in October, 1913, by a little
group of photoplay writers and editors, together with a few directors,
it proved from the very first to be just what a great many workers in
the field of the photoplay had been waiting for. There had been
clubs and societies for writers of fiction and verse, as well as for those
interested in legitimate play writing, but except at chance meetings of
members of the craft, but little opportunity had been offered mem-
bers of the script-writing fraternity to get together and talk over
matters of mutual interest. It was natural, then, that eligible writers
hastened to join the new club as soon as they learned of its formation.
But at that time, and until quite recently, only those writers who had
ten or more produced scripts to their credit were eligible for mem-
bership. That this condition of entry into the organization has
recently been changed is due to the fact that the officers realize that
to have to one's credit two or three really ambitious multiple-reel
"features" is quite as good evidence of a writer's ability — and there-
fore eligibility — as to be able to say that one had written and had
produced ten of the one-reel or possibly split-reel stories that were in
vogue at the time this club was formed. Also, as is pretty generally
known, many companies at the present time are buying synopses
only, or at any rate are willing to accept a well-written synopsis in
place of the complete script — in fact they prefer the synopsis unless
the writer is an experienced scenario constructionist — and for that
reason the club's officers see good reason for making the conditions of
entry more elastic than heretofore.
Again, it is the desire of the club to add to its list of members the
names of men and women who, if not actually photodramatists, are
genuinely interested, in one way or another, in this new and distinc-
tive branch of literature. This, of course, does not refer to mere pic-
ture-play patrons, but to professional critics, as well as to those legiti-
mate dramatists and fiction writers who have as yet gone no farther
than to submit synopses of their plays and stories. While there are a
great many fiction and dramatic writers of prominence who are con-
tent merely to submit synopses, it is also true that many members of
the Authors' League of America, the Society of American Dramatists,
The Playwrights' Club, and other similar organizations are interested
in learning the actual technique of the photoplay, realizing that, unless
160 THINKS AND THINGS
a company insists on " synopsis only," the writer stands a much
better chance of having his play put on just as he conceived it if he is
able to supply the director with a complete, properly prepared
scenario, which shows an intimate knowledge of photoplay stage
limitations as well as a knowledge of the camera's possibilities.
About a year ago, when I, with some other members, suggested
changing the name of the club, on the ground that many people might
not understand what the name "Ed-Au" stood for, the motion was
voted down, but it has since been found that the old name was a
puzzle to a great many people, and now, the club having just been
incorporated, the name has been changed, and the organization will
henceforth be known as "The Photodramatists. " This name is felt
to be at once thoroughly self-explanatory and dignified — in keeping
with the object of the club.
Even those who read the trade papers regularly, whether they are
connected with a studio or not, are aware of the fact that at present
the whole film industry is being turned completely inside out. " Fly-
by-night" concerns are going out of business, and the old established
firms are waking up to the fact that the wastage in the studio must be
ended. I have repeatedly pointed out how the manufacturers are at
last being made to realize that "the play's the thing," as a result of
which they are one and all looking about for good, well-written stories,
for which, with the exception of the , ,
and Companies (writers familiar with the game
may fill in the blanks to suit themselves), they are all paying much
better prices than ever before. Along with this resolve to get the best
stories and pay for them, has come a decided tendency to sand-bag
certain directors and forcibly take from them the carte-blanche which,
in the past, they have so grossly misused. In fact, the time has come
when the script writer who is both earnest and ambitious may without
hesitation assume the title of " photodramatist, " and may even feel
that he is in relatively the same position, in the field of the motion
picture, as is the dramatist, as distinguished from the playwright, in
the field of the legitimate drama.
In this connection, the distinction between the dramatist and the
playwright was recently pointed out by Dr. Louis K. Anspacher, the
author of "The Unchastened Woman," now running at the Maxine
Elliott Theatre, New York, in an impromptu address at a meeting of
the Society of American Dramatists. In telling of meeting, while in
England, with Rudolf Besier, the author of "Don" and "Lady
Patricia," Dr. Anspacher said that Besier had remarked that, in his
opinion, America was a nation of playwrights rather than of drama-
tists. And both these dramatic craftsmen agree that the playwright
starts with a more or less fully developed plot, whereas the dramatist
invariably starts with a character, then building his plot so as to
develop and round out this characterization to the fullest extent. Thus
(although except to illustrate my point no comparison is intended)
Shakespeare was, first and last, a true dramatist, while scores of
modern writers of "story plays" are essentially playwrights. Inci-
dentally, and returning to the subject of clubs, this is no reflection on
THINKS AND THINGS 161
The Playwrights' Club, among whose members, as I well know, are
many genuine dramatists.
"The Photodramatists, " then, is a club composed not merely of
writers who have mastered the trick of stringing a few dramatic inci-
dents together to form a salable story; its members all realize the
wonderful possibilities of the screen drama, and are, one and all,
striving to write photodramas with striking, clean-cut characteriza-
tions as well as logically worked out and interesting plots. They are
working hard to become expert craftsmen in a new field of literary
endeavor. Every reader of The Writer's Monthly who has met
with success in selling material for screen production is invited to
make application for membership. The initiation fee is only two
dollars, with yearly dues — payable half-yearly — of six dollars. The
officers of the club are now negotiating for a permanent home in a
centrally located office building. Until the new rooms are ready, the
club will meet twice a month in the beautifully furnished and commo-
dious projection rooms of the Balboa Film Company, in the Mecca
Building, 1600 Broadway. Here it will be possible to run certain
films, the technical details of which we may wish to discuss and
criticise. Arrangements are now being made with a prominent literary
agent — who specializes in motion picture scripts and who knows the
market thoroughly — to handle as much of the work of members as
they may choose to offer in this way, instead of marketing it for them-
selves. Photodramatists in New York City and vicinity may learn,
by addressing the secretary, the date of the next meeting, and will be
made welcome if they care to pay us a visit. All applications for
membership should be addressed to the secretary, Mrs. Mary Louise
Farley, 607 West 136th Street, New York City. If you are anxious to
get in touch with the writers, editors and directors who are really
doing things in the world of the photodrama, now is the time to apply
for membership.
So many writers and editors have spoken of the foolish practice
of amateurs in sending manuscripts addressed to the editor personally,
instead of to the scenario department or magazine editorial depart-
ment, that it would seem unnecessary to add to what has been said.
But I should like to remind script writers that they, especially, should
refrain from addressing the editors personally, unless they are person-
ally acquainted with him — or her, as "she" is in a few cases. Not
only does it gain nothing to send to the editor, addressing him by
name, but it may lead to delay in the handling of your script. Since
leaving the Edison Company, I get, on an average, a dozen scripts a
day, which come to my home, addressed to me personally, but in
"care of the Edison Company." Since I get over to the Edison
studio only about twice a week, there is a delay of a few days, at least,
before the scripts reach the department for which they were intended.
When scripts come to me with postage due, I simply refuse to accept
them, and they go back to the writers without even being opened.
Apart from the folly of sending to the editor personally, it is time
that those writers who will insist upon sending scripts out without
attaching sufficient postage were taught a lesson. In most scenario
162 THINKS AND THINGS
departments, at the present time, the rule is to refuse to accept
scripts from the postman when postage is due upon them. That is as
it should be; only the most ingorant amateur would neglect this
important selling point.
A. H. Woods, the theatrical manager, has taken the first act of a
play called "The Promise," the second act of a play called "The
Chain," and the third act of one called "Think It Over," and has
reconstructed them into what he thinks is a consistent and powerful
drama. The title of the new play, according to the New York Evening
Telegram, has not been decided upon, as each of the three playwrights
insists on the name of his play being retained. Mr. Woods calls this
the Luther Burbank school of dramatic composition. But let not
Mr. Woods think that in "pulling off" this "literary stunt" he is
doing anything novel. He has already been "beaten to it " by approxi-
mately nine-hundred and ninety-nine so-called "original" photo-
playwrights. In fact, neither in the United States nor in Universal
City is it possible to find a writer of photoplays who has not, at one
time or another, been a pupil in the Burbank school of which Mr.
Woods speaks. If any alleged photoplaywrights insist that they have
never, no never, done such a thing, just tell them to go to; their
speech is not sooth. In lopping off a limb of another man's literary
tree, they may, and generally do, either peel the bark off or strip it of
leaves, or something of the kind, but the real wood — the situation —
is there none the less. Angels and ministers of grace! if we were to be
denied this privilege what would become of those hardy annuals
known as staff writers, who are often called upon at four o'clock of
one day to have a multiple-reel story ready by the following morning,
so that a prominent stage star who has just been recruited into the
"movies" may be put to work without a hold-up. "Grafting" is a
part of the game, dear child, in both the scenario and the executive
offices of many companies. There are more plots in heaven and
earth, Horatio, than ever came out of your own note-book.
Writing in Moving Picture Stories, the conductor of the "Scenario
Hints" department points out how many of the producers are at last
beginning to realize that the obviously "padded" feature picture has
gone a long way toward bringing about any general dissatisfaction
with the films that may exist at the present time. It was so easy for a
director to take several hundred feet of "scenic" stuff, or — if the lead-
ing woman happened to be his wife or sweetheart, as often happened —
to work in numerous "close-ups" of the female lead, often with very
pleasing effect, but in no way adding to the strength of the story, or
even assisting in its logical working out. He quotes Mr. George
Kleine, who has, for one, come out with a strong statement against
the padded story: "We want our subjects to be strong enough to
build, say, seven reels upon them, and then we want to reduce them to
five reels before sending the feature out. As an example, ' Du Barry '
was thirteen reels without titles, and we reduced it to six thousand
five hundred feet with titles. 'The Money Master' was ten reels,
which we cut down to five. When we don't get one hundred per cent
in our features, it is not the result of careless handling or neglect, but
THINKS AND THINGS 163
simply an error of judgment or some other cause. " Which shows that
George Kleine, at least, has the right idea. The "padded" feature
has done more to drive the regular patrons away from the picture
theatres than almost any other cause. It is time for a change. Doing
away with the old-fashioned arbitrary lengths for stories, instead of
letting them run on to a logical conclusion, whether in twelve hundred
feet or three thousand and thirty-seven, will help a whole lot.
Bide Dudley, who conducts the theatrical news department in
the New York World, recently broke into the comedy script writing
game. After going through the experiences with directors that so
many writers have met, he delivered himself of the following, a la
Walt Mason:
I wrote a film scenario in which a man I christened
Joe took off his hat, while on the street, and bowed, as
passed a maiden sweet. They bought my script and then
it went unto an editor, a gent who said that Joe should
never bow. Said he: "It's useless, anyhow." He took
poor Joe and had him turn into a store and buy a churn.
My script was then submitted to a film director fellow who
at once began to shake his head. "Joe shouldn't buy that
churn, " he said. He had Joe go next door and buy a great
big drink of rock and rye. "It's now consistent," said the
man. " We'll follow out the drinking plan. " All right! They
started turning cranks. The funny man yelled: "Wait!
No thanks! I'll have to kick about that drink. Joe ought to
smash his hat, I think." So Joe, who'd started out to greet
a lady on a public street, became the village drunk instead,
a broken hat upon his head. They showed the film. I heard
each say: " It ought to be the other way. " I merely smiled,
for I'm no crank. I put my money in the bank and when
my friends would tell me they had seen my film I'd smile
and say unto myself: "Brace up, old chap! You got the
cash. Why care a rap?"
A Writer's Prayer
Mrs. E. W. Dennstedt
Guide my pen, Thou Master Workman,
Touch with living fire each line —
Only thus may human message
Bear the stamp of touch divine.
Lead me e'en among the shadows,
Make me kin to those who weep,
That I may with touch unerring
Pen the vigils others keep.
immrnmrnmsTwrnrnm
The Word
Dage_
Conducted by the Editor
In this little Department will be found from month to month such notes, observations, and
criticisms on the values and uses of words as may be contributed, or provided by the Staff of The
Wbitek's Monthly. No offerings can be considered that are not brief, pungent, and accurate.
Not alone the authoritative word-books but also good usage will be taken as the standard.
The physician does not try to cure a symptom, but looks for the
cause. No more should the writer act as though his chief concern
were with words, instead of with ideas, those greater things of which
words are but the symbols.
It is a common thing to find devotees of the pen trying earnestly
to make their language stronger, or more beautiful, or more striking,
whereas their first concern should be to think strong, beautiful, or
striking thoughts — and then take pains to clothe them with perfectly
fitting words. The search for the right word is admirable only when
there is an idea worth uttering. We understand when a metropolitan
society man is concerned that his evening clothes should fit, but the
same anxiety would be ludicrous in a Hottentot.
I suspect that it is this same mistaken notion — that clothes will
make a man — which, in another application, causes so many young
writers to be fond of high-flown language. Their thoughts are not
lofty, but, they say, hifalutin words are a good substitute; there is no
real poetry in their ideas, but highly ornamented language will answer
as well, they think. Yet, to be more just, these are not their real
opinions — doubtless the truth is that they wish their thoughts to be
high and poetic, and so fall into the human — and pathetic — error of
supposing that wishing makes them so. Hamlet rebuked the identical
heresy in the strolling players when they tore a passion to tatters to
simulate emotion.
Does not this common mistake account for the free use of poetic
words in prose? When Miss Prim would be what my good mother
used to call "nasty nice," she purses her lips and says " whilst," and
" hither," and "erstwhile," and feels certain that her fine speech
stamps her as being super-elect.
There are only two types of prose in which highly poetic diction
may properly be used — in those lofty passages of serious discourse in
which nobility of thought demands a high sort of utterance; and
when we caricature, or are playful. The great orators have always
used poetic words, though only in impassioned moments. The jes-
ters, too, love to poke fun at the toploftical by imitating their high-
sounding periods.
To put on is the sure mark of impoverished thought — only they
pretend who have to.
Simple words are nearly always best. A thinker of strong
thoughts chooses words to match them, but it ought to be plain to any
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS 165
student of writing that a powerful arrangement of simple words makes
strong expression. So too of beauty, grace, humor, pathos, and any
mood whatever. Yet there are times — many times, if one may trust
himself not to abuse the privilege — when a Latinistic word compacts
within itself several ideas which it would require a group of simpler
words to express so well. Now and then elegance must be preferred
to force. That is a silly dictum — it can never be a respectable rule —
which Says, " Always prefer Anglo-Saxon words." Those who pride
themselves on following it are either self-deceived or else fall short of
variety in diction. Yet, be it repeated, it is surely best to use Latin
derivatives with a sparing pen, for no style is quite so ridiculous as a
pompous one.
If I should rewrite all the things I have had printed since I was
fourteen I should have to turn my back on many a word I loved in
younger days. In some things I was not well taught, though I was in
most. Of the very modern writers I knew almost nothing until I was
perhaps twenty — Shakespeare, Addison, Defoe, Scott, Hawthorne,
Irving and Cooper, with many lesser lights, were my favorites, though
of course I read miles of boys' favorites too. But on the stately style
my young mind was fed, and, to tell the truth, I am not sorry now, for
it is easy enough to lose one's taste for Georgian and Victorian Eng-
lish if one reads only the present-day novelists.
What I am trying to say, however, is this : there is a safe middle
ground in diction which goes between the big-worded worthies of
earlier generations and the journalistic style of nowadays. One may
find it in the English of such well-grounded writers as Stevenson,
George Gissing, Weir Mitchell, and Mrs. Wharton, whose words are
Latin or Saxon as the need demands, and whose style is neither
ponderous nor flippant, but at once flexible and solid.
Help for Song Writers
The High Class Composition
By E. M. Wickes
Some persons get the impression that the term "song writing"
applies only to popular songs, whereas it includes high class songs,
hymns, and, in fact, all verse intended for a musical setting.
The reason for the publicity given to popular song writing is that
it offers such large rewards for so little actual labor; and furthermore,
a popular song is intended for the masses, and the demand for a
commodity that appeals to the masses will always exceed by far
something of a similar nature that has been produced for the classes.
Before taking up song writing anyone should find out the form of
composition for which he is best suited, and that will be largely indi-
cated by which one most appeals to him. To master any one form
requires a great deal of time, study, and practice, and no person should
166 HELP FOR SONG WRITERS
try to become an expert in all before he has become thoroughly famil-
iar with one. Even well-known popular song writers realize that their
creative ability is limited to one particular style, and of this style they
make a specialty, instead of trying to be a sort of a jack-of-all trades.
If men who know the full workings of the popular song game see the
folly of trying to go beyond one type, how much more so will it be for
the tyro, who usually attempts to write all the different styles of
popular songs, as well as high class numbers and hymns.
In order to write salable ragtime songs you have to learn how to
think and dream in a ragtime groove. You will have to acquire a
sense of ragtime rhythm, and once you become saturated with it you
will not be able to do much in the way of high class ballads, much less
hymns. Any one who has ever tried to learn a foreign language knows
what a task it is to speak it correctly until he has learned to think in
that language.
Most of the publishers of high class songs are willing to consider
manuscripts from outsiders, but, of course they will not accept any-
thing unless it measures up to their standards. In offering work to a
high class publisher an author should send in a complete song — words,
music, and piano accompaniment — otherwise it will not receive much
consideration. The best way for a beginner is to find out if certain
firms purchase from outside writers, then secure a number of their
published songs and study them carefully. This will cost a few
dollars, but the music will become your tools, and every artist has to
purchase some tools, and, in fact, keep on purchasing them.
You might also ask the publisher to send you a catalogue. In it
you are likely to find pieces that are intended for juvenile entertain-
ments, or for general receptions. Publishers use this sort of material
from year to year, and if you can offer the kind that will appeal to
others you should be able to find a market. Practice pieces for musi-
cal students are also always in demand. Of course, you will not
become wealthy or famous from writing little reception numbers or
practice pieces, but a few acceptances will add to 3^our courage and
confidence and possibly open other markets. If you have an iota of
real creative ability and really desire to sell your work, you will even-
tually find a purchaser, and nothing but death will stop you.
The themes in high class songs adhere to the esthetic side of life,
mostly to love in its ideal state. The publishers do not care for catch
lines, and they do not insist that your title be powerful enough to stop
a show. You need not have a complete story dealing with persons,
as you would in a popular song, for scores of songs issued by the high
class houses carry numbers that treat of flowers, the various seasons,
or even birds. "The Meadow Lark Is Calling," "I Feel the Spring-
time's Gladness," could be available for high class songs, but whether
they would appeal to a publisher would depend upon the amount of
sentiment and poetry that the writer would inject into them. If you
can mingle a delicate or a strong human interest with the nature
theme, all the better.
Lovers of high class songs are indifferent as to whether a song
carries a chorus or not, whereas in popular songs the chorus is nine-
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS 167
tenths of the song. However, if you should have a strong refrain three
is no reason why you should not use it with a high class ballad. Some-
times the last two lines of each stanza are repeated in lieu of a chorus.
The average length of the lyric in a high class number is two
stanzas, each stanza carrying from four to eight lines. It is not uncom-
mon to see a lyric with one stanza and no refrain. Such songs, being
short, are generally used as encore selections.
The irregular meters and faulty rhymes so prevalent in popular
songs are not tolerated by high class houses. You must not lose sight
of the fact that these songs are intended for educated persons, and the
best way to obtain an inkling as to what will appeal to them is to
study the kind of songs any particular house has been in the habit of
buying — or study a few numbers from half a dozen publishers.
Some publishers make a practice of issuing songs in the spring and
fall, and when you discover one that adopts this policy you should
offer your musical wares in the summer and winter — about three
months ahead of the publication season. A good song is sometimes
returned as a result of having been submitted at the wrong time, for
publishers do not like to over-stock on manuscripts; and besides, a
new season may bring with it a new type of demand.
Euphony and clarity are just as essential in high class songs as
they are in the popular numbers. Simplicity will never weaken your
work, although you may indulge in figurative language in high class
songs to a greater extent than in popular lyrics, as you have a more
intelligent class of people to please; but in your efforts to introduce
variety, with figures of speech, do not make your phrasing too archaic
or heavy. Even educated folk revel at times in lighter emotions.
A wise plan for the inexperienced writer is to keep close to the
love motive, whether it be happy or unhappy love. But do not drag
in maudlin affection, for — whether this notion be correct or incorrect
— such an element is supposed to be unknown to cultured minds. In
love themes, aim at idealism rather than at realism.
There is a clear-cut distinction between a hymn and a sacred song,
such as fills the Sunday-school song book, the evangelistic song book,
and the special service leaflets which are used for occasions like Christ-
mas, Easter, Children's Day, and Rally Day. It is absolutely neces-
sary for the writer to grasp this difference if sales are to be achieved.
A true hymn always contains an address to the Deity, whereas a
sacred song is a lyric which dwells upon some phase of religious experi-
ence, or consists of an appeal to some class of people — the religious or
the irreligious. " Nearer, my God, to Thee" is purely a hymn;
"Brighten the Corner Where You Are" — used so much in the Billy
Sunday campaigns — is a sacred song. Even " Onward Christian
Soldiers," though contained in nearly every church hymn book, is
not strictly a hymn. Neither is "Sweet Hour of Prayer."
While sacred songs of high poetic merit which contain no direct
praise of or prayer to the Deity occasionally creep into the hymn book
because of their wide appeal, of both words and music, these are
notable exceptions, for the compiling of a church hymn book is
168 HELP FOR SONG WRITERS
always a long task, usually covering years, and is in the hands of a
committee of experienced and exacting hymnologists who do not
admit new work except in extraordinary circumstances.
For the foregoing reasons it is the popular sacred song collections
and the festival service leaflets that offer almost the only markets for
sacred lyrics. Make a careful study of these before writing.
Sacred song writing does not promise much in the way of remu-
neration, but, as a popular writer once sang, " Every little bit added to
what you have, makes just a little bit more. " Besides, writing gives
you practice, and, to use a bromide, practice makes perfection. Then
again, some persons prefer to write for glory, and the possible good
that they may do.
A sacred song is supposed to be inspiring and uplifting — though
some are most dolorous. It should have a strong title around which
the story or the " sermon" should be built. Do not select a title, then
take your Bible and extract a number of phrases. Offer something
original, or give an old idea new treatment. The fundamental ideas of
some of the sacred lyrics that have become nationally popular could be
altered, rephrased, and then enjoy a second life. And all of this could
be done without purloining any of the original author's work. Read
old songs until they suggest new ideas.
Hundreds of gospel song books are issued annually, and some one
supplies the songs. The publishers are always looking for new and
fresh material, and if you think you can supply some you will do well
to get in touch with them.
The average sacred song, words and music, brings only from five to
ten dollars, though some of the popular writers get twenty dollars and
more. However, a prolific writer can sell a considerable number every
year. He need not limit his output to hymns and songs suitable for
grown persons, for there is a brisk market for Sunday-school songs,
which are more or less hymns. The majority of publishers like to
purchase the separate verse, but if you are capable of writing words
and music, do so. Some music composers buy words from writers,
supply the music, and then market the complete hymn or song. From
two to five dollars is the price for a sacred lyric.
Faith, Hope, and Love are favorite themes for hymns. Courage
and Cheer are much dwelt upon. In fact, any uplifting idea will serve.
Bear in mind that the song which does not confine itself to any
one sect will stand a better chance of finding a purchaser. As in a
popular song, you should aim to appeal to the universe. It is
rather a peculiar fact that a number of the most popular sacred songs
carry a march tempo, probably due to the warlike note so often struck
in the Christian religion.
If you happen to be a black sheep, do not give a chronological
record of your sins in the sacred song. While singing, a congregation,
or at least the greater part of it, likes to live and feel the thoughts
expressed in the song; it is unlikely that all of them are black sheep,
so, not being of your hue, they would not find any comfort in singing a
song of this sort. Be cheerful, praise the Lord, ask His graces — He
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS 169
knows just how black your soul is, so don't announce the fact.
The verses in hymns and sacred songs should follow the laws of
poetry. Broken meters are not allowed. Perfect rhymes should be
employed. This is true of the stanza as well as of the chorus. Choruses
are usually found only in Sunday-school and evangelistic songs.
Many of the religious publications are in the market for verse
that possesses the hymn element. The Sunday School Times, Phila-
delphia, Pa., uses a poem in the form of a prayer in every issue, and
pays something like fifty cents a line. Readers interested in hymns
and verse of this sort will do well to obtain a copy, for each issue con-
tains advertisements of publishers of hymns and sacred song books.
Every writer is keenly interested in selling what he writes, so a
most important part of writing is the selling; yet hundreds of writers
do not pay half enough attention to the marketing — systematic
marketing — of their wares. Some writers think that the only real
markets are located in New York, so there they send all their work,
whereas if they would but take the time and trouble to canvass their
own town, they might sell right at their own doors. Perhaps the
pastor of your church may be arranging for a special service and is in
need of a new hymn, or a wealthy pillar of the church may be plan-
ning to give the children a treat and does not know where to obtain a
suitable song for them to sing. You will never know what they do
require unless you keep in touch with them, just as the big writers
keep in touch with the big markets. This offers in many instances a
good beginning.
For writers capable of turning out cheerful bits of high class verse
suitable for Christmas, Easter, Valentine day, and birthdays, there is
a wide market. Thousands of post cards bearing cheerful messages
are printed every year, and it is nothing unusual for a card manufac-
turer to order one hundred or one hundred and fifty verses at a time,
paying one or two dollars for each one. For several years one song
writer in New York averaged something like six hundred dollars every
year on post cards, and he spent less than a month on the entire work.
Markets of this sort can be created where they never existed
before. There may be in your own town a large concern that never
thought of sending out a greeting to its customers. The greeting
need not be a card; it might be offered in the form of a calendar with
a cheerful message, or in the shape of a little booklet. Go to the
manager and show him the good effect that a poetic greeting of this
sort would have on his patrons, explaining that the average person
likes to think that a manager or a company has a kind thought for its
customers, even when they are not actually purchasing goods. Then
when you have him thinking in this way, suggest that you know just
the sort of material that will make a good impression. The first man
may not fall in with your plan, but whether he does or not, try out
every one within a reasonable distance. Make your own opportuni-
ties— that is one of the secrets of selling literary material. And while
you are doing it, the other fellow will sit back in his chair biting his
nails, and, to use slang will wonder how you get away with it.
Contributions to this department are solicited. Paragraphs must be brief and the material
based not on theory but on experience in any branch of pencraft. Mutual helpfulness and a wide
range of subjects are the standards we have set for Experience Meeting.
Here are three excellent ways of fastening the needful but
worrisome stamp to our MS. : Get the postmaster to sell you the
outer row from his big stamp sheet, which gives you a white margin
with its gum. This line of gummed paper may be fastened down
while the stamp is left absolutely loose. Or, buy a box of the tiniest
pins, such as fasten ribbon bolts at the stores or bolts of tape — pins
less than half an inch long. These make such wee holes that they
do not mar the paper and are perfectly safe in the mails. Or, put a
very small clip over the upper ends of the sheets and, under this, on
the front page, slip the stamp. — Lee McCeae.
Carrying the pet typewriter is just a simple little stunt that may
be of use to the traveling writer. For some years I have worried
along either carrying by hand, or paying express charges on my
machine whenever I moved about, for I am so attached to my Blank
typewriter that I do not think I can endure working on a machine
of another make. There were delays and worries wherever I went
until at last I stumbled on the little trick I now employ. I place my
typewriter in my steamer trunk and pack about it. I have cut out
a section of the bottom of the tray, just the shape of the machine, so
that when it is in place the typewriter cannot move either backward
or forward or sideways. With the tray filled, some clothing placed
on the top of the machine as it sticks up through the hole in the
tray, and the trunk top closed, my pet is safe and traveling with me
at no extra expense or worry. — C. Doty Hob art.
Up to a year ago I thought that, if an article — excellent in style,
diction, typing, and accompanied by self-addressed stamped en-
velope— should be held by an editor for nine or ten weeks, acceptance
was sure, but later experience has taught me that there is nothing
sure in this literary game, except the check in hand. In rare instances,
even that has not been cashable! However, of one thing one may
be sure: long detentions bespeak merit in the script. Manuscripts
that are altogether impossible are usually sent back at once.
I had a photo-comedy retained by a reliable film company for
four months. Then it came back with only a simple rejection slip.
I had a short humorous story returned a few days ago that had
been held by one of our best magazines for three months. With it
was enclosed a nice apologetic letter for the long detention, saying
that the story had been passed upon favorably by the first reader,
and that the editor had just been able to pass upon it — he was sorry,
but it was not quite in line with the stories they used. I prized that
EXPERIENCE MEETING 171
letter greatly, as I felt it bespoke merit in my work. So I lost no
time in mailing the script again.
Before mailing a script it is best to make a list of possible markets,
sending first to the most feasible; much knowledge of the character
of work each periodical uses is necessary to give that nice discrimina-
tion so invaluable to the writer. — Mary E. Foster.
I have found that the editors who do not indicate a set price for
the manuscript, or their regular rate per word, when accepting a
manuscript, have never treated me fairly after publication. Conse-
quently, I have decided not to let any manuscript pass into the
editor's possession unless I am assured of a definite sum. The most
substantial publications make an offer at the time of acceptance; but
if all authors demanded an understanding, there would be no heart-
breaking disappointments in store for the beginner. — B. Scott.
My experience proves that it pays to read publications for
writers. I subscribe for two and they are worth many times more
than they cost. First, I get a great deal of help, from the general articles,
the value of which I cannot estimate in dollars and cents, Second,
I glean useful suggestions from the personal experience-articles of
writers. In my opinion, there are too few of these published. Perhaps
it is because but few are submitted. Third, the market hints mean
real money. I never sold a thing until I submitted work following
suggestions in the market departments of the literary journals I read,
one of which is The Writer's Monthly. To date, I have never sold
a short-story. I am just a plodding worker, but in the past year alone
I picked up in small amounts about $55, which I can trace directly to
these market hints. I have made more than this at writing, but had I
not been a subscriber to these journals, I should have missed these
suggestions and would now be $55 short. Not so bad for an invest-
ment of about $3, is it? — Frank G. Davis.
Envelopes for mailing manuscripts may be purchased at the
postoffice for less than half what they would cost elsewhere. Size
8 envelopes, with 2-cent postage stamps, are 54 cents the package,
and size 9 are 55 cents. — A. H. Dreher.
When the fingers become stained with ink from using a pen,
dampen the spots in clear, cold water. Light a match and let it
burn until a little charcoal has formed on the end, then apply to the
ink spots, and rub well. You will find that the ink has disappeared.
Many times after stamping a letter or perhaps a package bear-
ing several cents worth of postage, for some reason or other it has
to be opened, thus causing the stamps to be discarded. One hesitates
to do this on account of the waste of stamps, but you need hesitate
no longer. Tear the envelope out close to the stamps and place the
whole in a glass of cold water. Let stand a few minutes and you will
find the stamps have separated from the paper. The color, being a
fast one, is in no way spoiled, and the only waste is the envelope.
Take out of the water and dry. When ready to use, apply a little
library paste and the stamp is as good as new. — Minnie M. Mills.
icy In
Council
-*rf — V* j»t?*B3e
Timely, terse, reliable, and good-natured contributions to this department will be wel-
come. Every detail of each item should be carefully verified. Criticisms based on matters of
opinion or taste cannot be admitted, but only points of accuracy or correctness.
In "The Black Cameo, "by Frank Condon, Short Stories for
January, 1916, appears the following:
"I'll take it to her," King returned, "and glad of the chance."
He took the bauble .... and stepped .... push-
ing his way. The tip of the girl's pink plume waved above the wall.
Without formality, Kelsey entered. . . .
"Well,;' she asked, "what does—" _
"This is a private party," Grady said sharply.
"One minute — one minute," King murmured, bowing to the two.
It was King who took the bauble, and entered the private party
of Grady and the girl, but the author carelessly used the name of
another character in the sentence italicized, which causes the reader
to re-read the passage in order to get it straight. — C. M.
A recent release by the Cort Film Corporation is a feature film of
Israel ZangwhTs great play, "The Melting Pot." In the March
American Magazine is an illustrated short story, "The Melting Pot,"
by Alice Garland Steele, an entirely different story. The challenge is
obvious. Munsey sl number of times has been guilty of the same
inexcusable impropriety, and the lesser productions are apparently
always trying to sail under the colors of some great novel or play.
The title of a literary work is its identity and, as other things of
worth, should be respected, but it seems that there are editors and
publishers who either are lazy or don't care. — S. Raymond Jocelyn.
An excellent story, " The Elephant Never Forgets, " by Charles E.
Van Loan — Saturday Evening Post, February 12 — unfortunately
hinges on a situation which the writer evidently premised on the
ignorance of the general public regarding fire-arms. It is this:
A rich man is murdered. His Italian gardener, found with a
32 calibre revolver, having one empty chamber, is held for the crime
on this evidence. The bullet removed by the autopsy surgeon is
turned over to the police and no one discovers that it is a 38 calibre
bullet till the reporter in the story sees it.
This is a practically impossible situation. The difference in
size and weight between the bullets for 32 and 38 calibre revolvers is
so marked that it would hardly escape the notice of anyone with even
CRITICS IN COUNCIL 173
the slightest familiarity with such things, and it is incredible that the
most stupid police official could have been so blind. — L. W. S.
It seems a pity that when an author has his characters standing
up the illustrating artist likes them seated in a chair.
In "The $1,000 Check/' by Dana Burnet, in the February
American Magazine, in one paragraph Bright walks over to the
window and in the next his wife joins him. There she says: "Hus-
band! I think we've done very well. This is only March and we've
paid for all the Christmas presents." But in the frontispiece the
artist has them seated when these words are uttered. — E. A.
"The Man Trail," a six-reel Essanay photoplay released on
the V. L. S. E. program, is unconvincing from beginning to end and
does not do justice to the logging industry. It was advertised as
a true-to-life lumber-camp story, and yet not one real log or logging
operation is shown. Summer is not the logging season in the part of
the country where the story has its setting, and yet the 4th of July
"drunk" and celebration are shown as being in the busiest season.
