The first step to getting published is to find your market. Find a magazine you are familiar with and read the guidelines, read the magazine and as many issues as you can. Are they lacking a particular idea in that subject matter? Has there been an article written that didn't quite cover everything you thought it should? Write down your ideas.
After that, follow the directions on the submission guidelines.
1. Freelance writers must follow the directions. Most editors drop submissions into the trash pile for only one reason, the writer didn't follow directions. If the instructions say that you should not send email, why would you send an email submission? You could beat probably 80% of the rest of the slush pile by being focused on following instructions to a T.
2. Check previous issues for duplicates of your article ideas. No idea is really ever new and more than likely, your idea has already been used at one point. Make sure whatever idea you are submitting hasn't been published recently. It cuts out having to reject your idea, even if it's a good one.
3. Make sure your writing style matches the magazine. One of the biggest mistakes is to not actually have read the magazine before hand. This is why the majority of magazine editors request you at least read a couple issues, which they will happily send to you. It may be extra work but eventually you will get an idea of what sort of freelance writer they are looking for.
4. Grammar and spelling are important for any successful freelance writing career. Most editors claim that the majority of query letters would probably turn into sales, if only the freelance writer would have used proper spelling and grammar. If you can't write a good query letter, how do they expect you to write the full article? You must give your all in every query and submission you send in.
5. Clips are not so important, though they do help a freelance writer. Of all things, an editor wants a freelance writer to provide a good, fresh idea and a quality style to your writing in your initial query letter. If your idea is good and your query letter is well written, an editor can tell if you will qualify for the assignment quickly and will more than likely offer you an assignment.
6. Write articles for smaller publications. If you are still struggling as a freelance writer, sometimes offering free articles online or for smaller publications will help boost your portfolio. This is a little trick most any new writer can do. Don't feel bad about giving away free writing! It won't stay that way and your clips often say a lot about you to editors.
With all honesty, you don't have to be the best writer to be published! You only have to be able to follow directions and come up with an idea that isn't currently being used. Use rejection slips as a reason to submit again with a better idea. If you need additional help, try checking out websites of professional writers who offer advice on their website.
Calissa Leigh is a freelance writer available for copywriting, ghost writing articles and helping with query letters and submission. You can find helpful information on writing, copywriting and more by visiting her website at copywriting.
This article is offered free for reprint, provided the byline stays in tact and links are kept active. Please visit calissaleigh.com and look for her link directory for a return link and find more free content articles.
Oswego taxi to Midway ..There are many different ways to improve link popularity for... Read More
You may be wondering what persuasive writing has to do... Read More
By now you probably understand how important writing for trade... Read More
The traditional print media newsletter is still useful even in... Read More
It is important for all webmasters to realize that if... Read More
Lets face it people use articles to send traffic to... Read More
I've been able to distinguish 3 main categories that people... Read More
Marketing on a budget is tough. This is a universal... Read More
There's one key rule that every writer should understand before... Read More
Writing can be fraught at the best of times but... Read More
The biggest challenge facing any online business today is how... Read More
Whatever you're selling, writing articles to distribute freely amongst webmasters... Read More
Abandon your frustrations and get a fresh start by trying... Read More
Find definitions from H to P... ~~~~~~~~~~~ H ~~~~~~~~~~~ Haiku... Read More
There is no doubt that Spam has affected online business... Read More
Gathering information from interviews is really simple. You ask the... Read More
The experts are always telling us that getting paid for... Read More
In this article I will show you how to use... Read More
Having an article published is one of the fastest and... Read More
Publishers and webmasters can spend massive amounts of time just... Read More
The first twenty-five words of your article are the most... Read More
Writing a letter to your newspaper's editor is a privilege... Read More
A "Thought Leader" is someone recognized as an authority in... Read More
Back when I was in college, I belonged to one... Read More
Jim was working hard to grow his business. Long hours... Read More
shuttle from Midway Morris ..In order to sell your article must do three things:1.... Read More
1. Participate in chat rooms related to your targeted audience.... Read More
People who have an idea for a website sometimes require... Read More
This is precisely what I am doing here today (and... Read More
As you write the outline for your next article, there... Read More
Been reading up on SEO? If so, you know that... Read More
Queries are not written like business letters or emails; they... Read More
Online PR in the form of website and ezine article... Read More
The sources of inspiration are all around us, in the... Read More
People love to hear stories. They'll identify with what you... Read More
The Whole reason you write those articles is so you... Read More
One of the best ways to build credibility and promote... Read More
SEO writing is very different from content writing, article writing,... Read More
Now that you know the secrets to writing great articles,... Read More
You are running out of ideas, you sit down in... Read More
This is the "real" Money Maker in the Mail Order... Read More
Writing articles is one of the best ways to get... Read More
I recently became aware that promoting your web site in... Read More
The experts are always telling us that getting paid for... Read More
What's the most powerful marketing technique on the Web? Search... Read More
If you are an article writer, you may have been... Read More
It is a well known fact that writing, distributing and... Read More
A great headline can be the difference between having your... Read More
Submitting Articles for redistribution is the best way to get... Read More
You're Invited... Visualize your article going out like a party... Read More
Article Writing |