"Thoughts meander like a restless wind inside a letterbox..." FANFICTION FANART CLISCHMACLAVER THE FOUR MAGICIANS PHOTO GALLERY THE WORDS AFFILIATES :.: Submission Rules and Guidelines:.: The Rules: There are really only three main rules in order to submit a work of fiction to Marmalade Skies, which are as follows: 1. Please send your submissions to elizabethdarcy1@hotmail.com in the form of a .doc, .txt, or .rtf file attached to an email. In the email subject please indicate your name and the name of the submission. (ex.: Beatles Fan Fiction Story by Mary Sue) Also indicate if you provide Marmalade Skies with permission to provide readers with your personal email. 2. Please include a * brief * summary (preferably one to two paragraphs) of the story in the email, and indicate whether or not the story is completed or incomplete. In incomplete, please let us know the percentage of completion (25% completed, 50% completed, etc.,) We prefer completed works, however incomplete works will still be considered 3. Please make sure that your submissions are free from major spelling and grammatical errors. (Don’t be afraid of spellcheck!) Please use proper formatting (ex.: paragraphs. Unless it is a poem) and use basic fonts (Times New Roman, Courier, Arial, etc.,) and refrain from excessively fancy fonts and bright colors— you wouldn’t believe what a pain in the neck those are to read! The Guidelines: The following Guidelines are not rules, per se, but are rather suggestions that are made to improve your story as well as its chances of being selected for Marmalade Skies. First and foremost: DO YOUR HOMEWORK!! There is no greater irritant to readers of fan fiction that stories that get even the basics wrong. (I swear I read one where Paul McCartney had blue eyes. Say what?) We’re not saying you have to be Beatles experts in order to write fan fiction, but please get to know your subject. And if you are writing a fan fiction that takes place during an era which you weren’t alive in, like the 1950s or 60s, make an attempt to get to know that era. Trust us: You’ll loose more readers than you realize if you, for example, say the President of the United States is John F. Kennedy even though the story is set in 1965. Also please: don’t be afraid of character development. No one likes a Mary Sue— if your lead character is the most beautiful, funny, smart, talented girl on the face of the planet and George Harrison falls instantly in love with her, that’s not very realistic nor is it any fun to read. People aren’t perfect. (And that goes for writing about the Beatles too!) We highly recommend checking out the following sites for your own benefit! A little research never hurt anyone’s fanfiction! Merriam-Webster Online Websters dictionary and that wonderful Thesaurus conveniently online! USE IT! AskOxford.com Terrific resource-- great for word searches, as well as lots of language tools. How To Write Almost Readable Fan Fiction This site has a terrific sense of humor and offers very practical advice on writing fanfiction for any genre-- use it! Tips for writing better fan fiction by Tara LJC O'Shea, of LJC's Little Corner. (Tara's fanfiction site is not a Beatles fanfic site, however it is some of the best advice I've seen on how to write quality fanfiction!) "Dialogue" by Michael Seidman from his The Art and Craft of Writing and Getting Published, copyright 1999 Michael Seidman, Pomegranate Press, Ltd., Los Angeles "The Ten Deadly Sins" by David X. Manners of Writers' Digest Magazine "Ten Rules for Suspense Fiction" by Brian Garfield of Writers Digest Magazine "Tone: The Writer's Voice in the Reader's Mind" by Mort Castle, WritersWrite.Com, the Internet Writing Journal Dictionary.Com Encyclopoedia.Com Copyright 2004, Marmalade Skies. All rights reserved. Graphics created by Gossamer Graphics.