Mosquitoes make it almost impossible to work in the woods at this
time of year. Lumber-jacks are usually able fighters and yet a city
youth, shortly after his arrival, "cleans up" the best fighter in the
camp, and if he so desires can handle a half dozen at once. This
hero surely is a super-man! Then, too, he bears the usual reel
charmed life, for men who a few scenes earlier are shown as expert
shots with revolvers, being able to knock a bottle off a man's head,
are unable to hit him when he is in a saloon brawl. He must get the
better of about thirty "reel" men in this scene! Judging from this
photoplay, all that is necessary to achieve success in the logging
business is a pair of healthy and usable fists, for after winning several
fights in the most approved hero fashion, the hero becomes boss
without showing that he knows the first thing about the business.
Essanay is generally a sign of true worth in photoplays, but in this
case the only mistake they made was in making the picture. — H. J. S.
In the twenty-seventh episode of "The Diamond from the Sky"
a letter was shown on the screen dated September, 1911, inform-
ing " John Powell " of the sum diverted by Blair. Then in the twenty-
ninth episode, when fully a year is supposed to have passed in the
incidents, comes the coronation day of King George and Queen
Mary. Now, in fact, the crowning took place June 22d, 1911.
Another instance in the same serial. When Hagar and Esther
sent back the diamond to "John Powell," the gypsy in her letter
used capitals and quotation marks. The letter which "John Powell"
received with the diamond was in an entirely different handwriting,
without capitals and quotation marks. All of which is indicative of
haste in preparing the film, and inexcusable even in the matter of
small things. Or did some explanatory detail escape my observation?
I wonder how many noticed these little slips? — Precisionist.
H. C. S. Folks
Patrons and students are invited to give information of their published or produced material;
or of important literary activities. Mere news of acceptances cannot be printed — give dates,
titles and periodicals, time and place of dramatic production, or names of book publishers.
Miss Flora Dawson, the professional story-teller, has been using
a number of poems by Minnie M. Seymour of East St. Louis in her
story-telling program in St. Louis this season.
Marion F. Brown, of Dorchester, Mass., is the Associate Editor
of Femina. In the January number appears the first of a series of
twelve articles on " Sisterhood in the Making." The first of these
papers is entitled "The Democracy of Childhood." Miss Brown has
also contributed both prose and verse to many magazines, one of the
latest of her acceptances being from the Ladies' Home Journal.
Frederick Simpich, U. S. Counsel at Nogales, Mexico, contributes
to the March McBride's a strong local color story entitled "The Gall
of Gopher Jones."
Dr. Leonard Keene Hirschberg, of Baltimore, has a unique, illus-
trated article on "Expression of the Emotions — Walking" in the
March Motion Picture Magazine.
Jane Burr, of Chicago, has a poem with a point in All Story
Weekly, for February 5th, under the title of "Worth Knowing."
Arthur H. Dreher of Cleveland, has a dramatic short-story in the
People's Popular Monthly for February, 1916. It is entitled " Bartlett
Creates a Vacancy. "
Harold Brown Swope, of San Francisco, has stories in two recent
issues of Munsey's; "By a Flash in the Night" in the January issue,
and "By Force of Arms " in the March issue. Both of them are full of
dramatic action.
The Black Cat for March contains " Hair o' the Dog " by Kenneth
Cottingham of Columbus, Ohio, an unusually stirring story.
In the All Story Weekly of February 19th, Edna A. Collamore of
Worcester, Mass., has a delightfully humorous poem entitled " Through
the Mill."
"Physical Training for Boys" by M. N. Bunker, Colby, Kansas,
has just been issued by Lothrop, Lee and Shepard Co., Boston, Mass.
Mary C. Parsons of Brookline, Mass., has some clever humorous
verse in the March Motion Picture Magazine.
Mrs. Eunice Buchanan of Berwick, N. S., Canada, contributes
frequently to the Canadian Horticulturist and The Farmer's Advocate.
Miss Blanche Van Leuven Browne, Detroit, Mich., is editor and
publisher of the Van Leuven National Magazine, a monthly periodical
devoted to the educational, social, moral and physical betterment of
all crippled children of mental power. Miss Browne founded the
H. C. S. FOLKS 175
Van Leuven Browne Hospital School for the education of crippled
children in June, 1907, with five rooms, with borrowed furniture, and
one child. She has since that time, without money of her own,
mothered 185 crippled children, secured for them the best doctors,
nurses, teachers, and friends, bought them a home valued at $50,000,
and kept them well-fed, well-dressed, and happy.
Abbie N. Smith, of Coalinga, Cal., has brought out through the
Educational Publishing Company two charming animal stories for
children in book form. They are entitled " Bobtail Dixie " and ' 'King
Gobbler." Both are profusely illustrated.
Ada Jack Carver of Natchitoches, La., has been awarded the
third prize of $100 in the recent Short-Story Contest conducted by
the Southern Woman's Magazine. The title of her prize winner is
"The Story of Angele Glynn."
Sally Nelson Robins of Richmond, Va., has a story of great charm
in the March issue of the Southern Woman's Magazine, "What Oak
Hill Did for Honoria."
George Allan England, of Chelsea, Mass., is meeting with unusual
success in his latest novel, " The Alibi, " recently brought out by Small,
Maynard & Company. It is in its fourth large edition, and the Vita-
graph Company has just bought the rights for a six-reel photoplay
production.
The principal article in the American Magazine for April is by
Dale Carnagey, of New York City. It is entitled, "Rich Prizes for
Playwrights," and consists of a series of personal "stories" of some
of those who have recently won the greatest successes. The article,
which is beautifully illustrated by four full-page portraits in alco
gravure, is especially helpful to those who aspire to be writers for
the stage.
L. E. Eubanks, of Seattle, Wash., has an article, "The Ideal
Husband, The Man's Viewpoint," in the March issue of Physical
Culture.
Miss Daisy Johnson, of Paris, Texas, is winning distinction as
a musician and composer. The Texas Federation of Women's Clubs
recently awarded her first prize for the "Slumber Song."
The February number of Unity Magazine contains a very pleas-
ing allegory by Mrs. Caroline Belcher, of Orange, N. J.
A. Lincoln Bender, of Brooklyn, N. Y., has a bright story en-
titled "Larry's Impersonation" in the March 20th issue of the
Detective Story Magazine.
Earl G. Curtis, of Richmond, Va., has a short story entitled
"Charge It" in Young's Magazine for April.
Our readers are urgently asked to join in making this department up-to-date and accurate.
Information of new markets, suspended or discontinued publications, prize contests in any way
involving pencraft, needs of periodicals as stated in communications from editors, and all news
touching markets for all kinds of literary matter should be sent promptly so as to reach Springfield
before the 20th day of the month preceding date of issue.
The Writer's Monthly will buy no more manuscript of the larger sort before
May, 1916, as the supply of accepted material is large. There is, however, present
and constant need for departmental material, for short, pertinent paragraphs.
Payment is made only in subscriptions or extension of present subscriptions.
The Overland Monthly, 21 Sutter St., San Francisco, is in the market for
stories of 2,000 to 4,000 words in length, preferably with a western background
and characters. They also use special articles if upon good subjects connected
with the development of the West. Photos should accompany articles. No
verse is wanted, as they are already overladen with it. Manuscripts are usually
reported on within two weeks and payment is made on publication.
Ambition, Scranton, Pa., Dennis F. Crolly, Editor, is in the market for short
fiction of 3,000 to 4,000 words in length. It occasionally buys "sample stories" —
stories in which the leading character is supposed to have enrolled for an I. C. S.
course. Inspirational essays of from 1,000 to 2,000 words always get a careful
reading. Ambition aims to make young men realize the necessity of training
themselves for a career and tries to impress upon them the importance of begin-
ning now. Manuscripts are reported on at once, and payment is usually made
within a month after acceptance.
Rand, McNally & Co., Publishers, 538 S. Clark St., Chicago, are in need of
book length novels, of 80,000 to 120,000 words in length. They are in special
need of books for boys and girls of 50,000 words in length. Manuscripts are
reported on within a week if declined, or six weeks if available. They generally
pay a royalty on the retail price of the book, payments being made semi-annually.
Short Stories, Garden City, L. I., N. Y., wants short-stories of 4,000 to 6,000
words in length. These must have strong, original plots, with plenty of action,
based on humor, adventure and the outdoors, — especially for men readers. No
sex or psychological problem stories are required. In general, manuscripts are
reported on within ten days, and payment is made upon acceptance.
Michigan Farmer, Detroit, Mich., is provided for until next fall with serials
and short fiction. However, well-written, short, illustrative articles, bearing on
agriculture or farm life, would be considered. Stories and articles must have a
special appeal to farm folks. It also has Farm, Live Stock, Dairy, Horticultural,
Poultry, Marketing and Household departments, and contributions for these are
always acceptable. The magazine endeavors to report on manuscripts within
two weeks, although this is not always possible. Payment is made at the end of
the month following publication.
Henry W. Thomas, Editor, Top-Notch Magazine, New York City, writes:
"We can use any kind of a story provided it is clean and wholesome. Toy-Notch
is not a boy's magazine. We do not use juvenile stories. What we are always
looking for is the good sport story. Very few are able to suit us with sport stories
WHERE TO SELL 177
because very few writers know how to weave in a plot with their football, tennis,
basket-ball, yachting, running or other phases of sport which they select for their
background. The writer who knows how to construct a sport story with a plot
always gets our money. We prefer serials of 45,000 words in length and short
fiction of 2,500 to 5,000 words in length. Payment is made on acceptance and
two cents a word is our highest rate. "
Opportunist, La Grange, Mo., is a new magazine of civic reform and social
service. It is in the market for a few human interest stories of 2,000 words in
length, covering the field of social service. The rates of payment are x/i to 3^ cent
a word.
New England Art Company, 333 Fourth Ave., New York City, which
publishes greeting cards for all occasions, is already considering designs suitable
for Christmas cards.
Jos. W. Stern & Co., 102-104 West 38th St., New York, state that they are
not in the market for any new publishing material at present.
Kendis Music Pub. Co., Inc., New York, state that they are not in the market
for lyrics at the present time.
Chicago Film Company, 1128 Otis Bldg., Chicago, is in the market for one-
reel refined and polite comedy scenarios with as few interior sets as possible.
Their minimum figure for well-developed scenarios is $25.
Miss Blanche Van Leuven Browne, editor of Van Leuven Browne National
Magazine, Detroit, Mich., will welcome contributions to her periodical, but no
honorarium can be paid for such contributions. The Writer's Monthly has
never given space to such announcements but since Miss Browne's work is
entirely charitable our readers might find a useful outlet in this direction for some
of their work. Before offering material send for a free sample copy, mentioning
this magazine.
New Fiction Publishing Co., 35-37 West 39th St., New York, publishers
of Snappy Stories and Romance, having brought up their circulation to oyer half
a million copies a month, have recently announced for Snappy Stories a minimum
rate of one cent a word for all accepted manuscript, with a maximum rate of
two cents a word for such as they consider especially desirable. This maximum
rate will not be paid because of the author's name or prestige; it will be paid
only on the merit of the story; but all those whose work finds place in their
pages will be assured of not less than a cent a word for their efforts. For contribu-
tions to their other magazine, Romance, they announce a rate of one cent a word,
although they reserve the right to offer a somewhat lower price for fiction thej'-
consider usable yet not worth the maximum rate. In this connection they an-
nounce, also, a slight change in policy for Romance. It will hereafter use no serials,
this giving an opportunity to publish longer novelettes, which may now range
from 25,000 to 30,000 words in length. They promise an early decision and pay-
ment on acceptance for manuscripts found available. Manuscripts should be
addressed to Robert Thomas Hardy, Managing Editor.
Benziger's Magazine, 36 Barclay St., New York, at present uses only short
stories of about 2,500 to 5,000 words in length. These stories must be written
by Catholics and be Catholic in tone. They report on manuscripts within two
weeks or one month from date received and payment is made upon acceptance.
The Writer's
Monthly
Continuing
The Photoplay Author
A Journal for all Who Write
Edited by
J. Berg Esenwein
Entered at the Springfield, Massachusetts,
Poet Office as Second Class Mail Matter.
Copyright, 1915, by The Home Correspond-
ence School, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Price 15 cents a copy; $1.00 a Year; Canada
$1.25; Foreign $1.50.
Published monthly by The Home Cohbb-
spondencb School, Myrick Building, Spring-
field, Mass.
IMPORTANT NOTICES
Change of address must reach the publisher
before the first of the month. No numbers can
be duplicated when this rule has not been com-
plied with. Subscribers must give old address
when sending in the new, and specifically address
the notice to The Writer's Monthly.
Return postage must accompany all regular
articles intended for publication; otherwise,
without exception, unavailable manuscripts
will not be returned.
In no case can short items for the Depart-
ments be returned if unavailable, therefore
copies should be retained by the writers.
Notices of accepted material will be
sent promptly with payment on acceptance.
However, items for " Critics in Council,"
"Paragraphic Punches," "Experience Meet-
ing," and "The Word Page" will be paid for
only in shorter or longer subscriptions to The
Writer's Monthly, to be sent to any desired
person. Items for the other departments will
not be paid for.
Vol. VII March, 1916 No. 4
A story which has long been
going the rounds may have
escaped the notice of a small per-
centage of our readers. It is a
shame to discriminate against
these, so here it is:
A young student at Harvard —
though it might as well be made
Oscaloosa University, for Har-
vard doesn't need a press agent —
had been sending stories to a
magazine with more persistency
than success. His latest story
was returned with a letter from
the editor advising him to put
more punch in his story-openings.
The young wag followed this
friendly counsel by beginning
his next offering with what must
be admitted to be a beautiful
wallop, and the remainder of the
masterpiece was filled with simi-
lar " pep."
"Oh, Hell!" burst out the queen,
who up to that time had taken no
part in the conversation.
Whereupon the entire court broke
into laughter, with the exception of
the Princess Alice, who was a grouchy
old son-of-a-gun and would not laugh
at anything.
One of the causes of the present
shortage of paper is The Writ-
er 's Monthly — and its readers.
Producers of photoplays are
now trying to cut down the pad-
ding, so that, as nearly as possible,
the scenes may be reduced to
sheer action. Certainly this is a
commendable ideal, but many
spectators will be sorry to see it
pressed to the extreme even now
apparent in some photoplays.
Frequently scenes which are the
most picturesque — not alone as
pieces of beautiful photography
but as effective contributions to
the local color — are given just a
flash on the screen, only to give
place to a close-up which shows
in long-drawn detail the genesis
of a leer on the face of the villain,
or a smirk by the heroine. A
little of the close-up is enough,
unless the actor is rarely gifted in
facial pantomime. On the other
hand, spectators unquestionably
delight in scenes which show
action against interesting back-
grounds. To combine interest of
character with interest of action
and show them both against a
fascinating background is the
height of dramatic art, whether
played on the screen or on the
legitimate stage. So long as the
picture is pleasing and does not
deflect attention from the thread
of action it should not be cut.
What really slows up the action
of the photoplay is the same
thing that irritates the specta-
EDITORIAL
179
tor — to have the star pose and
mouth, either alone or with some
character foil, when no sound
dramatic purpose is served. Some
of the most fascinating local color
scenes, which have evidently
taken weeks of preparation and
have cost large sums to stage, are
swept on and off the screen in a
jiffy, seemingly to make time for
personal display which is neither
pleasing nor dramatic.
The other extreme was illus-
trated in the Fox production of
Carmen, which featured Theda
Bara. Too many of the opening
scenes were of local color interest
only. The fact that they were
themselves highly interesting did
not justify their lavish inclusion
because after a while the specta-
tor sensed that they bore no real
relation to the action of the play.
What would have scored in a
travel picture was padding in
Carmen.
It requires a nice discrimina-
tion to allow the spectator ample
time to take in the beauty or the
thrill of a piece of local color and
yet fill the same scene with a
plot interest that makes the
local color significant. It is to be
hoped that our friends the direc-
tors will pay more attention to
vital expansion than to using the
scissors with the purpose of
jamming more scenes into fewer
reels — chiefly to allow the star to
twinkle.
Advertising writing as a field
for women is broadening. There
are many kinds of publicity which
can better be written by the sex
which that advertising must
reach. The advertising staffs of
the large department stores,
women's garment houses, cata-
logue-issuing concerns, and the
big advertising agencies now
offer openings to women with
ideas and both the energy and
the writing ability to dress their
ideas in a way to bring business.
We should welcome a condensed,
authoritative and practical arti-
cle on this subject.
The reams of advice that have
been current in books and periodi-
cals have not sufficed to show
beginners that it is futile to offer
Christmas material in November
or even October. It seems a
constant source of amazement to
young writers that a magazine
which was printed yesterday can-
not buy its material for that num-
ber tomorrow! A stitch in time
saves — a few darns.
"Don't practice systemati-
cally, or methodically, as it is
sometimes called. Systematism
is the death of spontaneousness,
and spontaneousness is the very
sole of Art. Art belongs to the
realm of emotional manifesta-
tions, and it stands to reason that
a systematic exploitation of our
emotional nature must blunt it."
These words from Josef Hoffman,
which are taken from his " Piano
Playing" refer to the practicing
over of the same exercises in the
same sequence and at the same
hour, yet they have their value to
us all. Whether one shall be
systematic or depend upon his
inspirations for the times and the
length of his working periods
must depend upon his self-knowl-
edge. The danger is that one
may wait too long for inspiration.
There is such a thing as striking
until the iron is hot — and not
merely waiting for the time when
it is hot.
The Writer's Book List
Prepared by the Editorial Staff of The Writeb's Monthly and Continued from Month to Month
A good working library is an essential for the writer who would succeed. If you cannot have a
large library, you can at least have a good one, small though it be. It may cost some present
sacrifices to own the best books, but the investment will pay abundantlv before long.
Any book will be sent by The Writer's Monthly on receipt of price. The prices always
include delivery, except when noted. Send all remittances to The Writer's Monthly, Myrick
Building, Springfield, Mass.
Synonyms and Word Study
Specially Recommended
Likes and Opposites
$0.56
An excellent small book of synonyms and
antonyms. 179 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
The Writer's Book of Synonyms
By J. Berg Esenwein and CO. Sylves-
ter Mawson. In preparation.
English Synonyms, Antonyms and
Prepositions . . $1.64
By James C. Fernald. One of the most
practical books on the market. 564 pp.
Cloth. Postpaid.
The Verbalist
$1.35
By Alfred Ayres. Brief discussions of
the right and the wrong use of words.
337 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
A Desk Book of Errors in English $0.75
By Frank H. Vizetelly, Associate Editor
of the Standard Dictionary, etc. 242 pp.
Cloth. Postpaid.
Connectives of English Speech $1.64 Everyday Phrases Explained $0.60
By James C. Fernald. Just what you
want to know about the correct use of
Prepositions, Conjunctions, Relative Pro-
nouns and Adverbs. Companion volume
to "English Synonyms, Antonyms, and
Prepositions." X +324 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
A Dictionary of English Synonyms
and Synonymous or Parallel
Expressions . . . $2.15
By Richard Soule. A valuable book,
complete and standard. 488 pp. Cloth.
Postpaid.
Roget's New Thesaurus of English
Words and Phrases . $1.65
By P. M. Roget, with additions by C. O.
Sylvester Mawson. Classified and
arranged so as to facilitate the expression
of ideas and assist in literary composition.
653 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
English Synonyms
$1.35
By George Crabb. A valuable and stand-
ard book, particularly helpful because the
various synonyms are shown in their usage.
856 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
A Complete Dictionary of Synonyms
and Antonyms . . $1.10
By Samuel Fallows. Includes a diction-
ary of Briticisms, Americanisms, and col-
loquialisms; a list of prepositions with
suggestions for their usage; list of homo-
nyms; homophonous words; dictionary
of classified quotations; and list of abbre-
viations and contractions. A capital book.
512 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
Synonyms and Antonyms
$0.50
By Edith B. Ordway. A good condensed
handbook. VII + 292 pp. Cloth. Post-
paid.
With their meanings and origins. A useful
little book. 207 pp. Cloth. Postpaid
Everyday English
$2.00
By Richard Grant White. A very full
and adequate treatise with numerous
examples. XXXI + 512 pp. Cloth.
Postpaid.
The English Language
$0.65
By Brainerd Kellogg and Alonzo Reed.
A helpful little book, dealing briefly with
the history of the English Language, and
showing how words grow by the use of
suffixes and prefixes, and by compounding.
V -f- 170 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
A Study of English Words
$0.45
By Jessie MacMillan Anderson. An
excellent concise history of the English
language, showing its origins and changes,
with chapters on usage for the writer and
speaker. 118 pp. Cloth. Postpaid.
The Parts of Speech
$1.35
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No questions can be answered by mail, nor can we supply name* of players taking part in
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and to the point
STUDENT & SUBSCRIBER.— Our previous information of Alexander
Jessup led us to believe that he was entirely reliable, therefore, we printed his
announcement and his advertisement of the Blue Moon. We have since received
so many complaints that this advertisement has been withdrawn. We advise
you to communicate with the United States Postoffice Department and make
your complaint there.
L. V. B. DIXON. — It is decidedly inadvisable to offer any literary material
whatever to more than one paper at the same time unless it is distinctly stated
in the offering that this work is syndicate material and that the rights are offered
for a certain definitely specified section.
R. C. WOODBURY. — Provided you entirely rewrite the article so that it
would be really a new piece of literary work, you may offer it to another maga-
zine, but you must be sure not to include any part of the old article. Facts may
be repeated but not the language.
J. B. W., NEBRASKA. — Editors and publishers certainly prefer type-
written manuscript to be in the largest sized type that may be convenient to the
writer, but they do not have any objection to the use of small type, provided the
type is clear, the paper white, the color of ink deep enough (preferably black),
and all of the typing done in double space, and with sufficiently wide margins,
so as not to make the manuscript seem crowded. It goes without saying that it
is unwise to use paper that is too thin.
R. L. G., ANN ARBOR, MICH.— No, it is not advisable to write to an
editor asking if he would be interested in seeing a certain type of story. Do one
of two things instead : Examine several recent copies of the periodical in question
and carefully study the length, type and quality of stories used; or simply offer
your story in the usual way and abide by the result.
AN OLDSTER. — No, age does not disqualify a man from writing fiction
successfully, provided that he is in sympathy and also in touch with the fife of
today. We believe that these two provisos are most important. No one can
write appealing fiction who cannot get close enough to his readers to make them
feel his appeal.
PRODUCER— The Arrow Film is located at 71 West 23rd St., New York
City, and is releasing, so we understand, through Pathe. Mr. Howell Hansel,
formerly at the head of the Solax Company, and The Thanhouser Company, is
the leading director there. He is well-known as a director and scenario writer,
and from all reports ranks well up with the leading moving picture directors of the
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i
G. M., BALTIMORE. — The chief purchasers of humorous verse and prose
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Ladies' Home Journal, etc., etc., have humorous departments, but exclusively
for jests.
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DANNY'S OWN STORY
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you might call an outcast."
The boy runs away presently with a peripatetic " Doctor," whese mission is to
make known the wonderful powers of ' Siwash Indian Sagrah" ; and he plunges
into the kaleidoscopic life of the patent-medicine fakir, small circus shows, and
so on, with a zest in life and a human philosophy in his side-splitting humor that
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The Writer's
Continuing THE PHOTOPLAY A
Edited by
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VOLUME VII
MAY, 1916
NUMBER 5
IN THIS NUMBER
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THE ART OF STORY WRITING. Esenwein and Chambers. Dr. Esenwein's latest
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WRITING THE SHORT-STORY Esenwein. The standard textbook on the technique
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WRITING THE PHOTOPLAY. Esenwein and Leeds. The standard textbook on
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THE ART OF VERSIFICATION. Esenwein and Roberts. A practical working hand-
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The Writer's Monthly
Continuing The Photoplay Author
A Journal for All Who Write
Volume VII May, 1916 Number 5
HUMOR AS AN ASSET— Leslie N. Jennings .... 187
A PARALLEL FOR THE WRITER— Beulah Rector ... 188
A COME-BACK— Harold Playter 189
LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS— XVH— J. Berg Esenwein . 192
SHORT-STORY WRITING— VOCATION OR AVOCATION?
E. E. de Graff 195
PHOTOPLAY NEWS— E. M. Wickes 197
FRESH MARKET NOTES— George Mason 198
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS— ENCOURAGEMENT FOR BEGINNERS
E. M. Wickes 200
THE WRITER'S MAGAZINE GUIDE— DEPARTMENT
Anne Scannell O'Neill ........ 204
THINKS AND THINGS— DEPARTMENT— Arthur Leeds 206
EXPERIENCE MEETING— DEPARTMENT 210
CRITICS IN COUNCIL— DEPARTMENT 212
THE WORD PAGE— DEPARTMENT 213
H. C. S. FOLKS— DEPARTMENT 214
WHERE TO SELL— DEPARTMENT 215
EDITORIAL 218
THE WRITER'S BOOK LIST— DEPARTMENT .220
ANSWERS TO INQUIRIES— DEPARTMENT . .221
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Vol. vii May, 1916 Number 5
The Writer's Monthly
Continuing The Photoplay Author
A Journal for All Who Write
Humor as an Asset
By Leslie Nelson Jennings
Though all of us can not hope to contribute to the mirth of
nations as generously as an 0. Henry or a Mark Twain, we can at
least cultivate a sense of humor. It is a saving grace in the person who
aspires to butter his bread with a fountain pen. When we begin to see
the humor in ourselves, we may safely look about for it in the doings
and sayings of those with whom we mingle ; and when we have learned
to laugh at our own attitudinizings, our foibles, our comical inconsist-
encies, we unconsciously start saucing our literary hash with the
caper.
Those who know anything about the magazine mart will tell you
that comedy of the proper spontaneity can always take the center of
the stage. Morbid stories of the introspective sort, psychological
analyses, serious studies of people and things, are not wanted by
periodicals in the quantities offered. Glance over the more popular
fiction monthlies : you will find that the light touch has won to print,
and the reason for this is that magazines must entertain to sell. There
is enough grimness in life itself — we need not look between the covers
of a periodical for the skeleton that rattles at our elbow.
But we must have humor in ourselves to be able to see it in
others. Why is it that the literary diathesis presupposes beetling
brows, Disraelian neckwear and a studied dignity? Writing is a
trade. What would we think if the engineer introduced Trautwine
into his small talk? The result would be no more tiresome than the
twaddle we hear from so-called authors.
The people who take themselves seriously are bound to write
their personalities into their work. When I first came to the conclu-
sion that I had to seek solace in the ink pot (in spite of my suffering
family!) I was introduced to an elderly gentleman, who they thought
would guide my pen into profitable and improving purlieus. In his
youth this gentleman had perpetrated three tragedies on the Greek
cut — and succeeded in "getting them by" a publisher! As a crown
to his twenty-odd years of university teaching and research he had
put forth a plump little tome on Norse Mythology — very beautifully
done, with plenty of Latin phrases and a complete glossary. The
book was taken by Harper's. After many days I learned that he
broke even on the venture, with not a red cent in pocket to show for
188 A PARALLEL FOR THE WRITER
his labor. My learned friend was a typical " literary man," looking
the part, acting the part and talking the part. I started out with him
as my pattern. Shades of Josh Billings ! My sense of humor was as
evident as the meat in a worm-drilled walnut.
Fortunately for myself, I began to see things through my own
eyes, and gradually Mr. Blank assumed his just proportions. I know
now that, with all his really admirable scholarship, what he lacked
was a sense of humor. So did I. We discussed "our work" with all
the aplomb of college professors — and the truck I turned out was as
succulent as a table of logarithms. So much for taking oneself seri-
ously.
This is only one experience. A series of short-arm jabs in a news-
paper office taught me to size up life in the ecorche, with the personal
equasion knocked out. I began to coordinate with my surroundings,
and discovered that the cleverest penman was usually the most
sensible — and human.
Humor is a genuine asset, even though we can not write it. See
yourself with a twinkle: you may be funnier than the funniest
character in fiction. Make capital of yourself. Take a joke and be
ready to manufacture one. The man who can not speak of his
brainwork as "stuff" without wincing is painful to contemplate.
A Parallel for the Writer
By Beulah Rector
The Young Writer looked long and wonderingly at the picture
the Landscape Painter had set upon his easel.
"Surely," he reflected aloud, shaking his head, "you must some-
times wish you had another person to talk with about your work;"
for he knew that in this remote hill country the really famous artist
was shut away from all of his kind.
"Talk with? Somebody to talk with? Talk Art, you mean?
Rot! The thing to do is to paint. It's the painting that counts. The
steady practice day after day. "
The Young Writer felt almost ashamed as he strolled up the
road to his own cottage. "Just as the only thing in your work that
counts is to write — to write every day regularly," he addressed
himself, "to write regularly whether you feel in the mood for it or not.
You know how it is : even though you haven't always an idea of what
you are going to make out of those ink drops, yet when you sit down
at your desk and start working at something, suggestions come.
Recall how by starting on the nearest thing at hand — a paragraph on
the three sisters in black who live across the street — you finally
evolved the very best thing you did last year."
The Landscape Painter had ideas, and it wasn't many days before
the Young Writer was again in the studio of broad canvases.
Casually, the Landscape Painter picked up a bladed instrument.
A COME-BACK 189
" Do you know what this is? It's a scraper. The painter who doesn't
learn to use this will never get above a certain level. He won't grow.
"In my student days I came in one morning and found a group
gathered about a certain young man's easel. They were admiring his
picture. They had reason to. It was a fine picture — a masterpiece.
No one else among them had done as well as that. Just then the
professor entered. He frowned. 'Give me your scraper,' he ordered.
At the top of the canvas he placed his hand and drew the blade
across the canvas. He did it again and again until there was nothing
left. The young man winced. It hurt him. Of course it did. He had
spent weeks on that picture. But that student never received a
more valuable lesson."
The Writer seemed to understand.
"I tell you he would never have gotten beyond that — he would
have stopped there — he'd never have exhibited in the Salon," the
artist thundered.
The Young Writer had thoughts of his own. That morning the
Rural Delivery Man had left an unmistakably thick envelope. The
Writer had been impatient at the refusal of the story it contained.
When he reached home he drew it out and re-read it ; but somehow it
did not leave him with that satisfied glow he had expected. And he
had kept this in the mail six months!
"Until you have the grit to reject, you'll never have the power to
progress. George, I can do better than that!"
The next minute the thick sheets were writhing and scorching
in the blaze of the open fire.
The Landscape Painter, walking among his flowers about that
time, though he saw the skein of smoke unraveling from the cottage
chimney, did not know that it represented a desire for a higher level
of attainment which he himself had unconsciously passed on to his
writer friend.
A Come-Back
By Harold Playter
Dear Editor:
I found your October editorial on the questions of self-criticism
and "special consideration" most helpful, entertaining and satisfy-
ing; but your November discussion of editorial reasons for refusing
all criticism leaves me with a desire to hear more. I want to know
if a majority, or even a substantial minority, of writers really ask
for or expect constructive criticisms on rejected manuscripts. Such
a demand seems, indeed, preposterous; but the tyro — this tyro, at
least — feels that there is a vast difference between constructive
criticism and the empty nothings of the polite rejection slip.
I have come to regard polite rejection slips as bad habits: bad
for me, bad for the postman and — bad for the editor. I visualize
the editor reaching for one much as he might light another cigarette
or take another drink. For him they have become institutions,
iniquitous institutions from whose thraldom of familiarity he thinks
that he cannot escape.
190 A COME-BACK
Now, I am no philanthropist; I would not cure the editor's
vice from purely unselfish motives. He accuses me of wanting some-
thing for nothing, and I admit that I do. While I have deep sym-
pathy for any editor who has to read my stories, and while I am
conscious that criticism would be a still greater onus, I yet frankly
confess that I pound my typewriter for a living and that I will make
him help me earn that living if I can. I merely wish to point out that
I am the editor's child, the perfectly legitimate offspring of his per-
fectly legitimate search for an inexpensive echo of Rudyard Kipling
or Jack London. And I ask the editor to recall the time when his
little boy or girl queried: "Why isn't the moon green and square? "I
ask him to remember that the answer, " Don't bother me; I'm busy,"
did not suffice ; that the question was repeated until answered, or un-
til— if the youngster was a true child of genius — the editor found his
study all painted over with green circles which young hopeful was try-
ing to square. It is simply human nature to ask "Why?" Even an
editor, if there were anyone to whom he could look up, would now
and then ask, "Why?"
To assist the young author in squaring the literary circle, there
are, it is true, professional critics — private tutors to the editor's
children. Many are good critics, too; in those palmy times when I
carried a hod by day and wrote by night, they gave me lots of good
advice. But some of them told me that I need carry a hod no longer,
and now I must ask my father for wherewith to pay them. I cannot
quite blame the editor for his lack of paternal affection; he did not
want so many of us; but the fact remains that he has us, and that
he cannot altogether shirk his fatherly obligations unless he pays
the tutor, or until there is a public bureau of criticism. And even
then, what outsider could wholly fill a father's place? Who could
predict the changed policy, the sudden desire to uplift the world at
the expense of literature, or vice versa? Not even a critic can tell
what an editor may do next. No one but the editor, or one of his staff,
can tell me just why my manuscript is rejected.
If the editor cannot love us, he can at least regard our manu-
scripts as commodities like butter or cheese (often they closely re-
semble these articles in antiquity or flaccidity) and treat them
accordingly. If a man peddles bad butter the consumer will quickly
apprise him of the fact. This may annoy the peddler; he may abuse
the consumer roundly; but the quality of the butter will improve.
To be sure, this analogy must not be pressed too far; the editor does
not have to eat the manuscript; but a mere glance at the title
may cause a mental indigestion that will disqualify him for a proper
appreciation of Jack London for the rest of the day. I know just
how it affects him — I know because his arm sometimes gets so tired
reaching for polite rejection slips that he lets some of that stuff get
by and I have to read it myself.
I am constrained to believe that I peddle bad manuscripts.
This painfully acquired knowledge should, perhaps, be sufficient, yet
I still voice that childish treble, " Why? " And the editor still answers
that he is too busy to answer — could not pay dividends if he did.
