1. Spamming:

Using this forum to advertise a product or service of any kind is forbidden, and if you spam, you�ll probably get blocked and possibly flamed. If in doubt about whether it's acceptable to make a business announcement, ask! It's okay to post a call for manuscripts if you're a publisher, and it's okay for members to tell us about their published works or an upcoming book, or even their work on another website, but beyond that spamming won't be tolerated!

2. Other Delphi Hosts:

If you're another forum host, please don't invite the members of Silver Quill to your forum or chat unless you clear it with me first; otherwise your message will be deleted. I have no tolerance for forum hosts who make cowardly hit and runs on other forums merely to advertise their own sites without any intent to participate in the discussions at Silver Quill. I may not mind if you're willing to reciprocate by exchanging links.

However, it's acceptable to have a text link or small banner in your signature to other sites on Delphi.

3. Flaming

Flaming isn�t allowed--plain and simple--no exceptions, and such posts will be deleted posthaste! I don�t want this forum to turn into a battleground. Ever! And I won't tolerate any kind of racial or religious slurs. If you make a racial comment or flame someone over their religious beliefs, you're out permanently.

4. Foul Language

Also, please don�t use foul language. I don't have anything against it personally, and I'm inclined to use it myself from time to time, but using profane language on the message board or in the chat rooms is a violation of Delphi�s policy.

5. Personal Messages

Please write personal messages to other members through private e-mail only or limit them to the "OFF-TOPIC" section ! For instance: no one wants to read, "Oh, thanks for the information, Jean" or "I'll check it out, Clara!" The purpose of this forum is for serious discussions about writing and the publishing market, and messages like these clog up the message board.

6. Writing Related Topics

Also, please limit your messages under the various writing topics to writing or publishing related issues. For other topics feel free to post in the "OFF-TOPIC" area. Silver Quill isn't an automotive forum, a dog breeding forum, or a home decorating forum for example, and these kind of messages also clog up the message board. However, I encourage you to talk about other aspects of the daily life of a writer, and coping strategies when the road gets rough.

The first few links below are to the message board and chat area. However, many of the following writing links are to my personal homepage sites that have many excellent writing links and references. So check my homepage often for writing links. I normally update the links monthly.

Silver Quill Links

Writing Links

Historical Research Links

Other Links

Bobette Bryan is
a member of the



This website and it's contents were designed by Bobette Bryan.

� 1999 Bobette Bryan. All Rights Reserved.
� TM SM The Silver Quill Forum

The silver Quill Forum was established August, 1998.

The Silver Quill Homepage was revised January 15, 1999.

This webspace was graciously provided by Fortune City, who offers 20 MB of disk space free.

The Silver Quill Forum is dedicated to all types of writing, and there are authors from all genres among our ranks. The purpose of this forum is to discuss the writing craft and the publishing market. Both aspiring and published writers are welcome to join the discussions.

Forum Moderators

The Silver Quill Forum is hosted by Bobette Bryan who's a writer of practically all genres--erotica, horror, fantasy, and humor. But she considers herself to be a romance novelist primarily. She's also the Editor and Publisher of an online horror-ezine, Underworld Magazine which features short stories, dark poetry and more.

Mark Stanleigh, the Assistant Manager of Silver Quill, is an Oregon-based fiction writer and book publisher. He's been writing most of his life, first as a musician writing music and lyrics for his own band, and later as a business writer in the corporate world. A full-time novelist since 1991, he's presently working on his fifth book, Savants of the Vespertine.

Donna Manganaris, the Chat moderator, is a homemaker who got bitten by the writing bug four years ago. She's completed one fantasy novel, Echoes of the Past, which agents are currently considering for representation. You can read excerpts from her work and learn more about the author on her homepage.

To see a list of some of the other talented Silver Quill Members, go to the Silver Quill Writers' Page.

If you'd like to be listed on the Silver Quill Members list, send me your URL and I'll add your bio. Also, send me a short description of yourself, 3-4 lines, and of the link you've provided. A lot of people are sending me their bio without a name, and I only have their e-mail address to go by in trying to figure out their identity. I just don't have the time to dig through the member list in order to figure out who you are...there are over 600 members now! Also, since a lot of people are joining simply to have their name added to the list, I've decided to start deleting members' bios if they don't contribute to the discussions regularly.

