Changes in the UK postal system
Apologies in advance if you're not UK-based, as this post (no pun intended) is unlikely to be relevant to you. If you are a UK writer, however, this is very important to know about.
From 21 August, the way that mail in the UK is priced is going to change. Out goes the old system of payment by weight, and in comes a more complex system based on a combination of weight and size, including thickness.
I shan't set out the exact rules here, as they are freely available elsewhere. The Royal Mail website has detailed information, and there is also a free 'Size Guide' leaflet you can obtain from any Post Office. This includes a fold-out section you can use to check which size category any particular envelope falls into.
The main thing to note is that from 21 August, standard mail will fall into one of three size categories: Letter, Large Letter and Packet.
The Letter category will cover items up to about C5 envelope size, i.e. a little larger than a sheet of A4 paper folded once. This is like the old-style standard letter, but it can weigh up to 100g (the old limit was 60g), so you may be able to squeeze a few extra pages in your envelope compared with before and still pay the basic price. Watch the thickness, however - the envelope must be no thicker than 5mm to be allowed in this category.
If your item weighs over 100g, is thicker than 5mm and/or bigger than C5 size, it will either go in the Large Letter or Packet category, which are more expensive (especially the Packet category).
If you want to submit a manuscript without folding it in two, in an ordinary C4-sized envelope it should fit easily into the Large Letter category. If you want to protect it from creasing or folding, however, you may henceforth be better sending it in a board-backed envelope rather than a padded bag. That's because board-backed envelopes large enough to hold A4 paper unfolded should go at the Large Letter rate, but the equivalent padded envelopes because of their larger dimensions are likely to find themselves in the more expensive Packet category.
If you're posting your manuscript off to a publisher, it is likely to have to go as a Packet, since the maximum thickness of a Large Letter is 25mm. If it weighs between 501g and 750g, it will cost £2.20 to send first class. The good news is that this is actually a bit cheaper than the £2.89 it would have cost before.
The Royal Mail say these changes are needed to ensure that postal costs more accurately reflect the cost of handling non-standard sized items. In the short term at least, however, I expect there to be considerable confusion, long queues at Post Offices, and large numbers of letters being delayed due to the sender paying insufficient postage.
For UK writers, here's my advice in a nutshell for keeping your postage costs down and avoiding problems with the new system.
* Wherever possible, fold your short-story and article manuscripts so that they will fit into envelopes no larger than C5 size.
* If sending scripts unfolded and requiring protection from creasing, consider using board-backed envelopes rather than padded bags, as these are likely to fall into the Large Letter rather than the Packet category.
* Watch the thickness of your envelopes, especially if you hope they will fit into the Letter category, which has a maximum 5mm thickness. 5mm is not very thick at all!
* And, of course, wherever possible use electronic communications instead!
Finally, if you'd like to read more about the changes and see the comments ordinary members of the public have been making about them, you might like to check out the following BBC News page: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/5233996.stm
Happy mailing!
From 21 August, the way that mail in the UK is priced is going to change. Out goes the old system of payment by weight, and in comes a more complex system based on a combination of weight and size, including thickness.
I shan't set out the exact rules here, as they are freely available elsewhere. The Royal Mail website has detailed information, and there is also a free 'Size Guide' leaflet you can obtain from any Post Office. This includes a fold-out section you can use to check which size category any particular envelope falls into.
The main thing to note is that from 21 August, standard mail will fall into one of three size categories: Letter, Large Letter and Packet.
The Letter category will cover items up to about C5 envelope size, i.e. a little larger than a sheet of A4 paper folded once. This is like the old-style standard letter, but it can weigh up to 100g (the old limit was 60g), so you may be able to squeeze a few extra pages in your envelope compared with before and still pay the basic price. Watch the thickness, however - the envelope must be no thicker than 5mm to be allowed in this category.
If your item weighs over 100g, is thicker than 5mm and/or bigger than C5 size, it will either go in the Large Letter or Packet category, which are more expensive (especially the Packet category).
If you want to submit a manuscript without folding it in two, in an ordinary C4-sized envelope it should fit easily into the Large Letter category. If you want to protect it from creasing or folding, however, you may henceforth be better sending it in a board-backed envelope rather than a padded bag. That's because board-backed envelopes large enough to hold A4 paper unfolded should go at the Large Letter rate, but the equivalent padded envelopes because of their larger dimensions are likely to find themselves in the more expensive Packet category.
If you're posting your manuscript off to a publisher, it is likely to have to go as a Packet, since the maximum thickness of a Large Letter is 25mm. If it weighs between 501g and 750g, it will cost £2.20 to send first class. The good news is that this is actually a bit cheaper than the £2.89 it would have cost before.
The Royal Mail say these changes are needed to ensure that postal costs more accurately reflect the cost of handling non-standard sized items. In the short term at least, however, I expect there to be considerable confusion, long queues at Post Offices, and large numbers of letters being delayed due to the sender paying insufficient postage.
For UK writers, here's my advice in a nutshell for keeping your postage costs down and avoiding problems with the new system.
* Wherever possible, fold your short-story and article manuscripts so that they will fit into envelopes no larger than C5 size.
* If sending scripts unfolded and requiring protection from creasing, consider using board-backed envelopes rather than padded bags, as these are likely to fall into the Large Letter rather than the Packet category.
* Watch the thickness of your envelopes, especially if you hope they will fit into the Letter category, which has a maximum 5mm thickness. 5mm is not very thick at all!
* And, of course, wherever possible use electronic communications instead!
Finally, if you'd like to read more about the changes and see the comments ordinary members of the public have been making about them, you might like to check out the following BBC News page: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/5233996.stm
Happy mailing!
Nick at 4:04 AM 
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