From: owner-scribes@castle.org (scribes digest) To: scribes-digest@castle.org Subject: scribes digest V5 #92 Reply-To: Sender: owner-scribes@castle.org Errors-To: owner-scribes@castle.org Precedence: bulk scribes digest Sunday, March 18 2001 Volume 05 : Number 092 ======================================================================== To unsubscribe from this list, send email to with unsubscribe scribes-digets in the body of the message. Leave the subject line blank. Do not include any additional text. Re: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. Re: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. Re: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. Re: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. Re: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. [scribes]: Scribal treatment continued Re: [scribes]: Scribal treatment continued [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. Re: [scribes]: Scribal treatment continued Re: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 13:02:16 EST From: Luiseach@aol.com Subject: Re: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. In a message dated 03/18/01 6:37:09 AM, meisterin@comteck.com writes: << Yes, Midrealm scribes are getting fed up and with just cause. But, just think of the ramifications if we all stopped doing what we all love so much -- NO ONE WOULD GET AN ORIGINAL SCROLL AT AN EVENT AGAIN!! I don't even want to think of that option. >> Ummmmmmmm, Why not?? In Caid, most awards are given with "charter" scrolls--what used to be called "promissories"-- these are preprints with the decorations hand-colored (during my time as Their Majesties' scribe, it was with gouache) and the awardee's name, Majesties' names and date filled in by hand. If someone wants an "original scroll" they then contact the Scribe Armarius and ask to have their name put on the list OR make their own arrangements with a scribe and let the Scribe Armarius know so that their scroll assignment is not given to any of the kingdom scribes. This system means that Their Majesties can add as many awards as they want right before or during an event and no one ends up stuck in the scribes' room and missing an event. Luighseach nic Lochlainn Dreiburgen, Caid =================================================================== To unsubscribe from this list, send email to with a blank Subject: line and unsubscribe scribes in the body of the message. Do not include any additional text in the body. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 14:00:20 -0500 From: "Helen Schultz" Subject: Re: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. In reply to Luiseach@aol.com... Luighseach: The "why not" in our case is a matter of pride, I guess. The Midrealm has done the original scroll thing for so long that it would be true "culture shock" for it to suddenly stop. My guess would be that Caid has always done the promissory thing??? Am I correct? We have had some reigns where promissories were considered only for "last minute" additions (like the ones at the event). But, even those didn't get off the ground. Oh, there are times when our Royalty do use a promissory scroll, but this is the exception there, not the rule. I started my SCA career in Drachenwald (when it was a Principality) and the ONLY scrolls one got were colored in prints... sadly, at that time, they were mostly colored in with felt tip markers and rarely could the one or two scribes of the time (that was all there were then) match the script of the person who had done the originals (who was no longer living), so the inserted names and dates often looked far out of place. The last year I lived in Drachenwald was when the Principality started its first Signet Office (hi, William ) and originals were being tentatively done. In fact, I have one of the first scrolls from one of the current Princesses on my wall, and it is one of my most treasured scrolls (but I digress). Of course, now scribes are generally more knowledgeable of different hands, and probably could match a printed text better. But, the problem I see with this is space... I'd like to see someone put my entire name into the size of blocks most people leave for the name of the individual... and mine is not one of the longest I've ever seen . Unless an entire line is left for just the name of the recipient, I can't see this working overly well. The same applies to the names of the Royalty. I think I would rather see an illuminated blank for someone to calligraph the entire text in more than an already calligraphed piece with arbitrary spaces for names and events. This is just me. If it works well in Caid and the West, then by all means, continue to do so. (By the way, I have a lovely piece someone did during a particular reign to be used as a blank... but never was, it has the name of the Royalty in it, and it can never be used unless for a backlog... which reminds me, I should give it to our Backlog Signet just in case it can be used.) Another problem with the Midrealm doing scribal things the way Caid and the West do is size... we are a physically larger land mass, with a larger population. Your promissory technique might not even be a consideration when numbers are taken into play. Just a thought. And, sadly, there are times when even