Scribal question for the month of January 1998.

Some Kingdoms use preprinted scrolls for at least some presentations.... some don't use them at all. In your opinion does this help or hurt the scribes?

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Replies to January's Question

Eibhlin (AEthelmearc):
Currently all of the scrolls that go out in AEthelmearc courts are originals. As I see it, pre-prints have both good and bad points. On one hand they take some of the pressure off of the scribes that comes from constantly having to layout an original scroll for each assignment. Pre-prints would also be a good way to let new scribes produce almost immediately. On the other hand there is very little room, for scribes to improve if all they are _allowed_ to do is pre-prints.

Alicia Langland (AEthelmearc):
I think pre-printed scrolls are great for promissories, when, for some reason, an original scroll is not available to be presented in court. They would do away with the necessity of creating an original "promissory" scroll. (I've seen some that are as nice as other Kingdoms' ACTUAL award scrolls!) That way, the scribes' time would not be spent working on the same scroll twice.
Some people have mentioned that pre-prints are a good way to give new scribes experience and confidence. Something that I've found that works well is teaming an inexperienced scribe with an experienced one. That way, the inexperienced scribe gets experience and confidence and has the satisfaction of working on a "REAL" scroll. The experienced scribes also benefit because they don't have to do EVERYTHING themselves!

Felicity Blindshooter (East Kingdom):
While preprints are not used here, in some places with a ten year backlog and few scribes, it is the only way these colleges are able to provide scrolls for all the awards. The preprints also give new scribes some confidence to start producing originals. I agree that pairing a novice scribe with a more advanced scribe would probably accomplish this goal even more successfully,...BUT what about new scribes in large sparcely populated kingdoms? In my own case, the nearest scribe of any variety, until this Autumn, lives more than a hundred miles away and I had never even seen a Kingdom level scroll when I did my first two. It would have been SO much easier to get going if I had had any idea what the scribes in the rest of the Kingdom were doing by way of scrolls, and having done a few preprints would have greatly reassured me that at least the layout was more or less acceptable.
Baron Marcus Lawless O´Toole (Drachenwald):
IMHO I think both. If you use preprinted scrolls it means that the scribes have more time to create unique artwork, but at the same time it is also very tempting to get lazy and use preprints much more than they are meant to be used. I would like to think of them as a "necessary evil" if at a court, the scribes have not been able to produce all the scrolls requested by the Royaltys, but these preprints should also be replaced ASAP with a genuine scroll.
Dorinda Courtenay (AEthelmearc):
While pre-prints are nice for emergencies, I think it is better for new scribes to work on "real" scrolls. If they aren't ready to do an award scroll,there are plenty of invitations, prize scrolls, and promissories that are needed. This gives them a chance to do the whole process - from layout to the final painting. And it may give someone who wouldn't have otherwise received a piece of handmade art a little something special to take home.
Margaret Drysllwyn of Dunroth (An Tir):
I have long been an advocate of an original hand done scroll for every award, given at the time the recipient actually is awarded the award. However, the harsh reality is that there are way too many awards and far too few scribes to do the scrolls. This may not be the case in every Kingdom, but generally appears to be true. I have done scrolls for 4 Kingdoms so far which appears to support this contention. In a recent issue of the An Tir Kingdom newsletter, Royalty had given out over 150 awards in a 6 month reign. That seems incredible, but true. There MAY be 30 active scribes in the Kingdom. Preprints or worse are a necessary evil to help deal with this disparity.

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