In the Art Newspaper, Julia Halperin reports on an interesting, if creepy, court case and decision. Photographer Arne Svenson (not pictured on the right) spent 18 months used a telephoto lens to watch and snap photos of his neighbors.
In his artist statement he wrote, "“I am not unlike the birder, quietly waiting for hours, watching for the flutter of a hand or the movement of a curtain as an indication that there is life within.”
Just before some of these photos were due to be displayed at a New York gallery, the neighbors spotted one of his images of their children accompanying an article about the show. They objected, and Sevnson agreed not to display those, but not to change his exhibition of the rest.
The neighbors took him to court, demanding he surrender to the court any other photos he'd taken of their children and pay damages for their emotional distress.
The court ruled against them.
The judge said "while it makes plaintiffs cringe to think their private lives and images of their small children can find their way into the public forum of an art exhibition, there is no redress under the current laws of the State of New York”.
She also said artistic free speech is guaranteed by the First Amendment, so articles about or ads for the exhibition also have the right to show the images.
The exhibition is now over. The artist sold 15 prints. The family may appeal.
The article states, "While a photographer’s right to take pictures of people on the street without express permission is well documented, Svenson’s case was less cut-and-dry, according to Mickey Osterreicher, the general counsel for the National Press Photographers Association. 'There is an axiom that your home is your castle—a place where you are entitled to a reasonable expectation of privacy,' he notes. 'But what happens when you live in a glass house?'
It raises the question of whether a writer would have the same rights to write, for instance, a series of short stories based on what he or she observes by looking through a neighbor's windows. I guess because prose is more likely to involve interpretations of what's happening, that could more easily be challenged.
Still, you might want to consider closing those curtains!
The Emerging Writers Fellowship is an exciting new program at Universal Pictures that is designed to identify and cultivate new and unique voices with a passion for storytelling. They are looking for "talented screenwriters who have the potential to thrive, but don’t have access to or visibility within the industry."
Emerging writers who are chosen to participate in the program will work exclusively with the studio over the course of a year to hone their skills.
During this program, fellows will be given the opportunity to work on current Universal projects as well as pitch original story ideas.
Fellows will also attend workshops, receive mentoring, interact with top literary agents and sit in on Universal’s executive meetings.
Fellows admitted into the program will be hired under a writing service agreement and must be committed to working full-time for one year.
They will take only the first 500 applications and the link to the application will be live at midnight (US Pacific time) September 3. .
Interested applicants should submit an original screenplay as well as additional background materials in order to be considered. All semi-finalists will then be asked to submit a second screenplay. Ten finalists will be selected and interviewed in Los Angeles. Up to five fellows will be chosen to participate in the program.
This program is not intended for candidates who received Producer, Director, Assistant Director, Co-producer, Associate Producer, 2nd Unit Director, Director of Photography, Writer or Source Material credits on any feature film commercially released theatrically or television show that has been aired within the U.S. Candidates may not have any attachment to third-party projects that are currently in development. Any candidates who do not meet the aforementioned criteria will be disqualified.
I can't find anything on the site that limits this to writers living in the US, although you'd have to be able to get a visa for the year and before that to travel to Los Angeles if you are selected as a finalist, so it's most practical for US-based writers.
Even though applications can't be submitted before midnight of Sept. 3, if you plan to apply you'll want to have your screenplay ready (and a second one, as well, in case you are a finalist). I'd also suggest staying up until midnight that day because I bet it won't take long for 500 people to apply.
A thirteen year old boy got a two-book deal the other day. What is the appropriate response from another writer:
A) Good for him!
B) If he can do it, I can do it!
C) I hope he falls off his bike!
I'm hoping you opted for either A or B or both but it's easy to get jealous when you hear about others getting published or produced and you're still waiting, or if a book you consider sub-par (possibly "written" by a celebrity) is selling like hotcakes and your book is somewhere north of millionth place on Amazon.
How to overcome it? Here's what works for me:
First, don't be too hard on yourself for being human. It's a natural impulse and it's only a problem if it stays around and makes you bitter.
Second, remind yourself it's not actually a competition. The fact that somebody else's book got published or doesn't mean yours can't or won't.
Third, focus your attention back on your own writing and making that as good as it can be. That's almost always the best therapy for any stress or unhappiness related to the ups and downs of this line of work (or way of life).
(You can also take comfort in the strange experiences of the best writers, classic and modern. You'll find mini-bios and interesting facts about them, as well as their advice to aspiring writers in "Your Creative Writing Masterclass," published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.)
Budding writers are being sought by the Mountaineering Council of Scotland for its long-running literary competition.
Since 1987 the MCofS has run its Mountain Article Competition, seeking out the best in mountain writing, whether fact or fiction, prose or poetry. Articles should have some connection with mountains and mountaineering, rock or ice climbing, walking or ski-mountaineering.