A COME-BACK 191
Almost I believe him. When every third man and every second
woman whom I meet tells me that he or she is writing short-stories
or photoplays, I wonder that no one has invented a mechanical
manuscript reader. Yet I am told that the mail is handled by a
corps of men and women more intellectual than dextrous, and that
these actually glance at the first page of every manuscript. Some-
times, even, they read one through, and then find time to write a
letter whose politeness is even more manifest than that of the rejec-
tion slip. When, once in a blue moon, I receive one of these letters
it makes me very happy, yet I always deplore the time spent. That
politeness might have been spread over answering "Whys" for three
or four manuscripts. As for the dividends: conditions under the
present system seem to be very bad, indeed; many magazines go
into receivers' hands, and the rest are shouting to high heaven, and
to the postal authorities, that they exist by, grace of the advertiser
alone!
The final, and most rarely used, contention is that authors —
and even young writers — are sensitive; that harsh words will quench
the faintly-glowing spark of genius. Personally I know nothing
about the spark of genius, but I do know this: if some editors ever
die and go anywhere, their punishment will be to read polite — very
polite — rejection slips throughout the Stygian night, rejection slips
whose subtle differences and soft words will lure the unhappy editor
to search on and on for a meaning; yet, though he turn them upside
down, and round and round, will he never find aught but a boundless
courtesy.
Let me hasten to close, heartily seconding your conjecture that
I know nothing about running a magazine. I just want the editor
to know that I, too, am busy, and that it seems to me that we are
keeping each other much busier than is necessary. It is true that
my need of the editor is greater than his need of me, but surely he
either needs me or wants to be rid of me. Surely a rejection slip
could be so worded that a few scrawled words or a mere underscoring
would cover the most vital, "Whys?" Even the reason, "I don't
care for this," might be helpful. And surely an editor is derelict in
his duty both to himself and to humanity when he continues to bid
for manuscripts that are, "bad, shell and kernel," or "without dis-
tinction," with a phrase like this: "The rejection of this manuscript
in no way implies a lack of merit "
It may be glorious to write
Thoughts that shall glad the two or three
High souls, like those far stars that come in sight
Once in a century :
But, better far, it is to speak
One simple word, which now and then
Shall waken their free natures in the weak
And friendless sons of men.
— James Russell Lowell.
Letters to Young Authors
SEVENTEENTH LETTER
My (Iear Robert,
Your letter has set me thinking. To some extent also I have
investigated, but lack of time has forbidden my gathering enough
data on the question of school and college training as bearing on
successful authorship to give figures a decided meaning.
Since your letter must be answered seriatim, let me repeat its
main inquiries in sections:
Do you think that a person who has been denied a high school education,
but who finished the eighth grade of a country school, is studious-minded, and
has a fairly wide knowledge of things far outside what was learned in school, is
seriously handicapped against rising to any great heights in fiction writing?
Can you name any author of prominence who failed to receive high school
or a college education?
What education did O. Henry receive?
There are two ways of looking at the question of scholastic
education for a writer — before he has the chance, and after the
chance has passed. I want to make it as clear as I possibly can that
any young person who looks forward to authorship had better get;
— notice that I do not say "receive7' — a college education if he can,
and for such an one to neglect a chance to complete a course in a high
or preparatory school would be the utmost folly. Later, he might
make up for his loss, but only at cost of great effort and sacrifice.
But when we look at the case of the man who has either cast
aside or never had the chance for an academic training but now
wishes to be a successful writer, we have an entirely different problem,
and that is what we are facing now. We can easily agree that a
young person ought to go to college, or at least to a good high school,
but suppose he did not — how great is the handicap?
Of course I shall begin by hedging. You recall Chauncey M.
Depew's reply to the young man's question: "Is life worth living?"
"That," said Mr. Depew, "depends upon the liver." You have
described your man somewhat as having a mere foundation of train-
ing, being "studious-minded," and being possessed of a "fairly wide
knowledge of things far outside what was learned in school." But
before I can consider him as a potential writer at all I must add
another quality — the writer's sense, the inborn passion to report life
and translate it into literature.
Such a young man — and of course I include woman in all this — is
handicapped for competition with him who begins with a mental
equipment which the other must gain while working.
But — assuming the qualities named before — I cannot believe
that he is "seriously handicapped," if by "seriously" you mean
anything like "hopelessly."
The truth is that the lack of academic training is a great spur to
certain minds of an earnest type. Many a youth has duplicated the
experience of a young friend who lives near where I now write. He
finished a high school course, but could not resist the wish to get to
work, so he entered business. Then the old desire for literary work
LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS 193
flamed up anew and he read and wrote and wrote and read until the
magazines opened their doors to his stories. Next he became assistant
editor of a New York magazine with a million circulation. Next he
specialized in advertising writing and went on the staff of a large
advertising agency. They at length recommended him for the post of
advertising manager of a great New England concern, and now his
booklets are models of selling sense and clear, effective expression.
The point must not be obscured; this man is succeeding not
because he did not go to college but because, having failed to go, he
put forth tremendous efforts to make up for his lack — with the
result that, while he emphatically misses the recollection of college
life and that subtle something which comes from early association
with educated men, he has more than made up for most phases of his
loss.
That this young man — for he is still well under forty — could
forge ahead of so many college-bred competitors is doubtless due in
part to his native gifts and spirit. But looking further, we see that
it is due also to another condition which men of light and leading
recognize — the tendency of so many, though probably not the
majority of, college graduates to overestimate their attainments.
While thousands of collegians never open a serious book after slam-
ming the covers of their last senior text, and give themselves over to
their chosen pursuits with only a subconscious application of what has
been taught them, this man cultivated the friendship of great minds,
whether met with in books or in daily life. The difference is simply
this — one type of mind was handicapped in boyhood; the other is
handicapping itself by depending on an old diploma instead of on
present thought-power. One might as sensibly try to satisfy today's
hunger with last year's food.
When an earnest mind, determined to win against handicaps,
succeeds in training native gifts as a writer, the world today is not
slow to applaud. And, to answer your second inquiry with your
third, there have been many such — among them Sidney Porter,
whom we all know as " O. Henry. " This gifted story-teller attended a
private school conducted by his aunt, and then for two terms he
went to a graded school. That was all.
Yet of course that was only the beginning.
It is hardly fair to cite the cases of Burns and Whittier and Mark
Twain, none of whom had so much as a full high school training, for
sixty years ago there was a far smaller proportion of boys going to
academy and college than now. Of living writers of prominence
scores did not go to college, and perhaps fifty per cent of these never
finished a high school course, while still a few others did not go beyond
what we now call the eighth or ninth grades. W. D. Howells, Harold
MacGrath, Hamlin Garland, Will Levington Comfort, Samuel
Gompers, Alfred Henry Lewis, Joseph C. Lincoln, Harold Bell
Wright, E. Phillips Oppenheim, Edward Mott Wooley — the list of
non-college writers might be lengthened indefinitely.
The educational records of women are not so accessible as those of
men, nor would the figures be so significant, because so many schools
194 LETTERS TO YOUNG AUTHORS
for girls lay stress on English and the arts. Gene Stratton Porter,
Mary Roberts Rinehart, Florence Earle Coates, and Caroline Lock-
hart did not go to college in the man's sense of the term, yet each had
excellent academic training |and were " polished in the finishing
school."
But notwithstanding these exceptions, the fact remains that a
large majority of young men and women who are highly successful in
letters or are pushing strongly to the front have had some college
training. The same is true of newspaper folk. And of those authors
who are succeeding without having had college training, a very large
proportion have had experience in writing for the newspapers.
You must remember that a college course today means anything
you want to twist it to mean. The fellow who loafs and is " plucked'7
poses forever afterward as a college man. The technical schools whose
courses in English are necessarily sacrificed, are still colleges. Elective
courses are so shifted that a man may get his sheepskin and yet be an
ignoramus on just about every subject that would qualify him to
write. Many college graduates cannot write ten consecutive sen-
tences in simple, correct English.
On the other hand, a good " prep." or high school course, with
English emphasized, may do wonders for a youth who has contracted
writer's itch. It is the thing done outside the curriculum that makes
the writer. And, apart from mental grasp and association with
broader minds, a young writer may often get his best training either
in addition to his prescribed college studies or by foregoing them
entirely.
Now for your final question:
If the years that would be spent in high school were devoted to literary
endeavor, do you think the practice and training thus received would be of more
value than what would be learned in high school?
This time your question looks forward instead of backward, and,
that being the case, I have no hesitation in saying that for the average
young writer-to-be the best thing to do, decidedly, is to take the
high school training. One can well get along without a college course,
though he would be handicapped, speaking for the average; but he
would largely increase his handicap by omitting the high school
course.
Let me point out, my friend, the fact that our whole social system
today emphasizes the need for supplementing what training we have
with more training, not only on general but even chiefly on special
lines. This latter tendency, indeed, is pushed to extremes when we
see so many specializing in their studies before they are well grounded
— as are our English cousins — in the fundamentals.
For those who are at work by day, the night schools are open.
For those who teach, after-hour, Saturday and vacation courses are
given in our colleges and universities. For those who have completed
preliminary courses, post-graduate schools have been founded.
Groups of club women and other interested associates are gathered
everywhere to study, hear lectures, and gain power for the ways of
SHORT-STORY WRITING 195
life. And, for all, home study courses under correspondence instruc-
tion are offered by a number of great universities and recognized
private institutions.
So the main thing is not to lament one's lost preparation. The
writer more than any other craftsman faces open doors, and shall
face them be he never so old, which lead to broader and deeper
efficiency in his work. He learns as he writes and writes as he learns.
For him there is always waiting the same diploma as hung, so to say,
in the library of that gifted graduate from the University of Hard
Knocks, Elbert Hubbard. Let him labor as earnestly as did Fra
Elbertus, and some day Life may crown his desire with gift and con-
fer upon him the mystic degree — M. W. — Master Workman.
Cordially yours,
Karl von Kraft
Short-Story Writing — Vocation
or Avocation ?
By E. E. de Graff
I have been looking over the current magazines with a view to
selecting a few of the really fine stories. I find quantities of passable
and mediocre ones; many that strain after " unusualness ; " some
that make a frank appeal to the salacious, leading them on by false
pretenses to a perfectly innocuous ending; some that make a mourn-
ful attempt to be humorous — all kinds, except the really great, simple
kind.
I seek for some of the causes for this. One is that greatness and
simplicity — two traits that always go together — are not common.
Perhaps the stories furnish as good a proportion as does the human
race. Great writers are not always prolific ones. The insatiable
maw of the reading public must be fed — the editors take the best
that comes, and send out calls for "good short-stories." The writers
of these are well paid. The news spreads. Young people — and older
ones, for that matter — say, "Ha! There is an easy way whereby we
may harvest shekels of gold and shekels of silver! Me to it!" For
in addition to the financial lure, is that of being one of the literati — of
becoming well-known, of being flattered, feted, and sought after.
Having decided to adopt literature as a means of livelihood, the
writer proceeds to scour the country for "stuff that will make a good
story." Like the woman who had the "cooperation bug," who was
always saying "Let's cooperate! What shall we cooperate about?"
he gets the cart before the horse. He should live, and if he lives
deeply, earnestly, sympathetically, there will be enough for him to
write about.
A good writer has the eye that sees every event in its dramatic
light. He himself being romantic, let us say, casts a tinge of romance
196 SHORT-STORY WRITING
over the most banal surroundings. Seeing them bathed in the
iridescent glow proceeding from himself, he writes of them as they
are — to him — and scores a success.
As light is said to inhere in the eye that sees, and sound in the
ear that hears, so Drama and Romance are in the mind that perceives
them. In this way becomes apparent the wisdom of sticking to
something else as a living — thus fooling the fancy, which resents a
harness. When one whips up a jaded imagination to hammer out a
"story that will sell," he fails of his highest. There is as much dif-
ference between the spontaneous outpouring of an unfettered fancy,
and the labored output of a job done for money, as there is between
the caress bestowed by a young girl upon her lover, and the dutiful
salute of a wife who has married for support.
There is another reason why literature should be adopted as an
avocation rather than as a vocation: Anything followed for bread
and butter is apt to become a routine — sometimes of drudgery. This
kills spontaneity if the vocation is that of literature. If the calling
is other than that, literature is taken up as a relaxation, and, handled
in this spirit, relaxes the reader as well. The effect on the writer is
also healthful, for the vocation, no matter how prosaic, becomes in-
fused with life when utilized as a storehouse from which to draw
literary material.
The dynamic force of a writer who does things is greater than
that of the writer who merely writes. The spirit of independence in
thought and expression which permeates the writings of a man inde-
pendent of monetary consideration for his work, militates for, rather
than against, its acceptance. An elderly minister of the old days
was wont to say, "I farm to make a living! I preach to save souls!"
One who depends solely on his pen for his bread and cheese is
likely either to go without the cheese, or always have his ear to the
ground listening for what public opinion will sanction.
You cannot be your truest and best self when you are scouring
the papers for some incident to hang a short-story on, and when you
have to trim your story to suit the whims of a hypothetical editor.
The water in the fountain jets up clear and sparkling, the pumped-up
water has sand in it when the well is running dry.
Another reason why short-story writing is better when followed
as an avocation is that, under the urge of implacable necessity,
mental work must be forthcoming by a given time, regardless of
physical condition (which dominates the mental), and sometimes
the habit of taking some stimulant to help over "just this pinch" is
formed. Literature abounds in such instances. The gold cures,
Keeley cures, and numberless asylums, have contained a large pro-
portion of brilliant editors and writers. Poe yielded to alcoholism;
Burns dallied with "the temptation on which he was largely wrecked
— the thirst for stimulants;" Coleridge and Francis Thompson were
inveterate users of morphine; and we all know the classic instance of
De Quincey.
These dangers are largely avoided by living a life well-balanced
between other work as a vocation and literature as an avocation.
Photoplay News
Compiled by E. M. Wickes
At the last meeting of The Photodramatists, while Marc Edmund
Jones told of his resignation from the World Film, Cecilie Petersen,
now reading for the same company whispered to her neighbor: "I am
reading and returning unavailable scenarios within five days. Those
held for further consideration are retained from one week to five. The
World Film is looking for five-reel society dramas, allowing for big
sets and a display of artistic gowns; big western stories, not the
hackneyed cowboy type; North Woods scenarios, and Sea dramas.
Either complete scenarios or comprehensive synopses are welcome."
Miss Petersen was formerly a free lance and has a warm spot in
her heart for her fellow writers.
Mrs. L. Case Russell, author of a recent Vitagraph Feature,
"The Two-Edged Sword," told how a company rejected a synopsis
and later purchased the same story in complete scenario form. [Mr.
Leeds tells of a similar instance in this month's "Thinks and Things. "
— Editor.]
Vim is reported to be in the market for a few comedies, is giving
quick decisions and making prompt payments for accepted material.
Vim's address is Riverside Avenue, Jacksonville, Florida.
According to one member in close touch with the American Film
Company, the American is still looking for good five-reel features.
Montagne, Van Buren Powell, Poland, and Bergman came up
from the Vitagraph studios. Vitagraph wants are about the same as
last month, as the staff is devoting most of its time to reconstruction
work.
Report has it that The Eastern Company, Providence, R. I., will
resume producing pictures in the near future.
Marc Edmund Jones read to the meeting an article which
appeared in The Writers' Monthly for February, 1915. Those
who have not read it, and read it carefully, will do well to secure a
copy containing the article, for it carries a great deal of valuable
information. It is entitled "Pointing up to the Dramatic Moment."
As Biograph has dispensed with the services of most of its
players, the members of The Photodramatists think it unwise to
offer anything to this company for the present.
Howard Irving Jones, now with Metro, Marc Edmund Jones,
and another chap became evolved in a discussion relative to the
average director's ability to write photoplays — not rehashes. The
consensus of opinion is that they are not; and that the day of the
writing-director will soon be a thing of the past, which should be
cheerful news to real writers. Even the heads of several well-known
film companies have come to this conclusion, and intend to see that
directors direct and writers — real writers — do the writing.
Fresh Market Notes
By George C. Mason
The new editors of System, Chicago, on receiving manuscript
which at a glance they know is not what the publication wants,
return it at once. Their rejection slip reads as follows:
" Thank you for allowing us to read this manuscript. It falls
outside the purposes and requirements of our magazine, however,
and I must return it to you. System's field is essentially technical —
the how and why of successful manufacturing, wholesaling, retailing,
banking, advertising, selling — told whenever possible in terms of
human experience."
When a manuscript is received that does look promising, a post
card reading as follows is immediately sent the writer:
"Thank you for sending me your article. Decision on a manu-
script frequently requires ten days or two weeks. Within that time
you may expect to hear from me. — The Editor."
If any writer turns out something new in the way of an adver-
tising plan or scheme, there is usually a good market for the work
right among the merchants in their home town and many of the big
houses in the metropolitan cities are on the lookout for any ideas that
can be used.
If you are wise you will steer clear of the average advertising
agency, because if they "get" your idea, you lose. Back comes your
work and, well — they have filed the "idea" and will use it when the
opportunity presents itself, but there's nothing coming to you. When
you see some big advertiser using the idea, you write him about it,
gently informing him that it is the product of your brain, and receive
in return a very nice letter telling you that all their advertising ideas
are prepared by "so and so." And the "so and so," you find, is the
concern to which you sent your bright idea, several months or perhaps
a year before. Then you write this advertising agency asking "where
you come in," and you find you don't. If you persist in annoying
them you are informed that they never heard of you and that the
idea used originated in their own offices. And then — well, you might
as well give up for you can't " get back " at them. The only way to do
is to keep away from this class of people.
I would advise all writers of advertising plans and the like never
to submit anything to the Shively Selling Service, of Seattle, Wash-
ington. In answer to a letter I received from them, in reply to an
advertisement I ran in the Advertising World, Columbus, Ohio, I sent
two good plans (both credited by advertisers in my home city as
FRESH MARKET NOTES 199
being excellent), and shortly after another good one, and, well —
that's all. I have written them several times regarding the matter and
they fail to answer or return the goods. If I succeed in making them
come to time, I'll tell the readers of this publication how I did it.
The Advertising World, Columbus, Ohio, has written me several
times asking for articles on advertising subjects and I have contrib-
uted quite a number. However, there is no money in sight and the
writer who deals with this publication must accept advertising space
in exchange for his brains. Sometimes you get sufficient returns to
make it pay you and sometimes you don't. By the way, you don't
more often than you do.
The Schemer, Alliance, Ohio, a publication for mail-order men,
also pays in advertising space.
The Merchant and Manufacturer, Nashville, Tenn., uses articles
on advertising, buying, selling, and in fact anything of general
interest to its readers. They pay cash but are not over prompt. On
two occasions I have had to write them twice before getting their
check. Three dollars is about their limit for a page article.
Something-To-Do, Boston, is asking for "things to do that
children can do, ought to do, and like to do, with few tools and inex-
pensive materials. " They pay cash, and state that "the amount will
depend upon the nature of the project you submit, and the way it is
presented. If we are obliged to rewrite the manuscript and redraw
the illustrations, we cannot pay as much as we can if you present your
project in form ready for the printer and engraver. " Manuscripts are
accepted promptly or returned if postage is enclosed, and they stick
to this rule pretty closely. If accepted, payment is made upon
publication. When an article submitted looks pretty good, but they
are a little doubtful whether they can use it or not, the writer receives
a post card reading as follows :
"That which you forwarded recently is received. Thank you.
You will hear from it again as soon as we have time to look at it
further."
It would be well to get a copy of this publication and study it
closely before submitting anything, because it is quite a little different
from the general run of juvenile publications. Mr. Ronald F. Davis is
managing editor.
Help for Song Writers
Encouragement for Beginners
By E. M. Wickes
"Small contributions gratefully received; the larger ones we'll
take later on," appears to be the silent slogan of song writers who
have arrived. Each live music publisher contributes more or less to
the welfare of song writers. Last year Leo Feist was one of the
largest, if not the largest, contributors of royalty to popular writers.
"In 1915 we paid out $85,000.00 in royalty," said Ed. F. Bitner,
general manager for Feist, during a recent interview. "And further-
more, our books will show just where every cent went to. Of course,
we could not pay this sum unless we did the business, and we would
rather pay out $200,000.00 every year, for that would mean just so
much more profit for the firm. "
Notwithstanding this enormous sum paid out by Feist, some
skeptics will ask if there is any money in popular song writing. A
fiction magazine running ten stories a month with an average rate of
one hundred dollars for a story pays out $12,000.00 every year, and a
film company with a weekly release of eight reels, allowing $50.00 a
reel, hands out close on to $21,000.00. Compare these figures. There
is money to be made from song writing by those who know how to
write the kind of material that publishers think will hit the public's
fancy, but one has to learn the secret of gaining access to the pub-
lishers' check books. Some men who really do not know how to
write real songs manage to get their hands on "quite a little" of the
money, and if they are able to accomplish this much, it should not be
an impossible task for a real writer to emulate them in the matter of
separating publishers from some of the golden nuggets. You are not
likely to derive much benefit from the first few songs you turn out,
any more than a photodramatist or a fiction writer will from his early
work. You must have confidence in yourself and stick to your task in
spite of every setback.
L. Wolfe Gilbert is a great believer in tenacity. He had two hits
to his credit during the year that has just passed, and it is safe to
assume that the combined sales of "My Little Dream Girl," and
"Sweet Adair" exceed a million and a half copies, which at the rate
of half a cent royalty would give him $7,500.00. Six years ago Gilbert
was unknown and would gladly have accepted five dollars for the two
songs. "A great many think that there is no chance for a new writer, "
Gilbert remarked recently, "but there's just as much chance today as
there ever was. Take my case for instance. I got more ' guying ' when
I started in than any other writer I know. When I left school in
Philadelphia I had a craze to become a popular song writer. I
drifted to New York, fell in with a crowd in Fourteenth Street, and
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS 201
used to spout poetry by the yard. I ground out parodies and original
songs by the mile, but no one wanted them. I remember one cold
winter's night, it was the night before Christmas, I offered to write
two parodies for a comedian if he would take me in and buy me a
meal. He slipped me a quarter and told me to give the parodies to
some performer I didn't like. "
"And did you still have faith in yourself, enough to make you
believe that some day you would write a hit? "
Gilbert smiled and rested his arm on the piano keys.
"Did I? Well, I certainly did ! But I used to feel sick at times. It
was bad enough to be unable to sell the stuff, but what made it worse
was that the crowd used to poke all sorts of fun at me. Today the
worst that a beginner gets is a rejection slip, but I used to get ejected.
One day I heard that a comedian in the Thalia Theatre wanted some
parodies, and I went down with three that I had sold to another man
for fifty cents. The comedian had me sing them to him while he
made up, then he called in the manager to hear them. The manager
said that they were all right, but that another performer had used
them during the preceding week. The comedian stopped long
enough in his work to bounce a powder pot off my head and chase
me out of the place. You see I didn't know it was wrong to sell one
parody to two performers."
"Was that the worst experience you ever had?"
"Not by a long shot. I sold another parody twice, once to a
German comedian, and later to an Irish comedian. It seems that
luck was always playing against me. The German comedian used
it one week and made good, and the next week the Irish comedian
used it in the same house and fell flat, and when he heard that it had
been used by another he came gunning for me. He had paid me
five dollars for it and wanted his money back. I didn't have the
money, so he punched me ten times, and said he would repeat the
dose every time he met me until I paid him back. For six months I
was unable to gather five dollars together at one time, and in the
meantime I met the Irish comedian six times, and received something
like sixty whacks. One day I sold three parodies for ten dollars, and
the first thing I did was to locate that Irishman and give him back his
five. And believe me, I drew a sigh of relief when I saw him smile. "
"But why didn't you pay more attention to original material?"
At this moment a messenger boy came into the piano room with
several telegrams. Gilbert ran through them, smiled, and then
looked up.
"You were saying something about original stuff. Well, I didn't
see any sense in writing it then as no one would even look at it, and I
had to live. About that time I took a bunch of parodies to Ben
Welch. I thought they were funny. He was seated on a trunk on the
stage of a burlesque house when I met him. I sang them to him, while
my stomach was trying to account for my long fast, but Welch never
cracked a smile. When I finished he opened the trunk and took out a
suit of clothes and told me to try it on. He took one look at me, then
led me to a tailor store where he had the sleeves and the trouser legs
202 HELP FOR SONG WRITERS
shortened. When he found out that I didn't have the price of a meal,
much less my room rent, he gave me a few dollars for the parodies
and agreed to take me to Philadelphia to write some local stuff."
"But how did you get started writing original songs?"
"One day I didn't have any parodies, and I couldn't pass a
restaurant without feeling a queer pain in my stomach, so I dug out
an old song from my grip and took it to the Gotham-Attucks Com-
pany, placed it on royalty and borrowed a quarter on the strength of
future sales; but the firm failed shortly after and I never received
any more for my trouble. I still kept plugging away, and every time
I would get weak in the knees or seem to lose courage I would pick up
a copy of an old newspaper that told of how others made thousands
every year from songs."
"Why didn't you quit and go to work?"
"I couldn't think of quitting then. I was bound to be a song
writer if I died in the attempt. About that time luck began to come
my way, or at least I thought it was luck. I sent two songs to Jacobs
in Boston, and they were accepted, but all I got was the price of a
week's room rent. Later I managed to get two with Rossiter, but
didn't get much out of them — I forget just how much. Then I came
to the conclusion that there was no money in writing original songs
for publishers and I turned my mind to doing special numbers and
parodies.
" One day I was given a chance to write some stuff for the Clipper,
which assured me of my room rent. About this time I met Lew Muir,
and he asked me why his songs did not "get over." I told him I
thought they were too clever for the average theatre audience. He
asked me if I would write some songs with him, but I couldn't see any
money in them and refused. Later he brought me a melody that I
liked and I took a chance on it and made a few dollars, and shortly
after we turned out the ' Robert E. Lee. ' After that everything was
plain sailing. "
Mr. Gilbert's success is a good example of what a man can do
with a little talent and a large fund of determination. Much of his
later success comes from his careful study of the likes and dislikes of
the music-buying public. He studies and analyzes titles, ideas, and
melodies just as diligently and conscientiously as any broker studies
the stock market. When most of his fellow writers are trying to imi-
tate some hit or adhering to some waning cycle he aims to give the
public something new, and if tyros would follow his method they
would meet with more encouragement.
At the present time some of the old and many of the new writers
seem to think that the public is all wrapped up in war themes, pre-
paredness, and ditties dealing with America, whereas the public is
about sick of war, and there are so many worthless "America" and
war themes on the market that a really good war song would have a
difficult time in "getting over," unless a publisher had about ten
thousand dollars to break down the prejudice that the public has
taken against war songs. The public wants something more enter-
taining. It is war in the newspapers, war at the dinner table, and
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS 203
when folks seek some place of amusement to forget war and its horrors,
they are bombarded with a few war songs.
Some persons appear to take a keen delight in doing the very
thing that they are told not to do. For instance, hundreds send to
publishers lyrics without a chorus, or with three different choruses,
and they do this in spite of the fact that they have been told time and
again that a publisher spends most of his time and energy trying to
make the public familiar with one chorus — he aims to get everybody
singing the same few lines. And these obstinate beginners refuse to
believe that the chorus in a song is the all-important part, and that
the emphasis or so-called "punch" must be placed there. Many of
them turn out a chorus that has nothing whatever to do with the
title, and if you were to erase the word chorus no one could tell the
verses from the chorus. A well- written chorus practically tells the
entire story of any song. The verse is a lead, essential to a certain
extent, but of little value unless followed by a catchy chorus. Harry
Von Tilzer, who has written hits for the past twenty years, does not
bother about the verses until after he has secured a good chorus.
Another fault common with beginners is that of having two
verses that do not correspond in meter or rhythm. In popular songs
the music that is written for the first verse must be adaptable to the
second verse, and unless the meter and rhythm are exactly alike the
melody will not fit; it makes little difference whether you have an
equal number of words or syllables in each verse, if the corresponding
syllables in both verses do not carry an equal amount of stress or
cadence. If you cannot write in a musical lilt, borrow a tune that
fits your lilt until you have finished, then discard the other man's
melody and write a new one or give the work to the composer. He
need not know of the artifice you employed to obtain a perfect rhythm
and meter, and he will not be likely to fall into the same melody.
When you write a lyric be prepared to say something — and say
it as if you were telling it to a confidential friend. Do not use a yard
stick and a rhetoric to write a popular lyric; write as you think in
everyday life. And continue to say something in every fine. Note a
few fines from some of the late hits :
LAST NIGHT WAS THE END OF THE WORLD
By Sterling and Von Tilzer
We were alone in the moonlight,
There in the shadows below,
Last night to me in my dreaming,
Seems thousands of years ago.
Copyright, 1912, by Harry Von Tilzer Pub. Co.
MY LITTLE DREAM GIRL
By Gilbert and Friedland
The night time, the night time is calling me,
It's dream time, sweet dream time,
For you and for me.
Copyright, 1915, by Jos. W. Stern & Co.
204 THE WRITER'S MAGAZINE GUIDE
Sterling could have said,
" Last night the moon was shining,
Far in the heavens above,
With bright stars all a-gleaming,
Recalling dreams of love"
or he could have used any similar lines, just as tyros do, but he knew
that he would not be telling anything containing sentiment. He
keeps the personal side before us from the very outset, and he tells
us a definite story as he goes along. But in order to do this he
had to have a story to tell before he began, something which the
majority do not have when they try to write a popular song. Never
try to write until after you have discovered and developed an interest-
ing idea.
The Writer's Magazine Guide
Compiled by Anne Scannell O 'Neill
FICTION
" Rachel — The Woman of Fire," Albert Payson Terhune, Ainslee's,
April, 1916.
"The Question of Sex in Fiction," Current Opinion, April, 1916.
"Mr. Henry James's Later Work," William Dean Howells, North
American Review, April, 1916.
"British Tributes to Henry James," Literary Digest, April 8, 1916.
"More About Speeding-Up, " Florence Finch Kelly, Bookman,
April, 1916.
"Writing in Haste and Repenting at Leisure," Brander Matthews,
Bookman, April, 1916.
"How Time Has Tarnished the Reputed Brilliance of Oscar Wilde, "
Current Opinion, April, 1916.
"On the Road with Don Quixote," Ruth Kedzie Wood, Bookman,
April, 1916.
" Eight Novels of the Month, " H. W. Boynton, Bookman, April, 1916.
"A New Portrait of Edgar Allen Poe," Lillian McG. Shepherd,
Century, April, 1916.
POETRY
"The Remuneration of Poets," W. D. Howells, Harper's, April, 1916.
"The Soul in Poetry," K. G., Poetry Review, March-April, 1916.
"Poetry To-Day," Cornelia A. P. Comer, Atlantic Monthly, April,
1916.
"The New Naivete," Lewis Worthington Smith, Atlantic Monthly,
April, 1916.
"The Prosperous Poet," Joyce Kilmer, Bookman, April, 1916.
"Don'ts for Poets," Current Opinion, April, 1916.
THE WRITER'S MAGAZINE GUIDE 205
DRAMA
"The Life of Charles Frohman, " Introducing Maude Adams, Daniel
Frohman and Isaac Marcosson, Cosmopolitan, April, 1916.
"On Writing Plays/' — a Satire; Bernard Shaw, Cosmopolitan,
April, 1916.
" Rich Prizes for Playwrights, " Dale Carnagey, American, April, 1916.
"Aunt Sally Takes a Shy at the Critics," Marie Tempest, Vanity
Fair, April, 1916.
"Cervantes, Shakespeare and some Historical Backgrounds," James
J. Walsh, Catholic World, April, 1916.
"The Shakespeare Tercentenary," Katherine Bregy, Catholic World,
April, 1916.
"Shakespeare's Later Workmanship," Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch,
North American Review, April, 1916.
"William Shakespeare, the Man and the Poet," Edward Fales
Coward, Theatre, April, 1916.
"William Shakespeare," with fifteen illustrations, Richard LeGal-
lienne, Munsey, April, 1916.
"The Poor Critic — and Poor Critics," Walter Prichard Eaton,
Dramatic Mirror, April, 1916.
"Psychology of the American Vaudeville Show," Current Opinion,
April, 1916.
PHOTOPLAY
"A Sunlight Dumas" — C. Gardner Sullivan, Alfred A. Cohn, Photo-
play, May, 1916.
"Picture Play Magazine's Scenario Contest," Picture Play, May,
1916.
"The Twenty Greatest of Filmdom, " Robert Grau, Motion Picture,
May, 1916.
"Hints for Scenario Writers," Clarence J. Caine, Picture Play, May,
1916.
"Making a Million-Dollar Picture," Creighton Hamilton, Picture
Play, April, 1916.
"Method of Filming ' Under-Sea' Pictures," Current Opinion, April,
1916.
"William N. Selig on Screen Schools," Dramatic Mirror, April 8, 1916.
"The Technical Scenario," Maurice Tourneur, Dramatic Mirror,
April 8, 1916.
"Film Men Reply to Brisbane," Photography, April 1, 1916.
GENERAL ARTICLES
"The Transformation of Mediocrities into Men of Genius," Current
Opinion, April, 1916.
"English and German Copyrights," Literary Digest, April 8, 1916.
"What Would Shakespeare Think? " In " Point of View, " Scribner's,
April, 1916.
"Do You Want a Library in Your Town?" Elizabeth Girard, Picto-
rial Review, May, 1916.
Mr. Leeds has resigned his position as Editor of Scripts for Thomas A. Edison, Inc., in
order to return to freelance writing. As an active member of "The Photodramatists," "The Play-
wrights' Club," "The Society of American Dramatists and Composers," and kindred organizations,
he is in a position to give our readers the benefit of the latest information on matters touching
the photoplay and the drama.
