Teen Ink (Magazine)

Teen Ink. Editors: John and Stephanie H. Meyer. The Young Authors Foundation. ISSN: 1545-1283.

Description:

Teen Ink is a literary magazine for teenagers that was launched in 1989. Originally it was called 21st Century to reflect that it was a magazine for the generation of the future, but the name was changed in the early 2000s. Ten print issues a year are published; many other submissions are posted on their website. Any teenager aged 13 to 19 can contribute to the magazine by submitting their works through an online forum, email, or mail. They are also allowed so submit works anonymously, if they prefer. The magazine accepts poetry, fiction, non-fiction, works of art, photos, interviews, points of view articles, and essays. Nearly a fourth of the magazine is devoted to poetry. Everything featured in the magazine is the work of a teenager; there are no adult contributors. The magazines occasionally have a theme of some kind that many of the works will fall under. The December 2010 issue featured several non-fiction stories about community service.

Critical Evaluation:

Teen Ink is similar in content and format to traditional high school and college literary magazines, but with a few differences. The most obvious difference is that the magazine is much more open to submissions than typical literary magazines are. Any teenager can submit, rather than being limited to students in journalism or English classes or students who are the most gifted writers. The writing is also only lightly edited; generally it is included in it's original entirety. This allows those submitting to have a open outlet for their words that they might not otherwise have.

The magazine has a nice layout, with clearly defined sections and an aesthetically pleasing arrangement of articles and artwork. The ad pages are a little overwhelming, more due to the way they are arranged than the number included. However, the ads are primarily for colleges and other educational and career opportunities, so they are in keeping with the magazine’s style. It is obvious that the content included is written by teenagers, but in a very good way. The stories, poetry and articles are honest, creative and well-written. Though each is very different from the others, they are also cohesive. This magazine would be an excellent addition to a library or classroom for both the works included and the opportunity for teens to submit their own.

Reader's Annotation:

Teen Ink is a literary magazine that gives the opportunity for every teen to be heard.

Editor Information:

John and Stephanie H. Meyer formed Teen Ink in 1989. They felt that traditional teen literary magazines were aimed towards the gifted students, so they wanted to create one that was for everyone. They run the Young Authors Foundation, Inc., a non-profit that supports the magazine.

Stephanie H. Meyer has a Masters in Education and Social Work. She has worked as a publisher, compiler, editor, and author. She also is very dedicated to helping youth. John Meyer has an MBA. He has also worked in various aspects of the publishing field, including publishing two successful business magazines.

Genre:

Teen Literary Magazine

Curriculum Ties:

English
Journalism

Booktalking Ideas:

N/A

Reading Level/Interest Age:

13 and older

Challenge Issues:

Occasional profanity
Occasional drug references

Challenge Defense Ideas:

• Require the challenger to fill out a written challenge form with clear reasons stated and examples given.
• If not already familiar with the content, become familiar.
• Refer the challenger to the library's collection policy.
• Refer the challenger to reputable reviews of the books, as well as reviews by those in the book's target audience.

Reasons for Selection:

This magazine is a great alternative to the traditional literary magazine.

Literature Resource Center (Database)

Literature Resource Center (Database), Gale. Accessed through the San Diego Public Library.

Description:

The Literature Resource Center is a database that can be used to find articles over works of literature, authors, and other literary topics. These articles include book reviews, literary criticism, author biographies, diaries and correspondence, and full text selections of poems and short stories. Additionally, there are links to websites, pictures, and audio interviews.

The database provides several options for searches. In the basic search the user can search by person - by or about, name of work, keyword, or all text. There options for limiting results include searching only peer-reviewed sources, selecting the publication date range or century, and selecting the content type or the specific publication. There is also the option to search the whole database or specific resources. The advance search adds the options of searching by language, document type and intended audience. The person search allows the user to search by name or a combination of gender, ethnicity, nationality, place of birth, place of death, date of birth, date of death, century, genre, occupation, literary movement, and subject. The works search allows the user to name or any combination of type, author, publication year, century, original language, author gender, author nationality, author ethnicity, and full text.