with our own award system, sometimes scrolls fall through the crack. I know of some people who didn't even get their names put onto the Order of Precedence after being given a "last minute" award at an event, but that is another matter completely. Thanks for letting me ramble. Meisterin Katarina Helene von Schoenborn, OL Shire of Narrental (Peru, Indiana) Middle Kingdom - ----- Original Message ----- > > In a message dated 03/18/01 6:37:09 AM, meisterin@comteck.com writes: > > << Yes, Midrealm scribes are getting fed up and with > just cause. But, just think of the ramifications if we all stopped doing what > we all love so much -- NO ONE WOULD GET AN ORIGINAL SCROLL AT AN EVENT AGAIN!! > > I don't even want to think of that option. >> > > Ummmmmmmm, Why not?? In Caid, most awards are given with "charter" > scrolls--what used to be called "promissories"-- these are preprints with the > decorations hand-colored (during my time as Their Majesties' scribe, it was > with gouache) and the awardee's name, Majesties' names and date filled in by > hand. If someone wants an "original scroll" they then contact the Scribe > Armarius and ask to have their name put on the list OR make their own > arrangements with a scribe and let the Scribe Armarius know so that their > scroll assignment is not given to any of the kingdom scribes. This system > means that Their Majesties can add as many awards as they want right before > or during an event and no one ends up stuck in the scribes' room and missing > an event. > > Luighseach nic Lochlainn > Dreiburgen, Caid =================================================================== To unsubscribe from this list, send email to with a blank Subject: line and unsubscribe scribes in the body of the message. Do not include any additional text in the body. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 14:24:45 EST From: Liriel9247@aol.com Subject: Re: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. - --part1_d6.3c3dc37.27e6657d_boundary Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Greetings, > > I wanted to agree with Mistress Katarina on several points. Often the > Royalty for various reasons, known only to them, wait until the last > minute. > This is not always their fault, sometimes they are waiting to give the > populous a chance for recommending people, and also, we need to remember, > that although it may not seem like it, they have a life here too. We need > to > understand that there is no one real person that is to blame. > > As a Regional Signet, I have found it to be invaluable to have a good > working > relationship with my Kingdom Superior, and to keep in contact with her. > Also, it is important to have the same with those scribes in my region. > When > I know that there is a court coming up, I always try to ask at least a > couple > of weeks in advance, whether I have a court list or not, if people would > start working on blanks. > > I have spent many events in Scribal Rooms, and I have come to realise, that > although I may be running the room, working on scrolls etc. (and I > encourage > everyone to do this), that you need to take a break. Take 15 - 20 minutes, > go out, get a snack, see the merchants, visit with a friend or two and let > yourself unwind that little bit. You will find that you will be able to > concentrate more, and will not be so stiff at the end of the day. > > I have to admit, that I do call on Mistress Katarina, perhaps more than I > should, as she is my Laurel, however, she does such pretty work, its hard > not > to. (:P I would also have to say, Mom, that you are doing a fine job > living > up to my expectations, and I would like to thank you for all the hard work > you have given and done for me in the last few months since I took the > office. > > YIS > > A'isha bint Da'ud OW > White Waters (South Bend IN) > Constellation Regional Signet - Midrealm > - --part1_d6.3c3dc37.27e6657d_boundary Content-Type: text/html; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Greetings,

I wanted to agree with Mistress Katarina on several points.  Often the
Royalty for various reasons, known only to them, wait until the last
minute.   
This is not always their fault, sometimes they are waiting to give the
populous a chance for recommending people, and also, we need to remember,
that although it may not seem like it, they have a life here too.  We need
to
understand that there is no one real person that is to blame.

As a Regional Signet, I have found it to be invaluable to have a good
working
relationship with my Kingdom Superior, and to keep in contact with her.   
Also, it is important to have the same with those scribes in my region.  
When
I know that there is a court coming up, I always try to ask at least a
couple
of weeks in advance, whether I have a court list or not, if people would
start working on blanks.

I have spent many events in Scribal Rooms, and I have come to realise, that
although I may be running the room, working on scrolls etc. (and I
encourage
everyone to do this), that you need to take a break.  Take 15 - 20 minutes,
go out, get a snack, see the merchants, visit with a friend or two and let
yourself unwind that little bit.  You will find that you will be able to
concentrate more, and will not be so stiff at the end of the day.

