September 26, 1997

Dear Ronnie,

I would like to thank you and your staff for the good work you have done for me over the last year. Since September, I have had poems published in two new journals and have had numerous “near misses” from journals I would not have thought to apply to. This may not sound like overwhelming success, but the work you and your staff have done in organizing, sending out, and keeping track of submissions has given me more time to respond to other writing opportunities and has kept my poems in constant circulation, a situation that was difficult (if not impossible) to maintain on my own.

I think we both understand the difficulty of establishing ourselves in poetry. Most writers, busy with other jobs, don’t have time to study the market, and rejections often keep them (perhaps I should say me) from trying again. With Writer’s Relief, someone else is making the decisions about where a poem should be sent and does not hesitate to submit it to other outlets after the manuscript has been turned down once or even twice. While I still get my share of rejections, it is easier for me to see them as part of a process, rather than as a comment on the quality of my work.

I am pleased with the efficiency of Writer’s Relief and with the hands-on service I have received, and I look forward to continued writing success in the coming year.

Sincerely,

Joann G.

September 5, 1997

Ronnie Smith, President
Writer’s Relief

Dear Ronnie:

I’ve been having a great and productive month writing on the Cape. I’ve been doing so well on my to-do list that I realized that for a while I’ve wanted to write you a letter expressing my feelings about the way your company has served my needs as a writer. I couldn’t be happier about the way that you’ve gone about submitting my work and tracking the outcome. It has been enormously helpful to me and the results, at least 7 poems in 6 publications, have been fantastic for me. In the poetry world there are so many publications, I would have to spend all my time reading them to even begin to know where to submit my work. Instead I can write and for a very reasonable fee, you guys do all the rest, in a far more organized fashion than I would have the patience to do myself.

Keep up the good work. I would recommend you to any writer. I will be sending you more stuff soon!

Sincerely,

Beth M.

September 3, 1997

Ronnie L. Smith, President
Writer’s Relief

Dear Ronnie:

I am writing this with boundless enthusiasm in expressing how invaluable Writer’s Relief has been for me.

It seems that our lives move at a galloping pace, leaving very little time for most things. As a poet, I prefer to focus on the creative process (who doesn’t?) and accessing new dimensions for different and exciting work. Writer’s Relief has afforded me the ability to do just that by its professional handling of the submission process.

You have also deftly guided me through a few tricky publishing decisions which I could not have done alone.

I am also impressed with the volume of submissions by Writer’s Relief for the amount of time I am able to authorize. Due to this, I have increased my chance of publication. I am quite certain had I embarked on the submission task myself, I would not have increased my chances of publication as much.

I laud the professionalism of Writer’s Relief and would loudly recommend this fine service to any new client.

Sincerely,

Maryellen C.

August 20, 1997

Ms. Ronnie L. Smith, President
Writer’s Relief

Dear Ronnie:

From my first contacts with Writer’s Relief, my work has been treated in a thoroughly professional, supportive and realistic manner. The recent acceptance of one of my stories by a literary journal only confirms this opinion.

The business of writing has never been more difficult. To survive as a working writer is beyond daunting. But even more intimidating is the stubborn conviction held by many of us that along with what we do to keep body and soul together, we are determined to write that which we want to write. And then, having written, to find ourselves wondering what in God’s name to do with our work.

Writer’s Relief is the only answer, the only true writer’s resource. WR is not a literary agency, WR does not offer literary guidance, WR trusts the writer to know what he or she wishes to write. What WR does is what each and every one of us is so ill equipped to undertake: WR gets the work out there.

The acceptance of my story made me very happy. At the same time, it made me respect even more the diligence with which WR makes its systematic and orderly submissions; I always knew there was a home for my ideas, my thoughts, my feelings as realized on the page. WR confirmed this. There are precious few places, institutions, organizations or resources about which one can say the same.

With my sincere thanks,

George M.

August 12, 1997

Ronnie L. Smith, President
Writer’s Relief

Dear Ronnie:

As a person trying to do too many things, I used to think wistfully about having someone else send out my stories and keep a record of the submissions. My own efforts in this area were spasmodic to say the least. Then a few months ago I saw your ad and decided to give your service a try.

