Once the writing's done, folks, sometimes it's as simple as putting your work in front of an editor. DC Begin forwarded message: > From: Mel Odom <[log in to unmask]> > Date: November 14, 2008 6:34:03 PM CST > To: "Chester, Deborah A." <[log in to unmask]>, "Loyd, Alyssa R." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Frost, Amy E." <[log in to unmask]>, "Ling, > Chuan-Yao" <[log in to unmask]>, "Hambric, Greg A." > <[log in to unmask]>, Heather Erwin <[log in to unmask]>, > "Hall, Janica L." <[log in to unmask]>, "Lada, Jessica L." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Coats, Kristyna M." <[log in to unmask]>, "Lee, > Dianne S." <[log in to unmask]>, "Allgood, Lindsey L." > <[log in to unmask]>, Maria Arney <[log in to unmask]>, > "Washburn, Andrea K." <[log in to unmask]>, Ryan Daly > <[log in to unmask]>, "Cole, Sarah E." <[log in to unmask]>, > Sarah Wangen <[log in to unmask]>, "Lewis, Tuscaney J." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Allen, John T." <[log in to unmask]>, Zack > Williams <[log in to unmask]>, "Brunkhorst, Kelly A." > <[log in to unmask]>, 'Pam' <[log in to unmask]>, "Rodgers, > Shawnda M." <[log in to unmask]>, 'Shawnda Rodgers' > <[log in to unmask]>, "Sellers, Tyler W." <[log in to unmask]>, "Terry, > Bekah L." <[log in to unmask]>, "Siess, Benjamin J." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Murff, Brian C." <[log in to unmask]>, > "Shuler, Christina R." <[log in to unmask]>, "Ford, Cole > W." <[log in to unmask]>, "SIMS, JELANI L." > <[log in to unmask]>, 'Kacy' <[log in to unmask]>, 'Kelsey' > <[log in to unmask]>, "West, Kyle G." <[log in to unmask]>, > "Carney, Matthew A." <[log in to unmask]>, 'Matt W.' > <[log in to unmask]>, "Mc Cracken, Megan D." > <[log in to unmask]>, 'Mel' <[log in to unmask]>, 'Sara N.' > <[log in to unmask]>, "Gray, Sarah J." > <[log in to unmask]>, 'Scott Carter' <[log in to unmask]>, > "Rasch, Stephanie D." <[log in to unmask]>, "Holland, > Will J." <[log in to unmask]>, "Kohut, Adam D." > <[log in to unmask]>, Amanda Bittle <[log in to unmask]>, > "Wood, Benjamin M." <[log in to unmask]>, "Smith, Brendan T." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Burns, Brian S." > <[log in to unmask]>, Daniel Haymes <[log in to unmask]>, > David Miller <[log in to unmask]>, "Hart, Stephen E." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Brewer, Graham L." > <[log in to unmask]>, "[log in to unmask]" > <[log in to unmask]>, "Light, Jordan C." <[log in to unmask]>, > "Parker, Katherine R." <[log in to unmask]>, "Tally, > Katherine G." <[log in to unmask]>, "Karch, Kendall A." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Theissen, Logan J." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Losson, Amber M." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Madeiro, Matthew C." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Morsman, Malisa R." <[log in to unmask]>, "Heald, > Megan T." <[log in to unmask]>, "Morgan, Megan L." > <[log in to unmask]>, Mikee Staton <[log in to unmask]>, "Moxley, > Morgen R." <[log in to unmask]>, "Williams, Nathan M." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Beyersdoerfer, Tamela J." <[log in to unmask]>, > "Palmer, Tera A." <[log in to unmask]>, "Bennett, Timothy D." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Hardage, Tyler L." <[log in to unmask]>, > "George, William F. Jr." <[log in to unmask]>, "Johnson, > Briana N." <[log in to unmask]>, "Borthick, Christopher E." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Freeman, Candace A." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Evans, Gregory C." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Pitchlynn, Hilary M." > <[log in to unmask]>, "Hill, Sarah E." <[log in to unmask]>, > 'Kendal' <[log in to unmask]>, "Carradini, Stephen A." > <[log in to unmask]>, Amanda Theaker <[log in to unmask]>, > "Smith, Aubrey L." <[log in to unmask]>, "Legako, Janeal A." > <[log in to unmask]>, 'Kayle Barnes' <[log in to unmask]>, > "Young, Royce P." <[log in to unmask]> > Subject: FW: RE: Article Query > > Wow! Can you believe a student sent her Intro homework to a > magazine she’s interested in writing for and actually got an > invitation and a chance to work with that magazine? Who woulda > thunk it? > > > > And look at that streamlined and punchy cover letter! > > > > Steph, congratulations on this, and I hope you find all the success > you want with this endeavor. But don’t forget there are other > successes out there waiting. Keep sending your homework out! > > > > Mel > > > > From: Stephanie Rasch [mailto:[log in to unmask]] > Sent: Thursday, November 13, 2008 5:31 PM > To: [log in to unmask] > Subject: Fw: RE: Article Query > > > > Hi Mel, > > > I sent her my opinion piece on a whim...check it out! ~Steph > > > --- On Thu, 11/13/08, Kris Waters <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > From: Kris Waters <[log in to unmask]> > Subject: RE: Article Query > To: [log in to unmask] > Date: Thursday, November 13, 2008, 1:46 PM > > Stephanie - > > > > Thank you for the email. I enjoyed your article and would love to > work with you. I would like for you to join us at our next writers > meeting where we will be discussing content for the January edition > of Lipstick. The meeting is on Tuesday, November 18th at 7pm. A > map is attached. Please give me a call if you have any questions. > > > > > > Kris Waters > > Lipstick Magazine > > (405) 604-2775 > > (405) 694-4516 Fax > > [log in to unmask] > > > > > > From: Stephanie Rasch [mailto:[log in to unmask]] > Sent: Wednesday, November 12, 2008 10:48 PM > To: [log in to unmask] > Subject: Article Query > > Dear Kris Waters, > > > > I heard about Lipstick for Women on campus at OU recently and would > love to learn more about writing opportunities for your magazine. > To start, I have included an 897-word editorial piece about teenage > brides, the reasons they marry so young and what they miss by doing > so. As a 20-year-old, I think my opinion as a peer instead of an > older adult gives it a unique perspective. If you'd like to see > other samples of my work, I am published at Blogcritics.org and > Amazon.com. Thank you in advance for taking the time to consider my > article. I hope to hear from you soon! > > > > Sincerely, > > > > Stephanie Rasch > > [log in to unmask] > > http://midnightoperetta.wordpress.com/ > > (405)201-7063 > > > > Article Below: > > > > By the end of this year, I will have watched three of my friends > walk down the aisle in beautiful white dresses to an exuberant man > at the altar. I will have smiled with wistful tears in my eyes, > watching their lives change forever. I will have sincerely wished > them the very best. But in the back of my mind I will be thinking, > “I’m 20. What are these people doing getting hitched?” > > > > Love; that’s what the young brides will say with a shrug when > asked what the hurry was. Marriage seems like the obvious next step > when you’ve been with someone for a while. You’ve gone through > the usual firsts: first date, first kiss, first fight, first…well, > you know. You’ve met the parents.. You’ve bonded with his/her > friends. You can tell how the other person is feeling just by the > sound of their voice. They always know just what to do to make you > feel special. And that’s enough. > > > > But apparently it isn’t. > > > > According to marriage guides Sheri and Bob Stritof (About.com), > more than half of the couples who marry in their teens will divorce > within 15 years. Why do those so eager to wed split so fast? > > Statistically, intellectual maturity isn’t finished developing > until age 25, says pediatric psychiatrist Jay Giedd in an About.com > article. Women may reach this age a year or two earlier, but that > still puts the youngest wise bride at age 23. Because the rational > part of the brain still growing, teens think with the instinctual > and emotional part of the brain called the amygdala. It makes me > cringe to admit this but it is proof we’re just too immature to > say “I do.” > > > > The biggest problem with marrying so young, however, is the lack of > life experience. During your late teens and early twenties you’re > at a crossroads. Most likely, you’ve finally moved out on your own > but still have the benefit of an allowance from Mom and Dad. Away > from your family’s rules and biases, you finally have a chance to > think for yourself, decide who you are and how you want to live. > > > > That time of discovery is taken away when you trade ‘Me’ for > ‘We.’ Suddenly you aren’t allowed to be selfish. You have > someone else’s needs and feelings to consider. Now you share > responsibility for the both of you and a host of things you > haven’t had much time to learn. Juggling jobs, finances, planning > for the future, and still finding time to focus on each other is > tough but vital. > > > > Women, especially, make themselves vulnerable by marrying before > they have had a chance to establish themselves in society. By > marrying before ever trying living alone and off their own > paycheck, they are left helpless when the marriage doesn’t work > out as well as they had planned. In situations of abuse or > infidelity, the wife is more likely to stay with the husband when > she doesn’t know how to survive by herself. > > > > In reality, there are lots of bad reasons people chose to marry. > Some would rather be taken care of than have to face the big bad > world alone and take the popular “MRS” degree route. Again, this > backfires when the relationship becomes unhealthy and they can’t > see a way out. > > > > Others don’t want to be separated. A popular example of this is in > the military. Eighteen to 21-year-olds bond over their shared > conditions and attraction is inevitable. But once basic training is > over people are assigned to other bases across the country, > sometimes across the world. New relationships are separated before > they have a chance to really begin. Instead of testing their > commitment in a long-distance relationship, they tie the knot. By > getting married, you can insure you and your sweetheart are almost > always a package-deal. Until, that is, the honeymoon period ends > and you realize you’ve legally bound yourself to your new > boyfriend or girlfriend for life.. > > > > Still others are aching to be an adult. They’ve lived with their > guardians for too long and are ready for some real-world action. > They want the white-picket fence, 2.5 kids, and dinner at six. > Stability of their own making appeals to them perhaps because they > couldn’t control their childhood home. But the time and effort it > takes to build that sort of trust and balance cannot be > instantaneously attained. Those who wish for it are soon frustrated > and often jump ship just as quickly as they boarded. > > > > What teens have a hard time wrapping their heads around is that > romance is a tiny part of marriage. Your spouse is also your > business partner who co-manages the money. They are your roommate > who has equal ownership of the remote and bathroom counter. They > are your best friend, who deserves first spot on your social > calendar, first shoulder to cry on and first call for news. They > may be the parent of your children and help decide how the next > generation perceives the world. > > > > Admittedly, people rush into this serious commitment at every age. > Instant gratification tells us if we want it now we should secure > it immediately. But if your love is forever, what will a few years > of ‘me time’ hurt? That way you’ll already know how to take > care of yourself by the time you need to take care of someone else. > Love is supposed to be “patient and kind,” so it shouldn’t > mind waiting. > > > > > > > > E-mail message checked by Spyware Doctor (6.0.0.386) > Database version: 5.11121 > http://www.pctools.com/spyware-doctor-antivirus/ > > > > > > E-mail message checked by Spyware Doctor (6.0.0.386) > Database version: 5.11130 > http://www.pctools.com/spyware-doctor-antivirus/  Deborah Chester John Crain Presidential Professor Gaylord College of Journalism & Mass Communication 395 W. Lindsey Street Norman, OK 73019 (405) 325-4192 [log in to unmask]