I have to admit, that I do call on Mistress Katarina, perhaps more than I
should, as she is my Laurel, however, she does such pretty work, its hard
not
to. (:P  I would also have to say, Mom, that you are doing a fine job
living
up to my expectations, and I would like to thank you for all the hard work
you have given and done for me in the last few months since I took the
office.

YIS

A'isha bint Da'ud OW
White Waters (South Bend IN)
Constellation Regional Signet - Midrealm



- --part1_d6.3c3dc37.27e6657d_boundary-- =================================================================== To unsubscribe from this list, send email to with a blank Subject: line and unsubscribe scribes in the body of the message. Do not include any additional text in the body. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 14:26:19 -0500 From: "Amy" Subject: Re: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. - ----- Original Message ----- From: To: Sent: Sunday, March 18, 2001 1:02 PM Subject: Re: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. > > Ummmmmmmm, Why not?? In Caid, most awards are given with "charter" > scrolls--what used to be called "promissories"-- these are preprints with the > decorations hand-colored (during my time as Their Majesties' scribe, it was > with gouache) and the awardee's name, Majesties' names and date filled in by > hand. If someone wants an "original scroll" they then contact the Scribe > Armarius and ask to have their name put on the list OR make their own > arrangements with a scribe and let the Scribe Armarius know so that their > scroll assignment is not given to any of the kingdom scribes. This system > means that Their Majesties can add as many awards as they want right before > or during an event and no one ends up stuck in the scribes' room and missing > an event. > > Luighseach nic Lochlainn > Dreiburgen, Caid > I have a bit of a strange question--or maybe an Eastern way of looking at things, but I have lived in 3 kingdoms that do original scrolls--Aethelmearc, Middle, and East, although I did not start scribing until I moved to the East. No offence intended to anyone, but I know, from what I like to do for scrolls, that I would be very unhappy to do scrolls that were pre-prints. I would feel like I was doing a paint-by-number picture. Is there a chance that the reason that there is such a backlog and lack of scribes in the Kingdoms that do preprints is because people don't feel that they are actually doing or learning anything by coloring in a drawing and filling in the blanks in the text? Is there any sense of accomplishment when a pre-print is finished, or is it another chore out of the way so court can get on? Like I said, I don't want to offend anyone, or the way anyone does things, but being a military wife and moving frequently, I have thought a lot about this and wondered how I would handle it if I end up moving somewhere where I can not have the freedom and opportunity to challenge myself that being and Eastern Scribe has given me. Olwyn ni Chinneidigh Eisental East =================================================================== To unsubscribe from this list, send email to with a blank Subject: line and unsubscribe scribes in the body of the message. Do not include any additional text in the body. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 14:50:38 -0500 From: "Sally Burnell" Subject: Re: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. > So, Saradwen, it is not usually the fault of the kingdom Signet, but more a case > of any particular set of Royalty (and I am not totally blaming them, as the > populace often does not make their recommendations in a TIMELY MANNER, either) > not giving their Signet enough lead time... for whatever reason. Well, my solution to that, especially if I were to ever serve as Royalty (and the chance of that happening, ever, is about as likely as my ever winning millions in the lottery, given that I am single with no SO, husband, or whatever, to fight for me in a Crown List!), would be to have a cut-off date for accepting award recommendations, and stick to it. Anything coming in after the deadline would just have to wait until the next event in the area, or whatever. Sure, TRM's love to see people recognised for their good works, but they also have to concede a bit of respect to the scribes who make it all happen for them. We can't do our best work if we are put on the spot to crank out stuff with less than a week's notice. Somehow, the Ęthelmearc Scribes get TONS of advance notice. I do not have any idea how they've been able to achieve this, other than having Signets who INSIST to their Royalty that their scribes get adequate lead time, and they get it. Quite an amazing thing, I think. 