I must say I had no idea what a relief Writer’s Relief could be. Since I signed up, I feel as though one whole section of my writing life is being taken care of (I’m also a novelist, poet, and editor.) Already I see results—one of my stories will be coming out in Potato Eyes. I’ve also received some very helpful comments from other publications.

I’ve been particularly impressed with your efficiency and thoroughness. After many years of being surrounded by miscellaneous card files, entries in notebooks, scribblings on odd bits of paper, items about new editors and defunct magazines, after discovering that I am absolutely unable (unwilling?) to keep records on my computer, I am happy to be in your hands. Furthermore, the meticulous proofreading of your staff was a revelation. I am also impressed by the friendly way in which you have helped me learn to put my work into professional form.

Sincerely,

Mildred M.

August 12, 1997

Ronnie L. Smith
President
Writer’s Relief

Dear Ronnie,

This is to say how pleased I am to be using the services of Writer’s Relief. It has indeed relieved me of an unmanageable task, and turned what used to be a risky venture into a numbers game. I am particularly pleased with the acceptances at Raritan Review, a journal I would never have expected to appear in.

Thanks for everything.

Sincerely yours,

Linda B.

August 5, 1997

Writer’s Relief

Dear Friends,

A year and a half ago, with one whole poem in print, I said to myself, Marion, quit scolding yourself for not submitting and get help! I’d seen your ads in Poets and Writers Magazine. I dropped you a line, you quickly wrote back, and today, more than a dozen of my works have been accepted for publication and several more dozen are constantly circulating. That is a “relief .”

The rejections get a little tiresome sometimes but they don’t sting as they did when I was doing the submitting, and the acceptances have the element of surprise added to the thrill of acceptance.

This letter is to thank all of you at Writer’s Relief for a pleasant and rewarding association.

Sincerely,

Marion J.

August 1, 1997

WRITER’S RELIEF
RONNIE L. SMITH, PRESIDENT

Dear Ms. Smith:

Please accept this letter as my sincere expression of gratitude to Writer’s Relief. In the relatively short time I have been a client, I have had two stories picked up for publication; one in Words of Wisdom, and most recently one in The Rockford Review. As a busy attorney and father of three young children there is no way I could possibly have marketed my writing to so many prospective publications with the level of professionalism that you have exhibited to date.

Should any of your prospective clients wish to contact me, I would be happy to speak with them.

Thanks again,

Richard H.

RMH/co

July 28, 1997

Ronnie L. Smith, President
Writer’s Relief

After about six months, I have spent $700 with Writer’s Relief. For that amount, Writer’s Relief edited and submitted four stories and an essay to about 150 magazines and journals. Through Writer’s Relief’s efforts, I published two of these stories and discovered a publisher for the essay; I found new sources for my fiction and received encouragement from editors; and I was freed from the bookkeeping of keeping track of these submissions. So the highest praise that I can offer Writer’s Relief is that the organization offers a quality product, gets results, and is worth the cost.

Thanks again,

Jim S.

July 26, 1997

Ronnie L. Smith, President
Writer’s Relief, Inc.

Dear Ronnie Smith:

After your competent efforts, I secured an excellent agent in Los Angeles, who has called me several times, and is truly trying to obtain publication for a first novel by an older man.

I used your services, since I was getting on in age, and although I was quite well published in poetry, and had two plays produced, my professional commitments did not allow me to do the kind of work which you have done. One basically pays for service to free one’s self for other work involving either further writing or making of income in other areas.

Utilizing your service obviously does not guarantee the finding of an agent, since I did get many, many rejections-but my good luck has given me more hope and encouragement, and thereby, anyone who uses your service will recognize that their money is well spent, and that you are doing your best to obtain a contact in this very fickle and competitive publishing industry.

I’ve found your service to be very professional and committed to the individual person. Thank you very much.

Sincerely,

Morton F.

July 26, 1997

Ronnie L. Smith, President
Writer’s Relief

Dear Ronnie:

Engaging the services of Writer’s Relief was one of the very best decisions I have ever made in the interest of my career as a writer.

