The readers’ desk
Reader help
A reader’s companion to SohoPage: how to read us, follow us and answer us, and what to do when something is wrong. Contributors will find their own questions in the last section. Anything left unanswered can go to the editors through the contact page.
Arriving
Is there anything to join before I can read?
Nothing at all. The whole of SohoPage is open and costs nothing. The only people with accounts are the contributors we have invited.
I read mostly on a phone. Will that be comfortable?
It should be. Pages rearrange themselves for the width of the screen, keep the type at a readable size and load briskly even when the signal is poor.
Some pieces are written in Vietnamese. Will the accents survive?
They will. Our typefaces carry the complete Vietnamese character set, so every tone mark lands where the writer put it, in titles and in running text.
Following the writers
How can I hear when a contributor publishes?
Add their feed to a feed reader. Every contributor’s profile links to it, and it always sits at /handle/feed.xml.
And to follow the whole magazine?
Use the site feed at /feed.xml, which carries every new story from every contributor.
Answering a story
Where do I write a response?
At the foot of each story, under Responses. Give a name, write what you have to say, and post it. We do not ask you to register, and we do not ask for an email address.
I posted a response. Where is it?
With the moderators. Responses from readers wait in a queue and are printed only after a moderator has approved them. A response that is never approved stays in that queue for no more than 30 days before it is removed for good.
What do the moderators look for?
That a response speaks to the story it sits under, and that it treats the writer and other readers with courtesy. Our editorial policy lists what we turn away.
Can I take back a response?
Not by editing it: without an account, there is no way to return to a response once it is sent. We can remove it for you, though. Write through the contact page, giving the story’s link and the name you signed with.
When something is wrong
A story or a response troubles me. Whom do I tell?
The editors, via the contact page, under the topic Reporting a story or response. Paste the address of the page and tell us briefly what is wrong with it.
Someone has published my work without asking.
Pick Rights and permissions on the contact page, and tell us which work is yours and where it has appeared here.
What do you hold about me, and can it go?
Pick Your information and privacy on the contact page to request a copy of it or to have it erased. What we collect, and how long we keep it, is set out on the privacy page.
For contributors
How does one come to write here?
By invitation; the magazine has no sign-up form. Introduce yourself and your writing through the contact page, choosing An invitation to write.
Whose is the work once it is published?
Still yours. Publishing grants SohoPage the permission it needs to host your work, show it and send it out, RSS feeds included. The terms of use give the details.
May I send readers to my own site?
By all means. Your profile has room for a link to your website, and any link inside a story is a plain link to wherever you choose.
How do I withdraw a piece, or close my column?
Tell us through the contact page which stories should come down, or that the whole blog should.