Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters JB: Why did Gary Sitton disappear from Handloader in 1999?

Very perceptive. Yes, you are correct on most counts, except that I am not a teacher. That is one area in which I am not gifted.

Interesting thoughts here.

I have had 3 rejections in my career spanning nearly 25 years, 1 in Australia when a new editor thought he was an apprentice "GOD" and wanted everyone to bow down,(he didn't last long) and 2 here in the US, 1 from an editor who only supported the good old boys in his stable, rejecting new or unfamiliar writers, and a second justifiably, because I did not follow the brief provided, though I got a reprieve and mentoring, on how to get it right.

The editor you deal with has a huge influence on your potential success as a writer. I believe everyone has a good story to tell or a unique way of presenting their thoughts. Some may be more prolific than others, but that can change as experience opens your mind to topics you can cover.

I would suggest writing in a style that follows your way of conversing so it has natural flow to it. Then, leave it to gather a little dust.

Come back to it a read it as though you are reading to learn from it. Note your grammar, phrasing, detail and the areas you spend excessive time pondering, as well as the places you can offer a little more, to enhance the information.

If you are describing a hunt, think hard about the terrain and weather conditions and ensure that is included in the content.

Please, Please, Please do not commit the world wide criticism that most US writers get. You use a rifle, a load, a scope, and something happened after you pulled the trigger. WHAT?????

I cannot tell you the amount of criticism I have heard some well known writers receive "as they seem to go out of their way not to tell you what they used on the hunt". Infuriating.

I had an editor tell me once, "nobody gives a S--- how many flat tires you had or how long you got screwed around at the airport". "What did you hunt?" "What did you carry and what load?" "What happened after the shot?" The end.

I think you can elaborate a little more than that, but I too am infuriated as a reader when the author does not tell you about his rifle and load.

Most readers are looking for confirmation that they have already bought the perfect hunting rifle and you can cover that obligation or, inspire them to purchase something they really were interested in already, but gain that little extra inspiration they needed to take the financial step after reading your prose.

Write. Failure is for quitters, so send it elswhere but never send it to 2 or more editors at the same time as you run the risk of 2 acceptances and that is your end to a writing career.

As for Gary Sitton, he was one of the best of the last generation taking you to wonderfula nd beautiful places and he always shared his rifles and loads with his readers. If you want to be a gun writer, writing about guns is a good idea.

JW

That's the best capsule summary of gun magazines I've seen on this forum. It perfectly describes what I've been thinking the past few days reading every article by JB on the 7x57, and particularly the 7x57 Ruger No. 1. I'm going to buy the rifle, I just need a little moral support...

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You cannot go wrong with a Ruger 7x57.

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I had forgotten we lost G. Sitton in 2006....didn't we lose Capstick about the same time?

Like Ken said, there's a generation shift going on. In writing as in other fields. Hate to see it sometime....

Ella

I sometimes wonder if the Gun Mags should have a "page" (near the back) for "new" writers (beginners so to speak). I think would find it interesting at least if reasonably well written. Something other than the same old same old. Of course, that is probably why I am NOT an editor of any magazine.
Of course, if someone hadn't invented "spell check" I would be speechless...

"I sometimes wonder if the Gun Mags should have a "page" (near the back) for "new" writers (beginners so to speak). I think would find it interesting at least if reasonably well written. Something other than the same old same old."

Wouldn't that be refreshing! That's a darn fine idea.

(I'd venture there's a lot more to good writing than spelling. Some sensible substance would be high on my list.)

I used to get some of our best stuff from the one-time writers among our readers. Should be so now. Should be encouraged.

One of my greatest pleasures as Editor � and the source of much of my lasting pleasure, memories, and pride � was "discovering" and encouraging new writers (several of whom are world-renowned and well respected today).

Ken,

I have been reading Handloader and Rifle since the early '80's. And I have acquired most of the back issues. I always enjoyed reading some of the "unknowns". In fact, I planned to do the same when I retired. Been retired now for two years, but you talked me out of going into the writing game. I do wish new writers were encouraged as in the days when you were at the helm.

Every time my subscriptions are up for renewal, I agonize over whether to renew or not. So far I have, but increasingly I just leaf thru it and toss it on the pile. I can't believe I've learned all there is about shooting and reloading, but there is just not much there to hold my interest any more. I could count on one hand all the complete articles that I have read straight thru. Usually I think I'll come back to it later, but I rarely do...

Grasshopper

Now that JB is back, TTT.

You've got to be kidding...

I too liked Sitton's writing. Nothin' much to do with this discussion, but every now and then Sitton "pops up" on some of the older History Channel programs about firearms, when they repeat. Always a joy to see and hear him again.

Been lucky enough to have met a few true wizards in my 60+ plus years. Very few of them came with indiscernible demons.

I am glad to see this thread of my friend hasn't died yet. I sure wish there was a way of compiling his works and publishing them too. I would spend my own (limited) money, just to see it done and available..Thats the problem with Copyrights LOL..

I am cuting back on magazine subscriptions; I just don't seem to have time to read them all. BUT, Handloader and Rifle are always renewed - great publications!

Wow time flies looks like I posted this 15 years ago.... Gary was a gifted writer. Still hoping for a collected works publication.

I spent a lot of my years editing outdoor and gun magazines. I saw the works of many writers. Most were ok. Some were surprisingly bad and clear evidence that editors had been correcting and rewriting their work for years. A very few, like Sitton, were truly gifted.

Not Gary, but I remember one guy who kept sending me manuscripts that I rejected. This was in the brief time I was editor of Handloader and Rifle (that's a story for another day). He grew frustrated at the rejections and explained that he owned and had read more than 100 books on guns, ballistics, and shooting.

"That's great," I said. "But how many books do you own on writing? I'm not publishing your knowledge. I'm buying your writing."

I suggested a half-dozen books on writing. To his credit, he bought and read them, incorporated what he learned into his writing, and I started using his work.

All the way back to when he was at the NSSF, Gary stood out as a wonderful writer. One thing I enjoyed was that he didn't try to make it complicated. No Hemingway-type never-ending sentences. It's still hard to beat the simple, declarative sentence.

I was thinking the same things just recently while re-reading the back pages of Peterson's Hunting I have stashed away. The year 1997 was one of his best years in the role of the final word of the magazine. As an English major I truly appreciate his writing and as I get older his viewpoint is one I seem to favour more and more.

Sorry I never met him person, or chanced upon him by a campfire, black coffee in hand.

Now that my old friend Tom Gresham has posted on this thread, I'll mention the reasons why a book collection of Gary's columns probably won't appear. First, he isn't around to put one together, and hasn't been for a while--long enough that many of today's younger hunters never heard of him--and are often more tuned in to hunting videos than reading.

Second, for some of the same reasons hunting stories, no matter how well-written, haven't sold as well in either magazines or books. I was discussing this with another old friend, Craig Boddington, a year or two ago, and we've both seen far more emphasis (and hence publishing success) on the technical side of hunting--especially rifles, cartridges and handloading.