(from the staff of The Bulletin)
The Bulletin newspaper, based at the printing establishment of The Elite Printing Company, once again seeks articles and illustrations for a new edition to be published each weekend of the Fair.
Our mission: The Bulletin is a take-off on a Victorian scandal-sheet. It exists to enhance everyone's Dickens Fair fun, publicize gigs, and inspire zany improv.
To submit finished articles or drawings, email editor "Justin Case" (Don Cox) at doncox@earthlink.net. To submit ideas for write-up, email "Leonora Riley" (Lee Bridges) at coachlbridges@yahoo.com. It's very rare for us to receive duplicate and conflicting articles, but you can check with us first. Submitting early gives us a chance to sort it out.
Deadline is Wednesday night before the weekend edition. Contact us if you will miss our deadline; we may be able to delay for a good article. We get almost nothing first weekend because everyone is so busy. Early publication ensures time for your gig-related articles to reach full flower.
We impugn characters, but never real people. The Bulletin is a literary adjunct to our immersive theatrical environment. Don't get real people into real life trouble. If someone asks you not to write about their character, don't do it--they have a good reason, personal or theatrical, whether they choose to share it with you or not.
The use of Victorian veiled phrasing not only gives it the proper style, but protects our Most Impressionable. For instance:
On Sex: "This reporter was shocked that a lady of ill repute invited him to her home for a private how-de-do!"
On Violence: "Our noble captain, despite losing a leg to cannon fire, single-handedly dispatched six enemy soldiers before expiring!"
On Cursing: "The robber, upon capture, let out a cry of (expletives deleted to protect the delicate sensibilities of our readers)."
Average article length is about 250-300 words. Smaller pieces are great because it makes the layout more interesting. Longer pieces are possible depending on subject matter.
Yes, you can write about your own character and your own group. You can even announce your gig schedule. As in Dickens, be bigger than life and not boring. There are a plethora of groups and characters who return annually with whom you can spread scurrilous rumors and start trouble. As a scandal-sheet, we try to maintain an adversarial relationship with various groups and characters ourselves.
You can be far more lurid and melodramatic in print than in the streets, and you can use this to your advantage. For theatrical flavor, we have filled the Thames with squid, followed a scandalous love hexangle, burned down parts of London, printed a recipe for Mock Turtle Soup, had an advice column from Karl Marx, and turned children's stories inside-out.
If you play a historical character, or simply want to write about one, do so. We've had some wonderful submissions about visits from Japanese and Hawaiian delegates, nurses in the Crimea, escaped slaves doing lecture tours, and even investments in the proposed Brooklyn Bridge. We even detailed a genuine visit from the real British Consul with his family.
Merchants, you can write or request an article about your booth. We've learned that a good article generates more visitors (and sales).
Get creative, have fun, and remember the motto of The Bulletin: "Truth! Honesty! Integrity!" (written by our founder in the font known as Blarney Stone).