This week's topic comes through a rather circuitous route, so bear with me... It starts a month ago, when I spent the first two weeks of December on a writing retreat.

The idea was simple. Seclude myself away in an area I find environmentally stimulating (for me, this is means winter storms, grey skies, trees and water, so the North Oregon coast was perfect) for an extended period (long enough for the "just here for a weekend" need to sleep/enjoy the area/get over jet lag to go away) with a specific purpose (revising my novel per some professional advice I'd received on it.) I was fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to borrow some friends' mom's cabin, which meant the ability to cook in the kitchen, sleep in a real bed, etc. And, perhaps most importantly, it had limited connectivity - no cable tv (not a biggie for me), no telephone (but I had my cell) and... NO INTERNET.

I'll pause a moment, for those of you who know me to regain your senses. Yes, I willingly removed myself from in-house internet for two whole weeks. I know. I know.

You'll note there was a qualifier there... that whole "in-house" thing. Yes, there was internet available, free and at a faster-than-dialup rate, but it was at the local library (or in the library parking lot after hours, since the library was only open 5 hours a day and not at all on Sunday). And, while this was only a few blocks away, the weather was (as I'd hoped) freezing, wet and windy, so even simple "check my email" connectivity meant being dressed, getting into the car and driving over, especially when the library was closed and we internet junkies (I wasn't the only one) were forced to sit in the parking lot and connect that way, like a herd of hobos gathered around a barrel fire.

I admit, I made the trip at least once a day, sometimes several times, but the reduction in connectivity definitely increased my ability to concentrate on my work deeply and for extended periods without that niggling "I wonder if I have any mail... Hmmm, who's saying what on Twitter? Oooh, time to harvest my fields on Farmville!" stuff going on. And, I got to know the local librarians pretty quickly, which was also nice, because I am a very social animal, and two weeks without my family or pets or more than passing contact with people I knew was rough.

It was one of those librarians who raised this week's topic, albeit in a round-about way.

Many thanks to Gloria Weber for last week's wonderful guest blog!

And without further ado, we present the last One Geek to Another for 2009!

Looking forward to answering more questions for you all in 2010!

Best Wishes and Happy New Year!

~jess

Dear One Geek,

When is it appropriate to have your minor children (particularly much younger ones) along on geek expeditions, and when isn't it, and, more to the point (for those of us that who are happily child-free) what's your take on when it's OK to ask folks to leave their kids home, or ask they be excluded/removed from a situation where they're not really appropriate?

I've never been to a professional trade show in any other industry where people brought their kids along to professional business seminars and the B2B exhibit hall, but it seems to happen at GTS and the Diamond Comics trade shows all the time.

It bugs me, but I also recognize that I may be a little oversensitive in this area. Your punditry on the subject would be helpful, I think.

Thanks!

-No Kidding Around.

Dear No Kidding,

It may sound like an oversimplification, but including kids is (generally) appropriate for family-friendly expeditions, and not for adult-focused ones.

Welcome to One Geek To Another's first (but hopefully not last) guest blog! This week, we have invited Gloria Weber, prolific short story author and novelist, to share her insight and experience on the Do's and Don'ts of Getting Your Short Story Published. We're honored to have Gloria here with us, and to be able to share her knowledge with you!

And as always, thanks for reading One Geek to Another!

Hello, my name is Gloria Weber. I’m the author of many short stories and the novel Gaslight Demons, published by Morbidgames Publishing. Jess has been so kind to allow me to guest post today about the do’s and don’ts of getting your short story sold.

The first do of short story selling is the most obvious one. The piece needs to be carefully edited for spelling, grammar, and storytelling, making it as perfect as possible. That being said, there’s a chance a mistake might still slip through, and that’s okay. Editors are aware of the fact you are human and will forgive an error or two.

The second do is finding the right publication to send it to. You want to make sure that your story’s word count and genre meet the needs of the publication. If you wrote a 7,000 words long, traditional fantasy tale, you do not submit it to a mystery genre magazine with a 5,000 words limit. Ideally, before submitting to a publication, you should have read at least one issue to see examples of the editor’s standards and taste.

When sending out the short story, there are three do’s. The first do is make sure you follow the submitting instructions. If they want it attached as a .rtf (rich text format document), do not send a .doc (Microsoft Word document). If they want is sent via snail mail, don’t hunt down an email to send it to. Editors usually ignore submissions that do not follow their guidelines.

The second do is write a cover letter, even if it is for an email. In this cover letter do not write “Dear Editor,” unless no matter how hard you try you can’t find out the person’s name. But there is usually no excuse, aside from laziness, for using such a greeting, as writing market listings generally provide them. I’ve heard editors complain about receiving such letters, and it makes them less than optimistic about your writing from the get go. The rest of the letter will be a one to two sentence description of the story, include a word count, the title, and any previous writing credits or credentials that apply to the story. Sometimes the cover letter may include something from the submissions requirements, like a short author biography. But unless told to add such things, just stick to selling your story.

The third do is the simplest to explain. You send a short story out to one publication at a time. The majority of editors do not accept simultaneous submissions. And it would look bad for you if you have to say, “Sorry, but another place already bought it.”

Eventually, you’ll get a reply. Worse case scenario is a rejection. If the letter angers you, do not hit reply and chew the editor out. Do not post it on your blog with details and state that the editor is a moron. Instead, find a friend or loved willing to listen to your tirade face-to-face or over the phone. Editors talk to one and other, especially within genres. Doing such a thing will not only be unprofessional, it would be a detriment to selling your future writings. Conversely, if the editor took time to include a personal note or helpful advice with the rejection, it would be good form to send back a thank you.

If the reply was an acceptance, a thank you note and prompt signing of the contract is in order. When it comes to editing, also be prompt and professional at all times. Remember, the editor is only trying to make your story perfect for the publication, while helping you put your best literary foot forward.

And those are the basic do’s and don’ts of selling a short story. I hope it was of some help. If you would like to learn more about me, Gloria Weber, and my writing visit: http://gloriaweber.wordpress.com

Dear One Geek,

I've noticed with the rise of the internet for online role playing games that people seem to treat it with less politeness than they do face to face gaming. Even ignoring jerks who are just plain rude, crude or otherwise socially unacceptable, many "good folks" seem not to give online games the same respect they do to "real life" ones. They will show up really late, leave early,  drop out mid-session, or just not show up. We've lost a lot of players who apparently  lack the  common courtesy to inform the group they are part of, that they will not be making it to a game. After awhile they end up dropping off of the face of the earth without so much as a goodbye. How would you handle a situation like this?

Signed,

Curious about Common Courtesy

Dear Curious,

On-line gaming can be a boon to gamers, but it also presents its own challenges. Some internet "hiccups" are unavoidable. Especially if a player has slow bandwidth or unstable service, they may have trouble logging in, or end up cutting out of games or conversations suddenly due to circumstances well beyond their control.