Critical Evaluation:

The Literature Resource Center is a great resource for English teachers and students, as well as anyone with an interest in literature. The vast number of search options almost guarantees that users will be able to find the information for which they are searching. The author and works searches are particularly helpful, because they result in all resources associated with either, which is a much more extensive selection than might be found with the basic or even advanced search options. Despite the sheer number of search options, this is a simple database to use. Extensive knowledge of information databases is not needed, as a natural language search can suffice for most topics. If the user does run into trouble, the user guide offers instructions, tips, and a guided tour that are incredibly helpful.

Annotation:

This database provides articles about writers and literature.

Publishing Company Information:

Gale was first established in 1954 Frederick Gale Ruffner. In 1985 it was acquired by the Thomson Corporation and became part of their Learning Division. When the Thomson Corporation decided to sell its Learning Division in 2007, a private consortium purchased it and the name was changed to Cengage Learning. Gale is the primary reference section of Cengage Learning

Gale has more than 600 databases that are available online, as eBooks, in print, and in microform. Gale’s imprints include Macmillan Reference USA, the TAFT group, Greenhaven Press, and Thorndike Press, among others. In addition to providing services to libraries and schools, Gale allows its products to be licensed to other online information services such as Dow Jones, and Looksmart.

Genre:

N/A

Curriculum Ties:

Can be used to find sources for English classes.

Booktalking Ideas:

N/A

Reading Level/Interest Age:

All ages

Challenge Issues:

None

Challenge Defense Ideas:

If there were challenges:

• Require the challenger to fill out a written challenge form with clear reasons stated and examples given.
• If not already familiar with the content, become familiar.
• Refer the challenger to the library's collection policy.
• Refer the challenger to reputable reviews of the books, as well as reviews by those in the book's target audience.

Reasons for Selection:

Having been an English major and having a particular interest in literary criticism, I found this database to be full of fascinating articles.

Fiction Connection (Database)

FictionConnection (Database), Bowkers. Accessed through the San Diego Public Library.

Description:

FictionConnection is a database that individuals can use to discover books that have similar qualities to those they already like. When using the search field, the user can enter a title, author, or ISBN or choose to search by all three fields. After the correct book or author has been found, the database provides a list of similar titles. There is also a list of characteristics, such genre, topic, location, and so on, that the user can check to narrow the results.

If the user isn’t sure of an exact title or author by which to search, the database also offers lists of keywords under the headings of topic, genre, setting, character, location, and timeframe. After clicking on the keyword, the user is given a list of books as well as a graph that shows other keywords associated with the original keyword. Each new item that is clicked changes the results slightly. After identifying a title he or she would like to read, the user is able to click the "search my library's catalog" button to find a listing of the item at the local library.

Critical Evaluation:

FictionConnection is a great resource for readers. For those readers like me who often finish a book with a desire to read something along the same vein, this can provide a list of several books to satisfy that desire. Additionally, the keyword list and the related subjects graph offer a way for users to discover new titles they might not otherwise have encountered. The ability to find a wide range of titles or narrow it down to a list with very specific characteristics can satisfy the needs of any type of user. The inclusion of the “search my library’s catalog” button makes the transition between choosing a book and finding its availability in the local library an easy one.

This database is very simple to use. Though it is fairly self-explanatory, there is a help menu with step by step instructions. The instructions include pictures, examples and clear explanations of how to use the database.

Annotation:

This is a database for finding books similar to those you already like.

Company Information:

Bowkers is a company that provides products and resources to publishers, book sellers, and libraries. It began in 1872 with the creation of Publisher’s Weekly. In the 140 years since then, Bowkers has acquired or launched numerous services to benefit those working in the publishing industry and related fields.

Bowkers's products include not only FictionConnection, but Non-FictionConnection, Ulrich’s Serials Analysis System, BooksInPrint.com, Pubnet, and many more. Most of its products and services do require a login, but they can be accessed through a library or business that has purchased a subscription.

Genre:

N/A

Curriculum Ties:

For use in any course where a student would need to find a fiction book to read.

Booktalking Ideas:

N/A

Reading Level/Interest Age:

All ages

Challenge Issues:

None

Challenge Defense Ideas:

If there were challenges:

• Require the challenger to fill out a written challenge form with clear reasons stated and examples given.
• If not already familiar with the content, become familiar.
• Refer the challenger to the library's collection policy.
• Refer the challenger to reputable reviews of the books, as well as reviews by those in the book's target audience.

Reasons for Selection:

I have been searching for a resource like this for some time, but I was never aware it existed until I began this project.