Writers' Kit NUTS & BOLTS What's it all about? PUBLISHERS' JARGON Agent: represents an author’s work to the publisher, negotiates the contract, and acts as a liaison through the publishing process Advance: non-returnable payment from publisher to author in lieu of an equivalent amount of royalty payments Copy editor: the person who checks accuracy, spelling and house style of a book Copyright: the intellectual property rights that you can sell to a publisher or editor. In most cases, the rights offered are dictated by the publisher; new writers rarely have much leeway to negotiate. A bewildering array of rights include, for example: all rights, worldwide rights, electronic rights, English rights, first serial rights, one-time rights, and reprint rights Earn out (verb): to sell enough copies to earn the advance against royalties. Editor: the person in a publishing firm who acquires the book, works with the author to polish the manuscript, and champions the title through the sales and marketing process at a publishing house Imprint: the name of the publisher, nowadays usually a brand-name (e.g. Chatto & Windus) within a large publishing conglomerate (e.g. Random House) List position: where in the publisher’s pecking order a title ranks Publisher: the one who controls the purse strings of the media outlet that purchases, promotes and distributes an author’s words Royalty: percentage of (typically) recommended retail price that is paid to the author BOOKS A Format: book measuring 178mm x 111mm, typical of mass market paperbacks B Format: book measuring 198mm x 126mm, typical of literary paperbacks and non fiction. ‘Trade paperbacks’ are increasingly considered as a less expensive alternative to hardcover publication Blad: sample pages of text and illustrations, where appropriate, wrapped inside a proof of the cover, used for marketing the finished book Blurb: brief exaggerated description of book on the back cover of paperback Book proof: advance copy of the uncorrected text of a book, used by sales team and sometimes sent out early to reviewers Bulk: the thickness of a book C Format: any size other than A or B, usually used to describe the same-sized paperback version of the hardback Dumpbin: presentation stand for 20-40 books, used for point-of-sale merchandising Extent: the number of pages in a book Folio: the page number Format: the shape of a book Half-title: the first page, with the title and sometimes a blurb or quotes from reviewers House style: rules devised by publishers to ensure consistency in how numbers, titles, abbreviations and the like are presented Jacket: the cover of a book Leaf: a page of a book comprising recto (right-hand page) and verso (left-hand page) Manuscript: typescript of a written work Perfect binding: where pages are glued, rather than sewn, together and fall to bits when forcefully splayed Proof: pre-printed version of a book or illustration used for final check of accuracy before printing Returns: books returned unsold to publisher Running head: printing at the top of each page, typically the book’s title on the left-hand page, the chapter title on the right Title page: typically the second leaf in a book, where title, author’s name and publisher are displayed JOURNALISTS' JARGON Body copy: the main text of the feature Colour piece: a feature characterised by description of people, surroundings, sounds, smells etc, plus reported speech, mood, atmosphere. As close to creative writing as journalism gets Cuttings: evidence that you can write, in the form of published work Deadline: the date an editor will give you to file your copy by File (verb): to send your copy to the editor Head/ headline: that big, bold, clever statement that draws readers in Hook: an event, such as a demonstration, a book release or the opening of an exhibition, that is the premise for your feature being written Kill Fee: pre-negotiated amount paid to the author of an article which has been assigned but not slated for publication Lead-in time: how long before publication editors need content NIB: stands for ‘News in Brief’. A short news piece often part of a column of other news items Pitch (verb): to offer a feature to the publication of your choice (see Synopsis) Press day/ going to press: the final deadline for all the pages to be sent to the printer (also the day when no-one will want to speak to prospective journalists) Proof (verb): the final read-through of a piece before it goes to press Pullquote: encouragement to dedicate your valuable time to reading the feature, often in the form of a quote, picked out in a different, bigger font Standfirst/stand/sell: the introductory paragraph, bigger than the rest of the text, that gives the reader an enticing preview of what they’re about to read Sub (sub-edit): what will happen to a feature between a commission and its appearance on page – i.e. it will be fact- and spell-checked and made to read beautifully Synopsis: what freelancers send editors, detailing the content and direction of a proposed feature Think/ opinion piece: largely your own opinion about an issue of the day, but usually with a topical hook and backed up with facts and research – e.g. why all film stars are ego-maniacs, to appear the week of the Oscars SCRIPTWRITERS' JARGON Calling card/ Spec script: Script you are not being paid to write, commonly used by aspiring scriptwriters to showcase talent Development: when a script is taken on by a production