Winning entries get a cash prize and the chance to see their piece in print in The Scottish Mountaineer, the quarterly MCofS magazine which goes out to more than 11,000 members.
The first-placed winners in the prose and poetry categories will also receive a free weekend pass (worth £100) to the Edinburgh Mountain Film Festival, where the results will be announced.
Prose entries should be a maximum of 2,000 words long. Poetry entries can be as long or as short as you like. The competition is open to anyone resident in the UK, whether members of the MCofS or not.
Deadline for this year’s competition is 15th September.
Entries should be sent to the MAC Coordinator, Mike Merchant, preferably by email to [email protected] or by hard copy to MCofS, ‘MAC2013’, The Old Granary, West Mill Street, Perth PH1 5QP.
If you like to write about sports and have any knowledge of,
or interest in, baseball in Britain, there’s a fun competition open until the
end of September, 2013. Admittedly, baseball and Britain are not the most
obvious combination but that could be what makes it interesting.
The prizes are modest—fifty pounds for first, 25 pounds for
second (paid in vouchers) and publication, but there’s no mention of an entry
fee.
The rules specify that the piece is prose between 500
and 2500 words, and you can submit up to three. You’ll find more information
and a contact link here:
Care to join me in a publishing mystery? See whether you can figure out what's going on--so far, I can't!
In an article I ran across a reference to a book called "Cruising Attitude: Tales of Crashpads, Crew Drama, and Crazy Passengers at 35,000 Feet" written by blogger and flight attendant Heather Poole. Thinking it might make a good present for a friend, I looked for it on Amazon. Sure enough, it's there and available in various formats.
Listed right below it in the Amazon.co.uk search results is a book called "Never Sleep Again! The Most Dangerous Facts about 'Cruising Atittude: Tales of Crashpads, Crew Drama, and Crazy Passengers at 35,000 Feet'" by Sarah Brock. The price is £9.99 (about $15).
That didn't make a lot of sense--"dangerous facts" about a book written by somebody else? Here's the description:
In this book, we have hand-picked the most sophisticated, unanticipated, absorbing (if not at times crackpot!), original and musing book reviews of "Cruising Attitude: Tales of Crashpads, Crew Drama, and Crazy Passengers at 35,000 Feet". Don't say we didn't warn you: these reviews are known to shock with their unconventionality or intimacy. Some may be startled by their biting sincerity; others may be spellbound by their unbridled flights of fantasy. Don't buy this book if: 1. You don't have nerves of steel. 2. You expect to get pregnant in the next five minutes. 3. You've heard it all.
So this is a collection of reviews of the book? I checked the length. 44 pages. For a price higher than that of the book the reviews are about.
I'm guessing that "Sarah Brock" copied the reviews of the original book on Amazon, spread them out over 44 pages and is trying to sell them in this format. On the cover it says "New! High Quality Content!"
THE PLOT THICKENS
Wait, there's more. Sarah Brock has also "written" "100 Common Misconceptions About 'Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear'" (a book written by Max Lucado). Here's the description:
In this book, we have hand-picked the most sophisticated, unanticipated, absorbing (if not at times crackpot!), original and musing book reviews of "Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear". Don't say we didn't warn you: these reviews are known to shock... (etc.--as above).
How long? 44 pages. Price: £9.99.
There are nine more. All with the same description, except for the title of the book that is the subject of the reviews.
On Amazon.com, there are more "books" like this--by the same publisher (Lennex) but different authors, or at least different names of authors: Charlotte Darting (six similar titles, all out of print) and Sophia Rell (5 titles, all out of print)..
42 PAGES OF AMAZON LISTINGS--AND OUR OLD FAVORITE WITH A NEW NAME
And there are 42 pages of "books" with the title "Women Love Girth" but each with a diferent subtitle, like "The Fattest 100 Facts on 'Heart of Darkness: Classic Edition."
Yep, same description indicating these are reviews, same length, price, etc. Including one with the subtitle: "The Fattest 100 Facts on 'Cruising Attitude..." But this one is listed as being by "Chris Coring."
LENNEX IN THE NEWS
The only reference I could find to a Lennex publishing company is in a news story dated June 12, 2013, on the site www.NewsChannel9.com that said several of the books it published were about how to seduce children with special needs. (Yes, unfortunately you read that right..it makes me sick even to type it.) Several parents objected to Amazon and the books were taken down. For legal reasons, I should point out that I don't know whether this is the same Lennex that published the books I'm discussing here.
WHAT'S GOING ON?
I can't believe they expect anybody to pay £9.99 for a bunch of reviews you can see for free on Amazon, so I'm guessing there's another angle.