'Course, they ARE a smaller Kingdom than we are, but still, it's remarkable that they have a system in place for making sure that their scribes receive good long lead times for being able to do their work, and do it well. > And, Saradwen, I don't think any scribe is FORCED to spend time in the scribes > room!! This is a personal choice. However, I do agree that peer pressure is > sometimes the hardest to resist. Oh, I know that we are never forced to be in the Scribe's Rooms, to be sure. And I, like you, know all too well about the "peer pressure" thing! I just think that maybe the Midrealm needs to rethink time frames for getting out scroll commissions so that there will be no need to even HAVE Scribe's Rooms at events. It'd just be nice if we could achieve 100% scroll completion for each and every event where a Royal Court was going to take place. I know, a pipe dream....................sigh. > I always bring scribal stuff to Pennsic, though, as you never know when there is > someone who either can teach you (this is the collective "you") something or > something you can teach someone else. We all have areas we are very good at -- > so sharing is very important. Think about that aspect of working on scrolls at > Pennsic, would you?? Well, that is something to think about. For me, the difficulty would be in where, in my already overcrowded Pennsic packing, to put my scribal stuff. Some stuff does not take the heat of a tent very well and I would not wish to refrigerate it, either, because it would not do well there, either. Not to mention what might happen if my scribal box got wet and everything inside it got soaked, too.............wouldn't THAT be an awful mess? Every year, it becomes more and more of a struggle to figure out what all I can afford to bring, space-wise, because I have to pack 2 weeks of stuff into a tiny Volkswagen, so I have to be very frugal and yet completely sensible with what all I bring. This requires careful prioritisation. Do I REALLY need this to survive two weeks? If the answer is no, it does not go. Scribal stuff tends to stay behind for spatial reasons. The most important things I need are food, clothing and shelter. I bring, literally, the barest of basics to Pennsic. Had I a larger vehicle, more stuff could come with me, but space limitations don't allow me to bring nearly as much as I would dearly love to bring. > Did you know that Royalty for Pennsic rarely give the Dragon Signet the court > list more than 2 weeks before the actual event?? I don't mean 2 weeks before > Land Grab, I mean probably the day before Land Grab. Ever try to get in touch > with Regional Signets the day before they are leaving for a 2-week party??? > That is why many scrolls are done there, at the event. Believe me, I know this > from experience. And, if the Royalty is particularly stressed prior to the > event, they often give out garbled info to the Signet Office. This happened to > me when I was Dragon Signet, and I was sorely embarrassed that a scroll was done > for someone for the wrong thing. Nice illuminations, too. I would solve this as follows: Knowing the time frame for Pennsic, cut off ALL award rec's for Pennsic on the 1st of July, no exceptions. July being what it is, a very busy month full of Pennsic prep events, this would at least give the scribes some kind of sane time frame to at least have scrolls done by the time they leave for Pennsic. What needs to happen here is educating the populace about award rec's and getting them used to the idea of deadlines for them. If we don't start doing this, then scribes will continue to be cranking out stuff on painfully short notice and we'll continue to lose talent to burnout. Waiting until the last minute smacks of serious disorganisation, with all due respect to the Royalty. Unless and until we overhaul the system, then things will just continue as they have been. A little bit of organisation goes a long way! (I know, I work in a library! Talk about organisation!!) > But, life happens, folks. This is a sort of a game and > we need to be VERY flexible. Yes, Midrealm scribes are getting fed up and with > just cause. But, just think of the ramifications if we all stopped doing what > we all love so much -- NO ONE WOULD GET AN ORIGINAL SCROLL AT AN EVENT AGAIN!! > I don't even want to think of that option. Oh, neither do I. Just having the Royals setting reasonable deadlines for award rec's and then sticking to them might begin to solve a lot of the problems that have been inherent in the system for far too long now. If other Kingdoms can do it, I do not see why we in the Midrealm couldn't, our large size and population notwithstanding. It's way past due for something like this to be put into place. Just my thoughts about these things....................... ~Saradwen Midrealm =================================================================== To unsubscribe from this list, send email to with a blank Subject: line and unsubscribe scribes in the body of the message. Do not include any additional text in the body. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 17:06:55 -0500 From: Reinhart Subject: [scribes]: Scribal treatment continued This intrigued me because I do lots of blanks and I know the East encourages those who also do them. My blanks have now gone out in 3 kingdoms because the East & Atlantia were desperate at a particular event. I like blanks because they encourage me to try different things and they can be done whenever. The only down side is that I don't usually get to see a finished scroll or know which scroll went to which recipient when I just read it in the court report. Our signet usually has a portfolio of blanks that she can show. That really handy if you are a new scribe. Are scribes listed in the court reports in other kingdoms? Most of the time they are listed here in AEthelmearc. Do kingdoms have events where scribes can get together at the beginning of a reign and do blanks? I would think that would be popular. If I were a Royal who wanted to give 300 awards, it would be comforting to know that I already had 100 blanks on file. (Obviously, I like events where scribes get together.) People wouldn't be missing everything if that were the event's theme. My calligraphy is usually traced from a computer print out so I'm not going to be a field calligrapher. I also have Arches 140 lb. & while it is a nice scroll surface, you can't see through it. :-( That's a problem if I have the calligraohy assignment. (I know - practice your calligraphy, dear, so you won't need a crutch. Sigh, with head hanging. I'm working on it.) Sounds like the bureaucracy in a few kingdoms needs to train their Royals. I know there is advice passed on to the the next Royals here. Could signets get in on that kind of thing? A really polite version of, "How to Stop Scribal Rebellion Before It Starts" maybe? 1. Feed & acknowledge your scribes well 2. Give scribes more than 2 week's notice 3. Don't be an administrative nightmare 4. Encourage events which train scribes 5. Remember that scribes are also armed with sharp pointy things - pens 6. Ask for scroll blanks at the beginning of your reign & reward the givers with a special token 7. Hold a scribal tea & say "Thank you" in each region 8. Your scribes can make you look really good - Think of being the Royal who found a way to not leave a backlog - A place in history 9. Inform the populace in your newsletter column that you need scribes and blanks and that you value them etc. Maybe some advice from the kingdom's scribes & a few blank scrolls as a gift at the beginning of a reign might help. Start a new tradition. Back to my blank scroll now. Keran Roslin lucky to scribe AEthelmearc, even if it did snow or rain all day yesterday Helen Schultz wrote: snipped > As much as I don't like it, the best answer for the Midrealm is to encourage our > illuminators to "crank out" as many blanks as possible so that the calligraphers > can quickly do the wording. I know that if I had several nice blanks hanging > around my house, I could do the calligraphy up in about an hour or two before an > event. I am one of those people who takes forever to select "just the right" > border for the person and then "just the right" calligraphy, with "just the right" > wording. This takes me several days to figure out... then the actual work ends up > taking me longer than I anticipate, and I end up with half finished scrolls. > Did you know that Royalty for Pennsic rarely give the Dragon Signet the court list > more than 2 weeks before the actual event?? I don't mean 2 weeks before Land > Grab, I mean probably the day before Land Grab. Ever try to get in touch with > Regional Signets the day before they are leaving for a 2-week party??? That is why > many scrolls are done there, at the event. Believe me, I know this from > experience. > > But, life happens, folks. This is a sort of a game and we > need to be VERY flexible. Meisterin Katarina Helene von Schoenborn, OL > Shire of Narrental (Peru, Indiana) > Middle Kingdom =================================================================== To unsubscribe from this list, send email to with a blank Subject: line and unsubscribe scribes in the body of the message. Do not include any additional text in the body. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 17:15:59 -0500 From: "Sally Burnell" Subject: Re: [scribes]: Scribal treatment continued > Sounds like the bureaucracy in a few kingdoms needs to train their Royals. I know there is advice passed on to the the next Royals here. Could signets get in on that kind of thing? A really polite version of, "How to Stop Scribal Rebellion Before It Starts" maybe? > 1. Feed & acknowledge your scribes well > 2. Give scribes more than 2 week's notice > 3. Don't be an administrative nightmare > 4. Encourage events which train scribes > 5. Remember that scribes are also armed with sharp pointy things - pens > 6. Ask for scroll blanks at the beginning of your reign & reward the givers with a special token > 7. Hold a scribal tea & say "Thank you" in each region > 8. Your scribes can make you look really good - Think of being the Royal who found a > way to not leave a backlog - A place in history > 9. Inform the populace in your newsletter column that you need scribes > and blanks and that you value them, etc. > > Maybe some advice from the kingdom's scribes & a few blank scrolls as a gift at the > beginning of a reign might help. Start a new tradition. Oooooooooooooooooh, I LIKE this!! This is GREAT STUFF!! Thank you!! ~Saradwen Midrealm =================================================================== To unsubscribe from this list, send email to with a blank Subject: line and unsubscribe scribes in the body of the message. Do not include any additional text in the body. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 17:22:11 -0500 From: Reinhart Subject: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. Things break down here too, sometimes, but not too often. We have had Royals who were also scribes, along the way. That helped. Our first king was pretty spontaneous so a few backlogs were created there, but they were cleared. You can hear the muttering in courts if the scrolls are late. (mutter - Is someone sick? What do you think happened?) AE gentles, if they are aware of how things work, are aware of how good things are here - scroll wise. They also don't miss long EK courts. A lady who forgot a scroll she was delivering for a sick scribe said to me - I felt like standing up in Court & wailing, "It's all my fault." She apologized to Royals, scribes, recipient, & populace several times - not in Court. I think that the populace takes scrolls seriously also. I know that some AE scrolls come with cases which say return to a kingdom officer so that the recipient can get them home safely. I've loaned my empty case to someone in our shire so that they could get one home. I don't want to brag but our signet has an officer who will undertake getting a backlog scroll done, which was awarded in another kingdom, if you are now a citizen of AE. Now there's a tough job. How many gentles are there in the Mid? How many scribes are in AE roughly? I know that there are lots & that helps. Back to my scroll. Keran Roslin Sally Burnell wrote: We can't do our best work if we are put on the spot to crank out stuff with less than a week's notice. Somehow, the Ęthelmearc Scribes get TONS of advance notice. I do not have any idea how they've been able to achieve this, other than having Signets who INSIST to their Royalty that their scribes get adequate lead time, and they get it. Quite an amazing thing, I think. 'Course, they ARE a smaller Kingdom than we are, but still, it's remarkable that they have a system in place for making sure that their scribes receive good long lead times for being able to do their work, and do it well. > ~Saradwen > Midrealm > =================================================================== To unsubscribe from this list, send email to with a blank Subject: line and unsubscribe scribes in the body of the message. Do not include any additional text in the body. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 18:43:15 -0500 From: "Kenton and Dorinda White" Subject: Re: [scribes]: Scribal treatment continued Hi all! Just a quick note or two on this note and the previous one suggesting that the Signet set a deadline and stick to it. 1. Just a quick Royalist note - please be careful about dictating deadlines to the Crown and so on. First, it is not the game we play and doesn't really show the Crown the appropriate amount of respect. Second, you will probably lose that battle. Third, no matter whether the Crown or the Signet "wins", the award recipients lose - and none of us want that. 2. I can think of a couple of reasons why AEthelmearc scribes might get more lead times than Midrealm scribes - even with Royalty and Signets of equal organizational skills. A. Tradition - we have an expectation that this is how it is done. B. Size of the Kingdom. If as AEthelmearc Crown (which I am for another two weeks), I get a recommendation for an event in an area without sufficient lead times for the scroll to get done well, I can usually postpone for a month or two and assign it for another event that will occur within 100 miles or less of the first one. (And give the scribes a month or more). I get the impression with the huge land area of the Midrealm that the Crown may only hit an area once per reign - or even once for a couple reigns. They may find themselves far more often saying "I give the award now or the person will go without it for a long time". As much as I value the scribes, I would give the award too. 3. For whatever reason, I have trouble convincing people to do blanks (although our wonderful Signet does get some). People like to know where there scrolls are going. I can't imagine getting 100!!! (Although the good Lady Keran has probably done 100 on her own!) Does anyone else have this problem or just me? Be back to scribing in two weeks. See you all then. Dorinda, AEthelmearc - ---------- > From: Reinhart > To: SCA Scribes > Subject: [scribes]: Scribal treatment continued > Date: Sunday, March 18, 2001 5:06 PM > > This intrigued me because I do lots of blanks and