Chapter 19: 60 cents per thousand words if accepted; if the response is good, the payment can be increased...

"You used punctuation in your article?"

The editor glanced at the manuscript, but before he could even read the contents, his attention was drawn to the punctuation. There haven't been many articles promoting vernacular Chinese and punctuation in recent years, but given his profession, he had read several, though he still habitually referred to punctuation as "句读" (jùdòu).

These two are not the same thing, but there are quite a few people like him in this era.

"Punctuation... do you mean those tadpole-shaped circles?"

Yao Xiaoyu was determined to maintain her persona as an uncultured young girl until the very end. She planned to keep her identity a secret until her manuscript was officially published, and even until her first book was finished and she had gained some fame.

When you're not famous, people choose books; when you're famous, books choose people. Yao Xiaoyu's modern writing career is lukewarm, but she has a friend who's soaring to great heights. The title of her pre-ordered article is simply "pre-order," and the synopsis is still unfinished. The number of favorites makes her incredibly envious.

"Young Master said that he learned this outside and used it because he found it convenient."

Although Yao Xiaoyu has switched from a computer to a fountain pen for writing, some habits remain difficult to change, such as the unconscious use of basic punctuation. However…

“Your young master must come from a modern family.”

The editor made Yao Xiaoyu's disguise even more secure, and then immersed himself in the story. The punctuation marks were a bit disorienting at first, but once you got used to them, they were very convenient. The editor didn't look up until he finished reading the last word. Yao Xiaoyu knew from the editor's eyes that it was a sure thing!

"We want this story."

As the editor spoke, he casually placed Yao Xiaoyu's manuscript in the drawer, afraid that the young girl in front of him would notice something was wrong and run away with the paper.

Yao Xiaoyu's literary skills are not as good as those of people of this era, but her stories have no reading barriers, are very vivid, and most importantly, the main characters and the main plot are very clear.

Having a fixed main character and a clear storyline are the most basic requirements in the highly competitive world of online novels today, but in this era, they are writing techniques that only a very few authors can master.

At least that's true in the realm of novels.

Yao Xiaoyu has collected quite a few newspapers, but apart from some short stories, there aren't many that she can actually read. The main reason is that she can't tell who the protagonist is in most of the stories.

For example, there is a serialized novel called "Wandering Swordsman". Judging from the title, it should be a story of a swordsman in the martial arts world, but from the beginning to several later serializations, a large part of it describes a female knight-errant who uses a whip.

Then, just when she thought the novel's title might have been chosen randomly and that the heroine was the protagonist, the heroine got married, and the story was told through a different character.

Yao Xiaoyu: ...

What happens next in this story?

After confirming that the locked drawer could not be easily opened, the editor finally felt comfortable asking further questions. Yao Xiaoyu, who was recalling how much her eyes had been tortured, instantly got into character, shaking her head and skillfully putting on a blank expression.

"Young Master hasn't written it yet. He said if this story gets published in the newspaper, he'll continue writing it; if not, he won't."

Yao Xiaoyu wasn't lying. She had prepared the outline, but the main text really was only the 10,000 words she submitted to the editor, not a single word more.

"Yes, we can do it! We definitely can!"

The editor spoke loudly, drawing surprised looks from those around him. This man was usually very vague in his speech, and this was the first time they had seen him speak so decisively.

The editor ignored everyone else's gaze and only looked at Yao Xiaoyu. In the past, he spoke vaguely because the manuscripts he received were of limited quality, and whether they were accepted or rejected was just a matter of a moment's thought. But now that this story was in his hands, it would be foolish to let it go!

"How long does your young master plan to write? When will the new manuscript be sent over? How many words will it contain?"

The editor pressed her for an answer with some anxiety, and Yao Xiaoyu feigned timidity, shrinking back before slowly speaking.

"The young master said this story is about 130,000 words long. If it gets published in the newspaper, he's currently free and can probably submit about 10,000 words a week..."

This speed would be heavily criticized in modern times, but in this era, writing thousands of words a day is already a sign of diligence, and missing deadlines is commonplace. People like Zhang Henshui, who wrote 4,000 words a day and still had time to play mahjong, are extremely rare.

The editor asked some other questions, but Yao Xiaoyu's image as an honest little girl remained firmly established. She refused to provide her name and information, citing the young master's reluctance to reveal his identity, and only gave them a pen name.

"A Little Fish... Do you really want to use this pen name, young master..."

The editor suspects that the young girl forgot her master's pen name and came up with it randomly. Based on the girl's previous behavior, it's not impossible.

"Let's use this one!"

Yao Xiaoyu could see the editor's suspicion, but the little girl couldn't; she simply repeated the "young master's" reason.

“My young master said that after this pen name appeared in the newspaper, he told his rival, ‘You’ve been defeated by a little fish.’”