By Arthur Leeds
When Dr. Esenwein and I wrote our text-book, " Writing the
Photoplay," we devoted a chapter to "The Synopsis." I feel, now,
that we would hardly have gone too far if we had given the subject
two chapters. For a new condition has arisen in the script-writing
game which — but, there you are! For the free-lance writer it can
hardly be called the " script "-writing game any longer. By which I
mean that, to-day, so many companies are buying synopses only that
we are fast becoming synopsis writers rather than constructors of
complete scripts. If, since you started in with the work, you have
insisted on calling yourself a "scenario" writer, you will soon be
either using the term even more incorrectly than in the past, or you
will be confining your output to a very limited market. For a couple
of years, at least, there have been one or two companies which
advertised themselves as being in the market for "synopses only,"
but at the present time you need have no hesitation in sending the
synopsis, and nothing else, to almost any of the more progressive
concerns — provided, of course, that it is the right kind of synopsis.
To mention only a few concerns — but these few are among the leaders
— the Lasky, Famous Players, Gaumont, Metro, World-Equitable,
and New York Motion Picture companies are just as ready to con-
sider "detailed synopses" as to read complete scripts, and the check
is usually quite as big as if the scenario were thrown in.
If this seems strange to you, you must remember that we are
still "up against" the by no means ideal condition of directors who
change the story about after the scenario (here using the word
correctly) reaches them, or else of the scenario department where
ninety-nine scripts out of every hundred purchased are altered
whether they really need it or not. Then, of course, it is also true that
even in the few studios where some respect is shown for the writer's
work as he originally turned it out, it is sometimes really necessary
to make certain alterations in the story, both as outlined in the
synopsis and as worked out in the scenario, in order to meet with
studio conditions. Suppose, for example, a male and a female star of
equal prominence are working together under a certain director (if
you think, you can recall several such couples), and a good story is
purchased for that director's use, the action offering excellent oppor-
tunities for the male star. It need hardly be pointed out that the
script will immediately be turned over to the staff writer who works
THINKS AND THINGS 207
up the stuff for that director so that he may make changes and
additions — especially additions — whereby the female of the species —
I should say of the team — is given a chance to stand out in the produc-
tion. But that need not spoil your story; in fact, it often happens
that the trained staff writer sees the opportunity for an added situa-
tion or two, or some other new twist or complication, which materially
adds to its effectiveness. To put it rather bromidically, it all depends
upon the staff writer. And, after all, since it is not fiction that you are
writing, why grow peevish if changes are made in your play?
I remember how, at one meeting of The Photodramatists, in the
days when it was known as the Ed-Au Club, someone asked how many
of the members present could truthfully say that they had had a
script produced exactly as written. Only four or five, out of some
thirty men and women present, were able to assert that they had. I
remembered having had one story produced — by Selig, if I am not
mistaken — in which not only every scene but every leader (" sub-
title, " if you prefer it) was given exactly as it appeared in my script.
That, however, was a one-reel drama with its action so built up that
it would have been next to impossible to change it without spoiling it.
The sub-titles were very carefully chosen, and were the kind of sub-
titles that that company liked — which doubtless explains why they
escaped " chopping" at the hands of the sub-title editor.
Some of you may remember Lew Fields' famous line, in one of
the old Weber-Fields burlesques, "the foist dooty of a vaiter iss to be
insuldink." Likewise, the first duty of a sub-title editor is to rip out
your sub-titles and replace them with some of his own — and few of
them neglect their duty! In justice to these men, however, it must be
admitted that some otherwise excellent scripts are positively dis-
figured with sub-titles that could be improved upon by many a twelve-
year-old school-boy. Then, again, the heads of certain companies
have preferences or prejudices which govern the sub-title editor in his
daily work. One firm likes a long sub-title, with a " literary " flavor —
long, even though there be no unnecessary words in it. Other firms
want all the sub-titles, both the "plain statement" and "dialogue"
titles, very short and to the point. Leave it to the sub-title man to
change your leaders so as to conform with the firm's policy.
All this, however, is getting away from the matter of which I
started to write. The point to be kept in mind is that it will cer-
tainly pay you to ascertain positively which form a certain company
prefers — full script or synopsis only — before submitting. In the first
place, if you are a "regular" writer, you are turning out as many as
you can do and do well, and you are wasting no time on unnecessary
labor. To write a complete script for, say, the Famous Players
Company would simply be to devote many hours to work which will
gain you nothing. Give them, on the other hand, a thoroughly good,
clearly written synopsis of an unusually strong play for one of their
regular stars, and you will almost certainly get both a check and a
letter asking for more material. On the other hand, at the last
Photodramatists' meeting, one member told of having sent a story —
synopsis only — to a certain firm, only to have it returned. He then
208 THINKS AND THINGS
wrote the complete scenario for it and sent it straight back. Inside of
a week he got a five-hundred dollar check. And, by the way, five-
hundred dollar checks for five-reel stories are becoming more and
more the " correct thing" every day. Only a few of the (very) old-
line concerns — the heads and editors of which probably entered the
United States via Ellis Island, and have not yet gotten over the habit
of being extremely "saving" — are paying twenty-five and fifty
dollars a reel at the present time. If you watch the columns of the
trade papers you will find some such concern occasionally bursting
the buttons off its vest with a thrilling announcement that it has
"raised the price for comedy scenarios to $50 a reel," or something
like that. The policy of such firms, to paraphrase a popular current
slogan, seems to be "Millions for publicity, but not one cent (more
than we have to pay) for scripts!"
In handing out this tip about synopses, I trust I have not given
the impression that the time has arrived to abandon the writing of
complete scripts altogether, or even that such a time is fast approach-
ing. Most of us feel that it is a case of accepting present conditions
and being thankful that, in so many cases, good checks are forth-
coming for a good story prepared with not more than two-thirds of
the former labor. But there can be no questioning the value of a
course of training in the preparation of the complete photoplay manu-
script, whether that training is acquired by means of a good text-book,
a reliable correspondence instructor, or — best of all, but hardest to
get — right in the studio scenario department. If you have a thorough
grasp of the technique of legitimate play writing, you will undoubtedly
be better qualified to write a convincing scenario of your play than if
you are but semi-familiar with the rules of dramatic construction —
and there is, of course, a vast difference between the scenario of a
stage play and that of a screen drama. Similarly, a course of training
in photoplay scenario construction, however acquired, will help you
in your writing of a clear, interesting, salable synopsis. Also, it is to
be hoped — and most of us believe — that the time will come when the
director will be the builder, working from the blue-print of the au-
thor-architect. Then your knowledge of scenario construction will
undoubtedly stand you in good stead. So, though you seize the pres-
ent opportunities to dispose of "synopses only," be prepared to turn
out a workmanlike complete script when called upon.
Writing about sub-title editors and the work they do brought to
mind the fact that so many of the men and women so employed fail
to take into consideration that they, being on the inside, and familiar
with the ramifications of the plot by reason of their conversations with
the scenario editor, director, and — possibly — the author, have an
advantage which it is not possible for the men and women making up
the audience to share. If a character uses language which seems to
the audience to be out of place, it is usually because the sub-title editor
knowing all about the plot, also knows why such language is used, and
so lets the film go out without bothering to explain, for the benefit of
THINKS AND THINGS 209
the spectators in the theatre, why such language is employed. As a
case in point, take the Famous Players production of "Molly Make-
Believe, " with the always delightful Marguerite Clark in the title
role. I admit that, even at this late day, I have not read Eleanor
Hallowell Abbott's story, and so cannot say what the time-lapse is
between Molly's leaving home and her adventures while conducting
"The Serial Letter Co." But in the photoplay we see the winsome
Marguerite as a little girl — a mere child of fourteen or fifteen, and a
country-bred child, at that. With her little brother, she runs away
from her grandmother's house, determined to earn her own living and
assist her grandmother in paying a debt. On the freight-train by
which the children make their escape we see her pleading with the
brakeman, using such language as "Please, Mr. Railroad Man, we
ran away because," etc. When I saw the picture there was no sub-
title indicating a lapse of time, although the action registered that
there must have been a lapse of some weeks, or possibly a few months,
between the train scenes and those in Molly's rented apartments.
However that may be, in the latter two-thirds of the play Molly not
only acts like a girl long familiar with the city and with the ways of
society but is made to use language such as one looks for in the works
of some of our well-known writers of drawing-room comedies. To say
the least, it is not consistent, and therefore decidedly unconvincing.
As one woman in the audience was heard to whisper to her neighbor,
"Fancy a youngster talking like that!" In the films of such a repre-
sentative firm as Famous Players, there seems to be no excuse for
such inconsistencies. Another thing that has caused much comment
is Lasky's trick of capitalizing certain words in ordinary "dialogue"
or conversational leaders, which gives them a curious, not to say
funny, George Ade effect. On the other hand, I would like to congratu-
late Mr. Courtney, of Vitagraph, on his excellent sub-titles for so
many of the dramas and comedies of that concern. The bigger the
company, the greater the need for consistency in all things.
Wherever you may go, whatever magazine or trade paper you
may read, you will find the people who know, and whose opinions are
respected, asserting that "screen stories written for the screen" are
what is wanted by the audiences today. Writing in the Dramatic
Mirror, Robert Grau says: "The day is, indeed, near when the
producer of photoplays must need reckon with the decreasing supply
of stars. Particularly will this condition be in evidence with those
producers who seek the name and fame without regard to the celebri-
ties' adaptability to the drama of silence ; but such a condition is the
result of mere madness of the moment — wholly temporary. We must
not forget that the greatest minds associated with all that is best in
the theatre are now enthusiastic converts to the new art. Men and
women of great thought are just beginning to be attracted to the film
environment. From them will come a new literature for the screen — a
literature all its own. Original photoplays written with the screen
alone in mind will be presented with ideal rather than all-star casts."
Contributions to this department are solicited. Paragraphs must be brief and the material
based not on theory but on experience in any branch of pencraft. Mutual helpfulness and a wide
range of subjects are the standards we have set for Experience Meeting.
My experiences with Home and Country, Cincinnati, have not
been encouraging from the standpoint of prompt dealings. In
September, 1914, I left them an article which they accepted soon
after, and published in July, 1915, promising to send me a check in
several weeks. This they did not do, but in June and July, I sent
them some more manuscript. In November, I wrote to them, and
in response they sent me a check for $10. This is all I have ever
received. I wrote them several times without reply and finally sent a
draft through my local bank, but received only an evasive answer to
the effect that they would take the matter up with me directly. This
they did not do, however, until I had written them again, whereupon
they explained that they were having difficulty in making payments.
They have returned all of my manuscripts except one, and about this
one I can get no reply. I merely mention these matters so that they
may have due weight with intending contributors. — B. A.
(After the foregoing note was in type and the magazine made up, The Writek's Monthly re-
ceived word that Home and Country magazine has gone into involuntary bankruptcy and that un-
paid contributors, as well as other creditors, will receive a due proportion of their claims, as the
amount of the assets may determine. Burch, Peters and Connolly of Cincinnati are acting for the
creditors.)
Thoughts for articles or stories sometimes come when it is incon-
venient to use a pencil. Frequently an idea comes to me in the night.
As soon as it is clear in my mind, I condense it to a few words and
repeat these impressively while I change the ring habitually worn on
my right hand, to the left. The "new finger" calls attention as soon
as I arise in the morning. I make my notation, and replace the ring
on my right hand.
The sleeping period is not for literary composition, but if a
thought is bound to come, the sooner it is " filed" and sleep resumed
the better. — L. E. Eubanks.
We read of this and that way of "enclosing" or "attaching"
stamps for the return of manuscripts; these are all careless, and all
wrong. There is but one right way; put sufficient postage ON the
addressed return envelope. If your manuscript is returned, that is
where they must be. Don't ask an editor who returns your work to
give you two kinds of a lick. If the manuscript is accepted, leave it to
the editor to loosen and use your stamps, or toss them in the waste
basket. — Anna S. Ells.
EXPERIENCE MEETING 211
Isn't it hard to sit down and make the words come as you would
wish? Why not go to the nearest picture theatre and make a mental
story of each picture as it goes through to its completion? Note the
gestures of abhorrence, delight, love, respect; the facial expressions
of the hero, the lower characters; the scene of horror, fright, murder;
and the show of contentment, supreme happiness and so on; depict
each movement as though you were at your Underwood — form quick,
brief sentences as the actors play their parts. You will easily acquire a
facile mode of style and you will give your writing a touch of realism. —
Michael V. Simko.
On August 5, 1915, I submitted a drama to Universal Film Mfg.
Co., 1600 Broadway, New York. Since then I have written them
repeatedly for a report and can get no reply. — John P. Lyons.
In the February number of The Writer's Monthly you have
Everyday Life listed as paying for stories on acceptance. They did
not pay me on acceptance. I sent them a story February 23d. On
March 13th, I received a letter of acceptance in which they said they
would change the title of the story, if it was satisfactory to me, and
pay on publication, promising to publish the same in their April or
May issue. — Frank G. Davis.
The keener became my interest in improvement and technique
in general, the smaller my output. The matter got quite serious at
length, and I had not yet reached the point where increased value of
what I did do (to be quite frank, its value was for the time being
decreased) made up for diminished quantity. The hours that I spent
in planning and rewriting and studying were very well spent, but I
needed results, too. I did the obvious thing and split my available
time in halves. One half I devote to extremely rapid production of
all kinds of materials — informative, practical and philosophical
articles; notes and hints; short-stories, anecdotes and verse — and
the other half of the time is free for the most painstaking and elabo-
rate revision and construction. The result has been very happy. I
unconsciously apply my newly learned principles in my rapid work;
I learn to turn out a minimum of a thousand words an hour, no
matter what the subject or how I feel; I make more money than
before; and in my " serious time," as I call it, I am steadily master-
ing the principles and methods that I have set my heart on. — J. G.
McNear.
Art simply represents man's passionate desire to drag the truth
out of life in half a dozen different ways. God does it for you in
the country. — E. Phillips Oppenheim, The Hillman.
Timely, terse, reliable, and good-natured contributions to this department will be wel-
come. Every detail of each item should be carefully verified. Criticisms based on matters of
opinion or taste cannot be admitted, but only points of accuracy or correctness.
The February number of American Magazine publishes "The
Crack Marksman" by Cullen A. Cain. The preeminent character is
Jerry Engle, who is suspected of breaking the new game laws. The
point in discussion is whether or not the game warden will come to
Warsaw — Jerry's home. In one of the first paragraphs of the story the
writer says: "We read in the papers that his duty was to enforce the
law against fishing with nets. But we never figured that the range of
his activities would extend to Warsaw." In a following paragraph
is the statement: "I knew the warden would not overlook a river
town like Warsaw on his rounds." — L. Tracy O.
A source of never-failing wonder to me is that so many people
supposedly well-educated — writers, teachers, and college students —
complacently disregard the correct use of pronouns. Sometimes these
mistakes creep into print. For example: A writer in the February
number of a magazine for writers asks from the "experts" sugges-
tions for a working schedule. He says: "It's a series of fixed habits
that it would help you and I just to know about. "
No doubt he is right. But the "expert" would tell him first of
all to make a fixed habit of studying English grammar. Before you
mount the heights, Mr. Beginner, are you sure that you have that
trusty staff to lean on — English, not "as she is spoke," but as she
should be written? — B. Scott.
The words "mental insanity" occurred in an article, "The
Human Mind Versus the German Mind," contributed by Yale's
Emeritus Professor of Philosophy in the January issue of The Hibbert
Journal (an English quarterly). While the word insanity is derived
from the Latin insana or unsound, there seems no excuse for adding
the word mental in this instance. — Myrtiline H. Kirkpatrick.
" At mass, two days ago, in the village here, where the shell-
rents in the roof let in the sunset on the altar, I thought of that."
This quotation from a story in the February Scribner's, " The
Wife of the Junior Partner," by Edward C. Venable, is striking as an
example of the danger of alluding to something with which one is
not wholly familiar. As a matter of fact, Mass, in the Roman
Catholic Church, is never celebrated after mid-day; consequently
the sunset could not have been let in upon the service. — L. W. S.
imETTfQp
The Word
Pagb_
Conducted by the Editor
In this little Department will be found from month to month such notes, observations, and
criticisms on the values and uses of words as may be contributed, or provided by the Staff of The
Waiter's Monthly. No offerings can be considered that are not brief, pungent, and accurate.
Not alone the authoritative word-books but also good usage will be taken as the standard.
A friendly correspondent objects to the word "outrussias, "
used by the editor of " Short-Story Masterpieces, Russian/' in his
critique on Gorki. He says: " Neither Worcester's nor Webster's
Unabridged Dictionaries give [gives?] 'outrussia' or 'russia' as a
verb."
New words do not come into the language by way of the diction-
aries but are included in the word books after they have been coined
and more or less widely used. This example, however, is not the
sort of word that could ever be included in even the fullest dictionary.
It is not really a new word at all, but an arbitrary compound, of
which literature is full. It is perfectly justifiable to characterize a
man or a movement by inventing a compound, so we shall always
see such expressions as "Wilsonize the party," and "outherod
Herod." The better forms would probably be " out-Russia" and
"out-Herod."
Once Kipling was found flat on his stomach reading the diction-
ary. He may dramatize it some day. Yet the best word books are
not necessarily those that group words in a lexicon, or by synonyms,
or in categories of ideas. Rich profit, for a good example, is to be
made by a study of Mr. Edwin Markham's new book of poems,
"The Shoes of Happiness." Aside from the exquisite imagery of
these verses long and short, and their big, fresh spirit of life, we find
there the chosen word, fitly joined to other right words, all used so
deftly that the thought flows to us on a stream of music. Here is a
poet whose respect for English is a reverent passion. Take some
hours of your study time and learn from Markham — but do not stop
at the word-gate : enter into the palace.
Apparent and evident are words frequently misused. Use " appar-
ent" when there is doubt about the thing stated, and "evident"
when there is absolutely no doubt about the statement made.
— Lena C. Ahlers.
The moment one vitally grasps the fact that he can rise he will
rise, and he can have absolutely no limitations other than the limita-
tions he sets to himself. — Ralph Waldo Trine.
H. C. S. Folks
Patrons and students are invited to give information of their published or produced material;
or of important literary activities. Mere news of acceptances cannot be printed — give dates,
titles and periodicals, time and place of dramatic production, or names of book publishers.
Mary Catherine Parsons, of Brookline, Mass., has been contribut-
ing a series of short articles to Selling Sense. The January, February,
and March issues all contain interesting examples of her work. Miss
Parsons also has a monologue in the Washington Courier for February
12th. It is entitled "At the Bridge Club. "
Phoebe Lowrie, of Mission San Jose, Cal., won the first prize
for her letter, on the Bell Telephone Ad, in the July, 1915, Sunset
Magazine. She also won the third prize in the January, 1916, contest.
Cora Drew, of Los Angeles, Cal., has a special article in the April
issue of The Motion Picture Magazine, entitled "Bees and Eagles."
Nina M. Langford, of Toronto, Can., had a short humorous
article on "Beds" in the February 16th issue of the Christian Guard-
ian. She won the first prize in the "Bright Sayings" contest in the
Toronto Weekly Star of March 11th, and has a pleasing story, entitled
"A Fallen Idol, " in Onward for March 18th.
Helen Sherman Griffith, of Philadelphia, has added another to
her charming series of girls' books in "Letty of the Conservatory."
It is brought out by the Penn Publishing Co., Philadelphia.
Ellen E. deGraff, of Adams Centre, N. Y., has an effective two-
part story entitled "Labor Without Reward" in the Rural New-
Yorker, issues for January 22 and January 29. She also has a vigorous
article in the March 25th issue of The Editor, entitled "Stick to It."
Narena Brooks Easterling, of Jackson, Miss., has a charming
story entitled "Marrying Off Leah" in Everywomari 's World for
April. It is featured as the leading story of the month.
Earl G. Curtis, of Richmond, Va., is publishing in various
magazines with success. In the May number of Breezy Stories he has
an effective piece of fiction called "The Duty of 8604." His work
has lately come in for a favorable criticism in the Richmond Evening
Journal.
Jessie Hungerford Bender, of Newark, N. J., has a patriotic lyric
in a recent issue of the Chatham Press. It has been dedicated to
Col. Theodore Roosevelt, from whom she has received a letter of
thanks. She is desirous of getting in touch with a song-writer of
ability and originality, for a stirring melodious score. Inquiries sent to
The Writer's Monthly will be promptly forwarded to her.
"Ten Years After the Rube Broke the Record," a track story,
illustrated by Bruce Cameron, and written by Harry Moore, editor of
The Alvinston (Ont.) Free Press, appears in the April number of
Canada Monthly.
Bb>-^
to
5ELI
Our readers are urgently asked to join in making this department up-to-date and accurate.
Information of new markets, suspended or discontinued publications, prize contests in any way
involving pencraft, needs of periodicals as stated in communications from editors, and all news
touching markets for all kinds of literary matter should be sent promptly so as to reach Springfield
before the 20th day of the month preceding date of issue.
The Public, Chicago, has had placed at its disposal $250 to be offered as a prize
for the best scenario illustrating the Singletax idea. The scenario must tell a strong
human story, illustrating the fundamental truths of the doctrine of social justice
preached by Henry George and known as the Singletax, and it must be accepted
for reproduction by one of the moving picture companies. In addition to the
$250 cash prize, the author will receive half of the amount paid for his work by
the "movie" concern. Entries must be plays in (1) Synopsis form, and (2)
Complete scripts and a working scenario for the director. Manuscripts must be
of a length suitable for a two-, a three-, a four-, or a five-reel film. They must be
typewritten on one side of the paper only and double spaced. The competition
will close on the first of September, 1916, and MSS. must be mailed on or before
that date. The name of the prize winner will be announced in The Public and
in the " movie" press as soon as possible after the award has been made. Colonel
Jasper E. Brady, head of the Scenario Department of the Vitagraph Company,
will be the final judge. He will be assisted bjr a competent reading committee
in charge of Grace Isabel Colbron of New York. Every MS. must bear its in-
dividual identifying word or symbol on the back, which must be repeated on the
outside of the sealed envelope enclosed with the MS., containing the competitor's
name and address. Care will be exercised to insure the safe return of MSS.
accompanied by return postage, but The Public does not assume any responsi-
bility for loss. Scenario writers who do not understand the Singletax can obtain
literature from The Public's Book Department. Send 25c for pamphlets and
copies of The Public. Suggestions for more extensive reading on the subject will
be given without charge, and the Competition Editor will, if requested, be glad,
where possible, to put a prospective competitor in touch with Singletaxers in his
or her locality, who may be able to give helpful criticisms and suggestions from
the Singletax point of view. While it is not absolutely necessary, and in no wise
a condition, writers might with advantage bear in mind that a story, an illustra-
tion of which would show the words, "Read The Chicago Public, a Journal of
Fundamental Democracy," would be acceptable. This might be done by the
display of the words on a poster in the background or something of that kind.
Address all manuscripts to the Scenario Competition Editor, The Public, Ells-
worth Building, Chicago, 111.
At the request of many of the more prominent American poets, the time
within which poems may be submitted for Newark's Poem Competition (particu-
lars of which were given in the March Writer's Monthly), has been extended
from April 10th to June lstJ1916. Thirteen cash prizes amounting to $1,000
will be awarded. All contributions must be sent to the Committee of One Hun-
dred, Newark, N. J.
The David C. Cook Publishing Co., Elgin, 111., is in the market for Sunday
School Christmas entertainments for Primary Departments — Playlets, Dialogues,
Concerted Recitations, Tableaux, etc. They want particularly short, simple
playlets or dialogues arranged for several children, such as the children them-
selves will like to present, each with some striking and pleasing climax. Availa-
ble manuscripts are paid for at the usual rate upon acceptance. Address con-
tributions to "Christmas Entertainment Department," David C. Cook Pub-
lishing Co., Elgin, 111.
216 WHERE TO SELL
In order to gather first-class material for a volume of anti-cigarette stories
to place in school libraries, the Twentieth Century Club, of Detroit, Mich., offers
three prizes of $20, $10 and $5 for the three best stories illustrating the effects
of cigarette smoking. Stories should be from 2,000 to 5,000 words in length.
Stories of sufficient merit, even though not prize winners, will also be published
in the collection. All contributions should reach the Chairman of the Anti-
Cigarette Committee by June 15th, 1916. A Bibliography of Anti-Cigarette
Literature will be furnished for a two-cent stamp. Address: The Anti-Cigarette
Committee, Mrs. O. E. Angstman, Chairman, 277 Putnam Ave., Detroit, Mich.
Prizes of $250, $100, and $50, two honorable mentions worth $25 each, and
five honorable mentions worth $10 each, are offered by the National American
Woman Suffrage Association, for suffrage art posters to be used for window
display and billboards. A prize of $25 is also offered for a suffrage slogan, con-
taining not more than five words. For full particulars of these contests, which
close October 1st, 1916, write the N. A. W. S. A. Headquarters, 171 Madison
Av., New York City.
Popular Science Monthly, 239 Fourth Ave., New York, offers a first prize
of $25 and a second prize of $15 for articles for its "Radio Department." Articles
should contain descriptions of how trouble in building, operating, adjusting or
repairing any radio instrument or group of instruments have been overcome by
amateur radio operators. Illustrations should be on sheets separate from the
manuscript. Each manuscript must be accompanied by a letter containing
criticisms of and suggestions about the wireless section of Popular Science Monthly,
but the merit of the letters will not be considered in the awarding of the prizes.
Articles should not contain more than 2,000 words, though it is permissible for a
writer to send in several articles on different phases of the subject, each article
being independent.
The Lantern, San Francisco, Cal., is a small-sized monthly "periodical of
lucid intervals," and tends to the sparkling and modern in content. Although
the leading articles are written by the editors, prose, poetry, music, the drama,
short-stories of the unusual sort, and terse epigrams are accepted from outsiders.
We have no information on the subject of payment, so the author's requirements
had better be stated when material is submitted.
Cash prizes amounting to $1,000 are being offered in the " Old Familiar Songs "
picturegame by Farm and Home, Springfield, Mass. The first prize is $250, the
second $150, the third $100, the fourth $75, the fifth $50, the sixth $25, the seventh
$15, and there are five prizes of $10 each, twenty prizes of $5 each, and 185 of $1
each. For full particulars of this contest write Farm and Home, Springfield, Mass.
Edward Schubert & Co., 11 East 22d St., New York, state they have dis-
continued the buying of lyrics for some time. At present they let the composers
select those which inspire them, and then buy from them both lyrics and music.
P. J. Howley Music Company, Inc., 146 W. 45th St., New York, are at
present overstocked with poems and will not consider anything more.
Kendis Music Publishing Co., Inc., 145 W. 45th St., New York, are not
in the market for lyrics at the present time.
As a feature of the celebration of the 250th Anniversary of the Founding of
the City of Newark, the New York Times will award approximately five hundred
Tiffany silver medals and five hundred engrossed certificates of merit to the pupils
of the public and parochial schools of Newark, who shall write the best essays on
the founding and history of the city. These essays are to be based upon a series
of articles by the Assistant Superintendent of the Newark city schools, to be
published in the New York Times beginning Monday, April 24th.
The American Boy, Detroit, Mich., is always in the market for vigorous
stories of from 2,000 to 4,000 words, which appeal to boys of sixteen. Stories in
WHERE TO SELL 217
which character is combined with plenty of action are preferred. Crime stories
and stories with girl characters are not wanted. Short humorous stories are par-
ticularly desired at this time. Photographs accompanied by brief manuscripts
of novel inventions and natural wonders find a good market.
One of the conditions of the $1,000 play contest announced by Grace George
(full particulars of which were given in the January issue of this magazine) has
been changed. Whereas before only undergraduates could enter the contest,
Miss George has now announced that graduate students will also be allowed to
compete for the prize. The contest closes June 1.
The National Institution for Moral Instruction, Washington, D. C., offers
a prize of $5,000 for the best code of morals for children, which will be used as a
standard in the schools and homes of this country. State superintendents and
other prominent educators will appoint seventy code writers, who will each sub-
mit a code, which will be limited to 3,000 words. The prize will be awarded to
the best code. Writers who feel themselves qualified for such work should com-
municate with the Superintendents of Public Instruction in their several states.
Leo Feist, Inc., 235 West 40th St., New York, write that they already
have more material on hand than they can use immediately, so, for the present
at least, they are not interested in any additional manuscripts.
Blue Bird Magazine has been transferred from Cincinnati, Ohio, to Cleveland,
Ohio, and the subscription price has been raised from 50c to 75c a year.
Everyboy's Magazine, published at Philadelphia, has been suspended.
The American edition of The Strand Magazine, New York City, has been
discontinued, because the ban placed upon the exportation of metals from Eng-
land by Great Britain has made it impossible to send over the plates for reprinting
in this country.
Thresherman' s Review and Power Farming, St. Joseph, Mich., will hereafter
be published under the title of Power Farming.
Teaching is a new magazine devoted to Kansas educational interests. It is
printed by the state printing plant, and edited at the Kansas Normal School at
Emporia. Expert writers on educational subjects who are thinking of contribut-
ing to this magazine should be careful to see a copy and learn its terms before
making any offerings.
A bi-monthly journal known as The California has appeared. Los Angeles
is its publication headquarters, and it will support the prohibition amendments.
George Vail Steep, who will edit the magazine, was formerly editor and publisher
of Out West.
STATEMENT OF THE OWNERSHIP, MANAGEMENT, CIRCULATION, ETC., OF
THE WRITER'S MONTHLY CONTINUING THE PHOTOPLAY AUTHOR
Published monthly at Springfield, Mass., required by the Act of August 24, 1912.
Name and Postoffice Address
Editor, J. Berg Esenwein, Myrick Bldg., Springfield, Mass.; Managing Editor, J. Berg
Esenwein, Myrick Bldg., Springfield, Mass.; Business Manager , F. Arthur Metcalf, Myrick Bldg.,
Springfield, Mass.; Publisher, The Home Correspondence School, Springfield, Mass.; Owners:
(If a corporation, give names and addresses of stockholders holding 1 per cent or more of total
amount of stock.) Orlando Adams, Buffalo, N. Y.; Alfred H. Campbell, Windsor, Conn.; Estate of
W. H. Cummings, Claremont, N. H. ; Walter L. Curtis, Mittineague, Mass. ; J. Frank Drake, Spring-
field, Mass.; Alice L. Eaton, Springfield, Mass.; L. Howard Eaton, Springfield, Mass.; Jennie
E. McLaughlin, So. Acworth, N. H.; F. Arthur Metcalf, Springfield, Mass.; Nellie Wyman,
Meriden, N. H.
Known bondholders, mortgagees, and other security holders, holding 1 per cent or more of
total amount of bonds, mortgages, or other securities: None.
(Signed) F. Arthur Metcalf, Bus. Mgr.
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, County of Hampden.
Sworn to and subscribed before me this twenty-ninth day of March, 1916.
(Signed) George E. Fobs, Notary Public.
(Seal)
(My commission expires September, 1921)
The Writer's
Monthly
Continuing
The Photoplay Author
A Journal for all Who Write
Edited by
J. Berg Esenwbin
Entered at the Springfield, Massachusetts,
Post Office as Second Class Mail Matter.
Copyright, 1915, by The Home Correspond-
ence School, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Price 15 cents a copy; $1.00 a Year; Canada
$1.25; Foreign $1.50.
Published monthly by Thb Home Cobbz-
spondbncb School, Myrick Building, Spring-
field, Mass.
IMPORTANT NOTICES
Change of address must reach the publisher
before the first of the month. No numbers can
be duplicated when this rule has not been com-
plied with. Subscribers must give old address
when sending in the new, and specifically address
the notice to The Writer's Monthly.
Return postage must accompany all regular
articles intended for publication; otherwise,
without exception, unavailable manuscripts
will not be returned.
In no case can short items for the Depart-
ments be returned if unavailable, therefore
copies should be retained by the writers.
Notices of accepted material will be
sent promptly with payment on acceptance.
However, items for " Critics in Council,"
"Paragraphic Punches," "Experience Meet-
ing," and "The Word Page" will be paid for
only in shorter or longer subscriptions to The
Writer's Monthly, to be sent to any desired
person. Items for the other departments will
not be paid for.
Vol. VII May, 1916 No. 5
Fate has a strange way of
accomplishing results which have
not been reached by man's per-
sistent efforts. The shortage of
paper bids fair to force writers
into ways of brevity, whereas
"doctors" have pleaded long and
in vain that our written English
should be concise. The great
war will also have its marked
effects — some not so desirable
as this one wrought by the paper
famine! Father D wight, in
America, ventures on a prophecy,
which is given herewith in part.
Probably Dr. Dwight thrust his
tongue in his cheek while writing
some of these lines — but which
lines?
"Elliptical phrases and laconic forms
of expression will be every author's
study. Yet an adequate corrective for
this tendency will doubtless be found
in the influence exerted on the literature
of the post-bellum period by the
language used in statesmen's books of
divers colors and in the innumerable
notes that diplomats have been writing.
The cautious and impersonal way,
moreover, in which our quotidian crises
are announced by the daily press can
not but affect the style of to-morrow's
authors, and the passionate love for
neutrality now so widely cultivated in
the United States will without question
leave its distinctive mark on our
literature.
"Figures borrowed from the new
warfare now waged on land and sea and
in the air will be permanently added to
our poetical, descriptive, and rhetorical
literature; adjectives, owing to their
hopelessly unneutral character, will go
out of use altogether, and the Murray
of the future will be obliged to compile
a large supplementary volume contain-
ing nothing but the new words that the
war has given our language. Perhaps
the Saintsbury of to-morrow will make
profound studies of the literary style
that characterized the war-period,
devoting special chapters to the psy-
chology of headlines, to an examina-
tion of how 'official reports' were
rendered agreeable to the 'oldest sub-
scriber,' and to making an analysis of
the censor's influence on epistolary
style. Perhaps the war will make the
vocabulary of horror, carnage, and
disaster grow so commonplace and
familiar that when peace returns such
words will become obsolete, and the
weary literary world will describe the
ruthless conflict by using euphemisms
and periphrases. On the other hand,
perhaps the imagination of authors will
be so violently and permanently affect-
ed by what they are now seeing, hear-
ing, or reading of, that turgidity and
cacophony will be the most striking
characteristics of their style. For many
a year to come guns may roar, shells
scream, and the smoke of battle roll
through our prose and verse, and the
nations' madness in pouring all their
wealth and manhood into the bottom-
less whirlpool of the present war will
afflict with chronic megalomania the
writers who have beheld the specta-
cle
"Epics of the Great War, now seeth-
ing in the heads of minor poets, will
never be published, and metrical
dramas without number will remain in
manuscript for ay Quatrains will
be condensed to couplets, and the
EDITORIAL
219
epigram will enjoy an unprecedented
vogue
"As for the Sunday paper, it will, of
course, become a mere reminiscence of
its present self. The 'comic supple-
ment/ to the joy of all good men, will
disappear completely ; the ' pictorial sec-
tion ' will dwindle to insignificance, and
the 'magazine department' will follow
the earlier fate of its monthly relatives.
