Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1885-02-27
CHEAP STORIES.
WRITERS WHO INDITE SENTIMENTAL
NONSENSE FOR THE PAPERS.
Journalists Who Write Cheap Sensational
Iaies-The Pay for Composition Of
Flash Literaturs-womcn as
Novel Writers.
New York Commercial adser,iser l

4 The iInprassionable miss who dotes on
himsy love tales often in,agine5 the concoctor
| OF the sentimental nonsense to DO hero
and feels that one Of LIES longings would
/ bs satIsfei IL size might claim acquaintance
I with him. II Is safe to assume that very
I lew persons actually know what manner Of
I ielngs spoil ink and paper in building sensa-
Il nal stories for cheap publications. In this
( country there are no publications exactly
corresponding to the English penny num-
bers, which dish up love romances of so
many yards in length; Dut there is a some
what more expensive variety Of hali-liime
hbarles that answer the purpose admirably
- The writers OF cheap sensational stoIi s in
Tie weekly papers and in bound volumes are,
Tor the most part, journalists who take this
nietnoI OF padding out their incomes They
generally get mo it by accident, ani finding
~ retnuneratIve, stay there. 1t requires lit
cEary ability OF some order TO be a successful
writer OF cheap stories. The author must
write with the utmost rapidly. COMPOSING
the lines ami the plot as be proceeds The
pay fer til composition of q romance Of
from 81, 600 10 49,oc0 words Is about 500,
and a practiced writer Of fair ability in this
line viii finish a story in ten days, if he does
nothing else. Ordinarily these stories are
written in from three weeks TO a month, and
serve 10 occupy odd hours. The men who
do the work are anything but sentimental
they are usually good fellows who have the
heartiest contempt for the stuff they are pro-
ducIns, their only motive being money All
the metropolitan papers have one or two men
addicted 10 the imposition of fash literature
upon the public They are more usually in
the editorial rooms than in tho reportorial I
department, for in the latter place there is
precious lite time to devote to dalliance |
with romance, however well paid. Tie 4
men who write stories and nothing else are
lew; among them broken down newspaper
men who compose their trash in a garrett
1t IS difficult to get recognition as a writer
of cheap literature, for each publisher has
favorltes and accepts their work before that
OF strangers. Consequently many aspiring
boarding school girls, who compile agouizing
love stories. wholly or mqinly filched from
their favorite authors, have their hopes
crushed aud their pride wounded when they
submit the fruit, of their labors to the stony
hearted publisher
There i. another kinl of tale in the many
story papers that runs through eight or
aozen numbers, and ends each installment
with the agsrivating TO be continued in
our next The writers of these production,
are mainly women, and usually hailing from
.iystOn or the far south Women Will work
moro cheaply than men, ami they are more
ersistent IN petit ming publishers. These ,
tories usually Jay their writer's from 500 .
o $50 apiece, but the demand Is limited A
I'll higher paid class OF stories are worth
rom 500 10 81, 90 The writers who.o !
names are uftenest seen are salariei. ono
nan on The Ledger being paid Sl2, CGD. This,
iowcver. Is an exceptional case and the
writer Is pail for his name
The short column and two-column stories.
ome of which are very clever, are paid for
1 from - 10 so each, but i; is next to i'm
rsssibie to get them accepted, as all period
;ais have stocks OF stories on hand The
ritter who branches out into the ilash liter y
ture cuisines, has certain thumb rules
. learn, which once being mastered render
i work mentally easy and physically Ia
oriouS. II is all like turning the crank or
loying the plane all dag. These stories will
. seen 10 lie built like New York houses. |
pom one plan They have the lurid begin
inG, each chapter ends with more or less
logical tdhlcau, AMI the whole winds I'D
th I. fla Il AID a bang. The varying emo j
Uis 81 love, hate, revenge, sympathy AMI
!ioancs> are run.s upon, the moe unrefl
icy arr the better All the heroes are hand r
me. manly, noble, wealthy, or about 70 DO
ealthy; all the heroineS are lovely. accom-
SHED and aiIectionate; all the villains are
ampe1 by the same die
The plot generally develops as the writer
'oceei& The opening chapter commences
ith 4 dark, gloomy AMI rainy night; mys-
ry shouls everything; murder is Z
ought 10 the readers attention in the first
In any event, the requisite thing
70 elevate the readers hair and chill his
'od at tie start. This accomplished. he
She Is good for the whole story. and will
= every number to the end One point
at bs attended 10, namely, that virtue
Al! b, triumphant and the william fooled. /
least S-6ns murder 70 the chap l.
i ths regular allowance, I'M
: u. scene l. laid in the west,
ien Llcoi may flow Oh every rage
Iolygict dictionary OF expletives is handy,
every foreigner should be made to swear
liieiy ia his mother tongue. If those points
attended to. little practice viii enable ID
s.s:iatcur 20 write flash romances