I saw that the USPS is raising postage rates, effective May 14. Sigh. This directly impacts my bottom line as a writer. Not as much as publishers and distributors, of course, but it’s still a slice out of my little pie o’proceeds.
Also they’re doing something to make calculating postage more complicated. Haven’t studied the changes in-depth, but my initial glance over them was mightily perplexing. I use a home postal scale and buy stamps in bulk to decrease the number of trips to the post office (and their interminable lines) I have to make. In addition to submitting manuscripts, I also mail a lot of magazines and books on behalf of Tangent, so being able to mail things from home is a great time saver. As such, them making the mailing process more obtuse is verily grump-making. Even the forthcoming Star Wars postage stamp doesn’t mitigate the grrr. Hmpf.
Received:
– Got a call from Ann Crispin. It’s always a pleasure hearing from her. She asked me to reprise my “Marketing Short Fiction” guest lecture for her Beginners Writers Workshop at Dragon*Con this year. Of course, I said I would. I’m still brimful with the terror of public speaking, but I think it gets better every year. And I genuinely enjoy doing it once I get past the shakes.
– Invite/request from palmerwriter to contribute a story to a charity anthology he’s editing to benefit the American Diabetes Association. I think I have a reprint that might suit, so uber coolness.
– Payment for “Mistress Fortune Favors the Unlucky” in the Bash Down the Door and Slice Open the Badguy anthology. It should be coming out any day now . . .
– Email from the editor of Faeries, letting me know that the electronic transfer of payment for “Of Two Minds in Lanais” has been made. After not hearing anything from my query in March, there’s much relief to finally get an update. He included a scan of the “Ordre de transfert de fonds international,” which my rusty-unto-iron-shavings French was mostly able to get the gist of. Waiting now with bated breath for the Show Me the Money part.
– Payment from Moira for my Writing for Young Readers May column.
Erk…me no likey…
Oh. By the way…my little sister has been reduced to giggling, squeeing fandom at the idea that I know someone who knows Ann Crispin. 🙂 Han Solo fan, don’t you know…and she can’t wait for the Star Wars stamps to come out. 😀
Oh, and I looked at the thingy from the post office…I don’t know what kind of mailing you use for Tangent, so I don’t know what effect it will have on you, but it looks as though mailing out manuscripts could get substantially more expensive.
The really funny thing is, I read it right after watching Yes, Minister…Boo was even kind enough to mimic Sir Humphrey Applebee’s voice to read off a couple of the paragraphs. 😀
Yepper. I’ve had a chance to study the rate changes now, and it looks like anything up to 7oz for first class using the new “flat” classification will be significantly more expensive to mail. But then, oddly enough, it becomes cheaper. But most of the manuscripts I sent out are under 7oz. And Media Mail, which is what I send a lot of Tangent stuff out with, will just be more expensive overall.
Feh.
Hee! That’s so sweet. Ann’s totally great. Hey, you and your little sister should come to Dragon*Con! Ann conducts beginner and advanced writers workshops every year as well as doing track panels. Your sister could actually get to meet Ann that way.
I knew about the rate increase, but I hadn’t heard about their new fee structure…and you’re right, it is confusing…but it looks like mailing manuscripts is suddenly going to be much more expensive.
Yep. Sigh. At least until you get to novelette+-sized manuscripts (around 35 pages). Oddly, once you hit the 7oz mark, it starts getting cheaper. But since I send out a lot more 2-6oz manuscripts, overall, it’s pretty craptacular.
Ack, I didn’t realized the rate increase would require more PO trips! I also use an old-guard postage scale at my office. We race to the PO enough times per week already, thank you!
I’ve now studied the rate changes and the new classification. You shouldn’t have to go to the post office more often as long as you remember the First Class “flat” versus “letter” differences and keep in mind that the “letter” rate tops out at 3.5oz (while the “flat” rate tops out at 13oz, same as the old First Class structure).
Still, I remain disgruntled.
Also glad you’ll be helping out Ann and the newbies again. It’s great you are keeping up that legacy.
Yah, I like feeling like I’m doing a little bit to pay it forward . . .
high-priced postage=GRRRRAAAWWWLLLLL!!!!Herrgold slash!!!
If only Herrgold could….
*nods* Total stabbity agreement.