Indeed the editor's paramount duty
will then be to determine what articles
need not be written, rather than to toil,
as he does now, to find a plethora of
subjects for 'copy.' As an immediate
result of this new editorial outlook, the
army of scribblers, who to-day fill with
useless or pernicious material the pages
of countless periodicals, will be forced
to find other employment
"Instead of computing how many
books they can bring out each year,
publishers will aim to limit the number;
instead of striving to produce a large
paper, editors will plot and plan to
condense the news into as little space
as possible. Solemn meetings of the
staff will be held to determine what de-
partments of the paper shall be dis-
continued; whether the social news,
for example, should be sacrificed to
leave room for a curtailed sporting-
page, or whether the Wall Street news
should be allowed to usurp the place
of the editorials. "
Those writers who apply busi-
ness methods to their craft
usually succeed. One might
suppose that no writer who really
wants to succeed would deliber-
ately disregard the accumulated
experience of an army of writers
who have to an appreciable ex-
tent succeeded, yet that is pre-
cisely what many are doing every
day. This magazine has printed
and will continue to print so
many articles of positive in-
struction . that the old-time
" don't" column may properly
be reopened. By avoiding the
courses here listed — and all suc-
cessful writers know these to be
bad policy — pen-craftsmen may
save themselves much disap-
pointment and useless labor.
Five Big Danger Marks
Don't send out soiled and torn
manuscript. The editor may
hesitate to approve what bears
marks of having been the rounds,
for he realizes that other editors
are often right, and that he him-
self is sometimes wrong.
Don't send out a manuscript
without being sure that in liter-
ary quality, tone, length, and
general merit it approaches the
standard of the periodical to
which it is to be offered. A need-
less rejection slip can do no one
any good.
Don't assume that two, or
five, or ten rejections of one
manuscript mean that it is not
salable. Reread it every time
it comes back to see how you
may improve it. If after several
rereadings it shows merit, keep
on submitting it, not less than
twenty times.
Don't allow yourself to be
puffed up by the opinions of
your family or your friends.
Consider the number of amateur
musicians you yourself have
praised because you hesitated to
wound. An honest professional
will tell you the truth — your
friends may not.
Don't hesitate to revise. It is
laborious, but you will certainly
fail if you are afraid of hard
work. The writer who says he
cannot revise his work, means
that he is unwilling to work long
enough to learn how to revise.
He may possibly attain a medi-
ocre success but that is the outer
limit. Be willing to learn how
to do your best.
The Writer's Book List
Prepared by the Editorial Staff of The Writer's Monthly and Continued from Month to Month
Any book will be sent by The Writer's Monthly on receipt of price. The prices always
include delivery, except when noted. Send all remittances to The Writer's Monthly, Myrick
Building, Springfield, Mass.
GENERAL REFERENCE BOOKS FOR WRITERS
THE READER'S REFERENCE LIBRARY
The Reader's Reference Library consists
of seventeen handsome volumes, crown
octavo in size, printed on excellent antique
wove paper, and attractively and durably
bound in half morocco with gilt tops.
Each volume is a work of the highest
value and should be found on the shelves of
every library making any pretensions to
completeness. To the person who writes,
they will be simply invaluable, and to the
student and general reader they will be
found of great assistance.
Words, Facts, and Phrases . $2.50
By Eliezer Edwards. A dictionary of
curious, quaint, and out-of-the-way mat-
ters. Full of suggestive ideas for the writer.
631 pp. Crown 8vo. Half morocco.
Thesaurus of English Words and
Phrases . $2.50
By Peter Mark Roget, M.D., F.R.S.
Classified and arranged so as to facilitate
the expression of ideas and assist in literary
composition. The value of this standard
work consists largely in its groupings of
words in their relationships under main
thought-headings. It is therefore not only
an aid to writing but to clear and extensive
thinking. 747 pp. Crown 8vo. Half morocco.
A Dictionary of English Syno-
nyms and Synonymous or
Parallel Expressions . $2.50
By Richard Soule. An excellent standard
work. 488 pp. Crown 8vo. Half morocco.
The Writer's Handbook $2.50
A condensed encyclopedia of rules of
English writing, punctuation, proof-reading
diction, style and literary usage in general.
572 pp. Crown 8vo. Half morocco.
Chambers' Twentieth Century
Dictionary of the English Lan-
guage . . $2.00
Edited by Rev. Thomas Davidson, assist-
ant editor, Chambers' Encyclopedia. Over
100,000 words and references. An authori-
tative desk dictionary. 1,208 pp. Crown
8vo. Half morocco.
Chambers' Concise Gazetteer of
the World . $3.00
Topographical, statistical, historical. Newly
revised edition, embodying the latest census
figures. 768 pp. Crown 8vo. Half
morocco.
Chambers' Biographical Diction-
ary $3.00
Edited by David Patrick and Francis
Hindes Groome. This new edition is in-
valuable to all journalists. 1,002 pp.
Crown 8vo. Half morocco.
Handy-Book of Literary Curiosi-
ties .... $3.50
By William S. Walsh. This book is not
only a mine of information but full of germ-
ideas for short and long articles. For an
inventive mind it should pay for itself many
times over. 1,104 pp. Crown 8vo. Half
morocco.
Curiosities of Popular Customs $3.50
By William S. Walsh. Rites, ceremonies,
observances, and miscellaneous antiquities.
Just as valuable as the foregoing. 1,018 pp.
Crown 8vo. Half morocco.
The Historic Notebook . $3.50
By Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D.
With an Appendix of Battles. A thesaurus
of historical information especially valuable
in these days. 997 pp. Crown 8vo. Half
morocco.
A Dictionary of Miracles $2.50
By Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D.
Imitative, realistic, and dogmatic. This
author's ability to collect out-of-the-way,
interesting information is well known.
626 pp. Crown 8vo. Half morocco.
The Reader's Handbook
$3.50
By Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D.
Famous names in fiction, allusions, refer-
ences, proverbs, plots, stories, and poems.
1,243 pp. Crown 8vo. Half morocco.
Dictionary of Phrase and Fables $1.50
By Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D.
One of the best books of this admirable
series. Gives the origin and meaning of
thousands of interesting phrases and cus-
toms. 1,440 pp. Crown 8vo. Half
morocco.
Facts and Fancies for the Curi-
ous ... . $3.00
From the harvest-fields of literature. A
melange of excerpta collated by Charles
E. Bombaugh, A.M., M.D. 647 pp.
Crown 8vo. Half morocco.
A Book of Quotations, Proverbs,
and Household Words . $3.50
By W. Gurney Benham. An excellent
collection. 1,256 pp. Crown 8vo. Half
morocco.
Heroes and Heroines of Fiction,
vol. 1 Modern Prose and
Poetry . $3.50
By William S. Walsh. An exhaustive
cyclopedia describing these characters and
telling in what books they are found.
Crown 8vo. Half morocco.
Heroes and Heroines of Fiction,
vol. 2 Ancient, Medieval and
Legendary $3.00
By William S. Walsh. A companion
volume to the foregoing, including the
famous characters and famous names in
novels, romance, poems and dramas, classi-
fied, analyzed and criticised. 379 pp. Half
morocco.
KW" Note. — Carriage is prepaid in the
United States only when the entire set is
ordered.
uirie
D
■rifr-^rrr'
No questions can be answered by mail, nor can we supply names of players taking part in
certain pictures. Questions relating to the writing, sale, and production of photoplays and other
literary forms will be answered in this column, but readers are asked to make their letters brief
and to the point.
MRS. METTA TYLER.— Practically all of the reliable popular publishers
will consider lyrics without melodies. Some of the reliable ones are: Leo Feist,
235 W. 40th St., New York; Jos. W. Stern & Co., 102 W. 38th St., New York;
Harry Von Tilzer, 125 W. 43d St., New York; P. J. Howley, 146 W. 45th St.,
New York; Will Rossiter, 135 W. Lake St., Chicago; Shapiro, Bernstein Co.,
224 W. 47th St., New York.
S. L. HUMPHREY. — In indicating the repetition of a scene used previously,
either in the same reel or in a preceding reel, it will be quite enough to give your
directions somewhat as follows: 2. Denison's Library, same as Scene 10,
Reel 1.
A. F. — (1) All sorts of arrangements prevail in the publication of vol-
umes of poetry. Poets of experience usually collect in book form such of their
poems as have already appeared in magazines and add others of their unpub-
lished poems to complete the collection. It is safe to assume that any poet
who has been unable to sell at least some of his poems to magazines would not
find the publication of a book of poems profitable. The fact that the public is
familiar with the name and the work of a poet who is appearing in the magazines
is in itself an indication that they might like his work in book form, but they are
very unready to purchase poetry in book form when the name of the writer is
practically unknown. (2) Methods of successful writers differ. The majority
of the newer writers compose directly on the typewriter, but many of the more
finished literary artists write in longhand and have their work transcribed or
transcribe it themselves. (3) We do not know what are the methods of Robert
W. Chambers, Jack London, and Rex Beach. This subject would hardly be in-
teresting enough for a general article for the reason that it is utterly impossible
for one writer to advise another as to the best method of composing. This has
to come by experience. The writer of this note has tried in vain to learn to com-
pose on the typewriter, and he has written more than a dozen books.
H. H. F. — (1) It is customary to publish books on a royalty basis and the
most reliable publishers follow this practice. Now and then, a reliable concern
makes an offer to buy outright. It would be impossible to give you a list of all
the reliable book publishers. The following, however, are among the best known :
Chas. Scribner's Sons, Harper Brothers, Century Company, all of New York City;
J. B. Lippincott & Co., Philadelphia; Doubleday, Page & Co., Garden City,
L. I., N. Y.; Little, Brown & Co., Houghton, Mifflin Co., both of Boston; and
A. C. McClurg & Co., Chicago. There are, of course, many others. (2) It is
impossible to state the length of time required to examine manuscripts. It varies
from a week to two months. (3) "The Technique of the Novel," Horn, published
by Harper Brothers, is a good work on the technique of novel writing.
C. V. M. — (1) We should advise you not to dispute regarding the trifling
difference between one-half cent a word and three-fourths cent. You might,
however, suggest to them that you had been led to believe that their rates were
higher. (2) There is no way of telling which publications pay the best, except
by experience. Usually the magazines with the largest circulation pay the high-
est rates, and can well afford to.
THE FOURTH ESTATE
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To reach those who spend millions in newspaper advertising and buy
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The Poetry Review of America, a monthly periodical devoted to
the interest of America poetry in all its phases, will begin publication
May the first. Its subscription price is one dollar the year — single
copies ten cents.
For the furtherance of its purpose, The Poetry Review of America
will endeavor:
By the formation of Poetry Reading Circles and Poetry Societies,
and by the promotion of private and public recitals of poetry to
bring together lovers of poetry with a view to extending and de-
veloping the interest in, and appreciation of, poetry.
To consider all suggestions and to act upon those which will help
to enlarge and intensify the poetic spirit of America.
To bring together for their mutual benefit and pleasure the poets of
America and the public which they serve.
The Poetry Review of America asks you to help the cause to which
it is dedicated by sending:
Your subscription, with one dollar, to The POETRY REVIEW,
12 Chauncy Street, Cambridge, Mass.
The names of your friends who are interested in Poetry.
Your books of poetry and those relating to poetry for acknowledge-
ment and review.
Your unpublished poems and articles relating to poetry for our
consideration. We shall pay upon acceptance. A stamped and
addressed envelope should accompany your contributions.
News of the Poets, Poetry Societies, and of the publishers of Poetry.
Among contributors to the early issues of the Poetry Review are:
Edwin Arlington Robin- John Gould Fletcher Benjamin R. C. Sow
son Louis V. Ledoux George Sterling
RlDGELT TORRENCE ROBERT FROST VaCHEL LlNDSET
Amelia Josephine Burr Edgar Lee Masters Herman Hagedorn
Louis Unter meter Witter Bynner Dana Burnett
Sara Teasdale Percy MacKaye Richard Le Gallienne
Amy Lowell Josephine Preston Pea- James Oppenheim
Joyce Kilmer body
William Stanley Braithwaite, Editor Joseph Lebowich, Associate Editor
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Short-Story Writing
Dr. Bsenwein
and Verse Writing, Journalism;
A COURSE of forty lessens in the history, form
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the only difference between this and our
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SONG LYRICS AND
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melody that possesses no commercial
value? Why become a victim to the
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and poetical value, and give you a list
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Should the song contain sufficient
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THE ART OF VERSIFICATION
By J. Berg Esenwein and Mary Eleanor Roberts
The most complete, practical and helpful
working handbook ever issued on the Prin-
ciples of Poetry and the Composition of all
Forms of Verse.
Clear and progressive in arrangement.
Free from unexplained technicalities. In-
dispensable to every writer of verse. Money
cheerfully refunded if not all that we claim
for it.
"There is no 'better book than this for
those who wish to study the art of Versifi-
cation. A poet must be both born and
made ; this book will help to make him. —
Edwin Markham.
Cloth, XII+310 pp. Uniform with the
Writer's Library. Postpaid $1.62.
The 60-page chapter on "Light Verse"
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THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
Springfield, Mass.
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COMPLETE YOUR FILES OF
THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
We have on hand a few complete files of THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
new series, from May, 1913 to May, 1915 (June-July, 1913, being a special
double number). These twenty-five monthly numbers, placed in your
working library will give you 840 large pages crammed with instructive
articles and helpful information for writers. Among the interesting
features in these numbers of the magazine are the delightfully readable
personality sketches of Epes Winthrop Sargent, William Lord Wright,
Marc Edmund Jones, F. Marion Brandon, Horace G. Plimpton, Maibelle
Heikes Justice, Frank E. Woods, George Fitzmaurice, Russell E. Smith,
James Dayton, Hettie Gray Baker, C. B. Hoadley, Arthur Leeds, William
E. Wing, Henry Albert Phillips, John Wm. Kellette, Catherine Carr.
Phil Lonergan, Raymond L. Schrock, Beta Breuil, Gilson Willetts ana
A. Van Buren Powell. Many of our readers have declared that this
monthly feature is alone worth the price of a year's subscription. The
department. "Thinks and Things," has also helped to make this helpful
little periodical famous. The series of articles on "Photoplay Construc-
tion," by J. Berg Esenwein and Arthur Leeds, running through many
numbers, should be read by everyone who is seeking to perfect his technical
knowledge. "Diagnosis and Culture of the Plot Germ," by John A. Mc-
Collom, Jr., is a series of six articles that will prove invaluable to the
writer who experiences difficult}' in developing the "plot habit," that most
necessary equipment to a successful literary career. Scores of special
articles by the most prominent editors, critics, and photoplay writers of
the day make these issues of the magazine a veritable working library of
photoplay knowledge.
While they last, we offer these twenty-five numbers to our readers for
$2.00. Send your order to
THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
SPRINGFIELD, MASS.
CORRECT ENGLISH-
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A MONTHLY MAGAZINE.
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HELPS FOR SPEAKERS
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Sample copy 10c.
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THE
DRAMATIST
A Magazine devoted exclusively
to the Science of Play Con-
struction.
Current plays analysed in such
a way as to afford the student
a grasp of applied dramatur-
gic principle.
Endorsed by all leading Play-
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Subscription $1.00 a Year
Specimen copy 10 Cents
The DRAMATIST
EASTON, PENNSYLVANIA
A JOURNAL FOR ALL WHO WRITE
The Writers
Monthl
Continuing THE PHOTOPLAY A
Edited by
J. BERG ESENWEIN
VOLUME VII
JUNE 1916
NUMBER 6
%\t Wzy ant» tfo Croton
C^e totfter neeos a roao, not a
cat; a staff, not a crutch
fooo, not stimulants; criticism,
not flattery ano toit^al lobe,
ttyat tyt journey mat seem not
too long, t^e goal not too ois*
tant, ano ti&e croton toott^ all t^e
Strtbing,
— 3- ^Sers Csentoem
REAL HELPS FOR WRITERS
The seven volumes listed below are issued in uniform size and style, printed on
superior antique book paper, and handsomely and durably bound in cloth, with letter-
ing in gold and gilt top. Together they constitute the most helpful series of authorita-
tive working handbooks for the writer's desk. 12 mo., postpaid at prices quoted.
THE AST OF STORY WRITING Esenwein and Chambers. Dr. Esenwein's latest
work on Story Writing. A direct and effective guide to actual fictional narration. The
chapter on plot alone is worth the price of the book to any writer, zi + 211 pp. $1.S6.
WRITING THE SHORT-STORY Esenwein. The standard textbook on the technique
of the Short-Story. Widely used in colleges and universities. A complete course includ-
ing theory, models and practice exercises in actual writing, xiv + 441 pp. $1.25.
STUDYING THE SHORT-STORY. Esenwein. A companion book to Writing the
Short-Story. Sixteen short-story masterpieces, with methods for analysis. No writer
and no lover of good stories can afford to miss this well-spread feast, xxxii -f- 438 pp.
81.26.
THE TECHNIQUE OF THE MYSTERY STORY. Carolyn Wells, With introduction
by Dr. Esenwein. A complete exposition of the mystery story form. A book that stimu-
lates insight into the methods of successful writers of plotted stories and at the same
time cultivates fertility in the mind of the reader, ix + 836 pp. $1.62.
WRITING THE PHOTOPLAY. Esenwein and Leeds. The standard textbook on
photoplay construction. Recently reported by the New York City Public Library as the
book second in demand, outside of fiction, ix + 874 pp. Illustrated. $2.12.
THE ART OF VERSIFICATION. Esenwein and Roberts. A practical working hand-
book of the principles of poetry and the structure of verse forms, xii + 810 pp. $1.62.
THE ART OF PUBLIC SPEAKING. Esenwein and Carnagey. An Inspirational
working handbook of instruction for all who would be student public speakers. A book
with a "'punch" oa every page. xi -f 312 pp. $1.75.
// en inspection a buok is found undesirable and it ie returned within ten daye, the pur-
chase price, less postage, will be refunded.
THE WRITER'S MONTHLY. Springfield. Mass.
A Weil-Known Writer says:
"Webster's New International
is a marvel of completeness. It is an indispensable
feature of the library of every man who either reads
or writes. There is no matter of land, sea or sky that
does not come within its purview and every topic is
handled by a master."
400,000 Vocabulary Terms. Hew Oazetteer
12,000 Siegrapfclcal Entries. 2700 Paces.
Over SOOO giUmeiratlons. Celered Plates
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The Writer's Monthly
Continuing The Photoplay Author
A Journal for All Who Write
Volume VII
June, 1916
Number 6
INFORMATION AND METHOD ITEMS— J. Berg Esenwein . . 227
A MENTAL TONIC— Aldis Dunbar 231
THE AGRICULTURAL PRESS— A GOOD MARKET IF YOU KNOW
WHAT TO SUBMIT— Katharine Grimes 232
THE LION'S SHARE— A CRITICISM— James A. Brown . .234
WHAT IS "INTEREST"?— Barry Scobee 235
MY LITERARY NOVITIATE— L. E. Eubanks 237
AN INTERVIEW WITH THE EDITOR OF "SHORT STORIES"—
Dale Carnagey .......... 239
THE SURE-FIRE INTRODUCTION— Felix J. Koch .241
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS— NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE
YOUNG WRITER— E. M. Wickes
GLEANINGS— Anne Scannell O'Neill
PUBLISHERS OF POPULAR MUSIC— Compiled by E. M. Wickes
THE WRITER'S MAGAZINE GUIDE— Anne Scannell O'Neill
PHOTOPLAY NEWS— Compiled by E. M. Wickes
A REPLY TO MR. PLAYTER— Cruse Carriel .
THE RETORT COURTEOUS .
THE BULLETIN BOARD— DEPARTMENT
EXPERIENCE MEETING— DEPARTMENT
CRITICS IN COUNCIL— DEPARTMENT .
THE WORD PAGE— DEPARTMENT
PARAGRAPHIC PUNCHES— DEPARTMENT
H. C. S. FOLKS— DEPARTMENT
EDITORIAL
WHERE TO SELL— DEPARTMENT .
ANSWERS TO INQUIRIES— DEPARTMENT
242
246
247
248
250
261
252
253
254
255
258
259
260
262
264
268
Published monthly by The Home Coerespondence School, Myrick Building, Springfield, Mass.
Copyright, 1916, by The Home Correspondence School, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Entered at Springfield, Massachusetts, Post Office as Second Class Mail Matter.
PRICE 15 GENTS A COPY: : : $1.00 A YEAR
CANADA $1.25; FOREIGN, $1.50
Your last chance
to complete your files of
The Writer's Monthly
Only one complete file of Volume I of this magazine is in
existence. The first three numbers were published as sixteen-
page leaflets under the name of the Scenario Magazine.
With the fourth number a cover was added and the name
changed to The Photoplay Author. It was with the twelfth
number that the interest of the present publishers began,
and it is with this number that writers start their files.
THE PHOTOPLAY AUTHOR. We have collected the
nineteen numbers from May, 1913 to December, 1915, inclu-
sive (June-July, 1913 was a double number) into a single
volume handsomely and durably bound in dark red cover
cloth. Among the interesting features in these numbers are
the delightfully readable personality sketches of a score of
leading photoplay wrights; the department " Thinks and
Things, " which helped to make this little periodical famous,
and the extremely helpful series of articles on " Photoplay
Construction" by J. Berg Esenwein and Arthur Leeds. These,
and other features and departments, and scores of special
articles by the most prominent editors, critics, and photo-
playwrights of the day, make these issues of the magazine a
veritable working library of photoplay knowledge. We have
on hand forty-eight volumes. When these are gone no more can
be had at any price. Price while theij last, $2.50 postpaid.
THE WRITER'S MONTHLY. We have also thirty sets
of The Writer's Monthly for 1915 in uniform style and
binding. When these are gone it will not be possible for us to
make up more except as we are able to get back numbers
from subscribers. The Writer's Monthly for 1915 con-
tains more of real help and inspiration for writer and would-be
writer folk than is to be had anywhere else for the money. If
you order in season you can have one of these thirty volumes,
postpaid, for $2.00.
THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
SPRINGFIELD MASS.
Please mention The Writer's Monthly when writing advertisers.
Vol. vii June, 1916 Number 6
The Writer's Monthly
Continuing The Photoplay Author
A Journal for All Who Write
Information and Method Items
An Advance Chapter from the forth-coming Book, u Writing for the
Magazines" by J. Berg Esenwein.
Not all magazine writing is literary, either in purpose or in
method, for a considerable body of it consists of highly condensed
paragraphs of information and methods of work.
The writer who is determined to gain experience and make his
pen-work pay from the start will harbor no false shame but will at
once give some attention to the markets for such paragraphic items.
Whether these are to remain his chief, or perhaps only, means of
getting into print will depend on ability plus push. How much energy
he takes from larger work in order to devote it to such writing he must
himself decide, but at all events it is decidedly worth while to search
out items for the markets and markets for the items. Many depart-
mental editors — not all of whom, by any means, are resident in the
city of publication, or devote their entire time to the work — have
won their chance by showing ability to send in helpful and reliable
paragraphs in sufficient number and frequency to attract the editor-
in-chief. One must begin somewhere, and a very good step is at the
bottom of the stairs. Even if you despise the occasional dollars — or,
in some cases, subscriptions, merchandise, or advertising space —
which may be offered as pay for paragraphic material, why contemn
the exercise in versatility which all such writing affords?
1 . The Necessary Equipment
For writing paragraphic items the prime requisite is interest in
this kind of material. Examine all the domestic, agricultural, busi-
ness, popular science, and other specialized magazines you can. Note
how many of them have departments made up chiefly or wholly of
information paragraphs, discoveries, short cuts, methods of work,
and curious or interesting matters. If these interest you, you can
furnish something on like lines. Even when a department seems to
be written entirely by a department editor and the paragraphs are
not signed, remember that many of them are bought from contribu-
tors. Some such paragraphs, indeed, are pilfered from various
sources and with slight rewriting appear under the department
editor's name, but reliable periodicals do not encourage this sort of
thing — there are real markets for your ideas, if you sift the grain.
228 INFORMATION AND METHOD ITEMS
An observing eye is also necessary — no amount of anxiety can
atone for its lack. Alertness of mind is the discoverer's principal
qualification. What one overlooks the other coins into legal tender.
Observe not only the kinds of material used, but the facts and habits
of life all around you.
A handy note-book is the next thing needful — what is recorded
will not escape.
The habit of absolute accuracy is the final pre-requisite. A mis-
take in the recipe, a slight misstatement of fact, a name wrongly
spelled, a conclusion based on too little data, an oversight in omitting
one step in the process, will work trouble or danger for someone.
Your inaccuracy is likely to be reported, with the result that at least
one door will be closed to the contributor whom the editor has relent-
lessly labeled "unreliable." Feel your responsibility, and from the
outstart spare no pains to establish the utter accuracy of the most
trivial contribution. Aside from the matter of self-respect, you will
be forming an invaluable literary habit.
2. Where to Find Material
It is everywhere, of course; but specially where?
Tap the veins of daily experience. Has not your own use of broom
and butter and bed-linen taught you some unique economy of time
or material? Does not the care of your automobile, the management
of your office detail, the use of your clothes, a precaution, a remedy,
a sales method, an accounting device, a church or a home entertain-
ment, suggest something of value to others? Turn your eyes inward
to see the what and the how that may prove helpful. If you know
of no immediate market, store the idea in your note-book. The blind
political economist of England, Fawcett, has defined capital as "the
results of saving laid up to assist future production." Be a mental
capitalist.
Study the lives and work of others. A visit to a school, a sanita-
rium, an asylum; a conversation with a traveller, an artist, a tramp;
the pages of a foreign newspaper, a book, an old magazine — these
and uncounted other sources of information are fairly clamoring to
be opened. You need not depend altogether on first-hand experience
or observation. Tell some business, professional, or home-keeping
friend of what you are trying to do — out of their experience-pack
they will draw something to help you, and others through you. Not
infrequently, you will find material for a full-length article where
you thought to gather merely a paragraph.
In seeking help from persons and printed matter you should,
however, stand on your own feet so far as possible. If your friend
gives you a suggestion, tell him you are going to use it. It may not
be necessary to give credit in the paragraph, but your friend may be
intending to use the idea himself, so your frankness will save embar-
rassment— and a friendship.
Never offer for publication recipes and devices culled from
printed matter unless by experiment you have been able to make the
INFORMATION AND METHOD ITEMS 229
method your own by improving upon it. In literary uprightness it is
better to lean backward than forward.
Inventiveness is a rich source of " methods" material. Though
invention is a native gift, inventiveness is a habit of mind, and hence
may be cultivated. Many brains teem with fresh ideas of how to do
things, but because no revolutionary patents seem in prospect the
schemers allow their ideas to flit by unrecorded and unused. When
any such idea comes to you, and you feel that you are not likely to
put it on the market because it is not big enough to warrant large
exploitation, make a note of it, test its value if possible, and offer it
for sale to some magazine.
The camera and the sketch pencil are both sources of and adjuncts
to paragraphic material. Some magazines make a specialty of using
illustrations with reports of inventions and discoveries. Others use
pictures to show strange happenings, freaks of nature, and interesting
personalities. Your own collection of snap-shots may suggest a
marketable item, and also teach you to carry your camera on journeys
and walks so as to be ready for the interesting and the unusual. The
camera, too, proves to the editor that your report is not a "fake."
Remember that a clear print is absolutely necessary, and that
glazed paper makes the best reproduction. Write your name and
address on the back of the photograph, add your descriptive material
in the fewest, briefest and most striking words possible, and mail the
photograph flat and so packed that it cannot break. Study the
special requirements of magazines that use photographs, for the
demand in this field is highly specific.
No great skill in draughtsmanship is demanded in sketching
devices and inventions for the magazine. If you have such skill, all
the better, but if your idea is good enough and it is sketched plainly,
the editor will have the necessary drawing made.
3. How to Write a Paragraph
Make a study of the following items with a view to discovering
the methods the writers have used. Add to this examination a
scrutiny of paragraphs in other periodicals, and the time spent will
repay you.
RAISING THE SPELLING STANDARD
Desiring to raise the standard of spelling in my school, I adopted the follow-
ing plan. At the beginning of the month every pupil is on the honor roll. If any
one misses five words during the month he is dropped from the honor roll. Those
who remain on it at the end of the month are photographed. I have a Brownie
camera and do the work myself. This picture is mounted on a paper bearing the
names of Honor Pupils. At the end of the year each pupil who has been on the
honor roll every month receives a booklet containing a picture of the honor roll
pupils for every month. — Normal Instructor and Primary Plans.
MILK FOR POULTRY
The most valuable poultry food available on most farms is milk. Many
farmers feed all their surplus milk to the hogs. Milk, when fed to hogs, makes
flesh that sells for seven or eight cents a pound. When fed to poultry, especially
during the winter months, it makes eggs that sell for twenty-five cents a pound,
230 INFORMATION AND METHOD ITEMS
and flesh that brings twice the price ordinarily offered for hogs. And besides, in
discriminating markets, milk-fed poultry always sells at a premium.
Given all the milk they will consume, hens will lay well in season and out of
season. One cannot over-feed of milk. It is safe to keep it before the hens always.
The vessels in which milk is fed should be washed and scalded daily. Earth-
enware crocks are the best for the feeding of milk since they are easily cleaned. If
wooden troughs or vessels are used, they will, in a very short time, become so
fouled that thoro cleaning is almost impossible.
If only a limited quantity of milk is available for the hens, the better way of
feeding it is to use it in moistening the mash. When used for this purpose the
milk will be evenly distributed to the flock. — Successful Farming.
LEATHERETTE BOOK COVERS
With a little ingenuity, some leatherette upholstering material, glue, and a
squeegee roller, very neat looking, handy, and serviceable covers may be made for
drawings, note-books and snap-shot photograph albums. The cover may be made
best on the loose-leaf note-book principle, or may be made to cover a paper-bound
book. By studying how any book is bound, it is easily seen how to go about mak-
ing the cover. When it has been shaped and glued, the whole should be placed
between two smooth boards and clamped for ten or twelve hours.
— Popular Science Monthly.
PLAN TO KEEP THE CHILDREN'S STOCKINGS MATED
I find the following plan very successful in keeping my children's stockings
together without the usual sorting over after each washing. I take small snap
fasteners and sew one part of the fastener on one stocking at the top, and the other
part of the fastener at the top of the other stocking. When the stockings are taken
off to be put in the laundry bag each child snaps his pair together. It does not
interfere with the washing, and they can be hung on the line without clothespins.
— Today's Magazine.
IF I WERE A SHOE DEALER
I would advertise by showing in my windows the outline of a certain right
foot.
Then, both in my windows and in my newspaper advertising, I would invite
every customer and prospect to draw the outline of his right foot and send in the
drawing. I would advertise that the person whose foot came nearest to being the
same shape as the outline shown would receive a prize.
I would make use of all the outlines received, by writing to the various con-
testants and telling them I had just the shoes to fit their feet, and I would name
prices. — System.
AN INTERNATIONAL TEST FOR VISION
www The International Ophthalmic Congress at Naples, in order
to introduce uniformity in methods of measuring vision, has
O O C adopted the broken ring of Landolt as the best possible inter-
national test for visual acuteness. But as no efforts have been
O O O made to use it as cards with test letters are used, it has
had little practical value.
However, Dr. Edward Jackson, of Denver, has found that if the broken rings
are arranged in a symmetrical group and printed, as here illustrated, on a card
that can be turned with any edge uppermost, it constitutes a test independent of a
knowledge of letters. The test is placed five meters from the patient. If the
direction of the break in the rings is recognized at full distance, full acuteness of
vision is demonstrated. If at four and a half meters, the vision is one-tenth de-
fective, and so on. — Popular Science Monthly.
A careful examination of the foregoing and similar material will
disclose that these paragraphs are marked by seven characteristics:
The utmost brevity is used.
The explanations are so clear that they cannot be misunder-
stood.
A MENTAL TONIC 231
The style is simple and direct, without the slightest trace of
"fine writing."
The purpose of the device or idea is succinctly stated at the
opening, and then the explanations follow.
The item does not merely give the idea but adds useful details
for the operation of the plan.
When a title is used, it is definite, yet does not tell too much.
The ideas are of practical value and appeal to the reader as
being usable.
4. Marketing the Items
A full discussion of market problems will be found in a succeed-
ing chapter, but in this place one point must be emphasized: Keep
clearly in mind — or, better still, on record — which magazines use
methods, which use reports of inventions and appliances, which use
experience items, which use illustrations, and all the varieties of
material treated in this chapter.
It is not practicable to give here a list of the periodicals that use
paragraphic items, for magazines come and go and their wants change,
but it may be said that markets are usually to be found with maga-
zines devoted to woman and the home, popular science, outdoor life,
business, agriculture and its allied interests, and some of the profes-
sions, crafts and trades. It is decidedly necessary to examine at least
one copy of any such periodical before submitting material. The
field is large, but specialized. Go to business and professional friends
— they may be able to show you samples of specialized magazines.
The public libraries and news stands will also have periodicals which
are not known to you. Study your market.
