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Library Newsletter
Fall 2008
In This Issue:
From The
Dean's Desk
The Library is again off
to a great start this Fall. With the 13% increase in GSW
enrollment, we have observed ever more usage of the
Library. Given the system-wide budget cuts which have
impacted us in a number of ways including the freezing
of a position and a small reduction in hours, it has
been a challenge to meet the needs of all our users but
judging by their positive responses in our latest User
Survey, we have been successful in doing so. But we are
never content to sit on our laurels so we are constantly
assessing ourselves through a variety of methods.
The Annual User Survey is
one of several ways the Library assesses its
performance. This survey is handed out to all users
entering the Library during one week in October, this
year Oct. 20-26th, and is also available online through
a link on the Library’s home page. This year 108 patrons
responded: 61 on-site, 47 online (91 students, 11
faculty/staff, and 6 from other groups).
Library usage has gone up
considerably despite our small reduction in hours.
According to the numerous laudatory comments we
received, this is in part due to our friendly and
helpful staff, pleasant environment, and access to
needed resources. Other factors include the increase in
GSW’s enrollment and increased WebCT usage.
The trend over the past
few years has been a considerable increase in usage of
our electronic resources. This continued in the current
year with the largest number of respondents saying the
resources they use the most are electronic resources
(74). However, the most frequent reasons they gave for
coming to the Library are: 1) to study, 2) do research,
and 3) use the computer lab. 102 of 103 respondents
found the materials they needed and all 56 of those who
asked for assistance were pleased with the help they
received.
We were very pleased with
the feedback and encourage all our users to provide us
with input and suggestions. We do follow-up on
suggestions and to the extent our budget permits,
attempt to meet the needs expressed. For example, the
request for updated and more computers continues to be
met. Last Fall, we added 2 new computers on level 2.
Currently, all our public work stations are being
updated, soon to be followed with updated computers for
our computer lab. We are grateful to the Administration
and OIIT for making this possible.
Please feel free to send
us your comments and suggestions. Our online "suggestion
box" is: library@canes.gsw.edu.
Thank you for your
support and encouragement.
Vera Weisskopf
Dean of the Library
vjw@canes.gsw.edu
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Library Hosts Lunches at the Library Events
The James Earl Carter
Library jump started the Lunches at the Library Fall
Program with a Banned Books Celebration on Tuesday
September 30th. Members of the faculty, staff, student
population, and community of GSW participated in the
event. Readings were done from a wide range of books
including: The Kite Runner by Khalid Hosseini,
Forever by Judy Blume, To Kill a Mockingbird
by Harper Lee, Chocolate War by Robert
Cormeir, and Lady Chatterly’s Lover by D.H.
Lawrence.
On October 31st, the
Library had a big turnout for our annual Pumpkin Carving
Contest. Students, faculty, and staff came out to carve
and decorate pumpkins on the lawn in front of the
library. Prizes were awarded to the first, second, and
third place winners. We would like to thank everyone who
came out to participate!
Valarie Anthony
Access Services Supervisor
vanthony@canes.gsw.edu
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What's New At The Library
Selective List of New
Titles/Acquisitions In Fall 2008:
Seizing the Light: A History of Photography
Robert Hirsch
TR15 .H557
Amphibians and Reptiles of Georgia
John B. Jensen
Ref. QL653 .G4 A46 2008
Text Mining Handbook
Ronen Feldman
QA76.9 .D343 F45 2007
In the Spotlight: J.P. Wilson's Guide to Getting Published
As a published author, I was
asked to write an article on creating and selling a manuscript.
Lesson 1:
Fiction markets are saturated with stories. The average semi-pro
magazine (a magazine that pays under $0.05 a word) gets about
200-300 manuscripts per submission period. Usually, it is
searching for 10-20 stories, depending upon length. Editors have
to read many stories in a short amount of time and call this
massive buildup the "slush pile." Most will wade through the
slush, skimming the surface, before moving on. In other words,
an editor will probably only read the first couple of paragraphs
of your manuscript before deciding whether or not to put it into
a round two folder or drop it like a hot potato. So, make your
first three paragraphs count. You want to get the editor’s
attention quickly. Begin the story with a "bang." This was the
first paragraph of the first story I sold: "I’m going to kill
you," the Good Samaritan said.
