poor writer.

But, while emphasis has been laid upon the value of training in
other forms of literary work, the emphasis has been placed not on
purely literary skill, but on the possession of ideas and the
training necessary to turn the ideas to account. It is "up to"
the ambitious beginner, therefore, to analyze the problem for
himself and to decide if he possesses the peculiar qualifications
that can by great energy and this special training place him upon
a par with the write who has made a success in other forms of
literary work. For there is a sense in which no literary training
is really necessary for success in vaudeville writing.

If the amateur has an imaginative mind, the innate ability to see
and turn to his own uses an interesting and coherent story, and
is possessed of the ability to think in drama, and, above all, has
the gift of humor, he can write good vaudeville material, even if
he has not education or ability to write an acceptable poem, article
or short-story. In other words, a mastery of English prose or
verse is not necessary for success in vaudeville writing. Some
of the most successful popular songs, the most successful playlets,
and other vaudeville acts, have been written by men unable to write
even a good letter.

But the constant advancement in excellence demanded of vaudeville
material, both by the managers and the public, is gradually making
it profitable for only the best-educated, specially-trained writers
to undertake this form of work. The old, illiterate, rough-and-ready
writer is passing, in a day when the "coon shouter" has given the
headline-place to Calve and Melba, and every dramatic star has