A Mental Tonic
By Aldis Dunbar
After one of those "periods of enforced idleness," so dreaded by
all of us who write, there are few better plans for stimulating the
creative imagination than that of working, for a day or two, on
Opening Paragraphs. Spend an hour or so with a handful of fairly
new magazines, studying only the initial paragraphs of the short-
stories in them; then turn to and write ten, twenty, thirty such
paragraphs, seeing how much definite action, atmosphere, and per-
sonality of character can be put into — say — a hundred and twenty-
five words, without giving the sense of straining to cover the ground.
The first one or two may come stiffly, but if the writer has any imagi-
native faculty still awake, it will soon rouse to the work before it, and
each paragraph will be likely to suggest the plot to follow, until —
well, until one cannot spend a minute thinking up new opening para-
graphs, because some one of those already written has so gripped the
inventor that it must be worked out! Often a name that has struck
one as having a strong and definite personality behind it will suggest
such a paragraph, and the paragraph, in turn, will suggest the story
to follow.
The Agricultural Press
A Good Market if You Know What to Submit
By Katharine A. Grimes
Associate Editor, "Southern Agriculturist"
Judging from the character of most of the pile of manuscripts
on my desk to be "returned with thanks," I have reached the con-
clusion that many writers believe almost any old thing good enough
for a farm paper. To begin with, few of these show freshness; they
were obviously not written for us, but for someone else, to whose
lack of appreciation we owe their presence. Of the few which at a
stretch might be usuable, most are untimely. The rest are simply
hash — rewritten from bulletins, revived from theories long ago dead
and buried but probably sounding new to the writers, impossible
accounts of "how I made the old farm pay" by people who obviously
could never have raised lettuce on a back lot. Not one of the bunch
is practical.
And practicality is the first commandment in the decalogue of
the farm paper. Its readers are men and women for whom the change
of seasons makes the calendar, so, besides this, the matter must be
seasonable. By that we do not mean, however, that we want mid-
summer stuff submitted in August, for by that time we have finished
our schedule for the warm months, and by next year conditions may
be so different that an article which would be perfectly good now
will be entirely out of the question, even if the writer does not object
to its being held over. Neither do we want matter so far ahead that
a sudden change of seasonal conditions will render it useless. The
drouth of the past spring is an example. While it lasted we received
innumerable articles dealing with the conditions it forced upon the
farmer, mostly good and to the point, yet only a few could be safely
accepted, as at any time a break in the dry spell might entirely change
the outlook. This is exactly what happened, and among the manu-
scripts to go back are some that might have been used to good ad-
vantage but for the late rains. This, however, is a risk that most
writers can afford to take.
What we want most are stories of actual experience. The live
agricultural editor is the quickest man in the world to spot a make-
believe. Here, among the rest, is a manuscript — a very readable one,
too — which describes how two boys made one cow pay their way
through school. It sounded good — until the editorial pencil began
to check up possibilities. Then it appeared what it was, a clever
tissue of the imagination — the figures were manifestly impossible.
Another is a glowing account of a woman's success with hens. This
might have passed muster except for the fact that one hen laid so
many eggs in the course of a year that that woman should have had
no need of adding to her bank account by writing for us.
THE AGRICULTURAL PRESS 233
So far as the make-up goes, the agricultural editor is easy enough
to please. A neatly typed article is a gratification, however, provided
the matter is of the right sort. But if it is not, it will be " passed up"
for some almost undecipherable scrawl from some old farmer who is
actually doing things. For we know actual experience is the greatest
demand of our army of readers, and much deviation from it is dis-
astrous. As a general thing the farm paper is read for information,
not for amusement, and "fine writing" must give place to hard-
shelled fact.
This is the main reason why, in spite of the great mass of matter
submitted to us, we are constantly writing requests for special articles
that fulfil our requirements of being seasonable, practical and to the
point. For these good prices are paid — more, in fact, than many
magazines pay for much more pretentious matter. If a man has
built a silo we like to have him tell us about it. If a neighborhood is
using a cooperative telephone system successfully, we are glad to pay
for a complete description of their experiences in installing and run-
ning it. If a little rural school has made a departure from the usual
scheme of things and "got away with it," that teacher can add a
fair-sized check to her regular salary by telling us about it. But we
do not want general articles on the economy of the silo, or the need
for the rural telephone, or the great opportunity of the rural school.
We demand optimism, too. No "knocker" need apply. A story
of failure may be as acceptable as one of success, provided only the
failure opens the way to better things. And, speaking of success, it
is the small man's success that most interests the average farm paper.
We believe thoroughly in the power of the good example, and the
example of the man who is running a million-dollar farm can be of
little real use to the man who farms with one mule and a bull-tongue
plow. But when a one-mule man tells us of his success in entering
the two-mule class we at once begin to take notice, for he can tell
something the other fellow wants to know.
The readers of farm papers make very definite demands. Of
course that is true of all papers, but possibly no other is held quite so
strictly within the limits as the farm publication. It must be con-
servative and progressive at the same time, for in spite of the modern
taste for muck-raking the average farmer demands that which is
wholesome and clean, and perhaps just a little bit trite. We must
stick to the "just ordinary," yet keep sounding the new note that
shall lead the ordinary up to higher levels.
To sum up: The farm paper wants matter of its own peculiar
type; all articles purporting to be actual experiences must "hold
water;" it can nearly always use an article that is timely and practi-
cal, even if it is a little bit off on style and finish; it has a welcome for
helpful, sensible articles and suggestions born of real experience, and
for such it pays ungrudgingly. And, most important of all, a new
name is much more acceptable than one which has become hack-
neyed by much use in contemporaries.
The Lion's Share — By Arnold Bennett
A CRITICISM
By James A. Brown
Here is a story by a man who is considered a first class artist.
Character drawing, which some critics consider the primary essen-
tial, is very good. Perhaps because I do not consider character
drawing the principal thing in a story is one reason I do not like this
one. I believe that the plot should be the big thing in every story.
Plot means action, and, as Stevenson has said, action is absolutely
necessary.
The better the characters are depicted, the more do they stand
away from us and the rest of humanity. We want to know what
they do, how they will act in certain circumstances. One trouble
with character drawing is, it does not go deep enough. The artist
pictures only the characteristics, the main springs of life lie deeper.
The great defect of "The Lion's Share" is that it has no soul.
It is badly afflicted with dry rot. The story is polished, calm, dead,
and is a perfect picture of stagnation. It is devoid of vitality and is
written as though the author were the last survivor of a dying race.
A young Englishman once said: "Oh, one would better be dead than
not be born a gentleman in England," and we feel as we read the
story that it is as nearly dead as a piece of fiction can be.
Matthew Mose, father of the heroine Audrey, is a tyrant, there-
fore the author kills off the unfortunate man in order to be rid of him.
Like George Eliot, when she had hopelessly tied up poor Tom and
Maggie Tulliver in a chain of circumstances where there was appar-
ently no way out, she drowned them. This scheme of killing off a
character who is an obstacle, is one of the oldest in fiction, and one
of the poorest.
Bennett is not entirely to blame because his story has no life.
He is writing of a lifeless subject. The upper class Englishman in
his smug egotism is about the most hopeless and useless object on
earth, yet I venture to state that had an 0. Henry or a Jack London
handled this subject, they would have given it life and spirit. Their
characters would be human, lovable. This story reminds one of the
following paragraph from Mark Twain, where he is speaking of the
monks of a certain European Monastery:
"Some of those men have been up there for thirty years.
In all that dreary time they have not heard the laughter of a
child or the blessed voice of a woman. They have known no
human joys, no wholesome human sorrows. In their hearts
are no memories of the past, in the brains no dreams of the
future. All that is lovable, beautiful, worthy, they have put
far away from them; against all things that are pleasant to
look upon, and all sounds that are music to the ear, they
have barred their massive doors, and reared their relentless
walls of stone forever. They have banished the tender grace
WHAT IS "INTEREST?" 235
of life and left only the sapped and skinny mockery. Their
lips are lips that never kiss and never sing; their hearts
are hearts that never hate and never love; their breasts
are breasts that never swell with the sentiment: 'I have a
country and a flag.' They are dead men who walk."
Those who are slaves to the character-drawing fetich would
do well to read the story of "The Phonograph and the Graft," by
O. Henry, which violates all the staid rules of writing, and yet is
eminently successful because it is entirely human. O. Henry was
undoubtedly the greatest short-story writer in the world at the time
of his death, simply because his work was like his personality —
supremely lovable and human.
What Arnold Bennett needs is to roll up the shirt sleeves of
his mind and get into the swing and current of human emotions.
"The Lion's Share" is merely a cleverly-made machine which is
without effect because it is devoid of emotion and action.
What is "Interest?"
By Barry Scobee
A hundred ingredients are used in making a piece of fiction, but
fused into a single mass they mean one thing — interest. To be bought
and published it must be interesting. The question, then, is how to
supply that one necessity.
Our interest in life is founded on our longings and our needs;
therefore a writer must play upon our hopes and desires as a musician
plays upon an instrument — high and low, commandingly and beseech-
ingly, softly and sweetly and triumphantly.
We are interested in a man we admire. Admiring him, we in a
degree desire to be like him. We care, however — even the worst of
us — only for the manly traits, conduct and aspirations. We cannot
admire the weak, the coarse, the dishonorable; therefore, to make a
story-hero interesting we must endow him with admirable, yet human,
characteristics — ones with which we can sympathize or can imitate
proudly.
This does not mean goody-goody, nice-little-man actions, nor
does it mean a story-hero endowed with a heritage of misfortune for
which we pity him — such as giving to his sister the last cracker in the
cold, cold house though he himself is suffering from hunger brought
on by sending his wages to the mother who is mistreated by her
second husband. We should prefer to see the character hustle up two
crackers and trounce the second husband. We do not care to be like
the man we pity.
Let the story-hero meet misfortune or any other obstacle in a
way we should like to do — with a grin, or a fighting fist, or a bit of
236 WHAT IS "INTEREST?"
cleverness that shows he is not an incapable. We can't be interested
in the fellow we would not care to imitate in some respect.
A story-hero need not have all the virtues. In these the great
picaresque heroes of fiction were woefully lacking. Villon, in Steven-
son's "A Lodging for the Night," did not possess the sweet virtues of
a tender and obedient bank clerk, but he did have something we
admire, some cleverness and daring and an ability to care for himself.
Just give the story-hero one big, wholesome characteristic we ourselves
would like to possess, or fancy we do possess, and he is likely to be
interesting. He may have more than one, but if a man is just average
good and bad, and possesses one big, human virtue or ability we like
him. Trying to arouse interest in a story-hero by contrast, by making
him wholly good and his opponents wholly bad, is the work of an
amateur. Just make the man human, with a character or characteris-
tics we would try to imitate were we in his situation, and the story
will twang a responsive chord in our hearts.
More than silly sentiment, more than catalogued vices and vir-
tues, are needed to interest us. We must have our hopes and desires
played and preyed upon. This is done, first, by giving the hero a
touch of human kinship, by correlating us with the hero through
something we admire or hope for in ourselves, then fingering up and
down, back and forth, on the character's scale of failure or fortune.
Broadly speaking, it appears that interest is divided into two
classes — human interest and heart interest. The former refers to
courageous deeds, to setbacks manfully met, to hard fights well won;
while heart interest refers to pathos and love. Both sorts are valuable,
but seemingly human interest is far more popular. However, one of
the best stories that ever appeared in the Saturday Evening Post was
filled with pathos from beginning to end. But in addition, there was a
heroic quality which won admiration.
Synopses of motion pictures in many trade magazines show that
the pleasing stories have either heart or human interest appeal or
both. Photoplays will not sell without it, though if the writer can
put in the " unusual twist" of plot, and the strikingly new, so much
the better. The same is true of stories for the fictions magazines.
The point, then, is that the writer should consider all plot germs
from the view of giving the hero a part we admire — that we, in a
similar situation, would wish to imitate. Finally, make heart
interest and human interest the pivotal-points in writing fiction.
Look at every plot first from that angle alone. It gives the struggling
writer a solid base from which to work, from which to view the world,
from which to write stories that sell. It will even be a valuable agent
in moulding one's own philosophy of life.
"An orator cannot always talk in strict logical sequence. He
must search about for the right nail till he has found it, and then
drive to home." — Marion Crawford.
My Literary Novitiate
By L. E. Eubanks
I had the unusual experience of three acceptances for the first
article I wrote for publication. The first editor to whom I offered it
replied affirmatively and promised a check on its publication. I
waited impatiently, then patiently, then resignedly, then hopelessly.
Meantime, I had a few other " spasms" going the rounds; and this
kept me from thinking too much about Number 1. It was six or
eight months after the acceptance that I wrote a letter of inquiry
as why the article had not appeared. In reply, I received my manu-
scripts with a letter stating that the magazine had gone under dif-
ferent management and that the new editor did not care to keep
his predecessor's contracts.
I was disgusted, but not shaken in my determination. I did
some revising, recopied it, and looked about for a suitable market.
Just at that time I received a card from an editor to whom I had
written asking if my work would be adapted to his magazine. He
requested me to send along my article, and said that he had little
doubt of its availability. Now, or even one year after that, I would
have been suspicious; but I was thoroughly a novice then, and did
not know that no honest editor would say this until he had seen
some of the writer's work.
Of course I sent it. It appeared in due time and I was sent two
copies of the magazine. These represent all the payment I ever
received from that quarter, though I inquired about it several times.
Since I had submitted it "at usual rates," what could I do?
Meantime, I was getting an acceptance occasionally for other
writing, but I still felt that I was entitled to something for Number 1 .
So I sent it out again, stating briefly that it had appeared months
before in a different kind of magazine and under what circumstances.
It was accepted (for the third time), and at last paid for.
I had an amusing experience with a prize story. I called it " Sex-
Blend," and it is, I think, one of the few fairly good stories I have
done thus far, most of my attention having gone to articles. I sent
it out five times, and four of the rejections came in "personal letter"
form. They were complimentary, but contained those tantalizing
"buts," "however," "perhaps later," etc. This encouragement I
truly appreciated; but it could not be cashed at the bank. For the
sixth journey, I sent it to Welcome Guest, then published in Portland,
Me. Six months later I found a copy of the magazine in my mail,
the first one I had seen. On the first page, with a pulse-quickening
illustration above words that were decidedly familiar, was my story.
And this was not all; under my name as author were these startling
words: "Winner of First Prize."
"Now what do you think of that?" I asked my wife.
238 MY LITERARY NOVITIATE
"I think it's a good thing you didn't know there was a contest
on; you might have overdone it," Bertha replied, hitting the bull's
eye with characteristic accuracy.
The prize was not much, for the paper is a small affair; but I
can never forget how I felt looking at that picture and the announce-
ment that I had won first prize.
My experience has taught me at least one thing for certain: It
takes more than three or four rejections to condemn a story or an
article. I landed a story on its twenty-first trip, and the editor seemed
well pleased with it. Two others have stayed on the thirteenth
journey. One of these brought $13.00, the other $13.50; thirteen
isn't unlucky for me.
Editors are no more alike than merchants or doctors; twice I
have occupied the first place in a magazine with an article that had
nearly reached the hopeless stage. Adaptability is the keynote; a
study of the magazines' preferences is of vital importance.
Though I have been "stung" three or four times, I have found
editors as a class fair-minded and courteous. We should remember,
I think, that there is no class of business people without the black
sheep, and no vocation wherein a workman, particularly the beginner,
will not encounter obstacles. As a class, writers are too much in-
clined to believe themselves different from other people. The sooner
we learn that the law of cause and effect applies to literary work the
same as any other business, the better for us.
Among the first articles I ever sold was one entitled "Remarks
on the Diet Question." Health, then published by Chas. A. Tyrrell,
New York, accepted it " at usual rates." Months rolled by, and I con-
cluded that "usual rates" meant gratis in this case. One day, nine
months after the article's appearance, I was surprised to receive a
check with a letter stating that payment had been overlooked, that
they were sorry, and that it should not occur again.
I was paid for another manuscript, a story this time, eight months
after I had sent it to the magazine. With more experience behind me,
I kept after this editor, and though he never replied to any inquiry, I
finally received the check.
I have in my files several letters of encouragement that disprove
the claim of some disgruntled writers that editors are heartless. On
a printed rejection-slip I received from Pacific Monthly, before it
combined with Sunset, I found these words in ink: "Excellent, but
not in our line; send to some health magazine." I took the tip and
landed the article. Several times editors have asked to see more of
my work and shown very kind interest. Recently I received a per-
sonal letter from a Munsey publication in which the editor criticized
a story. The things he said were not complimentary, but they were
doubtless true, and that is the main point. I was heartily thankful
for the letter and believe the hints in it will enable me to sell that
very story.
No one is useless in the world who lightens the burden of it for
anyone else. — Charles Dickens.
An Interview With the Editor
of "Short Stories"
By Dale Carnagey
"Fresh human sympathy, a liking for and an understanding of
people of all kinds," he replied. " Sincerity, that golden quality that
shines through all good art, must be in every good story, and if it
turns in the direction of humanness, it is almost sure to mean popu-
larity for that writer's work.
"The stories of 0. Henry come to mind as the most conspicuous
example of that broad, democratic love of people shining through
every line. From the facts that have come to light we know that
O. Henry liked people, liked all kinds of people, sincerely and under-
standingly, and oh, how clearly we see it in his work ! I should even
venture to say that, given the work of a writer he does not know, any
reasonably experienced manuscript reader can tell from reading a
few pages of the person's story whether he really likes people, or is
merely depicting them from some cold, synthetical process of the
mind.
"0. Henry really studied his people. Little Old Bagdad on the
Subway was an open book to him because he had opened the book
and had read long and carefully. He prowled his New York as
Dickens did his London, and the anecdotes of his experiences with
all sorts of strange people are legion.
"Another thing about O. Henry — whom I cite so often simply
because his enduring success as an American short-story writer more
aptly answers your questions than any other I can think of — is this:
0. Henry, besides being a painstaking and loving student of humanity,
with an art as true and sincere as was he himself, was a most careful
workman. Never heard that before? Well, he was. He was one of
the most inveterate users of the Thesaurus that ever spun a tale on
paper. He was prolific because he worked hard, when it came right,
but with him it did not simply flow from his pen. Of course his
stories read like that. But don't let your readers believe it. He
often sat for hours, like Sentimental Tommy trying to think of just
the right word; but unlike Sentimental Tommy, O. Henry did not
chew the end of his pencil. No indeed. He got out his Thesaurus,
his dictionaries, his reference books, and dug, dug, DUG.
"Frank Norris is another example of the painstaking workman.
Of course Norris was a great novelist, he cared little for the short-
story, but he was a great artist and his example is pat. In a letter
by him just brought to light by the Detroit Saturday Night, he wrote
to a friend as follows:
" ' Don't believe the fiction writer should shut himself up in
his profession,' the letter says in part. 'Novels can't be
240 INTERVIEW WITH THE EDITOR OF SHORT STORIES
written from the closet or study. You've got to live your
stuff. Believe novelists of all people should take interest in
contemporary movements, politics, international affairs, the
big things in the world.
" ' I write with great difficulty but have managed somehow
to accomplish forty short-stories (all published in fugitive
fashion) and five novels within the last three years, and a
lot of special unsigned articles. Believe my forte is the novel.
Don't like to write, but like having written. Hate the
effort of driving the pen from line to line, work only three
hours a day, but work every day. Believe in blunt, crude,
Anglo-Saxon words. Sometimes spend half an hour trying
to get just the right combination of one-half dozen words.
Never rewrite stuff; do all hard work at first writing, only
revise — very lightly — in typewritten copy.'
" Besides that, Frank Norris had a notebook in which he wrote
much that was a dead loss, so far as immediate returns were con-
cerned. His notebook — and it was voluminous — contained many
preliminary sketches, phrases that he had caught from all manner
of men, stray bits of conversation, wisps of philosophy, passages of
sufficient description, telling phrases, picturesque names, and titles.
His interest in life and people was boundless and he lost no oppor-
tunity to study at first-hand.
" 'The foremost essentials of a good story?' " Mr. Maule repeated
the question after me. "Who knows? Certainly I should not per-
sume to say. Who dares say that Conrad's 'Youth' is a better story
than Bret Harte's 'Luck of Roaring Camp,' or vice versa. Both
classics, neither has anything in common, yet both have everything
in common in the perfection of their art.
"If practical conditions are to be taken into consideration, let
us consider the present-day market. For a magazine such as Short
Stories, for instance, I should say that plot and characterization were
primarily important, while perfection of style, in literary sense, would
be secondary. Certainly it is true that of the tremendous mass of
material we reject, the majority is rejected because the plots are too
slight, too sketchy, or entirely absent.
"The beginning author should analyze and study the plots of
all the stories he reads just as a schoolboy analyzes a sentence.
Thereby he will come upon the element of the inevitable — where
things don't just happen. A plot, above all, should have opposing
forces locked in a struggle; this struggle, if it is interesting and the
outcome is uncertain, creates suspense — an indispensable quality
in the plot-story.
"Of course the beginning author may sometimes have an awk-
ward way of handling his material, but if his story shows style, human
understanding, and sympathy, every magazine editor is willing to
advise him how to whip it into shape — for his own magazine, of course.
"After a bit of study and analysis, the manufacturing of plots
becomes largely a habit of thinking. When one acquires the habit
through constant practice and makes himself a delicate instrument
THE SURE-FIRE INTRODUCTION 241
for plot germs, they will be found everywhere — in the morning paper,
in a chance remark overheard in the street car.
"So far as Short Stories goes, for all of our fiction we depend on
the material that passes over our desks each month. We rarely
order stories, and we have no ice box in which to store fiction — we
buy just as present needs dictate.
"The development of style? Well, I suppose I ought to say,
' consider Stevenson, master of style, and absorb sweetness and light.'
Of course I say it. How can anyone help it? Of course everyone,
whether he is breaking into the writing game or not, ought to read
Stevenson, and all the great masters before him — Kipling, and all
the great masters who have come into the ascendent since. And he
should study the modern fashions in fiction too. And then the young
writer should write, write, WRITE, WRITE. He should write,
and read, write and read — and live. Oh, there is plenty for him to do.
"Here is something I frequently think of: All the great painters
before they undertake a portrait make numerous sketches of their
subject, sketches to familiarize themselves with him in all his poses
and moods. Frank Norris's notebook was just that. In that book
he had sketches of life — nobody knows how many of them. That is
why he could write without rewriting.
"One way for the young writer to help himself to develop style
is to sketch life in this way, before he tries to put it into a story."
The Sure-Fire Introduction
By Felix J. Koch
It was in the course of a lecture upon "features, " delivered before
the class in journalism of a leading Cincinnati college not long since,
that we chanced upon it!
Tell Your Story in the First Paragraph and Make this
Paragraph Consist of a Single, Pithy Sentence if You Can!
According to this professional reader of manuscript for maga-
zines, this advice is the cure-all for the greatest fault of the writing
fraternity today, and observance of it will win acceptances.
"If the first paragraph interests, rest assured the reader will
continue. If not, he will drop the story, feature, what-so-ever — so
why write on to the end? If the first sentence can pique his curiosity,
so much the better — you will hold him to denouement, which comes
at the very end!"
The speaker cited the following example of a good opening: "In
an out-of-the-way corner of Cincinnati expert dentists are engaged in
filling, with finest grade gold or platinum, thousands of elks' teeth the
year over — and possibly the very tooth on your watchchain may, at
some time, have undergone the curious process involved."
The hint departs radically from academic tradition of introduc-
tion, body, logical continuance, climax and conclusion — but it does
help get the manuscript by; and proves the "Open Sesame" of
acceptance for many hundreds of feature "stories."
Help for Song Writers
New Opportunities for the Young Writer
By E. M. Wickes
"From time to time melodies come to me; they go on singing in
my brain and give me no peace of mind until I jot them down on
paper. However, as I do not know anything about harmony I see
no commercial value in them, and yet, when I hum the tunes to some
of my friends they tell me that the music is much better than a greater
part of the musical compositions that are offered in the guise of
popular songs."
The foregoing paragraph is similar to hundreds that the writer
has received during the past three years. Evidently the authors of
the letters, as well as thousands of other persons, started out with
the idea that in order to write popular or unpopular songs one must
be well versed in technique and harmony.
Now, as a rule, melody comes from the heart — melody sings it-
self into one's brain — whereas harmony is a manufactured product,
and anyone that is capable of wooing pretty melodies from the air
need not bother his head about harmony. If a catchy tune should
come to you, and you can memorize it by humming it over and over
to yourself, just as the experienced writers do, you can purchase all
the harmony you desire for so much a page. Any first-class arranger
will take down your melody and furnish the necessary harmony in
the bass for from three to five dollars a song. Less than ten per cent
of the popular composers are qualified to arrange their own songs,
and many of them do not know one note from another on the piano.
To turn out first-class harmony one has to be a finished musician,
and a peculiar thing about the average finished musician is that he
appears to be unable to write popular melodies. He can revise and
embellish the work of another, but he lacks the divine spark of a
creator. There are arrangers and would-be arrangers, and there are
others who have made a special study of popular songs. One ar-
ranger can get twice as much out of a melody as another. For years
Harry Von Tilzer would have no one but Al. Doyle arrange his songs.
Doyle knew every trick in the business. He knew how to blend
simplicity with harmony.
A good melody is harmony itself. Melody is harmony because
the tones blend and harmonize, and all the bass harmony in the world
will not be of any value to a collection of disjointed notes. A pub-
lisher does not render his decision resulting from the harmony he
finds in the bass, but on the natural harmony and appeal he discov-
ers in the plain melody. The manufactured harmony is a secondary
consideration with him, as he knows that this can be obtained within
a few hours' time. If you are able to write a good bass, do so, and if
you know some one who will furnish one for a reasonable sum, have
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS 243
him make the arrangement; but do not labor under the impression
that one must have a thorough knowledge of music in order to write
popular melodies. It is true that certain artifices are employed by
experienced melody writers to enhance melody, but these may be
assimilated from practice and experience, and the man unwilling to
work and learn has no business trying to write popular songs.
A good song, words and music, is a commercial commodity, and
sooner or later will find a market. Good songs and first-class song
writers are scarce. Existing conditions may keep a newcomer in the
background for a time, but if he possesses real ability and keeps peg-
ging away he is bound to make some progress. The rejection of a
song by a publisher means absolutely nothing. He may turn a num-
ber down today for which he would offer you five hundred dollars
advance tomorrow.
Anyone with ordinary intelligence can write a song; hundreds
of unknowns are able to write good songs, but very often it requires
the genius to sell a good song. For selling good, bad, and indifferent
songs Harry S. Marion has no equal. The other day he cited an
instance where a well-known writer came to him and said :
" Harry, I've got an instrumental number here that I've peddled
all over and can't get rid of it. Do you know any one likely to give
up ten dollars for it?"
Marion asked the composer — call him Jones for the time being —
to play the piece. Jones did, and then Marion said he would take it
down to a well-known publisher and ask two hundred dollars advance.
Jones snatched the manuscript from the piano and glared at Marion,
but the latter convinced Jones that he was in earnest. The following
morning Marion sauntered into the publisher's office and said:
"Mr. Doe, I can get you the greatest march written in ten years,
but you will have to give up two hundred advance. It's a wonder, a
winner, and a sure fire hit! And you know I have a good idea of
what ought to get over."
" Bring it in," replied the publisher, "and if it is 'the goods' I'll
pay the advance."
The next day Marion entered with the composer, had the latter
play the piece, and when Jones was waiting for the publisher to make
out a check for two hundred he was actually trembling. At the
corner Jones turned to Marion and said: "Here is five dollars for
your trouble." Just what Harry thought, has been cut out by the
Censor. The incident is related to impress upon writers the folly of
becoming discouraged because one or a few publishers reject their
manuscripts. There is another moral, too.
On another occasion Marion came across the composer of "Peace
Forever" worrying as to how he would get his rent. The man had
published "Peace Forever," which sold half a million copies later on,
and was out hunting a buyer for his march and several other numbers.
Marion took the man up to Mills, and the latter paid $900, according
to Harry's statement, for a group of songs. Marion received a com-
mission of $200 for his trouble.
244 HELP FOR SONG WRITERS
How to sell songs is the more important phase of the game, for
if you cannot sell them there is no sense in writing, unless you write
for Art's sake and the sake of a few admiring friends. By finding out
just how others turned the trick will sometimes give you an idea how
to duplicate, or devise new methods.
Several months ago a colored man in New York published some
of his own compositions, which he desired to put on the counters of
the big department stores. Fearing that his color might prove a
handicap, he engaged a good-looking white girl to call on the buyers.
The girl obtained an interview in every case and succeeded in placing
the man's numbers with several syndicates and a number of the big
department stores.
The average person looks upon New York and Chicago as being
the only cities where musical manuscripts may be sold, and that unless
a big publisher can see value in a song it must be worthless. A pub-
lisher is big or small according to the number of hits he turns out,
and not for his ability to judge the intrinsic merit of manuscripts.
Any number of hits have gone the rounds without receiving a word of
encouragement, and then have become "winners" after having been
put out by the determined authors.
A song writer has access to more possible markets than any other
writer. A story writer has to sell to a publisher, a scenario writer
to a film producer, a playwright to a theatrical manager, while on the
other hand a song writer may find a market with a magazine, a news-
paper, a piano manufacturer, or various other firms that from time
to time have recourse to music for advertising purposes. A firm that
never dreamed of using sheet music as advertising matter may be
talked into adopting this method of exploiting its wares, provided
the song writer is able to offer a convincing argument as to the value
of the plan. But in order to make money from music in this way one
has to be very much alive, and know how to write the style of songs
that will appeal to the average person.
A ballad, be it a simple rustic number, or a semi-high-class song,
offers the greatest possibilities for the unknown writer, and it also
brings large royalty checks to the well-known writers. A ballad is
comparatively easy to write, and will sell on its merits either at a big
department store or at some local dealer in an obscure hamlet. If
the melody is pleasing and the lyric capable of stirring emotions in
the breast of a young woman, the ballad will sell. About a year ago
one well-known publisher was giving a demonstration at a large de-
partment store in New York. He was featuring half-a-dozen new
numbers — "rags" and novelty songs without any feminine appeal
— and had three singers constantly singing the songs for the benefit
of the crowd that stood ten deep around the music counter.
Now on demonstration days in some department stores the
manager makes two publishers work in half-hour shifts. On this
particular day the big publisher had as a competitor a very small firm
that was pushing a pretty semi-high-class ballad, along with several
other numbers, and the ballad sold more copies than the six "rags"
combined, written by the well-known writer. Instances of this nature
HELP FOR SONG WRITERS 245
are common in the big stores, and only go to prove that a man need
not depend upon tricky meters, or New York, to make profit from his
songs.
When you try to write a ballad do not aim to show how clever
you are, or how large your vocabulary is; aim to convey sentiment
in a simple manner. Ernest F. Ball, a man who has made a fortune,
and who has set up a standard in ballads, never tries to write anything
else. You do not see him trying to make hits out of " She's The
Slickest Girl in Town." "I've Got a Girl That Everybody Wants,"
"Come Spoon With Me In A Bathing Suit," and other inane titles.
His songs and his titles appeal to the better nature in lovers of popular
music. And the titles he has used were public property at one time —
titles like, "Will You Love Me In December as You Do In May?"
"Love Me and The World Is Mine," "Mother Machree," "She's
The Daughter of Mother Machree," and a "Little Bit of Heaven."
And it may be mentioned for the benefit of some aspiring writers
that Mr. Ball's songs, or at least some of them, retail for twenty-
three cents a copy.
The present scarcity of paper promises to have some effect on
popular sheet music, and present indications point to the printing of
sheet music without an insert. Several numbers by a big publisher
have already come out without an insert, and if they do not meet
with any serious objections from the music buying public, the other
publishers will very likely follow. The elimination of the insert will
reduce the cost of paper, the cost of printing, postage, expressage,
and will also save the purchasers of music the bother of having to
stop to turn the page while playing. Whether or not the price will be
reduced is rather difficult to say. One publisher has been trying to
boost prices.
To the small publisher, especially the out-of-town man who
issues his own compositions, the folder-form of music — which is
minus the insert — will be quite a boon, for it will cut his printing
expenses almost in half, and afford him an opportunity to do a little
mail-order business. Some day when the general public can rely
upon every advertisement that appears in magazines and newspapers,
the popular sheet music will take a big jump, and the small music
publisher will be able to compete with the firms that now appear to
have a monoply on the business. Besides, the folder without the in-
sert is going to play a big part in giving the small publisher a fair run
for his money. This change will open up new markets for the un-
known song writers, and it is "up to" the unknowns to keep their
eyes and ears wide open, to continue to write, and be ready to take
advantage of an opportunity when one presents itself.
Two things that should be borne in mind are these : It is a waste
of time to write about preparedness or Uncle Sam, and that a good
ballad will sooner or later find its way into print.
My model is Euclid, whose justly celebrated book of short
stories entitled "The Elements of Geometry" will live when most of
us who are scribbling are forgotten. — Robert Barr.
Gleanings
By Anne Scannell O'Neill
The May issue of the Bookman should be added to the reference
library of every earnest worker. It is entitled the "New Authors'
Number," and contains the portraits of twenty authors of first books.
An article, " Firstlings in Fiction," outlines each novel and gives a
short account of its creator.
What makes the magazine of especial help to writers, however,
is the symposium contributed by eighteen editors of the leading New
York magazines, purporting to contain the answer to that important
query, " Why are Manuscripts Rejected? " A close study of the policy
of these magazines as outlined by their editors should effectually
prevent the promiscuous submitting of material and the subsequent
heartache over the non-committal rejection slip.
As a rule the persistent fault of the beginner is his tendency to
over-describe. It might prove helpful in this connection to ponder
the words of a well-known critic after reviewing a recent book on the
war: "It is a wonderful story but it is unfortunate that the author
did not tell it with fewer adjectives, and with less melodramatic
intensity. He has a gift for vivid phrasing in which he indulges so
unrestrainedly, that 'mad moments/ 'raving lines of battle/ 'scyth-
ing of slaughter/ soon pall upon the reader and presently become a
positive irritation. It would have been more effective had he con-
fined himself to a style simpler and more restrained .... his in-
cessant adjectives are like paint upon the lily."