Some of the Amazon pages for these have links to the books being reviewed, so I thought maybe those are Amazon Associates links and if you happen to get to one of these pages first and then click on the link to the reviewed book and buy it, the Amazon Associate gets a commission. However, many of the pages don't have those kinds of links.
I admit it--I'm stumped! Any ideas? You can leave them in the comments below or email me at jurgenwolff (at) gmail.com.
Here are the most frequently asked questions I get about writing contests:
Are writing contests
legitimate?
Most of them are. If in doubt, Google the name of the
contest and the name of the sponsoring person or group. If you find unhappy
contestants, it might be best to stay away.
What’s the benefit of
entering writing contests?
Some offer a good money prize, some arrange to have the
winners’ entries considered by agents, publishers, or producers, some offer publication. Most don’t give you feedback on your entry, but a few do.
Some writers also find it useful to have a deadline, and find writing contests give them motivation to sit down and write.
Last but not least, winning or placing in a contest can be a nice indicator that you're on the right track. However, don't assume that not winning means your writing isn't good. Judging writing is very subjective and writing that might not even place in one contest could win first prize in another.
Does winning a
contest get me more credibility with publishers, agents, or producers?
A handful are well-known and prestigious enough to get you
some recognition. If you do an internet search you’ll get an idea of how much
attention a particular contest gets.
The smaller contests won’t have any impact in this context.
What’s a reasonable
entry fee?
That depends partly on how much money the winners get. If
the entry fee is $25 and the first prize is $250, that’s not a great ratio. A
lot of contests charge just enough of an entry fee to cover their costs. Some don't charge an entry fee at all.
Some advertise a big prize, but in the small print it says that they pro-rate the prize--that is, it's a percentage of the entry fees they receive, and that big number applies only if they get thousands of entries.
What are the dangers
of entering writing contests?
Sometimes the contests may just be a way for the sponsor to
get the names and emails of people to whom they then market services like
editing, publishing, and workshops. If anybody tells you that your entry is
almost good enough but you should hire them to help you edit or rewrite it, be wary. The same goes
if they offer you a publishing contract that calls for you to pay for it.
One good source of information is the Writer Beware blog.
They do a fine job of alerting people to questionable practices and companies and they have a section on contests and awards. It goes into more depth on the kinds of scams that sometimes are associated with contests.
If you feel pressured to buy any services, cut off
communication and let the Buyer Beware blog know. If you have spent money on
what turns out to be a scam, get in touch with your local law enforcement
agency. Don’t be embarrassed if you were conned, it happens all the time, even
to smart people.
What rights am I
giving up if my entry wins?
That’s different for every contest, so do take the time to
read the contest’s rules. Some contests claim the right to publish your
material one time, others claim the rights to include your material in an
anthology, etc. If you are not comfortable giving up the rights indicated in
the contest’s rules and conditions, don’t enter.
A publisher that sponsored a contest wants to include my work in an anthology even though it didn't win. Is there a catch?
Probably. They tell you your story or poem is exceptional and they want to include it in an anthology they publish. In reality they'll publish every entry.
Sometimes you have to commit to buying a certain number of copies, sometimes not, but either way they make their money by selling copies to the authors not to the general public. Often these anthologies cost a lot, and they don't have any credibility with agents or legitimate publishers. Also, because they don't discriminate at all you may find your writing next to some really awful stuff.
Some contests put the
winning entries or even all the entries on their web site. Will my work get
stolen?
You have to weight the possibility of your work attracting
attention from publishers, editors, and readers vs. the possibility of somebody
taking your work, putting their own name on it, and passing it off as their
own. This doesn’t happen all that frequently, but it does happen.
How can I check
whether anybody has put my work on the internet under their own name?
One way to check is to take a unique phrase from your work
and do a Google search for it. Don’t use a phrase that includes a character’s
name because that’s the easiest thing for a thief to change with a simple “find
and replace” command. So instead of Googling “Martina dropped the antique coin
into the wishing well,” Google “dropped the antique coin into the wishing
well”. If that particular phrase appears somewhere else on the internet, Google
will lead you to it. Then you can see whether somebody has stolen your work or
merely used the same phrase by coincidence.
Some contests ask you
to write on a specific topic. Is it worth my time to do this?
That depends on whether you think you might be able to do
anything else with the material if you don’t win. For instance, if the contest
is for a short story based on a theme like betrayal or family conflict, that’s
broad enough for you to be able to submit the short story to publications or
make it part of a collection later if you don't win. Some ask you to write about a specific person or place, and those might be harder to market.
What if I have
specific questions about a contest that’s not addressed in their rules or terms
and conditions?
Email them. Most will be happy to clarify or give you additional information.
Where can I find out about writing contests?
I'm going to start listing some of them on this site, so go ahead and subscribe to this blog. I try to make sure that the
contests I feature are legitimate but please use your own judgment as to which ones are worth your time and
effort.