Join the Silver Quill discussions today. You're always welcome at Silver Quill. Lets spin our tales and share our writing knowledge with each other. And maybe pick up a tip or two about publishers and agents. Before you'll be able to post to the message board, you'll have to register with Delphi, but that's quick and free.

Below are answers to some of the questions new members frequently ask. If there are any others you think should be addressed, please feel free to write me.

New Member?

Where to begin? I encourage you to start by posting a short bio about yourself in the "Author's Biography Section." That way we'll get to know a little about you and your work. However, posting a bio is optional, and if you'd rather just jump right into the discussions, then that's fine too.

Message Board

When you go to the message board, there's a list of topics on the left. Scan the threads for a topic that interests you and click on that link. Then a screen will come up on the right, where you can reply to "all" or another member; then press the button to post your message (You must reload in order to see the message.). You can also start an entirely new thread by clicking the "new" button.

Also, there are some options at the bottom left corner of the message board that allows you to find previous messages, etc. You can change these features to suit your needs or preferences. My advice is, just experiment to see what works best for you. And don't worry about feeling lost on the forum at first. That's common. But you'll get the hang of the message board quickly.

Adding A Signature

If you'd like to add a signature or a picture to your posts, it's easy to do. Simply go to the blue area at the top of the message board where it says, "My Delphi," and click on the link. Then go to the bottom left corner of the main Delphi page, and click on the "Message Board Preferences." You'll go to a screen where you can add a signature, and where you can add HTML code for a picture link. You can also pick the appropriate time zone for the area you live in. While you're there, be sure that the box at the top of screen is checked if you'd like to receive e-mail notification of messages posted to you on the forum. When these message are sent to you, you can click on the link to easily read the message on the forum.

Adding A Picture

To add a picture you must first upload a .gif or .jpg to a webpage server, then you merely link back to the picture using HTML code. Suppose I have a picture of a cat I want to upload from my Geocities site, I'd merely add the URL of the site, with the name of the picture at the end of the URL. Here's an example:

But remember, graphic links are case-sensitive, meaning, you must have the capitalizations exactly how they are in the picture you uploaded. After you've uploaded the file, if you'd like to add to add the picture to your signature, follow the instructions in the "Adding a Signature" column above.

But please make sure that the picture you upload isn't too large, and recently people have complained about animated gifs, so I'd prefer that they are used very sparingly on this forum.

And finally, if you have any questions about the forum, feel free to write me or Mark via the links at the bottom of this column.

Here's a list of grammar rules for you to peruse. Each line has an error. See if you can spot them. If you fail to find any of them, you need to freshen up on your grammar. See the grammar links below this list.

1. Don't use no double negatives.
2. Make each pronoun agree with their antecedents.
3. Join clauses good, like a conjunction should.
4. About them sentence fragments.
5. When dangling, watch your participles.
6. Verbs has got to agree with their subjects.
7. Don't write run-on sentences they are hard to read.
8. Don't use commas, which aren't necessary.
9. Try to not ever split infinitives.
10. Its important to use your apostrophe's correctly.
11. Proofread your writing to see if you any words out.
12. Correct speling is essential.
13. Eschew ostentatious erudition.
14. Avoid cliches like the plague.



An in-depth list of Grammer rules
Bartle and Skrunk's Elements of Style
Grammer and Style Notes by Jack Lynch...a very informative site.

E-mail Bobette Bryan

Or send mail to her alternate e-mail address at [email protected]

E-mail Mark Stanleigh

Ingredients:

• 1.     Believable Characters
  
• 2.     Emotion
  
• 3.     Conflict
  
• 4.     Moving dialogue
  
• 5.     Well-developed plot
  
• 6.     Consistency
  
• 7.     Use of the active voice
  
• 8.     Accurate details
  
• 9.     Use of all five senses
  
• 10.   Tight write
  
• 11.   Good conclusion
  
• 12.   Rewrite, rewrite, rewrite
  

Instructions:

Mix together in equal parts ingredients one through ten. Add number eleven carefully, being sure to pat yourself on the back for completing the recipe, and top it all off with number twelve as needed.

Your recipe should be a success! If not, go back over the list and see if you've overlooked any of the ingredients.