The New York herald., 1921-09-04
SOUNDINGS
IN THE SEA OF INK

the book family. We can imagine
some famous history's Vol. XIV. look
ing royalty down with the air of
Louis Of the same number, upon the
current periodicals of the library
table. And the magazine; with equal
spirit, would remark, impersonally
yet loud enough to be heard by the
dogears of all the books alive enough
to have dogears.
They'll put me on the shelf, too;
when I get old. I'll be bound!"
The attitude of magazine editors
toward their authors must affect,
both directly and indirectly, the en-
tire literary product. In some cases
they help by enabling good writer's
to devote themselves to work which
would not give them living through
book royalties alone. On the other
hand, when editors urge established
authors to overwrite-as some Of
them certainly do-they are enemies
Of the reading public and, in the end,
of the authors themselves.
"Stories Editors Buy and Why"
(Small, Maynard and Company, ed
tied by Jean Wick, has a bakers
dozen of tales from as many different
magazines. Mos. readers will find a
favorite or two in the list, good
enough to keep and to read more
than once. There Is more meat here
than In most popular novels.
But anybody that likes to mediate
on the conditions that affect Amer
lean life will find something unus-
ual In the last fifty-flve pages.
Here are the professions or confes-
sions Of some fifty men and women
who stand between the public and
thousands OF writer's. American
fiction explained by the editors of the
American magazines" reads the de-
fining label on the books jacket. I'm
doubtedly good deal Of American
fiction needs explaining.
Some of the editors go at their
task very earnestly, explaining to the
extent of two or three pages. But
Mr.. Sedgwick of the Atlantic answers
with smile:
1T really would not serve your
purpose IL I were to write you about
my principles Of accepting stories.
They are too capricious, and would
only tend to lower the feeling OF re-
spect which you are inculcating in
your readers"
He represents a fair proportion of
the witnesses, who declare or imply
that they accept the stories that
please them personally. trusting that
their tastes are near enough to those
of million readers to elevate-the
This is the only sound basis. II
the editor is fit for his Job he will
be able to give the magazine a char
acter as we'll defined as his own. Buy.
ing stories he thinks might please
somebody else will take him farther
and farther into hypocrisy, unreality.
Mr.. Siddall wants the fiction he
buys to bring news of human ma
ture." But he avoids the unpleasant,
which must necessitate a rather
strict news censorship, the said hu-
man nature being what II is.
Miss Beatty makes the refreshing |
remark that there is mo sex In read |
ing" and Mr.. Vance likewise insists
that he does not pick out stories be-
cause they are "woman's magazine
Both these editors manage
aimed to appeal to women
Their attitude Is Characteristic OF a
woman suffrage era.
There ia an amazing absence from
these letters OF interest In the author
himself and the relation OF his own
inner life to the kind Of stories he
will write. Harry Maule comes near
est to the heart of " when he says.
after commencing self-analysis:
Many writer's suffer from lack OF
Of their own material.
Don't. Mr.. Writer. try to force your
self TO write something you yourself
do not like. You cannot write down
to field successfully. and you must
develop into a higher literary class
naturally, by hard work"
That Is good medicine for all Of us.
Maybe even an editor could lift his
magazine into higher literary class