Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1890-09-11

FlCI1ON-Wanted,N Novels ana Snort stories.
suitable for "a high-claSS magazine. Thorough
originality is required and will be literally
dealt with. A good serial novel, about 10000
words can be treated for.-P. j., care of
Blffkins, printers, Bouverie Street. E. G.
Thorough originality" | cried;
"Why, that's my strong point; hang
it, Pm nothing if I'm not original!
Why, | can reel it out by the yard
quite comfortably, just as though had
been a literary silk-worm." And so |
could, then. Plots? pooh! | never
even troubled about plot; | just sat
down and began to fire away to Miss
Dashes (Miss Dashes is my shorthand
writer and amanuensis) and the plots
came; they came as matter of course.
Now it's different; they don't come as
they used to. I'm at times even tempted
to read other peoples fiction and St
| mean adapt" their ideas. | wish
knew Dutch. Nobody knows Dutch.
There must be a magnificent field for
pecul- | mean adaptation in Dutch
literature. At the time | speak of |
was exceedingly original. In my set
determination to be original both in
manner and matter, | read nothing but
my own manuscripts, which were many,
and my own proofs, which were few
Now / read good deal, with the re-
suit that I'm not nearly so original as
was. Of course I've grown artful;
I've got the measure of certain editorial
feet Some want climax give 'em
climax; others demand pathos-I give
'em pathos. One man likes plenty of
it give him plenty of it; another
wants concentrated plot q. e., the plot
of a three-voIume novel in column
and a quarter)-I give it to him.
There's one man who likes the pleasant
cynical vein, and, though I'm person
ally romantic enthusiast, | give him
what his soul sighs for. By all this
you will see that I'm a very talented
and many-sided person, and II hard
worker.
AT the sight of that advertisement l
called in Bouverie street. After a
good deal of beating about the bush, |
learned that p. j. was the manager of
a syndicate-i. e. he was u Wholesale
dealer in literature; he was the middle
man, that proverbially indispensable
middle man, who is so very dear to us
all. After several unsuccessful at
tempts, | succeeded in seeing p. j. in
the flesh He wore spectacles, he spoke
with drawI. and he was evidently Il
man of business.
You send in sample, Uncle
Dudley" said he, with noble familiar
ity. Eff ii suits we shall deaf ut New
York price which is ten dollars a
thousand words. That seems to as
tonsh YOU he said; hut we act liberal
in the States
Nothing could be simpler, nothing
could be fairer, nothing could be
nobler.
You jest whack in IA short thing as
a sample. We return either the stuff
or the money in a week.
Then he offered me a particularly
good cigar | went straight home. |
despatched Il thousand-word story to
T. j., and in forty eight hours cot the
following note:
SIR: Yourtale is Il ring-tailed roarer. l car
take any amount of similar stuff / enclose
Ine equivalent OF ten dollars in postal order
Please call at TWO tomorrow.
Yours faithfully, PJ
could have clasped p. j. to my
breast. Here was an appreciative
mind, a congenial spirit | thought
that the leaden-footed hours till two
the next day never would have passed;
but the time came at length-it struck
two at last by the clock of st. Brides,
and | was shown by one of Blffkins
the printers people into the presence
of 7. j.
The American received me in the
most genial manner.
You're the boy" he said; 'you are
the chap that takes the cake, Mr..
Nibbs. cried P. j. Il am prepared
to run you altogether; it's only a
question of terms, my boy and our
folks are full--they are absolutely
bursting with dollars. But there's one
thing, Mas'r George; is the rest of your
stuff up to sample? That is the point
that and the question of terms
Then he handed me a huge cigar. We
pay fifty cents for 'em in the States.
he said.
| never met such a liberal man as P.
}. before. His people had every con-
tidence in him.; he had full powers >,
How much stuff had l got?' wv as
| ready to deal on the basis Of ten
dollars thousand, for all the stuff |
had tiuished?"
Can fish swimp Was 1 ready?
Aye, that | was.
1T amt the actual cash. remarked
P. j.; ''i.'s the reputation. Our people'll
run YOU in American, and Wen take
you in the lump at ten dollars a
thousand words all round. Is that
good enough? Eff you are satisfied,
shoot the stuff in"
| agreed-of course | did. | re-
turned to my home. | made up a huge
parcel of manuscripts. | calculated
. tse amount of the check | had to re-
ceive at eight thousand dollars, or two
thousand pounds, for there were eight
hundred thousand words. or there
abouts; and then l waited patiently.
Would p. j. take them all? Would
he take half! waited. say. patiently.
After a month | received parcel; it
contained my manuscripts and the fol-
lowing note;
DEAR SIR: l regret to have to return your
MSS. Yours faithfully, P j.
Five years elapsed.
l had got on-slowly. terribly slow
ly; but | had got on. | had published
over two hundred short stories, four
novels, and | had plenty of work on
hand and no difficulty in placing it.
My publishers wanted to see me-
was delighted; they had probably some
thing to propose; saw visions of a
new agreement, and check in advance
on account, or at least three-months'