company to be drafted and edited, following the securing of finance for the project. In Britain three or four films out of ten will be made after development stage Option/commission: the sale of your script to a producer. The option fee is like a novelist’s advance. The rights to the script are later bought out in full after a royalty percentage from film profits (minus the option fee) is paid to the writer Outline: The plot structure to your story, avoiding unnecessary embellishments Pitch: a verbal description of your script/ story idea to a producer/ creative executive. The aim is to ‘sell’ your script in less than 10 minutes Producer: the person who finds new writers, develops projects (sometimes even casts or edits) Production: the film-making process Post-production: Everything that takes place once the film has been shot (editing, grading, music, visual effects) Runner: the lowliest position in production companies – a good way to get your foot in the door of the industry Script format: the industry standard for script layout. See www.films.com.br and www.screenwriting.info Script reader: production companies employ readers to assess scripts. Commonly readers view the first ten pages, only reading in full if there is sign of talent. About 15 per cent are read in full. You can also pay for a script report from a script reader (see www.firstfilm.co.uk or www.scriptfactory.co.uk) Synopsis: A brief description of the overall story Treatment: describes what happens in your story; includes a detailed storyline, outlines of cast members and locations, and an idea of the ‘look’ of the film. Usually 5-25 pages long. Very little dialogue is used in most cases INTERNET JARGON Internet: the catch-all term describing the global network of computers that can link to one-another using telephone lines and satellites. Modem: a piece of hardware that links your computer to the internet. One end of a cable is plugged into your computer and the other goes to a telephone socket. Your modem dials other computers’ numbers in the same way that you use the telephone to ring somebody else. This is termed a 'dial-up' connection. Broadband: a high-speed internet connection, capable of carrying a large number of moving images or a vast quantity of data simultaneously. The connection is usually via coaxial (ISDN) or optical cable as opposed to a telephone connection. There are different types and speeds of broadband connection available – check and compare before having it installed. Internet Service Provider (ISP): the company that provides your internet access. (e.g. AOL, Tiscali and Wanadoo) – either dial-up or broadband. Browser: your window to the internet. The most popular – though not necessarily the best – is Microsoft Internet Explorer, but you can choose from a myriad of Browsers such as Safari and Firefox. You can’t access the internet without one; it would be a bit like reading an unbound book that has had its pages scattered across a football field. The browser is to the internet-user as binding is to a book. Search engine: websites designed to let you search the internet for anything you may be interested in. You can search by names, keywords, internet addresses, phrases. Popular ones are Google, MSN, Lycos and Yahoo – also try Ask Jeeves, Dogpile (a metasearch engine that combines search engines). Domain (site, website or address): a place on the internet where specific information is held. The place is made accessible to other computers via a specific domain name. Mslexia’s, for instance, is mslexia.co.uk and is the means of accessing our site. Link: a highlighted image or phrase within one website that you click on to call up another site and take you to it directly. These allow you to access sites that you are not familiar with or do not have the addresses for. Navigate: a term used to describe the act of using links in particular sites to go from one place to another. Surfing is the slang word for the act of moving through internet sites by following along a trail of links. E-zine – Electronic magazines: the online equivalent of print magazines. From specialist ‘literary’ webzines that publish poetry and prose, to online magazines and fanzines that accept features, there’s a vast global range to pitch to. As with terrestrial mags, you need to identify your target market and make sure you are submitting to the right place. Payment for material varies greatly: some don’t pay, but instead offer exposure to a broad readership. Hypertext fiction: internet-based prose based on the way computer data can be filed in a non-linear fashion, and allows for writing with multiple paths and endings. See TrAce (Nottingham University) Hypertext Resources Weblog: a web page that reads as a journal – be it real or fictional. See www.blogger.com for more details. E-language: Common abbreviations for use in the quickfire environment of a chatline. (Whether you think they’re witty or naff, at least you’ll know what they’re on about...) :) happy :( sad :| angry %-) happy-confused 8-0 shocked ;-) winking :'-( crying :-* kiss X-( brain-dead lol laughing out loud :-P sticking out tongue :8) pig MC:8) male chauvinist pig :-X my lips are sealed \o/ Halleluiah %-) celebrating %-( hung-over @}-`-- a rose… FAQs: > Getting an agent/publisher > Submissions & competitions > Writing groups and Teaching > Setting up in business Nuts & Bolts: > Words, words, words
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