From an article in the New York Times, April 16, 1916, we take
the following views of Mrs. Mary Roberts Rinehart:
" I do not know how other writers are affected. I could do noth-
ing at the front. For me, writing has two phases, each distinct from
the other. One is receiving an impression; the other is giving it
out. Between the two there must be a lapse of time to give me a
perspective, to let me see the 'high light/ as it were — to know what
should be emphasized. It is a matter of proportion, as all writing is.
That is why I think the real literature of the war will come after the
world is once more at peace. But even this may be less impressive
than we expect. There are some things that lie too deep for expres-
sion."
A book of verse, entirely the product of college under-graduates,
is to appear next fall. Its editor, Prof. Alfred Noyes, is compiling
the volume from the work of Princeton students of the present
generation.
Similar books have been edited in England by Sir Gilbert Murray
and Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch, but Mr. Noyes, though himself an
English poet, proudly announces that the verse he has found in the
PUBLISHERS OF POPULAR MUSIC 247
American college is of higher standard and will need no prefatory-
apology such as Murray thought necessary in his edition of Oxford
verse.
Sophie Kerr, author of "Love at Large," was asked where she
found the time to write stories and novels since she must of necessity
be tied to her office desk as a member of a magazine staff. Her
answer should shame the writer who expects to arrive without per-
sistent labor.
"There still remain nights and Sundays," said Miss Kerr;
"Like the optimistic old darkey: 'If you want to bad enough, you
kin.' "
Publishers of Popular Music
Compiled by E. M. Wickes
H. Bauer Music Co., 135 E. 34th Street, New York.
Broadway Music Corporation, 145 W. 45th Street, New York.
Buckeye Publishing Co., 997 E. Rich Street, Columbus, Ohio.
Buck & Lowney, Holland Building, St. Louis.
Jos. M. Daly, 665 Washington Street, Boston.
Leo Feist, Inc., 235 West 40th Street, N^w York.
Bernard Granville, 156 West 45th Street, New York.
T. B. Harms, 62 West 45th Street, New York.
Charles K. Harris, 47th Street and 7th Avenue, New York.
F. Haviland, Strand Building, New York.
P. J. Howley, 146 W. 46th Street, New York.
Kalmar & Puck, 156 West 45th Street, New York.
James Kendis, 145 W. 45th Street, New York.
G. Koch, 1431 Broadway, New York.
McKinley Music Co., 80 Fifth Ave., New York.
Jos. Morris & Co., 145 West 45th Street, New York.
E. T. Paull, 243 W. 42nd Street, New York.
Jerome Remick & Co., 221 West 46th Street, New York.
Will Rossiter, 136 W. Lake Street, Chicago.
Harold Rossiter Music Co., 306 W. Washington Street, Chicago.
E. T. Root & Sons, 1501 E. 55th Street, Chicago.
Shapiro, Bernstein & Co., 224 W. 47th Street, New York.
Southern California Music Co., 332 S. B'way, Los Angeles.
Jos. Stern & Co., 102 West 38th Street, New York.
Tell. Taylor, Grand Opera House, Chicago.
Thompson & Co., Randolph Building, Chicago.
Harry Von Tilzer, 125 West 43rd Street, New York.
Watterson, Berlin & Snyder, Strand Building, New York.
Welsh & Wilsky Music Co., Philadelphia.
Werblow & Fisher Co., Strand Theatre Building, New York.
H. A. Weyman & Son, 1010 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia.
M. Witmark & Son, 144 West 37th Street, New York.
Woodward, Willis & Co., 1193 Broadway, New York.
The Writer's Magazine Guide
Compiled by Anne Scannell O'Neill
FICTION
' ' Why are Manuscripts Rej ected? ' ' A Symposium by Mark Sullivan,
Edward Bok, Arthur Vance, Charles Hanson Towne, and other
editors. Bookman, May, 1916.
"The Greatest Living Writer of Outdoor Literature," Current
Opinion, May,' 1916.
"Richard Harding Davis — An Estimate," Arthur Bartlett Maurice,
Bookman, May, 1916.
" 'Zelig,' and Some Others," Bookman, May, 1916.
"Firstlings in Fiction," Florence Finch Kelly, Bookman, May, 1916.
"Three Literary Giants of Today" — Kipling, Chesterton, Shaw,
New York Times Magazine, May 7, 1916.
"America Produces a Novelist — Willard Huntington Wright," H. L.
Mencken, Forum, April, 1916.
"Survey of the Stories of the Season," H. W. Boynton, New York
Evening Post Magazine, April 22, 1916.
"The Centenary of Charlotte Bronte," Margaret Ashmun, New York
Times Magazine, April 16, 1916.
DRAMA
"Tagore on the Spirit of the Hindu Stage," American Review of
Reviews, May, 1916.
"What I Think of a Good Play," George C. Tyler, Theatre, May, 1916.
"Dramatic Talent and Theatrical Talent," Clayton Hamilton, Book-
man, May, 1916.
"Plays Worth Seeing," Walter Pritchard Eaton, American, May, 1916.
"Tough Times for Critics," P. G. Wodehouse, Vanity Fair, May,
1916.
"The Season's Plays," Heywood Broun, Collier's, May 13, 1916.
"Dramatic Definitions," Edward Hale Bierstadt, New York Evening
Post Magazine, April 22, 1916.
"The Future of the Class Play," Rea McCain, Education, April, 1916.
PHOTOPLAY
"Thumbs Down in Europe," Roger Lytton, Photoplay, June, 1916.
"The Story of David Wark Griffith," Henry Stephen Gordon, Photo-
play, June, 1916.
"Famous Teams — and Why," Creighton Hamilton, Picture Play,
June, 1916.
"Judging Plays," Louis Reeves Harrison, Moving Picture World,
May 13, 1916.
"Big Film Merger Under Way," Moving Picture World, May 13,
1916.
"The Art of Charles Chaplin," Minnie Maddern Fiske, Harper's
Weekly, May 6, 1916.
EPIGRAMS OF THE PHOTOPLAY 249
"Money Made in Writing for the Movies," Dale Carnagey, American,
June, 1916.
POETRY
" Christopher Marlows," Original Manuscript of Algernon Swinburne,
North American Review, May, 1916.
"The Poetry of a Priest — Father John Bannister Tabb," John B.
Kelly, Catholic World, May, 1916.
"Prohibitory Advice to Critics," Mrs. Alice Corbin Henderson,
Current Opinion, May, 1916.
"The New Poetry Versus the Old," Francis B. Gummere, New York
Evening Post Magazine, April 22, 1916.
JOURNALISM
"A Captain of Comic Industry,"— "Bud" Fisher, John N. Wheeler,
American, May, 1916.
"Portrait and Short Sketch of Irwin S. Cobb," American, May, 1916.
"Indicting the New York Magazines," Literary Digest, May 6, 1916.
"How Davis Did It," Literary Digest, April 29, 1916.
"Getting Best Service from Correspondents," Editor and Publisher,
April 15, 1916.
" Retrospects of an English Journalist," Percy Bicknell, Dial, April 13,
1916.
GENERAL ARTICLES
"Alexander Wilson Drake — Forty-three years Art Director of the
Century," Clarence Clough Buel, Century, May, 1916.
"What is Education?" Professor Ernest C. Moore, Education,
May, 1916.
"The Mind of a Child," H. Addington Bruce, Century, May, 1916.
"The London of Shakespeare," Elizabeth Clendenning Ring, Book
News Monthly, April, 1916.
Epigrams of the Photoplay
By S. Raymond Jocelyn
The Theme is the basic idea or hub of the dramatic incidents.
The Title specializes the theme of the play; it is the cap screwed
to the hub.
The Cast interprets the nature of the wheel of incidents or the
story evolved.
The Synopsis sketches the play of the cast; it turns the wheel on
its axis of probability or impossibility.
The Plot explains the synopsis and develops it into units, which
are expressed by paragraphs; it constitutes the spokes centralized
in the hub of the dramatic wheel.
The Scenario arranges the plot into scenes, leaders and inserts;
it individualizes the wheel by emphasizing good or poor workmanship.
The Picturization develops the scenario into action and photo-
graphs ; it is the whirl of the unset wheel.
The Film is the arrangement of the pictures into a connected
story, the rim of the wheel; it is the wheel in place on its particular axis.
Photoplay News
Compiled by E. M. Wickes
On May 9th The Photodramatists held a semi-monthly meeting.
To furnish a subject for scenario discussion Howard Irving Young
brought down a Metro feature, "The Soul Market," which was
shown in the Balboa projection room. Before leaving, Mr. Young
said that although he has repeatedly asked for some good five-reel
stories for Metro (1465 Broadway, New York), he has not heard from
a sufficient number of writers.
One member stated that The Fine Arts Company wrote to her
saying that it did not care to see any stories from free lances; on the
other hand, however, Miss Mabel Strauss, who is with The World
Film (126 West 46th St., New York), said she would like to see some
five-reels from anybody. When a story passes her it is handed to Wm.
A. Brady for final decision.
Fannie Hurst, who receives something like $1,200.00 for every
short-story she writes, attended the meeting accompanied by Kate
E. Horton. The latter is a regular member and has recently broken
into the fiction game. Her "Chorus Jane" was featured in the April
number of Breezy Stories.
Harry 0. Hoyt, a graduate of Yale, and formerly on the staff of
Kalem, came down to make a short address, but unfortunately was
called away. Mr. Hoyt is now editor of Metro, and although he is
kept very busy with editorial duties, he still finds time to write arti-
cles for Metro's house organ. Scenario writers can rest assured that
they will receive the best of treatment when submitting work to Mr.
Hoyt.
Colonel Jasper E. Brady, the genial Vitagraph editor, was ex-
pected but failed to show up. When it comes to the matter of cour-
tesy the Colonel is entitled to a place in the front rank. Busy as he is
from sunrise to sunset, he has found time to write a novel for Small,
Maynard and Co.
A. Van Buren Powell said that since the paper famine has made
its appearance one company in the South has discontinued sending
out rejection slips. Perhaps the scarcity of paper has something to do
with the absence of checks in the mails.
Members were notified that Clara Kimball Young is about to
offer a prize of $2,000.00 for the best five-reel scenario submitted to
her new company before July 15th. Stories must be capable of show-
ing Miss Young at her best. Details are unobtainable at the present
writing, but will very likely appear in the trade papers.
According to a letter received by Mrs. Farley, secretary of The
Photodramatists, The Photoplaywrights of America, as well as its
house organ, have gone out of commission. The former editor of the
house organ has accepted an editorial position with Motography and
A REPLY TO MR. PLAYTER 251
promises to see that the Photodramatist Club and its members will
not be slighted in the matter of real publicity.
Agnes Johnston, formerly with Vitagraph, and now with Than-
houser, said that she gets so much good from the meetings that she is
only too willing to make the trip from New Rochelle. At present she
is turning out a new brand of comedy-drama, and some of her friends
look upon her as the "Barrie" of the screen. Her next release will be
"The Shine Girl."
George L. Sargent, one of the best workers the club ever had, is
expected to return from the Adirondack section, where he has been
very busy directing the "Fall of a Nation," the coming sensation in
moving pictures.
June Mathis, author of "The Snow Bird," and "The Great
Price, " and now doing feature stories for Metro, came to the meeting
and announced her intention of becoming a regular member.
Applications for membership were received from Fred Piano,
Peekskill, N. Y., Adrian Johnston, assistant editor of Mirror Films,
and one from a scenario writer in the Canal Zone. Applications for
membership should be addressed to Mrs. Louise M. Farley, 607 West
136th Street, New York City.
A Reply to Mr. Playter
By Cruse Carriel
Editor of "Out West"
After reading Mr. Playter' s dissertation in the May number of
the Writer's Monthly I am wondering if young writers really do
want the truth about their manuscripts and whether it would be the
best thing to give it to them straight from the shoulder. It may be
true that the present high cost of paper is due in no small degree to the
number of rejection slips used by magazines, that the slips themselves
are stereotyped and mean nothing and that they may cause the re-
cipient author to pay postage due. But why the ether-splitting howl
if, inadvertently, a manuscript is sent back without one?
On the other hand, an editor usually knows quite definitely just
why he returns an offering. It would be a simple matter to list these
causes and check the particular one responsible for the return. Some
periodicals do so to a limited extent, but none of them, so far as I
know, lists the real cause — hopeless, helpless, mediocre, rotten — actuat-
ing the return of many offerings, and for a very good reason.
This reason is that very few persons, as people are presently
constituted, are able to stand the truth. Besides, an editor hesitates
to condemn utterly what may be the offspring of a budding genius.
The ruthless desecrator of buds is not a pleasant person — and, of
course, all editors are. Think of the responsibility attaching to an
editor who, through brutal, even though truthful, rejection, completely
"douses the glim" of a future O. Henry, Mark Twain or Robert
Louis Stevenson! While the possibility remains of writers believing
that editors know their business, the "white lie" is better.
The Retort Courteous
The thing that interested us most, however, in the current
Century is an article by our highly esteemed contemporary, Mr.
Harvey J. 0 'Higgins, called "Caste in Criticism," in which that
competent literary artist strives to give comfort to the crude, unskilled
literary idols of the hour by a not over-subtly implied intimation that
the literary critic who tries to hold the modern penster up to some
kind of a standard of literary excellence is a snob. However delicately
he does it, we think Mr. 0 'Higgins goes too far in his denunciation of
these critics. There are snobs among them, of course — we could name
offhand a half-dozen such — but in the main the incorrigible misusers
of their literary opportunities to-day have not suffered much at their
hands because few people read what they have to say, and don't
understand it even when they do read it; and it is probably truer
to-day than ever before that " punch" counts for more than style in
popular approval, and that it is the story and not the manner of its
telling that is "the thing." What the bulk of the sincere critics of
to-day would really like to see would be some sign of a realization in
the minds, souls or hearts of these writers of the punchy thing that
their "punch" would be vastly more effective if they would take the
trouble to learn how to write. Slipshod work in any field of endeavor
is to be deprecated, whether it be in cleaning out a stable or in writing
a poem; and as we see it, all that the modern critic of fastidious sense
has to ask of the writer of the hour is that he shall learn something
about syntax, not so much, perhaps, as to make him all syntax and
nothing else, but just enough to enable him to say clearly and in
tolerably good English what he means; and that in the selection of
his theme he shall not require us to waste the few hours most of us
have to devote to reading in the contemplation of the low, squalid,
smelly denizens of the Great White Way, or the social nastinesses of an
otherwise studiedly vulgar smart set, in whose lives there is nothing
uplifting, or in the least degree inspiring. Mr. 0 'Higgins says that
"if we produce a literature that bears the same relation to American
life that American plumbing does, for example, we shall be doing a
sane thing." That is possibly true, but we should remember that
there is a technique even to plumbing, and that if American plumbers
were as careless of it as American writers are of the technique of their
craft, we'd all of us be down with malaria and typhoid in 97 minutes.
Our trouble seems to be that in respect to one-half of Mr. 0 'Higgins'
proposition, anyhow, we have our artisans mixed, with the result
that whoever is doing our plumbing, most of our literature, especially
in the magazine serial field, is being done by plumbers — which may
be one of the reasons why most of the product smells so rankly of the
sewer. — Boston Post.
WHII Willi
BUMiMWMiiuwaiiJiu itiiaim wiiiiini imiwiiainrwnnBiniHWiii
if#imiin.umf«muiiir*fii*iiii»iiiflUmtli!M)ill-<K"
TENNESSEE WOMAN'S PRESS AND AUTHORS' CLUB
(Organized April, 1899)
OFFICERS
Mrs. John A. Epperson, Algood President
Mrs. Helen Topping Miller, Morristown 1st Vice-President
Miss Kate White, Knoxville 2nd Vice-President
Miss Martha James, Nashville Recording Secretary
Miss Della Yoe, Knoxville Corresponding Secretary
Miss Mattie Harris, Lynnville Treasurer
Mrs. Willie Lawson Williams, Nashville, . Ch. Membership Com.
Mrs. Frances M. Morgan, Franklin Ch. Legislation Com.
Mrs. Anne Bachman Hyde, Chattanooga, . . Ch. Constitution Com.
Mrs. Elizabeth Fry Page, Nashville, Ch. Library Com.
Mrs. Rutledge Smith, Cookeville Ch. House Com.
The club owns a picturesque log bungalow in the Cumberland
Mountains, where its annual meetings are held. Many of its mem-
bers have achieved distinction. Maria Thompson Daviess, Kate
Trimble Sharber, Helen Topping Miller, and others are well known to
the reading public. Mrs. Miller recently won first prize, three
hundred dollars, in the short-story contest of the Southern Woman's
Magazine. The club has taken an active interest in the education of
the Southern mountaineers, and the preservation of Tennessee tradi-
tions and history.
LEAGUE OF AMERICAN PEN WOMEN
(General Federation of Women's Clubs) Washington, D. C.
Business meetings, first Mondays in the month from October to May,
inclusive, at Public Library
OFFICERS
Mrs. Bertha Lincoln Heustis President
Miss Jessie A. Griswold 1st Vice-President
Miss Mae Ruth Norcross 2d Vice-President
Mrs. Anna Sanborn Hamilton Recording Secretary
1801 K St., N. W.
Mrs. Della Hine Mertz Corresponding Secretary
3031 Newark St.
Mrs. Gertrude Buckingham Thomas Asst. Corres. Secretary
1231 Girard St.
Mrs. J. Harry Cunningham Treasurer
Mrs. Mary M. North Auditor
Mrs. Susie Root Rhodes Librarian
Mrs. Virginia King Frye Historian
Mrs. Leigh Chalmers Reporter
Contributions to this department are solicited. Paragraphs must be brief and the material
based not on theory but on experience in any branch of pencraft. Mutual helpfulness and a wide
range of subjects are the standards we have set for Experience Meeting.
Mention has been made of Everywoman's World, Toronto. They
state, in paragraphs furnished to various magazines for writers, that
they pay about $25 for stories, 45 days after date. My experience
was thus: — Story of 4,500 words submitted March 19, 1915. In-
quiries were made on June 25th and July 9th. After waiting until
August 4th, I received their offer to pay me a half-cent a word, which
they spoke of as their usual rate, calling the story 3,500 words, as
that was their outside length limit. They would do the revision
necessary. Payment would be made forty-five days from that date
of acceptance, if I closed with the offer. I did so, and waited. When
the forty-five days had gone by without the appearance of a check,
I wrote them. I wrote to the editor of the magazine without result
or reply, — to the publishers without result or reply, finally to the
cashier. On October 20th, eleven weeks after acceptance, I received
my check, which bore date of October 4th! No explanation was
vouchsafed.
The editorial departments of the periodicals published by the
American Baptist Publication Society, of Philadelphia, are excep-
tions to the ordinary rule. They prefer and request that loose stamps
be enclosed with MSS., instead of the stamped and addressed envelope.
— Aldis Dunbar.
We all know about the big magazines but I have so much trouble
finding out about the trade papers and the small magazines that I am
going to put my friends on the trail and have them send copies of
these to me. This suggestion might be of value to other writers. I
can write on civics, household economics, small gardens, landscape
gardening, entertainments for raising money for various affairs — all
good subjects — but after spending hours in libraries looking over
magazines I do not always know where to submit. It is only by keep-
ing continually at it that I find out about the smaller papers.
Please insist that writers give the whole address of a magazine,
if possible, and also state just what type of article or story is desired
when sending to the " Where to -Sell" department. Here are two I
have lately heard of:
The Dodge Idea (a Magazine of Industrial Progress). Edited
by C. R. Trowbridge, Mishawaka, Ind.
The Edison Monthly, publishes almost any type of article which
deals directly or indirectly with electricity, Irving Place and 15th St.,
New York. — Betty.
Timely, terse, reliable, and good-natured contributions to this department will be wel-
come. Every detail of each item should be carefully verified. Criticisms based on matters of
opinion or taste cannot be admitted, but only points of accuracy or correctness.
In a story in the April Everybody's "Tommy and the Tight
Place," by Dorothy DeJagers, this sentence occurs: "The actress
lady crossed her knife and fork on the plate before her with dazed
precision, searching his face, meantime, for a corroboration of her
suspicions that it might be a hoax. Finding none, she smiled at last,
but not muscle-sprainingly."
There is no doubt as to the charm of originality of expression, or
its actual cash value at present; but when it comes to connecting
such an athletic combination of words as muscle-sprainingly , with a
smile, doesn't it rather take the light out of the allusion? — L. W. S.
Grace Ellery Channing meets her Waterloo during the course of
an automobile ride in " A Favorite of the Gods, " published in Harper's
Monthly Magazine for April. One of the characters is made to drive
his car with his hand on the clutch — a most unusual as well as awk-
ward proceeding, since the clutch is concealed, and, excepting in the
rare magnetic gear shift, is operated by a pedal. — Ruth Hoen.
In " A Fisher of Men, " by John Galsworthy, found in the volume
"A Motley," on page 46, I find this statement: "each one of this
grim congregation were pouring out all the resentment in his heart."
The error is evident. He has permitted the principal word in the
phrase to determine the number of the verb without regard to the
number of the subject. — V. B. Brown.
In the Popular Magazine, April 20, 1916, "The Forty-ninth
Talesman," by Holman Day, has more than the usual allotment of
errors in " local color " — dealing with courts and procedure. Witness
one, page 33 :
"On that point we've got what the judge said about the pre-
ponderance of evidence," said one of the panel. "If I'm any judge
of human language, the old chap seemed to think the evidence
mostly preponderated against the prisoner."
The words "preponderance of evidence," used in a criminal case,
would be an absolutely reversible error. No judge would give such a
charge under any circumstances. This expression applies only to
Civil Actions — preponderance being, as regards evidence, the great
distinguishing feature — principle — between Criminal and Civil Ac-
tions. "Any evidence, however slight, which convinces you to a
256 CRITICS IN COUNCIL
moral certainty and beyond all reasonable doubt" — a statement
familiar to any layman — is the wording of the Charge in a criminal
case, and is used expressly for the purpose of excluding the idea of
preponderance.
In "Props," by Ray Sprigle, in the Green Book for June, 1916,
page 1084, appears the following: "A single afternoon sufficed for
the hearing, and the jury retired The jury was ready to re-
port. And then Howe had the experience of seeing the lad who had
played in his mandolin club sentence a man to death." A sentence
in a felony case cannot be pronounced the day the verdict is rendered.
In all the states, the law allows at least two days, and in most states
five, to intervene between the rendition of the verdict and the imposi-
tion of judgment. It is no more than decent. The only writer I've
never caught tripping in descriptions of courts and their procedure
is Irvin Cobb. He's been there, and knows; the others don't take
the trouble to find out what could be learned for the asking.
— Austin Arnold.
"Short-Story Writing — Vocation or Avocation," by E. E. de Graff,
published in The Writer's Monthly for May, is very misleading
in its inference that the five literary celebrities cited formed the drug
or alcohol habit under "the implacable necessity" of accomplishing
mental work "by a given time." As a matter of fact literary work
was not responsible for the vices of the writers mentioned by Mrs.
de Graff. De Quincey and Coleridge both began taking opium at
college — Oxford and Cambridge respectively — to allay neuralgic
pains; Burns became enamored of the flowing bowl at seventeen,
seeking solace for loneliness and poverty; Poe developed a passion
for drink while a student, before experiencing the necessity for self-
support; and if poor Francis Thompson had the drug habit, his
neurotic condition was largely responsible.
— Mrs. Alix Kocsis Anderson.
It may be doubted if the author criticised ever intended the foregoing in-
ference. However and whenever these habits were begun, certainly after having
been broken off, they were re-commenced, in several instances, and continued
with interruptions, largely from the urge named by Mrs. de Graff. Depression
often pursues genius, early and late. — Editor.
In the story entitled, "Efficiency Edgar's Courtship," by
Clarence Budington Kelland, in The Saturday Evening Post, April 29th,
we find a conversation taking place between Edgar and Mr. Pierce,
in Mr. Pierce's library. The accompanying illustration is almost a
caricature, showing Mary and the piano, with Mr. Pierce and Edgar
still present — while in the story they are absent and holding a private
conversation. — G. H. Long.
"Two Girls in the South," in the May, 1916, Ladies' Home
Journal, displays only a superficial knowledge of Richmond. It is
easy to excuse the liberties that are taken with Patrick Henry's
CRITICS IN COUNCIL 257
family history, for novelists are allowed that privilege, but as a matter
of fact the only two living male descendants are not twelve years old.
A son of the Old South and a Confederate veteran is made to
say " Civil War." While this term is generally used throughout the
country, in the Old Dominion we say, " War Between the States."
It is not unusual to find live oaks in the bottom lands ; and in the
Dismal Swamps they grow to considerable size, but they are not
found as shade trees around the houses. They are shade trees in
Georgia, but not in Virginia.
On Monument Avenue, we have a "Lee Circle" and a "Stuart
Circle," but there is no Monument Circle.
— Margaret Denny Dixon.
Has this critic never seen the live oak shade trees in the grounds of For-
tress Monroe, Va.? — Editor.
If the first installment of "Between Two Worlds," by Philip
Curtis, in the May American Magazine, has escaped your attention
thus far, you should neglect it not one moment longer, for it marks
the birth of a new style in letters. This is called the recurrent style —
recurrence of word, recurrence of phrase. I have caught some of the
spirit of it myself. The only criticism I have to offer is not a criticism
at all, as a regret can never be a criticism in the finer sense of the word,
and I regret, much, that Mr. Curtis did not read — and he could have,
and still have gotten the installment out on time — the sixteenth
"Letter to Young Authors" in the April Writer's Monthly. The
following example of Mr. Curtis' style, I feel somehow, would have
died if the author had had the benefit of the "Twilight Sleep" con-
tained in No. 16, as to faulty sentence building.
"Gresham, indeed, was not the only diner who sat absolutely
thunderstruck at the appearance of the girl, for, one after another,
the stolid, over-dressed men and women who had watched with
absolute indifference the capers and tricks of the other performers
straightened in their chairs and turned to watch her, until the room
was wrapped in silence — which even newcomers stopped rather than
break, and which was ended only by the perfect storm of applause
which followed the close of the song."
When I read that, I was "absolutely thunderstruck," and it was
not with "absolute indifference" that I hastened to inquire how
"even newcomers" — granting that some of them do possess rare
qualities anent noise — could stop a silence without breaking it. Then,
reading further, I saw that there hadn't been any silence at all
"which newcomers stopped rather than break." There was a girl
singing all the time! This style has possibilities. — Austin Arnold.
To gather much thought into few words stamps the man of
genius. Therefore, if possible, the quintessence only!
— Schopenhauer.
THE, WOI^p
Page_^
, ■■■
Conducted by the Editor
In this little Department will be found from month to month such notes, observations, and
criticisms on the values and uses of words as may be contributed, or provided by the Staff of The
Writer's Monthly. No offerings can be considered that are not brief, pungent, and accurate.
Not alone the authoritative word-books but also good usage will be taken as the standard.
Here is an easy method of word study which has helped me
greatly. I bought two cheap but authoritative books : "The English
Language/' in the "Home University Library," by Pearsall Smith,
and "English Dialects," in the "Cambridge Manuals," by the
eminent philologist, Skeat. (Both books are sold in England at a
shilling a copy and fifty cents in America.) As I carefully read them
through I kept a list of all words used as illustrations of some particu-
lar tendency or principle. Then, in review, I carefully revised my
word lists until I could discuss the point involved in the case of each
word noted. The added knowledge and interest has been an absolute
revelation to me, and has led me to purchase a copy of Mr. Skeat' s
well-known "Etymological Dictionary" (condensed) and to plan a
further incursion into philology. — J. G. McNear.
There are many nice distinctions to be made between the literal
and the figurative use of single words. The extreme of literalness is
no worse than the opposite — over-profusion of the figurative. Con-
trast for the sake of effect is the law here. The results are often full
of suggestion, for the fresh figurative outlook opens up farther vision.
Test this by taking these words, "political heretic," and supplying
other nouns, all of which — like "political clown" — suddenly shift
the comparison-picture to a sphere outside of politics.
Considered as a habit, the single-word figure is really much more
effective than the figurative sentence. Expand "political juggler"
into a full sentence and see how you lose effect. On the other hand,
an occasional figurative sentence, contrasted with straightforward
statements, will act as a bit of embroidery on a garment of solid color.
Just as we say of a woman, "she has the good taste to use just enough
ornamentation on her gowns," so let it be said of us when we begem
our sentences with figures.
An interesting exercise is to set down all the words meaning
flowing water — say from rill to river. Be careful to discriminate
between all such as show shades of difference, and when you dis-
criminate be careful to consider not only the size of the flow but its
form and rate of movement — cascade, torrent and rapids are all
different.
When you have completed this list, make another of the words
expressive of the character of the flow, like "rush," "tumble," and
"dance."— J. B. E.
If you can say a good thing pertinent to any phase of the writer's work, say it briefly and with
pungency — and send it in.
If a message hurts you, try to hide both the hurt and the message.
If a message helps you, herald it afar — it may bring like help to others.
— Felix K. Struve.
In order to imitate, select a man of excellence, a man who is
above all the rest and whose methods we may convert to our own use.
Him we should follow, as Ben Jonson says, "not as a creature that
swallows what it takes in, crude, raw or undigested; but that feeds
with an appetite, and hath a stomach to concoct, divide, and turn
all into nourishment." — M. Dimicel.
Use your imagination. Make believe that your story is the
property of someone with whom you have just quarreled, then
try to show him just how weak his writing is by picking the story
apart. When you have done this you will find that here and there
in the story you could improve the construction of the English or of
the plot. No story can be perfect, but your story can be as perfect
as you can make it. — Lewis E. Zorn.
When you write, adopt your own viewpoint; when you revise,
consider that of others. — Karl von Kraft.
A plot is always something other than a straight, uninterrupted
course, for it must include some intervention from without or from
within. When no force steps in to hinder the hero's purpose, when
no obstacle rises in the path of the heroine, there is no plot. The
more surprising and threatening the intervention, the more will the
writer's ingenuity be taxed to overcome its difficulties plausibly and
naturally. In a world so full of obstacles as ours it is really not hard
to find one suited to our story — the task is to overcome it in a way
that satisfies the reader's sense of what life really is.
— Ethel Troy.
My sympathy goes out to the writer who does not know that he
is unprepared to write. He is not ludicrous — he is pathetic. For
such as he the only hope is to learn to judge what is good in the work
of others and set about mastering those first steps by which all the
great and all the useful have proceeded from small beginnings. That
is the inexorable law of success. If he but has some fact to tell, some
impression to create, some crisis to show, some laughter to evoke, he
may with patience learn how to do what he wants to do. If he is not
willing to be apprentice he can never be master. — J. B. E.
The man who advocates poisonous reading is the same fellow
who made the pure food and drug acts necessary. — H. T. Harley.
H. C. S. Folks
Patrons and students are invited to give information of their published or produced material;
or of important literary activities. Mere news of acceptances cannot be printed — give dates,
titles and periodicals, time and place of dramatic production, or names of book publishers.
Leslie Jennings Nelson, of Rutherford, Cal., is the author of a
suggestive article in the May 6th issue of The Editor — "The Personal
Equation: A Pitfall." The same number also contains an article by
Grayce Druitt Latus, entitled "The Golden Rule Editor." Mrs.
Latus, whose home is in Pittsburgh, was the first graduate in the
Short-Story course of the H. C. S., and is now a successful journalist.
Aldis Dunbar, of New York City, likewise appears in this issue of
The Editor, with an interesting article entitled, "This Thing Actually
Happened;" while Lena C. Ahlers, of Stronghurst, 111., contributes
some interesting specimens of dialect from the Kentucky mountains.
L. E. Eubanks, of Seattle, Wash., is proving the value of the
relatively smaller periodicals as market places for literary material.
His work appears in eleven magazines for April: Catholic Educa-
tional Review, Washington, D. C.; School News, Taylorsville, 111.;
The Magnificat, Manchester, N. H.; Health Culture, New York City;
American Journal of Nursing, New York City; Field and Stream,
New York City; Forest and Stream, New York City; Arms and the
Man, Washington D. C; Outer's Book, Milwaukee, Wis.; The
Violin World, New York City; and Your Health, Philadelphia.
Mabel Dill, of Washington, D. C, has a third of a series of
stories which she is doing for Mother's Magazine in the June issue of
that periodical. It is entitled "The Proof of the Pudding" and is
one of Miss Dill's cleverest stories. The June issue of The Housewife
contains another story of this increasingly successful writer. It is
entitled "The Coward Woman."
Mrs. Minnie M. Seymour, secretary of the East St. Louis
Women's Civic Federation, has written a song to the air of "The
Red, White and Blue" (Columbia, the Gem of the Ocean), which
was sung at the eighteenth annual meeting of the Twenty-eighth
District Assembly of Rebekah lodges, I. O. 0. F., at Collinsville, Mo.
Mrs. Seymour has written several song "hits," among them "Teddy,"
the rallying song of Roosevelt followers at the Republican convention
in Chicago in 1912.
Frank G. Davis, of Elkton, Va., has a capital short-story
entitled "His Guardian Angel" in the May issue of Everyday Life,
and a short humorous story in Grit, entitled "A Jokeless Joke."
Rosa Meyers Mumma, of Robertsdale, Ala., contributes an
effective poem entitled "The Brotherhood of Man" to a recent
number of The Traveling Elk.
H. C. S. FOLKS 261
Henry Willis Mitchell, of Plain ville, Conn., has just signed a
contract with the Franklin Syndicate, of 347 Fifth Ave., New York,
for the exclusive publication of his stories for children which appear
under the general title "Nodden Stories." This syndicate is also
handling general stories for Mr. Mitchell.
Mary Catherine Parsons, of Brookline, Mass., has won one of
the prizes offered by Snappy Stories for clever limericks.
Elsiephene Merriam, of Golden, Col., has an interesting article
entitled "A Bit of Scientific Logic" in Power magazine for May.
