Young Adult Corner
Story of the Month The Haunted Shipwreck
Advice for Young Writers The Proposal Letter
Story of the Month
by: M. S. Nicole
Once
there was a girl named Stacy who lived on an island. On that island, there was a
shipwreck settled right at the edge of the beach. The shipwreck looked at least
over one hundred years old with seaweed all over it, barnacles all over the
bottom of it, and the rotted parts that had started falling off a long time ago.
One day, Stacy decided to go into the old and musty shipwreck. When she got to the shipwreck’s old and rusty door, there was a sign that read “Condemned” but she completely ignored it and went in anyway. Stacy opened the old and rusty door and it fell into the shipwreck making a large hole in floor after floor of the shipwreck. Stacy went all the way around the hole in the floor and kept walking until she felt something break under her foot. It was a skull with a captain’s hat on.
“Yuck! I can’t believe I stepped on a skull!”
All of the sudden, skeletons started coming from another room!
“Please tell me I’m dreaming!”
Stacy saw that all the skeletons had their bony fingers wrapped around a sword. Stacy found another sword sticking out of the floor and she lunged for it a quickly as she could.
Stacy started slashing and breaking all of the skeletons that got in her way. She killed all of the skeletons except for one. The one skeleton told her that one hundred years ago, other pirates had attacked the ship.
“Our ship crashed on this beach.”
“How did you survive?” Stacy was getting more curious by the second.
“We survived for three days. We had no food or water. We just sat here and suffered.”
“How did you rise from the dead?”
“A ghost appeared and put a curse on our crew.”
“Do you remember what the ghost said after he put the curse on your crew?”
“He didn’t say anything. He just broke a stone in half and flew away.”
“That might be the tablet with the words to the spell on it.”
“No! The skeleton said in complete anger, “How could I be so stupid?! You’re right! It probably was the spell!”
“Do you know if the ghost left the words to the spell in the ship? Or what’s
left of it anyway.”
“We could search and find nothing but rubble and the remains of the rest of the crew you slashed in half that could have helped us search for the spell!”
“Well it wasn’t my fault that they were coming after me! I had to protect myself!” Stacy was getting angrier by the minute.
“Well technically, it was your fault! You stepped on the captain’s skull!” the skeleton was ready to smack Stacy on the face for being so obnoxious.
“Well Mr.Bojangles, let’s get to work!” Stacy started throwing piles of rubble behind her for any sign of stones with words on it.
“Hey! Don’t you dare call me Mr.Bojangles! Just remember. I may not have skin or organs, but I’m still a pirate so I will stab you if I have to!” the skeleton started looking for some type of stone with words on it.
“I’ll check in here.” Stacy said walking toward a room with a creepy bluish glow to it.
“Don’t go in there!” the skeleton said grabbing onto Stacy’s arm.
“Why not?”
“Because no one that is alive ever comes out of the captain’s chamber.”
“Why don’t you go in there then? You’re dead.”
“I’m undead. Undead is almost exactly the same thing as being alive.”
“Well, what happens if someone goes in?”
“I just told you! Nobody ever comes out!” using hand gestures, the skeleton let go of Stacy’s arm by mistake.
The next thing the skeleton heard was the untimely scream of death. The skeleton only got to say one last thing before he fell and was just a pile of bones.
“I can’t wait until the next victim comes as a sacrifice for the captain.”
About the Author
M. S. Nicole -- Age 11
Hello. My name is M. S. Nicole. I got the idea to write this story from a music piece called The Oasis. It sounded like a pirate song. The music piece was from my folder of sheet music to practice on my violin. I started to make up words for the song and then I figured out that it would make a great story.
I’m going into middle school next year. My favorite colors are pink, purple, red, and blue. What I like to do in my spare time (other than writing stories) is horseback riding, drawing, visiting friends’ houses, acting, and playing The Sims. I also like to read really long stories to pass the time. I suggest Inkheart if you like 59 chapter long stories.
Advice
for Young Writers
A short “how to” guide for professionally approaching the overworked editor and getting your article idea noticed
Following the standard business letter opening with the editor's name, publication's name, publication's address, date, and opening salutation (Dear Editor ____: ) at the top of the page, the proposal letter should be no longer than three paragraphs on a single 8 1/2" x 11" sheet of paper. All editors appreciate brevity.
The first paragraph:
1) There are no niceties in the proposal letter. Come straight to the point. A strong opener is the query: "Could I interest you in an article on ____ (insert subject) of no more than ____ words (use that publication's word limit for articles...it shows you've done your homework) and ___ color images (or b/w if that is their preference ... most publications want 12 images)?"
2) Next briefly outline the major points in the article. "This article will include ... " Usually an article on antiques includes a description of the ware type, dates of production, a brief synopsis of identifying marks and/or features, and a thumbnail sketch of the history of this item or the firm that produced it. One or two sentences should suffice.
3) Finally, this last sentence in the first paragraph is optional. You may end the first paragraph with the statement: "If you are interested I can have this article, complete with images, on your desk in ____." (State a relatively short timeframe you are certain you can meet. Many professional freelancers use one month as their timeline.) However, only use such a timeframe if, and only if, you are confident in your article writing skills and ability to meet a deadline. You must be absolutely sure you meet that deadline. You are not trying to merely sell a single article here, but to establish a strong working relationship with an editor for any number of future articles you intend to propose over time. Prove you can meet the deadline with a quality product the first time and you will go a long way toward securing future articles with that editor. However, miss your deadline and you are unlikely to get further work from that publication. If an editor has accepted your article proposal and deadline, he or she has then set up a tentative slot in their publication schedule for your article. Miss that deadline and you leave a gaping hole in that editor's schedule, making the editor's life more difficult. Editors do not forget.
The second paragraph:
1) The second paragraph is simplicity itself. It begins "This article will begin something like this:" Then provide your intended article's first paragraph, indented to set it off from the rest of the proposal.
2) It is extremely important that you edit this sample paragraph carefully. Make sure there are no spelling errors, grammatical errors, or misstated facts. The editor will read this proposed first paragraph of your article carefully to see if you have strong writing skills and a grasp of the sort of information that publication is looking for. (Make sure you have done some homework here, reading over a few articles published in the magazine or paper to which you are proposing the article. This will ensure that you strike the proper tone and emphasis in your proposed opening paragraph.)
The third and final paragraph:
1) In the very first sentence state clearly your qualifications to write the proposed article. The simplest way to accomplish this is to state, "This article is based on my book, [insert title here], published by Schiffer Publishing in [state the year]." That tells the editor all he or she needs to know about you, that some other editor has already published some of your work.
2) Next, tell the interested editor how to reach you. Provide him or her with your full name, address, phone number, and email address. You'd be surprised how many authors forget this!
3) Finally, end by thanking the editor for his or her time and consideration.
Sign the proposal letter, send it on its way, and hope for the best.
Proposal etiquette:
There is one ironclad rule of etiquette that you as a freelance author must not break. When you propose an article to one editor, do not propose the same article to another editor or to many editors at the same time. In this era of quick and easy electronic communication, if you are playing fast and loose with this one rule, editors will find out. No editor wants to accept an article and set aside a space for it only to have the author turn around and take that article elsewhere because someone more to his or her liking has also accepted it. Remember, this isn't about selling a single article. It's all about establishing a professional relationship with an editor that will serve you both well over many years.
Good luck.
Jeffrey B. Snyder
Author and Editor