Encourage her to look on the bright side. Hey, she got published. Paid or not, she got published! That itself is an accomplishment.

Once the manuscript leaves the author's hands it is "property" of the editor. Hopefully one day she will be renumerated for her work. But at this point she is gaining so much experience.

Tell her to forget the whole incident and write another story in another local--but to expect it to be mangled by another editor. That's life!

As far as friends and others teasing her about the story, tell her to ask them, "When was the last time YOU had a story printed in such a magazine?"

Keep on writing!

Nancy in Montreal

This is the sort of thing that happens even to well-seasoned established writers. Editors are ghouls.

A manuscript is the "property" of an editor for more than one edition only if you have sold more than first rights. After it is published, you can sell it to another publication -- and hope for the best.

A lot of stuff going on here BW and I don't know where to begin. Eager talent must be about the easiest commodity to exploit. Exploitation is to be expected in the magazine publishing caper and perhaps any business that buys and sells the innocence that comes with artistic endeavour. The only way this can be avoided, as far as I know, is to get someone in tune with that dog eat dog to deal for you. An agent.
There is no doubt that a writer able to carry on after rejection is the real thing. Your niece gained success but due to some peer pressure she feels unsure of herself and her direction. The magazine people butchered her piece. If it was a good piece she should send it on being more careful.
Meanwhile: a fifteen year old having something that she has written published!! She should be proud. In some circles a "Letter to the editor" is seen as a result.

"VALLEY-GIRL" language?????? How degrading. I even know a doctor who speak this way and it is very unprofessional. That part of your letter on how they changed her article incensed me. To put it bluntly those editors are not very good editors and are contributing to giving all editors a bad name and they are not all bad. A letter to the editor might seem a good idea but if they were stupid enough to do such a thing in the first place that wouldn't do much good. I would write the publisher and complain about the editor and the publication in general. As bad as it is I would still buy several copies of this magazine and save them. She might tell her peers that those editors are appealing to a certain audience (maybe some of her friends?) because that's where their readership lies. I agree that a good retort is "and what have YOU published?" For a while she might carry around copies of her original article so she can show others just what the editors did to her - in fact, that might make a good article or school report in itself. As Dear Abby says "If life gives you lemons, make lemonade."

Tell her that if she wants to be a writer, get used to it.
They can print corrections, but once it is out there, the "confusion" is hard to replace. I have had articles printed with the last half as the first half, rewritten to shorten my work with the result that information about a plant family was totally mixed up and credit for my photography (although the shots weren't so great for me to care if someone else got credit) was given to someone else (who probably was more upset to be given credit for my so-so photos). I stew about it for a couple of days and then move on. Sometimes I have followed up with a correction in my next weekly column, but if you aren't weekingly, can't do that. Sharon

The editor has the reponsibility to set the tone for a magazine or newspaper. Not the writer.

Usually it's a business with a distinct niche being carved out. Hundreds of magazines and publishers have gone bust because they forget it's a commercial undertaking and there will be no artistic expression if there is no publication.

Editors have to be 'god' or the publication will fail. Ruthless in puting the magazine first and the feelings of the writer after the expectations of the readers. Magazines are for the readers, not the writers.

A writer can write all they want if they don't want it published. It's a free society. An editor can't be at the whims of an author with 'hurt feelings'. Any author with a thin skin should do something else.

As for a 15-year-old? It's a difficult lesson in life. What night help is to go to the library and read about the publishing industry and read a few biographies of famous authors and artists. When they failed to publish at first, it wasn't having to withstand jokes from fellow students but rather withstand malnutrition and trying to earn enough money to but a pen and piece of paper. Hopefully this girl, obviously very talented, will persevere.

"The editors changed the "tone" of her piece. She says that they changed her words and substituted "Valley-girl" language, phrases and colloquialisms that she would never use, and that the resulting piece makes her "sound" stupid (her words). To add insult to injury, the photo accompanying the piece was altered, and it does not look like her at all. And, her home state was listed as Maine, not Massachusetts."

Tell her about the writer's revenge: she can write about the editors who wrecked her writing to pander to the "Britneys" among her peers, with samples of the before and after text. (fair use and critique) and sell it to the competitors. And if she didn't sell "all rights", she can always resell the original, without the Val-speak. What did her contract say?

They owe her a correction for the home state.

They should have given her one chance to change the "tone' to be more casual - most editors will - but unfortunately, editors (and I am one) have the fnal say.

At 62, my main concern is getting the check in the mail...I usually don't read a piece once I've emailed it to the publication. As a reporter/journalist, I just don't have the time to re-read something I've written days/weeks/months ago. I'm onto something new.
Tell your niece, she did a great job. When she submits future items, perhaps she will understand/research the readership of the particular publication more, and formulate the piece so that it can be used as originally written.
Good luck to her.
Ann

I like lazygardens' answer best. Maybe your niece could address an e-mail to LG after reading LG's reply here(if you are allowing her to see any or all of this thread). Might be good for her to see how different editors have different takes on the position and duties of editor. Lazygardens seems to have a different ethical stance as well.

Boston -
I would be happy to consult directly with your niece. I've been published (and edited, both well and not so well), and most of my work is writing and editing technical material.

Many of her options depend on the contract she had, and at FIFTEEN, she can't legally contract anything ... which means she probably has rights to whatever it was she wrote.

My 50 year old daughter, after writing hundreds of free-lance articles, had a 400 page book published by Random House last year. Her agent recommended a re-write of 100 pages, the editors requested a re-write of 100 pages and a 200 page addition to her original mss. She has a Masters in both English and Non-fiction writing. True, she got a $20,000 advance on sales. but it can be exasperating. Just stay with it, young author, keep writing, have a dozen articles submitted to different sources, when one rejects, send it to the next one. You friends will quit teasing you!