As I look back over the previous year, I am extremely gratified with the positive results of your systematic work. After the initial mailing of my poems and prose to a batch of targeted publications, within 60 days the first acceptance arrived in my mail. Since then, there have been seven more such letters and three literary journals have landed on my doorstep with my published work.

While I had believed in the quality of my work, I discovered that Writer’s Relief forced me to concentrate on pulling together an approach to organizing and polishing my work so that it shone sufficiently to be sent out into the world. Poems and fictions which could have gone unsent and unseen are now in print in little journals and reviews. What has been accomplished with the able help of Writer’s Relief has been the reestablishment, after many years, of my connection to the world of publishing poets. Such a thing is most encouraging and very welcome, particularly after more than a 20-year hiatus since my small-press publishing days.

I look forward to continuing my association with Writer’s Relief and I have recommended your organization to other poets and writers.

Sincerely,

Robert B.

July 26, 1997

Writer’s Relief

Attention: Ronnie L. Smith, President

Dear Ronnie;

I’m pleased to tell you that three of the stories you sent out were recently accepted by literary journals. This would not have happened without your staff’s persistence and its great record-keeping.

I’m grateful for the continuous submission of my work, and for the detailed records you keep of which stories go where, which publications send them back, and what comments are made. Not only would I have lost heart if I’d tried to send material to so many places myself, I also could not have kept track of them this way.

Thanks so much for your unusual and much needed service. You know how hard it is for writers to keep plugging away at sending out their work and for them to keep the scales tilted more in their favor; Writer’s Relief helps out with the hardest part of the job.

Best regards,

Vicki M.

July 17, 1997

Ms. Ronnie Smith
Writer’s Relief

Dear Ronnie.

Because I haven’t said so before, I wanted to take a moment to tell you how delighted I am with your service. Having my stories out there and getting even the most minor feedback from editors has injected tremendous new life into my fiction writing. Suddenly, as never before, I am taking my fiction on seriously. It’s so easy to discount the stuff that doesn’t make money, no matter how much one cares about it. But since signing with Writer’s Relief and getting my stories off my hard disk and out into the world, I’ve “allowed” myself much more time to write fiction—as opposed to the nonfiction with which I make my living—and feel more confident than I ever have. And, every trip to the post office is exciting. I love seeing that familiar envelope. The rejections don’t hurt, and any encouragement is like getting a little gift.

I’ve been singing WR’s praises to anyone who will listen (you’ve been roundly discussed in the CompuServe Journalism Forum). I’m so glad I finally got off my duff and contacted you. No joke—this is changing my life.

Thank you,

Sophia D.

March 9, 1997

Ronnie Smith
Writer’s Relief

Dear Ronnie:

Please feel free to use this letter for potential customers who ask for references. Using Writer’s Relief was the only way I was able to attempt getting a story published. On my own, I had neither the time nor the courage to do the mailings required to get read by the literary magazine editors. I’m feeling braver now, but not ready to give up your service. I still don’t think I would ever do the volume of mailings it takes to be out there. I appreciate your good copy editing services too. Finally, knowing you are there and ready to mail, keeps me writing short stories.

Sincerely,

Judy C.

February 3, 1997

Ronnie L. Smith
Writer’s Relief
Ridgefield Park, NJ 07660

Dear Ronnie:

Please accept my apology in not keeping you up to date on the status of negotiations concerning my book contract with W.W. Norton & Company (New York & London). Thanks to your outstanding efforts in guiding me through the entire submission process of (1) editing the initial book proposal package and (2) matching the latter with an appropriate New York literary agent who was eager to take me on as a client-all has gone well. Norton has bought the book with all being signed, sealed and delivered.

More to the point, however, you should know how much I appreciate your hard work. I cannot believe that it was only a few years ago when I became one of your poetry clients. At that time, I did not have a single publishing credit to my name. Since then, you have been essential in guiding me through the literary marketplace where I have become (to my own astonishment) a variously published poet and, now, soon-to-be published author of my first book.

Thanks again.

Sincerely,

Katherine G.