Lesson 2:
Plot and characters are the most important things in a story.
Don’t even think about theme before you write. You want to
create something that is easy for people to read and understand
and relate to. Editors are not going to sit down and read a
confusing literary piece and ponder what it means. Publishers
want to sell their magazines, and they realize that their
customers want a quick-paced story that is fun to read. Also,
create believable characters. I don’t want to read about a
perfect guy with a perfect family and perfect job. Even
Super-Man has flaws, and he’s an alien.
Lesson 3:
Prepare to be rejected. You won’t sell everything you write. I
sold a story in 1998. I wrote off and on for the next five years
and sold nothing. This year, I have submitted 25 stories and a
novella. 40 percent of the stories have sold and I’m still
waiting to hear about the novella. I’ve got a sneaky suspicion
that a "Dear John" letter is lurking for me in the USPS
somewhere.
Now, as far as selling your
stories, always remember to read the guidelines closely. If you
write a horror story, then submit it to a horror magazine. Here
are two addresses that contain many, many markets:
www.duotrope.com and
www.ralan.com. Good luck and
much success.
Bibliography:
"The Sad and Tragic Truth," Hewlett
Packard’s Young Writers Contest, 1998
"Prey," Shroud Magazine, issue 2, February/March 2008
"Bad Billy," Necrotic Tissue, Issue 4, October 2008
"Rainy Night," Blood Moon Rising, October 2008
"The Reckoning," SpaceWesterns.com, November 2008
"You Can’t Kill the Dead!," Harvest Hill Anthology, 2009
"Dead by Dawn," Necrotic Tissue, issue 5, January 2009
"Heart Matters," Malpractice: An Anthology of Bedside Terror,
2009
"The Devil Calls," Northern Haunts Anthology, 2009
"Fair Game," Necrotic Tissue, Issue 6, April 2009
John
Wilson
Interlibrary Loan Assistant
jwilson@canes.gsw.edu
In July 2008 EBSCOhost
introduced its new search interface, EBSCOhost 2.0. This
means that many of the databases you use through GALILEO
including Academic Search Complete, ERIC, CINAHL, and
PsycINFO, got a new look and enhanced features.
According to Michael Gorrell, EBSCO Publishing’s senior
vice president and CIO, one goal of the redesign was to
improve the interface’s overall usability by combining a
simplified search experience with in-depth functions.
New features include mouse-over previews of article
contents within the Result List, spell-check functions
when search terms are misspelled, a dynamic date slider
to narrow in on a specific date range, and a new Cite
button that provides article citations in six different
formats. Users are now able to refine their search
directly from the Result List by utilizing panels on
either side of the screen. On the left, results can be
narrowed down by Source Type, Subject, Author, or
Publication. On the right, users can limit by date range
and full text as well as access other search options. A
new search mode has also been added - SmartText
Searching. This allows users to copy and paste large
amounts of text into the search box including full
sentences and paragraphs. This is a useful tool for
tracking down citations in assignments and to check for
plagiarism.
If you have any questions about using EBSCOhost 2.0 or
any of its new features, please contact us and we will
be more than happy to help.
Gretchen Smith
Collection Development
gsmith@canes.gsw.edu
Blue Lotus
Blue water
lily growing along the Nile,
A symbol in hieroglyphics etched on tile.
Gathering meant rowing through the reeds,
A small task for a flower of many needs.
In ancient Egypt, it was a symbol of life,
Sacred to Pharaohs for triumph and strife.
The lotus would rise with morning light
Follow the sun and close at night.
Essence was extracted with a careful hand-
Released fragrance drifted across the land.
Caravans of merchants traveled many a mile,
With blue petals from the lotus of the Nile.
Amy Wise
Collection Development Assistant
aew@canes.gsw.edu
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