[ANSTHRLD] Because not everyone reads the Gazette...

[Jennifer Smith]

...although, of course, you SHOULD, especially if you're a branch herald.  I
reprint here the letter I wrote for it.

Unto the good and gentle heralds of Ansteorra comes greetings from Lady Emma
de Fetherstan, Asterisk Herald.

It has come to my attention that there is apparently a problem with
submissions making their way from the hands of branch heralds to me.  I can
think of no less than five individuals that have submitted items to their
local branch herald, and then Something Happened. It may have been a bad
case of life, difficulty getting the paperwork together, misplaced and
forgotten between two files in the box, or even lost in the mail. Whatever
the cause, we have submitters who wonder where their submission is months
after they submitted it, and an Asterisk Herald getting increasingly
concerned about the entire situation. Unfortunately, I imagine that these
five individuals scattered across the kingdom are hardly the only ones in
this predicament.

At the same time, I am sure that the vast majority, if not all, of our
branch heralds have no malice in heart and indeed have never intended to
cause a delay in any submission. However, I feel I must remind one and all
of their duty to submitters.

If a submitter hands you the proper number of submission forms, properly
filled out, and the correct amount of money, it is your responsibility to
finish the local processing (getting a check from the local treasurer or
what have you) and send the submission on to me as quickly as possible.
Sitting on it for several months is not acceptable.

And so I am going to humbly request and require several things be done:

Firstly, that the regional heralds contact each of the branch heralds in
their region by face or phone within the next three months and confirm that
they understand their end of the submissions process, and see if there are
any issues needing help or correction.

Secondly, that the branch heralds each take a quick peek in their files and
make sure there are no old submissions sneakily hiding in there, and if so
to send such up immediately. There will be much rejoicing, all will be
forgiven, et cetera.

Thirdly, that anyone sending submissions to me (branch herald, regional
herald, Armillary, etc) please read the Gazette regularly to ensure that the
submission you sent did indeed turn up in an ILoI. Sometimes things do get
lost or eaten in the mail, and watching the ILoI may be the only way you'll
notice -- at least until another submitter contacts me directly with a
complaint.

My mailing information is in the back of the Black Star. I can be contacted
at asterisk at ansteorra.org. I sometimes even answer my telephone. If you have
any questions or comments, please do contact me at your convenience.

Emma Asterisk