I know the East > encourages those > who also do them. My blanks have now gone out in 3 kingdoms because the > East & > Atlantia were desperate at a particular event. I like blanks because > they encourage > me to try different things and they can be done whenever. The only down > side is > that I don't usually get to see a finished scroll or know which scroll > went to which > recipient when I just read it in the court report. > > Our signet usually has a portfolio of blanks that she can show. That > really handy > if you are a new scribe. > > Are scribes listed in the court reports in other kingdoms? Most of the > time they > are listed here in AEthelmearc. > > Do kingdoms have events where scribes can get together at the beginning > of a reign > and do blanks? I would think that would be popular. If I were a Royal > who wanted > to give 300 awards, it would be comforting to know that I already had > 100 blanks > on file. (Obviously, I like events where scribes get together.) People > wouldn't be > missing everything if that were the event's theme. > > My calligraphy is usually traced from a computer print out so I'm not > going to be a > field calligrapher. I also have Arches 140 lb. & while it is a nice > scroll surface, > you can't see through it. :-( That's a problem if I have the > calligraohy > assignment. (I know - practice your calligraphy, dear, so you won't > need a crutch. > Sigh, with head hanging. I'm working on it.) > > Sounds like the bureaucracy in a few kingdoms needs to train their > Royals. I know > there is advice passed on to the the next Royals here. > Could signets get in on that kind of thing? A really polite version > of, "How to > Stop Scribal Rebellion Before It Starts" maybe? > 1. Feed & acknowledge your scribes well > 2. Give scribes more than 2 week's notice > 3. Don't be an administrative nightmare > 4. Encourage events which train scribes > 5. Remember that scribes are also armed with sharp pointy things - pens > 6. Ask for scroll blanks at the beginning of your reign & reward the > givers with a > special token > 7. Hold a scribal tea & say "Thank you" in each region > 8. Your scribes can make you look really good - Think of being the Royal > who found a > way to not leave a backlog - A place in history > 9. Inform the populace in your newsletter column that you need scribes > and blanks > and that you value them > etc. > > Maybe some advice from the kingdom's scribes & a few blank scrolls as a > gift at the > beginning of a reign might help. Start a new tradition. > > Back to my blank scroll now. > > Keran Roslin > lucky to scribe AEthelmearc, even if it did snow or rain all day > yesterday > > Helen Schultz wrote: snipped > > > As much as I don't like it, the best answer for the Midrealm is to > encourage our > > illuminators to "crank out" as many blanks as possible so that the > calligraphers > > can quickly do the wording. I know that if I had several nice blanks > hanging > > around my house, I could do the calligraphy up in about an hour or two > before an > > event. I am one of those people who takes forever to select "just the > right" > > border for the person and then "just the right" calligraphy, with > "just the right" > > wording. This takes me several days to figure out... then the actual > work ends up > > taking me longer than I anticipate, and I end up with half finished > scrolls. > > > Did you know that Royalty for Pennsic rarely give the Dragon Signet > the court list > > more than 2 weeks before the actual event?? I don't mean 2 weeks > before Land > > Grab, I mean probably the day before Land Grab. Ever try to get in > touch with > > Regional Signets the day before they are leaving for a 2-week party??? > That is why > > many scrolls are done there, at the event. Believe me, I know this > from > > experience. > > > > But, life happens, folks. This is a sort of a game one> and we > > need to be VERY flexible. > Meisterin Katarina Helene von Schoenborn, OL > > Shire of Narrental (Peru, Indiana) > > Middle Kingdom > > =================================================================== > To unsubscribe from this list, send email to > with a blank Subject: line and > unsubscribe scribes > in the body of the message. Do not include any additional text in > the body. =================================================================== To unsubscribe from this list, send email to with a blank Subject: line and unsubscribe scribes in the body of the message. Do not include any additional text in the body. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 18:48:43 -0500 From: "Sally Burnell" Subject: Re: [scribes]: Scribal Treatment Continued. > Things break down here too, sometimes, but not too often. > We have had Royals who were also scribes, along the way. > That helped. Our first king was pretty spontaneous so a few backlogs > were created there, but they were cleared. We've only had one Royal who was a scribe, and that was fairly recently, when Finn and Tamara were King and Queen. Tamara has been a long-time scribe and I was grateful to her for starting the tradition of giving out nice scribal "favours" to every scribe who contributed a scroll for court. I received one from TRM Edmund and Kateryn at Coronation last fall, and wear it proudly on my belt. > I know that some AE scrolls come with cases which say return to a kingdom officer > so that the recipient can get them home safely. I've loaned my empty > case to someone in our shire so that they could get one home. Now THAT is a sensible idea! A recent scroll that I made for our Regional Seneschal when he received his Grant of Arms was taken out to his car on a drizzly night and sustained a bit of water damage. If it had come with a nice little carrying case, that would not have happened. Fortunately, the damage is minor and I can repair it quickly and easily, but still, it's a good idea to have something for scroll recipients to take home their scrolls in. Last winter, I attended Ęthelmearc Valentine's Day and while chatting with my AE scribal friends, they showed me a clever little thing that they do. They take two pieces of cardboard (you can use those backings for legal pads when you are all done with them) and then they cover them with leftover cloth from making garb (a nice way to ally the scribes and the costumers!) and create this really nice little carrying case for scrolls. They tie at the sides and on the top and bottom with pieces of ribbon (more garb scrap!) and that prevents the scrolls from falling out. All in all, you are looking at a minimal cost in materials! I just LOVED that idea! (Hey, Katarina Peregrine! Yeah, YOU!! We ought to think about getting together and making some of these! What do you think?) > I don't want to brag but our signet has an officer who will undertake > getting a backlog scroll done, which was awarded in another kingdom, > if you are now a citizen of AE. Now there's a tough job. Wow! That IS admirable! > How many gentles are there in the Mid? Hmmmm, I cannot quote the exact population, but I would venture a guess to say that it's several thousand, at the very least. Heck, in the Oaken Region alone (this would be, for those of you not familiar with the Midrealm's "administrative Regions, Ohio and Kentucky, thus "Oaken"!), we've probably got at the very least about 1000 people! And that's just Oaken! You've got Pentamere (lower Michigan and a snippet of Ontario), Midlands (Illinois and a snippet of Iowa), Constellation (Indiana) and the Principality of Northshield (N. Dakota, S. Dakota, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan U.P. and Manitoba, Canada). We are VERY big geographically. Figure this: A Midrealmer who lives in Southern Kentucky near the Tennessee border is not likely to ever see a Midrealmer from Western South Dakota near the Montana border or a Midrealmer from way up in Manitoba, Canada. That puts in perspective for you just how HUGE our Kingdom is, land-wise. Or put it this way: In May, I am driving out to Crown Tournament in South Dakota. I live less than an hour's drive from the Ohio/Pennsylvania border. I am told on good authority that it will take us 18 hours to get there. Yup, 18 hours, and we are not even going to the extreme western border of the Midrealm. We are going to Eastern South Dakota, Sioux Falls, to be exact! I am likely to meet folks there who I have NEVER seen before, because I live so far away from them and would not be likely to ever see them at a Midrealm event. Pennsic, maybe, but other than that, there are a whole lot of us in this Kingdom who never see each other, ever, because our Kingdom is SOOOOOOOOOO big! I drove through Winnipeg, Manitoba once. Took us 24 hours to get there from here. And that is STILL Midrealm territory! Get the idea? Oh, and we were on our way to Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, which in those distant days WAS Midrealm territory before we ceded it to An Tir. Wanna guess how long it took us to get there? 40 hours. One way. We were driving TRM Andrew and Sharra to the old Myrgan Wood Border War. It was such a hoot when we arrived, disheveled, sweaty (it was July!) and totally numb from exhaustion! TRM's got out of the van and told our greeters who they were. They fell to the ground cowtowing to TRM's! They'd never ever seen Royalty before! We (Royalty and entourage alike) just did not know what to make of this, since we were so totally numbed from fatigue! So we all just tiredly smiled and thanked them for such an effusive welcome! > How many scribes are in AE roughly? I know that there are lots & that helps. Yes, it certainly sounds that way! I'm envious! ~Saradwen, the intrepid traveler! Midrealm =================================================================== To unsubscribe from this list, send email to with a blank Subject: line and unsubscribe scribes in the body of the message. Do not include any additional text in the body. ------------------------------ End of scribes digest V5 #92 ****************************