403 ERROR...access forbidden. Sound familiar? It's net-speak for "don't go there!" or "red-flag!" Time for panic?  Is Rod Serling in the house?

You may have entered "The Forbidden Zone", but don't worry about it! Here at Greeting Card Writing DOT com, we believe EVERYONE makes mistakes, but we can learn from them and delete some from our repertoire! 

So, on this page you'll find some some of the red-flags that we've heard "on the mean streets" of the greeting card block, with Sandra running interference from these boogiemen-to-be.

Episode #2...see Archive for prior episodes!

"I sent a batch of ideas to a company last month and hadn't received a reply, so I called the editor to find out if she had bought anything.  I could tell she wasn't happy I'd called."

Sandra comments:

Although there are some exceptions, calling an editor to check on the status of your creative submissions is generally frowned upon.  Companies have a variety of ways they look at, evaluate, and accept a verse for publication.  Often a potential verse is passed around to various departments to gauge reaction to its salability factor; other times, a committee will meet, read through and judge verses amassed over a period of time--a month or 6 weeks worth of submissions are often considered all at once.

However a company and its personnel choose to decide which verses eventually are purchased, the process does take time.  A month may seem like forever to a writer who is impatiently waiting by the mailbox (in my book and online classes at Writerscollege.com,  BizyMoms.com  and Absolutewrite.com. I talk about "down time" and why a successful writer can't engage in its luxury). For a busy editor, however, a month is the absolute minimum time to make a determination on a verse.

Keep in mind that companies receive many envelopes of ideas every week.  For someone to call out of the blue to inquire about her work is placing the editor at an unfair advantage.  If  three months has passed without your hearing anything, an e-mail or snail mail message is acceptable.  It should, however, contain some very specific information:

    · your name
    · date you sent your ideas
    · whether you sent them via snail or e-mail
    · general type of writing (traditional poetry, conversational prose, humor)
    · general range of occasions (everyday, seasonal, alternate products for a particular needs list, etc.)

Your note should be brief, to-the-point, and should ask only about one batch of submissions.  An editor is extremely busy and those e-mails/letters that ask about only one thing in a concise, organized manner stand the best chance of getting answered quickly.

Need the do's and don't in a nutshell? Point your mouse over to THE famous Tipsheet!

Hungry for the big bite of the greeting card sandwich? Chomp on over to Books & Stuff  to order Sandra's definitive look at getting started in this business Write Well & Sell: Greeting Cards. She'll even sign it for you...how's THAT for inspiration!