Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-09-07


to write and What to write-Je~els of
Rhetoric Not Nanted-Our Popular
Writers-Wages.
This question l recently put to an old
friend who has successfully followed the pro-
fession of literature through many a year Of /
storm and stress. say followed" i" because, |
in his wooing, he persistently ran after the
fair and tickle dame ere he won her hand |
and her dowry. Happily, he is well mated, |
and has been married almost long enough to
have a silver wedding. The answer l re-
ceived may be tersely summed up thus:
Writing pays if you know how to write
and what to write" Now. the two PROPOSE
tions contained in this answer are worthy of
brief consideration.
First, how to write: The young writer
usually starts out, think, possessed with
the one idea to get what he calls stylei He
expects to make writing pay by the mere
elegance of jeweled words, high sounding
epithets and well balanced periods Thus
many promising writer has found himself
wrecked, at the outset of his literary venture,
on his style. Plainly speaking, writing for
style does not pay. For, remember that
there are too many literary lapidaries who
can cut, set and polish the jewels of rhetoric
with more subtle skill than yourself Thou
sands of manuscripts have been returned
with thanks" with whose form and express
sion the most exacting editor could not find
fault. Indeed, many an editor has confessed
that it was with deep sigh that he tossed
if,,l into b la
basket Again, what boots 1t to gid ones
writing with pretty colors, if the covering be
only brass'
Secondly-The writer who expects to make
| writing pay must know what to write. He
| should be quick to see what people are will
| ing and ready to read and what editors are
ready and willing to pay for. l sometimes
think that many of our popular" writers
| have been not unlike the spies sent out by
Joshua to explore the land of the Philistines
| These writers return and report strange tales
of giants or give rumors OF the mysterious
Queen who-must-b t-be-obeyed"-and the
people listen to them Indeed, the Philis-
tines are really queer set at the best. They
| call for edition after edition of ''Ouida's"
writings, because they want to read about
red headed Circes who lure husbands to their
ruin. They want to learn, on the other hand,
how good goody" people talk and make
love, so they ask for 10000 and so 900 each
of the late E P. Roe's novels They all read
HoweIls, because they want the minute de-
scriptions of my ladys wardrobe and of tenn
pests IN teapots They all take James, be-
cause they want the vivisection of butterflies
and the spicy talk of aristocracy. They
want detective stories from the newspapers,
so they ask at the libraries for Charles
Reade; if it is fifteen" puzzle they want
they ask for the author of THE Lady or the
Tigera" They often do not know what they
want, so they take to some 'osophy, !"
"ology,n or else to the woods.
Again, the writer who wants to make his
writing pay must take his wares to the right
market Writing, 1t is said is, in the eyes
of nearly all editors, commercial specula,
ton. They only buy what they think the
people will read. Hence, writers find that
what will not suit one will suit another
What should we think Of the farmer who
took his eggs to the butcher, and his meat t.
the grocerl Is it any wonder, then, that
writer's go around knocking at the editoria
gates, vainly seeking admissionl OF cours'
there will always be hundreds of poor Casau
bons W .th their "keys TO all mythologies,
which nobody wants. The plain truth is tha
there are other requisites beside hterarl
merit essential in making writing pay. Il
other words, like philosophy, writing for tn
wrong market bakes no bread
/, Now, there are great many markets 70
the right kind of writing. Whether as re
porter, correspondent, or as special writer
. the reward is in proportion to the merit dis
| rlaved The reporter would think tha
writing did not pay if he earned less tha
s2j week. So, too would the correspond
ent consider himself i'll paid at less tina
double that amount. The amount offered b
Journals and magazines varies greatly al
cording to the standing and name of th
writer and the interest and merit of b
article As high as s500,has been given fo
a special contribution, while the ordinar
price will be from $40 to Sl5a page. tn
newspapers pay by the column, which usl
ally contains 1,5oO words Their price is, Q
the average, SC to s. a column for 'space
work
The literary "syndicates" can of cour.
afford to pay more than one journal, as the
retail the writing out to dozen differer
. papers, for which each pays its share Or
syndicate when IL started paid several tno
sand dollars each to leading writers of fictic
for one story. At present the demand fl
good novels and novelettes seems to be i
satiable, and the writer who can supply IL
, demand will make his writing pay. kno
one writer who can spin off story as easi
as the traditionary fisherman can reel off
T. yarn" l should imagine that his writir
paid, for he says that whenever he wants
covets something he sits down and writes 4
it. / know another who has made a goC
many hundred dollars each year by puttii
advertisements in a taking way. Y
writing is an honest vocation, as long as t
writer does not lie or foster base passion
Still, does writing payi-L J. Vance in t
Epoch.
Men Pussy at the Taflor's.