Greetings and Welcome to this very special Volunteer section of Rhapsody Magazine. We have designed this in a way that we are able to expose those that are considering getting into the publishing field to the equivalent of an entry level position. Rhapsody is by no means a big time publishing house, but with the right attitude, we can give you experience to help you into the field of publishing and/or mass media.
Before being considered to become a volunteer editor, you must be familiar with the following:
1. What our product is and what we are about
2.The terms of our Entry Submission Policy
3.How our publishing process works
4. How our 13
week production cycle works
(and are willing to commit to at least 13 weeks service)
5. You must have
a telephone and a reliable email address
that you can check at least 3 times a week
6. Send a copy of your resume (preferably electronically) to John Riddick, Editor
Some of the things
we are looking for are:
Editors
Proofreaders
Contributing Writers
Marketing/Promotions Representatives
There are currently 5 possibilities for contributing writers. They are:
1. "Pondering Love" (for the Emotional Ascension section) This is a commentary on relationships, either individual or cultural. Preferably focusing on practical issues involved in realtionships with others and the self (esteem, motivation, trust, etc.) This commentary is currently being written. 400-600 words
2. "Social Rhetoric" (for the Cultural Elixir section) My vision for "Social Rhetoric" is to discuss issues that concern our community and culture (ie: the importance of self-empowerment, the differences between eastern and western medicine practices, etc.) 400-500 words
3. "Cogitation" (for the Creative Excursions section). Presenting to readers the importance of realizing the luxuries they have in life by imagining what it would be like with them, for instance....what would it be like if you could no longer see, or hear.....or what if you no longer had your parents to depend upon..or living in a 3rd world country. My ideas may be difficult to address, but if you choose to write this commentary, you can develop your own. 400-500 words
4. Book Reviews - we review fiction and non-fiction books by preferably African American authors and self-pubished authors that do not get the same marketing dollars to promote their work. These reviews are between 200-300 words each. We feature 3-5 reviews per issue.
5. Music Reviews - we review contemporary r & b (Meshell N'degeochello, Davina, Maxwell, Jamiroquoi) , acid jazz (Greyboy, Brand New Heavies, Ronnie Jordan) and classic jazz music (Grover Washington, Joshua Redman, Joe Sample, Boney James), preferably more quality releases that are good listening whether they are new or not, since we are a quarterly, it would be very difficult to stay on top of new releases. These reviews are between 150-250 words each. We feature 3-5 reviews per issue.
All these positions require commitment, responsiblity and conscious effort on your part, and right now they are voluntary. But we do provide name credit in the magazine, a complimentary copy and references for future jobs if desired. We will be offering a stipend for contributing writers as well in the near future.
Although we do not have any internship opportunities, we do have special projects that could be oriented towards the equivalent of an "independent study" curriculum, provided we can discuss the particular requirements of your academic program.
If aside from volunteering, you are interested in submitting your poetry and/or artwork, please goto the "Getting Published" section of the website for details. Thank you again for your interest in Rhapsody magazine.
After you have completed that "learning about us" (and the publication team you are about to join), you can request a volunteer brochure in the mail
In the meantime, Here are some basic printing terms that you should know, if you're thinking about pursuing publishing as a career
Blueline - a printed sample prior to a job run, for client approval/corrections
Camera Ready Art - Any artwork or typesetting that is ready to be submitted for pre-press/ printing
Color Separation - The division of an image into its component colors for printing
DPI (Dots Per Inch) - A measure of the output resolution produced by printers or monitors (usually greater is better)
EPS (Encapsulated Post Script) - A file format used to transfer PostScript data within computer applications
Process Color (4 color precess) - The 4 colors (cyan, magenta, yellow and Black) that are combined to print a wide range of colors, found in nature. (not neons or flourescents, or metallics)
Registration - The precise alignment of different films or printing plates to produce a final printed image.
RGB (Red, Green, Blue) - The primary colors. Used to create a variety of colors
Spot Color - Applying the exact color, as opposed to process color which "builds" primary colors to create other colors. Often used with silk screening (for t-shirts)
TIFF (Tagged Image File Format) - A file format for exchanging bitmapped images (usually scans) between applications
Trapping - A pre-press technique which allows for slight variations in registration during the press run. A trap is created by overlapping adjacent colors in type & linework.
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Binding Methods Saddle Stitch - pages folded and stapled in the center (like Jet magazine or Sports Illustrated) Velo Bind - Plastic comb with teeth Spiral Wire - wire "looped" up the edge of sheets Wire O - similar to Spiral Wire, but stronger because of "double loop" technique Side Wire - Similar to Saddle Stitch, but instead of "outside to inside" with the book open, the staple goes from "front to back" on the closed book edge Perfect - Signature sheets folded, cut and glued together (like Readers Digest or paperback books) Binding Post - Loose Leaf - usually pages already have holes in them, and metal posts are inserted Case Bound (Sewn) - similar to Perfect Bound, but instead of glue, the pages are sewn together. Most hard cover books are made this way |
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Common Paper sizes Here are a few of the more common paper sizes. Your printer may have other sizes available. And all these sizes can be folded!!!
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Computer software to consider (Mac and PC) QuarkXpress (page layout) Adobe Photoshop (Graphic editing) Adobe Illustrator (drawing) MacroMedia Freehand (drawing) DO NOT USE MICROSOFT PUBLISHER!
Web Page content creators Macromedia Dreamweaver, Microsoft FrontPage....and course there is always learning actual HTML code |