This is a New Thought publication.
Elizabeth Hays Wilkinson, of Pittsburgh, Pa., has now three
books for children on the market. "The Lane to Sleepy Town and
Other Verses" (Reed & Witting) is delightfully illustrated, as befits
the delightful versification. "Peter and Polly" (Doubleday, Page
& Co.) is a cat story done with much charm. It is profusely pictured
in full colors after remarkable photographs by Cornelia Clark.
"Little Billy Coon" (Reed & Witting) is, as its name would indicate,
a coon story. It really rivals Uncle Remus in its humor. The
numerous illustrations are by J. Woodman Thompson. Miss Wilkin-
son also has written an operetta for children entitled " Story land," the
music for which was written by Harvey B. Gaul. The operetta was
recently produced at the Schenley Theatre, Pittsburgh, with over one
hundred children in the cast.
Gertrude M. Stevens, of Chevy Chase, Md., has a very pleasing
story entitled "Pink Satin Slippers" in the June Woman's Home
Companion.
Mattie B. Cramer, of Malta, Mont., has a full page feature
article in the Sunday issue of the Great Falls, Mont., Daily Tribune,
on the life and work of W. D. Coburn, the Montana Cowboy Poet.
The article is interestingly illustrated.
In the Canadian Courier for April 8th appears a good sporting
story, "Between Innings," by Harry Moore, of Alvinston, Can.
"Tom and Betty, also Belgun," a fascinating well written
children's story by Mrs. Pitt Lamar Matthews, Montgomery, Ala.,
has just been published by the Paragon Press in the form of an
attractive pamphlet of sixty pages. Mrs. Montgomery is president
of the Montgomery Press and Authors' Club.
Prof. M. N. Bunker, Dean of the Atlanta Normal School, Colby,
Kansas, has in the April number of the Overland Monthly a biographi-
cal article on Elizabeth Towne, editor of The Nautilus Magazine, and
a pioneer in the New Thought movement. The biographic sketch is
entitled "A Woman the West Has Given. "
Mrs. Clarence Renshaw, of Edgewood Park, Pa., has an effective
short article, entitled "Proving the Plot," in The Editor, for March
25th.
The Writer's
Monthly
Continuing
The Photoplay Author
A Journal for all Who Write
Edited by
J. Berg Esenwein
Entered at the Springfield, Massachusetts,
Post Office as Second Class Mail Matter.
Copyright, 1915, by The Home Correspond-
ence School, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Price 15 cents a copy; $1.00 a Year; Canada
$1.25; Foreign $1.50.
Published monthly by Thb Home Corbb-
sfondbncb School, Myrick Building, Spring-
field, Mass.
IMPORTANT NOTICES
Change of address must reach the publisher
before the first of the month. No numbers can
be duplicated when this rule has not been com-
plied with. Subscribers must give old address
when sending in the new, and specifically address
the notice to The Writer's Monthly.
Return postage must accompany all regular
articles intended for publication; otherwise,
without exception, unavailable manuscripts
will not be returned.
In no case can short items for the Depart-
ments be returned if unavailable, therefore
copies should be retained by the writers.
Notices of accepted material will be
sent promptly with payment on acceptance.
However, items for " Critics in Council,"
"Paragraphic Punches," "Experience Meet-
ing," and "The Word Page" will be paid for
only in shorter or longer subscriptions to The
Writer's Monthly, to be sent to any desired
person. Items for the other departments will
not be paid for.
Vol. VII
June, 1916
No. 6
It is perfectly natural that
new writers should choose fic-
tional subjects that he near to
their own hearts and experiences.
Doubtless this is why so many
stories about stories are submit-
ted to editors; it also suggests a
fundamental reason why the
theme is rarely acceptable. It is
difficult for the general reader to
enter into the tragedy of "the
first rejection slip," while writer-
readers themselves know the ex-
perience so intimately that they
are not interested in so common-
place a feeling.
The first acceptance is a theme
also much in vogue.
The most common denouement
selected for such stories is that of
the longed-for check arriving just
in time to prevent a catastrophe.
Another plot device, scarcely less
favored by beginners, is to have
the heroine wave the welcome
slip before the eyes of the de-
jected lover — who has been de-
spairing of his chances for an
early marriage — with the an-
nouncement that the parson may
now be summoned. There are
many other variations, of course.
The oldest possible theme may
be handled successfully by giving
a new twist to the plot, but it is
hopeless to save the fresh turn
for the end. Three thousand
words of commonplace will never
induce an editor to read on to the
end to see if a novel ending is in
store. Unless the unique han-
dling is placed in evidence at
the start there is no chance for a
trite situation. Better steer your
course away from the story about
a writer, and the plot based on
a picture, or a musical composi-
tion, a play manuscript, a photo-
play script, or the discovery of
an old violin, and kindred tat-
tered story-schemes, are not any
fresher. Wait until you have
arrived before you try to revive
the dead.
The Writer's Monthly goes
this month for the first time to
a large number of new subscrib-
ers. We want each of these to
catch the spirit of our widening
circle of scribes: each for the
OTHER, AND ALL FOR THE IM-
PROVEMENT OF THE CRAFT that
is a good slogan to write on the
heart. Helpfulness is the tone of
this little magazine — each new
subscriber owes it to all other
readers to help the thousands
who by means of the written
word are trying to "bust into
print."
EDITORIAL
263
The Editor is constantly re-
ceiving offerings long and short
which he would like to use, but
which the limitations of space
require should be sent back. He
assumes that members of The
Writee's Monthly family circle
are too kindly to feel hurt, even
when they are disappointed, by
the return of manuscript. Keep
on sending in your material.
Only a little of all that comes can
be used by us, but some day your
contribution may be found among
that chosen group.
This magazine finds room for
much more departmental mate-
rial than for extended articles.
Make a fluid extract of your
ideas — bring them down to the
strongest decoction. The rich
juices of a paragraph help more
than the unboiled meat from
which they are extracted. Let
your writing — for this periodical
as for others — be an infusion,
not a diffusion.
With last issue the " Letters
to Young Authors" reached their
seventeenth number. Will our
readers help us to decide whether
they are worn out in interest or
should be continued? Send a
single honest line by postal or
letter. If you turn thumbs down
we shall take the verdict as cheer-
fully as any writer takes his re-
jection medicine. But please do
not expect a letter in reply. We
have been wondering if our read-
ers are wearying of so long a
series. Want a rest? Be frank.
And thank you.
When, with that characteristic
impudence which we all love to
read, Bernard Shaw declared that
" The only ideas Shakespeare ever
had he stole," a paragrapher re-
torted that "When our friend
William went around rummaging
for ideas he made it a point to
take only the good ones." "Steal"
is a hard word, even without per-
petrating a pun. Shakespeare
never used an idea before he had
made it his own, and never with-
out improving it. Who can point
to a single situation adapted by
the Divine Bard from some ear-
lier writer which is not now
known almost entirely as Shake-
speare's and not that of his fore-
runner? Herein lies all the gist
of what is plagiarism and what is
not. There is no law against re-
creation.
Do not forget that the pub-
lishers cannot handle changes of
address after the first of the
month whose issue they are in-
tended to affect. Many com-
plain of lost magazines when they
themselves are responsible. When
a magazine has been sent to the
old address and proper notice of
change has not been sent in time,
extra copies can in no cases be
sent unless the request is accom-
panied by a remittance at the
regular rate of fifteen cents a
copy.
Are you going to take a vaca-
tion this year, big or little? If
so, why not turn it to literary
account? When she was a young
writer Miss Alice MacGowan set
off on horseback for a thousand-
mile journey from Virginia to
the Tennessee mountains. Her
six- weeks journey proved to be
rich in material for stories. Few
of us could take a similar trip,
but are there no delectable is-
lands, mountains of enchantment
and streets of mystery near
enough to our front doors to
allure those of us who long to
see life at first hand?
Our readers are urgently asked to join in making this department up-to-date and accurate.
Information of new markets, suspended or discontinued publications, prize contests in any way
involving pencraft, needs of periodicals as stated in communications from editors, and all news
touching markets for all kinds of literary matter should be sent promptly so as to reach Springfield
before the 20th day of the month preceding date of issue.
Pearson's Monthly, New York City, is in need of short fiction of 3,000 to
5,000 words in length. They also use special articles on economic subjects, the
nature of which can be seen by consulting back numbers of the magazine. They
use no verse, anecdotes or novelettes. Manuscripts are generally reported on
within a week, and payment is made on publication.
McC all's Magazine, New York City, is in the market for serials of from
25,000 to 30,000 words in length. They should contain love and mystery, be full
of action, told largely in conversation, and center around the woman. Special
articles about active things worth while being accomplished by towns, organiza-
tions, or individuals will also be considered. Short-stories of 3,500 words in
length, based on love, problems of married life (exclusive of sex problems) and
humor are wanted. Unavailable manuscripts are passed on within a week; on
possible manuscripts the time varies. Payment is made upon acceptance.
Live Stories has just been purchased by The New Fiction Publishing Com-
pany, 35 West 39th St., New York, and hereafter will be issued by them. They
will use short novelettes of 15,000 to 18,000 words; short stories of 2,500 to 6,000
words; two-part stories of 18,000 to 20,000 words; one-act plays (especially
good comedies with rather more than a dash of spice) ; verse, epigrams and short
prose fillers. Payment is at the rate of about one cent a word, and is made on
acceptance.
The Black Cat, Salem, Mass., has immediate need for short-stories of in-
cident and action, of from 1,000 to 5,000 words in length. Stories are considered
upon their own merits, with no regard for the name or reputation of the author,
and no story that has already appeared in print, either wholly or in part, in any
language, will be considered. Payment is made promptly upon acceptance,
according to the worth of the material.
The Penn Publishing Co., 925 Filbert St., Philadelphia, is in need of novel-
length fiction for older readers, and plays for amateurs, as well as book-length
stories for children. The stories must be about real folks, whether for younger
or older readers. They are looking for stories that are readable, and that leave
one the better for the reading.
Collier's Magazine, 416 West 13th St., New York, is in the market for first-
class fiction, both short-stories and serials. They also use short humorous verse,
and striking news photos. Manuscripts are read and decisions rendered within
ten days of receipt, and payment is made upon acceptance.
The Author's League of America, Inc., 33 West 42d St., New York
City, is strictly a business organization of authors for mutual service, benefit and
protection. All persons producing works subject to copyright protection, authors
of stories, novels, poems, essays, textbooks, etc., dramatic and photoplay authors,
composers, painters, illustrators, sculptors, photographers, etc., are eligible for
regular membership; publishers, theatrical managers, literary and dramatic
agents, and others, are eligible for associate membership. The dues are $10 per
annum for regular members, $5 per annum for associate members, $100 for life
members. These dues include subscription to The Bulletin. Address all com-
munications to the Secretary, Author's League of America, Inc., 33 West
42d St., New York City, and make all remittances payable to the Authors'
League of America, Inc. The offices are open from 9 a. m. to 5 p. m. daily,
and the services of the Secretary are at such hours at the command of the members.
WHERE TO SELL 265
The Authors' League of America, Inc., publishes a monthly Bulletin
which is sent to members without extra charge, the subscription being included
in the membership fee. The Bulletin prints all manner of articles on subjects of
interest to authors, and especially such as treat of the business side of the author's
work. Important contributions on Copyright, Contracts (literary, dramatic,
motion picture, agency, etc.), the Motion-Picture Business, Syndication, Serial-
ization, Arbitration, etc., etc., have appeared in past issues, and discussions of new
developments of these subjects are planned for future numbers. Besides articles
on the business of authorship, the Bulletin also publishes a monthly resume of
the needs of the various magazines. It also serves the purpose of keeping the
membership informed of the various activities of the League.
Ainslee's, 79 Seventh Ave., New York, is in the market for short-stories and
novelettes of 20,000 to 35,000 words in length. Society themes containing strong
situations and woman interest, interwoven with bright dialogue, are particularly
wanted. Unacceptable manuscripts are usually returned within ten days. Payment
is made upon publication.
The Designer, 12 Vandam St., New York, is especially in need of a six-part
serial of 20,000 to 24,000 words in length. They also use all sorts of short-stories,
of 3,000 to 4,000 words in length. Payment is made upon acceptance.
Smith's Magazine, 79 Seventh Ave., New York, is in the market for short-
stories of high quality: love, humor, child interest, and married life. Unaccepta-
ble manuscripts are usually returned within ten days, and payment is made upon
acceptance.
Spare Moments, Allentown, Pa., write that they have contracted for all the
material they can use during 1916.
The Poetry Review of America, 12 Chauncy St., Cambridge, Mass., a new
magazine edited by William Stanley Braithwaite, begins publication this month.
The following is from the publisher's announcement: "The spirit of The Poetry
Review of America will be one of advancement and cooperation; the desire to
serve the art of poetry and to consolidate public interest in its growth and popu-
larity— to quicken and enlarge the poetic pulse of the country. In this spirit,
we propose to our contemporaries in the field a union of effort and mutual en-
couragement; to the poets of America an open forum and a clearing-house for
ways and means to serve the art we all love; to the poetry-reading public of our
country we pledge a never-ceasing striving for the best in American poetry, and
a constant effort to bring out the strength and joy to be derived therefrom. The
Editors of The Poetry Review intend to be wholly impartial as to the kinds of
poetry that are to be published, being concerned only with the degree of success
attained in the poem as an artistic product. Catholicity of taste and standard
of performance will be the guiding factors in accepting poems. Besides the poems,
each issue will contain comprehensive and serious reviews of new volumes of
poems, and of works concerning poets and poetry, written by competent critics
in a thoroughly unbiased spirit, special articles touching every phase of poetic
activity; studies of important figures in contemporary American poetry; an
open house for an exchange of ideas on doings and theories, events and discus-
sions— in truth, a comprehensive history of all the forces which make for progress
of poetry in America."
Writers are invited to submit unpublished poems and articles relating to
poetry for consideration. Payment is promised upon acceptance. A stamped,
addressed envelope should accompany all contributions. The subscription price
is $1.00 a year, single copies 10c.
Pacific Outdoors, San Francisco, CaL, is a new monthly which made its first
appearance in January. The following statement is taken from an announcement
recently issued: "Communications on all topics pertaining to fishing, hunting,
motoring, on land and sea, mountain climbing, golf, athletics, trap shooting, fly
casting, natural history, highways, and conservation, will be welcomed and pub-
lished if possible. All communications must be accompanied by the name of the
writer, not necessarily for publication, however. Pacific Outdoors does not assume
266 WHERE TO SELL
any responsibility for, or necessarily endorse, any views expressed by contribu-
tors to its columns. New ideas, practical hints, and reports of club activities are
desired. Matter intended for publication in any number should reach us not
later than the 15th of the previous month. IMPORTANT — Authors, agents and
publishers are requested to note that this firm does not hold itself responsible
for loss of unsolicited manuscripts while at this office or in transit; and that it
cannot undertake to hold uncalled-for manuscripts for a longer period than six
months. If the return of manuscripts is expected, postage should be enclosed."
The magazine announces itself as the official organ of "The California Anglers'
Association," "San Francisco Fly Casting Club," "Golden Gate Trap-Shooting
Club," "The Tacoma Fly and Bait Casting Club."
The Nautilus Magazine, Holyoke, Mass., is in the field for high-grade articles
on New Thought principles and practice, practical psychology and kindred sub-
jects. Also they afford the largest market in the country for practical New
Thought experience articles: experiences showing how one has applied New
Thought principles to the solving of any sort of human problem. They pay
anywhere from 5 cents a word down to $2 a thousand words, depending altogether
upon the value of the article. It is their practice to make the author an offer and
give him a chance to recall his manuscript if it is not satisfactory. In ninety
per cent of the cases the manuscripts get very prompt attention, and the payment
is cash on acceptance.
The Elizabeth Towne Company, of Holyoke, Mass., publishers of the
Nautilus Magazine, publish four or five new books every year, and the editors
are glad to consider manuscripts suitable for their purpose, upon terms to be
agreed upon. Most of the book manuscripts are purchased outright, though
some of them are published on a royalty basis. All manuscripts submitted for
book publication must be germane to the purpose of the Nautilus Magazine, which
is described in the preceding paragraph.
The Lubin Scenario Department, Philadelphia, Pa., is in the market for
strong, single-reel dramas.
The Essanay Co., 1333 Argyle St., Chicago, is looking for western dramas.
Comedy and dramatic plots are desired by The Vitagraph Company of
America, Brooklyn, N. Y.
The Youth's Companion, Boston, Mass., finds that its greatest need at present
is for good short-stories for girls and for good adventure stories of not more than
2,500 words in length.
Alvin Mfg. Co., 205 Main St., Sag Harbor, N. Y., will give as a Grand
Prize, valued at $225, a genuine mahogany chest of 208 pieces of Alvin Silver:
"The Long-Life Plate," for the cleverest letter in answer to the one the bride
(illustrated in their advertisement) has received. Get an answer blank from the
jeweler in your town displaying this bride's picture. Answer the letter printed on
answer blank and mail direct to them before July 4th, 1916. In addition to the
Grand Prize they will give twenty other prizes, each a mahogany chest containing
65 pieces of Alvin Silver, valued at $60, each for the twenty next-best answers.
Also, the best answer (except winners of the above twenty-one prizes) written on
the blanks from each jeweler will receive a set of six teaspoons. If you are unable
to get an answer blank from your jeweler, write giving his name, and you will be
supplied without cost. If two or more answers are entitled to the prize, each will
receive one of the chests.
We have recently received the following statement from Elizabeth Ansley,
Editor, The Mother's Magazine, Elgin, 111.: "Just now we are looking for well-
written live fiction from 2,000 to 4,000 words in length, and will be very glad to
examine any manuscripts that you think may be suited to our needs. "
McBride's Magazine — the name adopted for Lippincott's Magazine by its
purchasers from the J. B. Lippincott Co. — has not proved profitable under its new
policy and has been sold to Scribner's, thus losing its identity.
WHERE TO SELL 267
Sidney Reynolds, Editor of the Fox Film Corporation, 130 West 46th St.,
New York City, writes that they are in the market for unusual, strong five-reel
modern dramas, comedy dramas, or good western stories. They would prefer five
or six-page synopses.
Clever Stories, 331 4th Av., New York City, has arranged to make its readers'
evening hours merry with a home game of giving titles to pictures. It is called the
Book Title Picturegame, and consists of a series of 32 pictures, for which par-
ticipants will submit titles chosen from a list of book titles available to all. Those
submitting the titles that fit the pictures best will receive the 419 cash prizes. The
first prize of $1,250 cash should lead you to enter; in case of ties, full awards will
be paid each tying contestant. Write for full particulars. The game is open to
everybody on equal terms, without obligation or expense, as explained by the
rules. There is no work of any kind in connection with it.
One hundred and sixty-six cash prizes for Road Photographs are offered by
General Coleman Du Pont, of Wilmington, Del. and Charles Henry Davis, C. E.,
of South Yarmouth, Cape Cod, Mass., to secure for the National Highways
Association photographs of roads, and in the hope of adding strength to its
membership and means, so that the Association may prosecute its work for "good
roads everywhere."
Photographs will be judged by Theodore Roosevelt, Mark Sullivan and Ida
M. Tarbell. The prizes are one first prize of $500.00, 5 second prizes of $100.00
each, 20 third prizes of $25.00 each, 40 fourth prizes of $15.00 each, and 100 fifth
prizes of $5.00 each.
Photographs will be judged first upon their merit in showing road conditions
(good or bad); second, pictorial interest; third, photographic excellence. Any
one may become a competitor. It is not required that competitors be members of
the Association, and no preference will be given members over non-members in
awarding the prizes, 1. A contestant may submit any number of photographs,
any one or all of which may receive a prize. 2. All photographs must be of some
road within the United States. 3. Photographs receiving a prize shall thereby
become the property of the National Highways Association with full legal title
and copyright vested therein. 4. The full name (do not use initials) and full
address of the contestants must be upon the back of each and every photograph
submitted. 5. No photographs can be returned. But none will be published by
the Association or allowed by them to be published by others, save such as win
prizes and are purchased by agreement after the contest is over. 6. Photographs
should be addressed to "Good Roads Everywhere" Photograph Contest,
National Highways Association, Washington, D. C. 7. Contest closes at noon,
Tuesday, November 7, 1916. Prizes will be awarded as soon thereafter as physi-
cally possible. There are no other conditions. There is no limitation as to the
kind of photograph, size, when taken, by whom, details shown, or number
submitted by any contestant (man, woman or child). No letters should or need
be written by any contestant, and no correspondence will be entered into about
the competition.
The Eastman Kodak Company, Rochester, N. Y., in offering ten prizes, of
from $100 to $1,000, for use in Kodak advertising, makes the following statement:
"The backbone of our national magazine advertising is based on photographs that
we receive through these annual competitions, pictures that tell of the charm of
picture-making by the simple Kodak method. These pictures are not necessarily
pictures made with Kodaks, but are pictures showing Kodaks or Brownies in
action — pictures that suggest the delights of amateur photography. They are not
for sample print work, but are for illustrating advertisements, and for use in telling
the story of the witchery of Kodakery. The use of photographs as illustrations in
advertising is growing steadily, rapidly. For the photographer who goes thought-
fully and carefully at it there is good money in making such pictures. There is a
growing market. Our competitions offer to the photographer an interesting way
of taking up such work. And the prizes are well-worth while. "
^ r° c±jxguiri e \
■■nirrif^ifry —
No questions can be answered by mail, nor can we supply names of players taking part in
certain pictures. Questions relating to the writing, sale, and production of photoplays and other
literary forms will be answered in this column, but readers are asked to make their letters brief
and to the point.
L. T. 0., CHANUTE. — (1) Copyright cannot be secured on magazine or book
material that has not been published, as the law requires that all such material
must first be both printed and issued. This, however, does not apply to plays and
photoplays, which have rules of their own. Write to the Registrar of Copyrights,
Library of Congress, Washington, D. C, for a leaflet stating the conditions under
which copyrights may be secured, and what sort of material is copyrightable. It
would be impossible for us to give all the regulations in this Magazine. (2) It is
the opinion of the vast majority of scholars that William Shakespeare and not
Francis Bacon is the author of the works which bear Shakespeare's name. There
are some scholars, however, who hold to the Baconian theory of authorship. (3)
This subject has been so widely discussed in the newspapers lately that we do not
think it would be profitable to print an article on the subject in The Writer's
Monthly. This magazine is particularly devoted to methods of writing, and
marketing literary material, and not to literary questions in general.
G. R. E., RUTHERFORD. — Judging from the enormous sums that the
Mutual Company have been obtaining for the films in which Charlie Chaplin is
now appearing, the statement of his income may not be exaggerated. We have
no means of getting at the actual facts, and no layman can really know whether
there is another " inside" contract or not. The figures as named in the news-
papers— over $600,000 a year — seem incredible, yet they are vouched for by
gentlemen whose word we have no reason to doubt.
S. G., BOSTON. — (1) In the present somewhat unsettled condition of the
business it is difficult to name the best companies. Try Vim — they are advertising
(see Motion Picture World). Lubin, Philadelphia, may use material. Try also
Vitagraph, Brooklyn, N. Y., but only for the highest grade of material. Also try
Vogue, submitting scripts to them at the American Film Co. Studios, Santa
Barbara, Calif. (2) Single spacing IN the scene, with double space BETWEEN
the different scenes, is usually considered satisfactory.
L. MORELAND. — It is not possible to locate the Wizard Film Company.
We have not heard of their activities and do not think they are producing. If
they have held a script as long as six months, and you can get no reply, send a
letter saying you withdraw the script and are sending it elsewhere. Register your
letter and ask for a receipt. If you get one and your story is produced by them
without payment at any future time you have a logical "come-back."
M. S. B. — In our opinion the nationality of a name has no bearing on a
writer's acceptability to American Magazines. We have not observed that a
German name prejudices the chances of a writer. Americans are sick of the war
and are longing for the day when the Kaiser and King George will drink a friendly
glass — of water? — with each other, and a dozen other mistaken potentates.
C. Z. ELLIOT. — (1) The Equitable Company has been taken over by
The World Film, and the latter is ready to pay from five hundred to one thou-
sand dollars for a five-reel synopsis. A five-reel story in synopsis form may run
from two hundred to fifteen hundred words, or even more. (2) Do not try to
measure off reels. Leave that to the staff writer. If your idea is big enough for a
five-reel story, the staff writer will make it into one, whether you see it or not.
The World Film is located at 126 West 46th St., New York City.
CORA DREW. — You will find a list of publishers to whom you may submit
your popular lyric on another page of this issue of The Writer's Monthly.
ANSWERS TO INQUIRIES 269
W. B., NASHUA, N. H. — You can have a dramatic sketch criticized by
Mr. Brett Page, the author of "Writing for Vaudeville." He will advise you
regarding marketing it, but will not undertake to market it personally. Mr.
Page's book, "Writing for Vaudeville" gives a very full discussion of all phases
of vaudeville writing, including the sketch and playlet. Mr. Charlton Andrews'
book, "The Technique of Play Writing," devotes a chapter to marketing the
legitimate drama. It would be impossible to give you adequate instructions in
these few lines.
H. G., NOWATA, OKLA. — Some boys' periodicals are New York American
Newsboy, Kansas City, Mo.; American Youth, 124 E. 28th St., New York;
American Boy, Detroit, Mich.; Boy, Chicago, 111.; Boys' Life, 200 Fifth Ave.,
New York; Boys' Magazine, Smethport, Pa.; St. Nicholas, 353 Fourth Ave.,
New York; Youth's Companion, Boston, Mass.
A. J. L. — We regret that we know of no publication which gives information
regarding the placing and selling of photos, caricatures, illustrations, and draw-
ings in general. Drawings for illustrations must nearly always be made to suit
the text and therefore are almost universally ordered by the publisher from some
artist of whose work he knows. It is customary for artists to call upon publishers
with, or send to them, selections of their drawings with the request for an order.
The latter practice is a rather doubtful one. The only way to sell photographs
is to submit them to a magazine which uses photographic material. There are
many such, as may be seen from an examination of their pages.
The Simple Simon-Pure
How glad I am, these latter days,
To say, with conscience clear,
That I have none of Shelley's ways;
Resemble not Lanier;
That Tennyson and Burns and Hood
And Shakspeare the Divine
Wrote stuff that, while 'twas very good,
Was not a bit like mine;
To know that Cowper, Grey and Keats
Were of a different school
From me, and in their lit'ry feats
Observed a different rule.
Yea, what a comfort 'tis to say:
" Those bards were not my pals;"
For I'm an amateur and they
Were rank professionals !
[A. P. W., in "The Conning Tower," New York Tribune.
THE FOURTH ESTATE
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The Poetry Review of America, a monthly periodical devoted to
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May the first. Its subscription price is one dollar the year — single
copies ten cents.
For the furtherance of its purpose, The Poetry Review of America
will endeavor:
By the formation of Poetry Reading Circles and Poetry Societies,
and by the promotion of private and public recitals of poetry to
bring together lovers of poetry with a view to extending and de-
veloping the interest in, and appreciation of, poetry.
To consider all suggestions and to act upon those which will help
to enlarge and intensify the poetic spirit of America.
To bring together for their mutual benefit and pleasure the poets of
America and the public which they serve.
The Poetry Review of America asks you to help the cause to which
it is dedicated by sending:
Your subscription, with one dollar, to The POETRY REVIEW,
12 Chauncy Street, Cambridge, Mass.
The names of your friends who are interested in Poetry.
Your books of poetry and those relating to poetry for acknowledg-
ment and review.
Your unpublished poems and articles relating to poetry for our
consideration. We shall pay upon acceptance. A stamped and
addressed envelope should accompany your contributions.
News of the Poets, Poetry Societies, and of the publishers of Poetry.
Among contributors to the early issues of the Poetry Review are:
Edwin Arlington Robin- John Gould Fletcher Benjamin R. C. Sow
son Louis V. Ledoux George Sterling
RlDGELT TORRENCE ROBERT FROST VaCHEL LlNDSET
Amelia Josephine Burr Edgar Lee Masters Herman Hagedorn
Louis Untermeyer Witter Bynner Dana Burnett
Sara Teasdale Percy MacKaye Richard Le Gallienne
Amy Lowell Josephine Preston Pea- James Oppenheim
Joyce Kilmer body
William Stanley Braithwaite, Editor Joseph Lebowich, Associate Editor
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Short-Story Writing
Dr. Esenwein
and Verse Writing, Journalism;
A COURSE of forty lessons in the history, form
structure, and writing of the Short-Story taught by
Dr. J. Berg Esenwein, formerly Editor of Lippin-
cott's Magazine.
Story-writers muet be made as well as born; they
must master the details of construction if they would
turn their talents to account.
May we send you the names of students and gradu-
ates who have succeeded? And the success their let-
ters prove is practical. It means recognition, accepted
manuscripts and checks from editors.
One student, before completing the lea-
sons, received over $1000 for manuscripts
sold to Woman's Home Companion,
Pictorial Review, McCalVs, and other
leading magazines.
We also offer courses in Photoplay Writing, Poetry
in all over One Hundred Home Study Courses, many of
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250-Page Catalog Free. Please Address
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OUR SCRIPT
CRITICISM SERVICE
Up till now our charge for giving an
expert criticism on any and all scripts,
regardless of length, has been two dol-
lars. In announcing a change we do not
do so because others are charging more,
but because we find it absolutely neces-
sary in view of the increased number of
multiple-reel scripts which are being
sent in for criticism. In the future
therefore, our charge for this service will
be TWO DOLLARS FOR THE FIRST
REEL AND ONE DOLLAR FOR
EACH ADDITIONAL REEL. Writers
will continue to receive the very best
and most careful criticisms and sugges-
tions that Mr. Powell can give them.
We reserve the right to return any
script that we deem absolutely un-
worthy of criticism, making a charge of
one dollar for reading the script and
giving the writer an expert opinion of
the script's merits and short-comings.
Such a letter will equal the "criticism"
given by many who offer such service,
the only difference between this and our
full criticism service being that Mr.
Powell will not examine and comment
upon each and every scene in detail.
(Fees do not include return postage which
should always accompany manuscripts).
The Writer's Monthly
Springfield, Mass.
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Can You Help
Us Out?
Have you a spare copy of the August,
1915, Writer's Monthly? If you
have and are willing to part with it,
please send it at once. We are in need of
a few copies of this number for binding.
We shall be glad to send you two
copies of other issues in exchange or to
extend your subscription two months.
THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
SPRINGFIELD, MASS.
MRS. RACHEL WEST CLEMENT
Experienced Authors' Agent, Reader
and Critic, Specializing in Short Stories.
Reading fee, $1.00 for 5,000 words or
under, includes short criticism.
CIRCULARS ON REQUEST
6814 Chew St.,
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What
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Does
It dissolves fear and worry.
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Ella Wheeler Wilcox Knows
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About New Thought." More than 50,000
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FOR 10 CENTS you can get the above
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to Nautilus, leading magazine of the New
Thought movement. Edwin Markham,
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many others are regular contributors.
Elizabeth Towne and William E. Towne
are the editors. Send now and for prompt
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WEST NEWTON, MASS.
SONG LYRICS AND
MELODIES
Why try to market a lyric or a
melody that possesses no commercial
value? Why become a victim to the
honeyed words of the song shark?
A good song by a beginner may not
bring a fortune in royalties, but if
properly marketed it will bring some
financial returns and afford the tyro a
start.
The Wkiteb's Monthly for a small
fee will examine your lyric or song, give
you a frank and detailed eritioism on it,
tell you whether it has any commercial
and poetical value, and give you a list
of publishers most likely to purchase it.
Should the song contain sufficient
merit, our Song Department will
market same for you on a 10% com-
mission basis, provided you are willing
to sell your work outright.
Reading fee for separate lyric . 1.60
Reading fee for a complete song. 2.50
Address:
Song Dept., Writer's Monthly
Springfield, Mass.
(Return postage should accompany all
manuscripts)
THE ART OF VERSIFICATION
By J. Berg Esenwein and Mary Eleanor Roberts
The most complete, practical and helpful
working handbook ever issued on the Prin-
ciples of Poetry and the Composition of all
Forms of Verse.
Clear and progressive in arrangement.
Free from unexplained technicalities. In-
dispensable to every writer of verse. Money
cheerfully refunded if not all that we claim
for it.
"There is no better book than this for
those who wish to study the art of Versifi-
cation. A poet must be both born and
made ; this book will help to make him. —
Edwin Markham.
Cloth, XII+310 pp. Uniform with the
Writer's Library. Postpaid $1.62.
The 60-page chapter on "Light Verse"
alone is worth the price to writers.
Write Today for Table of Contents and Opin-
ions of Successful Writers.
THE WRITER'S MONTHLY
Springfield, Mass.
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\ ■' -
Hailed by the Profession as the First and
Only Complete Guide
Writing for Vaudeville
By BRETT PAGE
Author of "Memories," etc., Dramatic
Editor of Newspaper Feature Service,
New York
HOW TO WRITE the Monologue,
Two-Act, Playlets, Musical Comedy,
The Popular Songs, etc.
NINE FAVORITE ACTS by Aaron
Hoffman, Richard Harding Davis,
Edgar Allan Woolf and others — each
worth the price of the book.
650 Pages
$2.15
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Opinions of Successful Writers
The Writer's Monthly
Springfield, Mass.
The Technique of
Play Writing
By CHARLTON ANDREWS
Author of " The Drama Today," etc., etc.
This notable book, just from the
press, is clear, concise, authoritative
and without a rival. It actually takes
you by the hand and shows you how to
draft a plot, select your characters,
construct dialogue, and handle all the
mechanics of play construction.
Every point in play writing and play
marketing is brought out with clearness.
No such effective guide has ever been
written.
XXX+267 pages.
Cloth, Gilt Top
$1.62 Postpaid
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Opinions of Dramatic Editors and
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The Writer's Monthly
Springfield, Mass.
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Sample copy 10c.
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DRAMATIST
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