The editor and the eavesdropper gasped at the thought of the scene, thankful they weren't the ones being boasted about by that young master; just imagining it made them cringe. The girl, oblivious to the tense atmosphere, continued chattering:

"To be honest, this name isn't very powerful. If it were called 'Little Pink Bunny,' it would definitely be more effective!"

In other words, Yao Xiaoyu didn't want to become a target; otherwise, she would have given herself a pen name like "Seven-Colored Shrimp" or "Pink Furry Rabbit" to give the reserved people of the Republic of China a little shock.

Wait a minute, pen names aren't subject to the modern real-name system, so it doesn't seem like a problem, does it? As long as you're willing to forgo royalties, who would know these pen names are yours?

A sky-blue kitten, cherry blossoms and dreamy tears, a mop stained with urine and Zhang Fei roaring... Yao Xiaoyu came up with countless pen names almost instantly. Apart from a very few that were purely cute, most of them had very eye-catching characteristics of the times, perfectly showing the chaotic life of modern people.

Yeah, once she has money, she'll throw them out one by one to blow up newspapers!

"A little fish is fine. Your young master really knows how to name things."

The crowd, stunned by the pen name "Pink Rabbit," finally came to their senses. The editor who had received Yao Xiaoyu's manuscript made the decision immediately, and the others nodded in agreement. Why change it? Xiaoyu is fine; she's much better to be seen than Pink Rabbit!

The chaotic atmosphere caused by the pen name gradually subsided, and the editor stopped questioning the author's real identity and finally got to the most crucial issues: payment and publication time.

The payment for the article is related to Yao Xiaoyu's future plans and standard of living, while the publication time determines when Yao Xiaoyu will receive the payment. As stated on the submission address, the payment will only be settled after the article is published in the newspaper, and the payment will be based on the number of words published in the newspaper.

Some people do receive advance payment for their writing, but even though Yao Xiaoyu is now considered a rare commodity, she doesn't receive that kind of treatment.

However, it's not difficult to expedite the publication process and get it done a little earlier.

"My young master isn't short of money; he just wants to see the article published as soon as possible."

Yao Xiaoyu meant that the payment for the article was arbitrary, but how could the editor take it seriously? What if the young master achieved his goal of getting published in the newspaper, but then felt it was meaningless and stopped writing?

But if they pay too much, they have regulations on the remuneration for newcomers, and they can't deliberately delay the publication time, otherwise the young master who's eager to report and criticize the rival might not wait and go to another publication... The editor was torn between two conflicting emotions, but finally gritted his teeth and spoke:

"We have a rule here that unless you are a particularly famous author, the first submission is usually 50 cents per thousand words."

Long novels are cheaper than essays and miscellaneous writings, and it's common for newcomers to be pressured to lower their prices. Although the materials she had read said that in this era, a thousand words could fetch several yuan, that was after inflation. She was quite satisfied with the current price.

After all, compared to the eight copper coins for copying a thousand words, the price of five cents for a thousand words was many times higher, and she believed that with her abilities, this income was just the beginning.

"but……"

Yao Xiaoyu was calculating how many silver dollars she would earn after writing the book when she caught the key words the editor mentioned, and her ears immediately perked up.

Is there a surprise in store?

"This article is really well written. I'm willing to make an exception and try to get a price of six cents per thousand words. If it gets a good response after publication, the price might be raised even further."

The editor, ignoring the shocked looks on the faces of those around him, continued:

“If your young master can submit 10,000 words of manuscript every week, this story can be published in the newspaper next week, with about 5,000 words published each time.”

“Pi Xiukang, you…”

Someone nearby exclaimed in surprise, but more people became increasingly curious—just how good must this manuscript be for the usually cautious editor Pi to take such a big risk?

You see, newspaper layouts are fixed. If someone's article gets published, some of the original content will have to be removed. If it sells well, great, but if it doesn't...

Is this okay?

Pi Xiukang ignored the stares of the people around him. Even if there weren't many articles to publish right now, and there were plenty of empty spaces in the newspaper for articles written by the editors themselves, he would still carve out a spot for this article!

While it's true that every radish has its own hole, ginseng deserves its own hole!

"It will be in the newspaper next week?"

Yao Xiaoyu confirmed it again, then put on a happy expression:

"The young master will definitely agree!"

After reaching an agreement on the most crucial issue and fixing the publication frequency at twice a week, Yao Xiaoyu left, muttering about buying "The Complete Collection of Sayings" next week. Watching the little girl's happy back, Pi Kangxiu felt a little guilty, which was unusual for him.

Both "The Complete Collection of Storybooks" and "The Complete Collection of Words" are newspapers, so it shouldn't matter which one you publish in.

"Xiukang, let me see this quickly. What kind of manuscript could make you make such a big concession?"

The moment Yao Xiaoyu's figure disappeared behind the door, her friend came over and winked at her, and the people around her joined in the teasing. Pi Kangxiu was a gentle person, and since he had almost finished his work, he carefully took out the manuscript and let everyone look through it.

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Author's Note: Yao Xiaoyu: Today is a good day~

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