For friendly guidance from idea all the way through to publication, get my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.
1. Traditional publisher, hard copy and ebook. You place your book with a traditional publisher who issues a hardover or paperback version as well as an ebook. Royalties on ebooks done this way vary but should be at least 25%. The advantage is that there's a chance your books will get into book stores--still important despite the diminishing number of book shops. However, don't expect a big marketing campaign for your book. You'll get good marketing support for a week to a month, after that you're usually pretty much on your own. Publishers are being more selective these days, so getting your manuscript accepted is not easy.
2. Ebook publisher, ebook only. The publisher does the editing, cover design, formatting, etc. and markets the book in a variety of ways and pays you a royalty. Again, the percentages of your royalty vary, I've seen from 20% to 50%. The advantage is that you get all the services mentioned, and distribution. Marketing? Same situation as above.
3. Self-publish an ebook, pay for services with a one-time fee. In this version you outsource editing, cover design, formatting, submission to the various sellers like Kindle, and keep the money you make from sales. The advantage is that if your book sells well you'll make more money than if you're getting just a royalty. However, you'll end up doing all the marketing yourself unless you outsource that, too--which can be expensive and there aren't many companies that have a proven track record in this new field.
4. Self-publish and do it all yourself. The advantage is that it's cheap and not beyond the abilities of most writers (you may still want to have an editor go through the book and get a graphic designer to do your cover--bad covers kill sales and are common among self-published ebooks).
THE UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTH
Here's a hard fact: publishing an ebook is the easy part. Selling it is the hard part.
Yours will be one of tens of thousands of ebooks out that week.
Sure, you can get it listed on Amazon, the Barnes and Noble site, and the rest, but what's going to make people look for your book?
How is it going to stand out?
Are you prepared to spend a lot of time using social media to spread the word?
I'm not trying to dissuade you from publishing your ebook, and i hope the summary above helps you decide which way you want to do it. But do be prepared for the fact that publishing the book is just the first step!
(Working on a book? Get friendly guidance from idea through to publication from my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.)
Want to write an animated feature film? I'm going to reveal the Easy as Pie three-step formula, no charge. First I'll give you a clue. Here are the stories of three animated features (the first one hasn't been released yet):
PLANES: A small-town plane dreams of one day competing as a high-flying air racer. However, he has two strikes against him: He's not built for racing, and he's terribly afraid of heights.
TURBO: A snail dreams of winning the Indy 500, but he has two strikes against him…he's slow and he's not a race car.
RATATOUILLE: A rat dreams of becoming a chef, but he has two strikes against him…he's a rat and…actually, being a rat is enough.
See the pattern?
Step One: choose an animal or object that could be turned into merchandise kids will want.
Step Two: Give them a goal totally incompatible with their nature and abilities.
Step Three: Have them achieve the goal. (In other words, the little plane shouldn't crash and burn, the snail shouldn't be stepped on, and the rat shouldn't end up in a rat trap.)
You need more? OK:
Give them a mentor (who might kick the bucket along the way in a scene that will bring a tear to the eye, but not before passing on his/her/its wisdom)
Put them through a bunch of harrowing obstacles (harrowing in a funny way, of course)
Have them nearly give up at some point, but then be inspired to redouble their efforts (this could be a pep talk from the mentor, alive or dead, or the goading of an opponent, or seeing the disappointment of a love interest).
I'm working on several such scripts at the moment:
Porkie--the little piglet that dreams of becoming the Prime Minister of Israel
Finny--the little shark that dreams of being a lifeguard at the kiddie pool
Bristle--the little toilet brush that dreams of being the President's moustache.
I like this little film from BoxofCrayons.biz. Have a look (it's very short), decide whether you're in the timid middle in a part of your life where you'd rather be bold. If so, see the tips below the video.
The video provides some general tips, but let's get more specific. Here are three ways to be bolder in any part of your life:
1. Think of a stuation in which you stick to the timid middle. What would a bold person do in that situation? The next time you're in that situation, do that.
2. In a situation in which you are timid, imagine the worst thing that could happen. Then try to think of something even worse, and worse yet again.
For instance, if you approached somebody you don't know at a social function, you might think the worst would be if they ignore you.
Think bigger!
Maybe they will run screaming from the room. Bigger yet: They will run screaming from the room and bring back the police to charge you with assuaulting them by saying hello!
Or maybe they'll jam a pen into their carotid artery because they'd rather die than speak to you!
This exercise serves two purposes. First, if you are tense a bit of humor will relax you. Second, even if they do ignore you, you can console yourself that they didn't run screaming from the room or kill themselves on the spot.
3. If you're not ready to be bold all the time, declare a BOLD DAY and try it out just for a day.
(Want to be boldly creative? Get my book, "Creativity Now," published by Pearson and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.)
