5 Great New Year’s Goals For Print Writers

Today we’re going to talk about setting some goals that relate directly to a career in writing for print. Starting the NY off right can set the tone for the entire year, so it pays off to do a little “leg work” on the front end of things. Here are five great goals to pencil into January that will help you get set up: 1.

Print Writing: Improving Your Voice

Writing for print is tricky in a number of ways, but one of the most important–and the most difficult–is having a strong voice and being able to adapt it to the style of the publication you are querying. Some writers may already have a voice that they use and are comfortable with. That’s a great thing, but there is typically one problem that goes along

Scheduling Your Magazine Writing

I thought doing a post on scheduling might be good for all the magazine writers out there… Basically what I mean by scheduling is deciding how much to take on at first–in other words, how to manage the process of trying to land articles in print. It can be really easy to take on too much in the beginning, and that can really cause problems.

Magazines: Writing Evergreen Articles

I’ve mentioned this type of piece before–the “evergreen” article… Evergreen articles are those that are always in need. Think “timeless”. For example: Great holiday gifts Back to school tips for parents 5 Fast, Healthy Meals Money-saving vacation ideas Magazines are always in need of this type of content, and it can be a great way to break in to a particular publication. Even so, you

Writing With Clips In Mind

When starting out in print writing, clips are an important part of the picture. You need clips to get work and to prove that you can in fact write. The earlier you begin thinking about the clips you need, the better your chances of having one handy when an editor asks for it. Tweak Your Specialty How about an example? When I started writing I

Magazine Writing Goals For 2013 And Beyond

Happy New Year all you writers out there! If you have already been published in print, I wish you more of the same in 2013, and if you haven’t yet made it in this arena, may this be your year to shine! Today we’re going to talk goal setting for all print writers. I know it sounds basic, but it really isn’t. Here are my

Planning For Print Publication

It’s hard to believe that the New Year is right around the corner! If you are looking to get published in a magazine or print publication in the coming year, now is the time to start planning. For most print pubs, the editorial calendar is already set, and queries right now are going out for summer issues (or even later!). While it may be hard

Using The Web To Get Print Jobs Part I

Just because you want to write for magazines doesn’t mean you can ignore the web. Your web presence is one of the easiest ways for potential employers/editors to find you. Is yours optimized to do all it can for you in this regard? Over the next two posts we’ll explore what you can do to position yourself well online for jobs in print. In this

Writing A Great Title

In terms of magazine writing, it has been my experience that editors will often change the title you give an article. Know this going in. So, you may ask, why am I devoting an entire post to writing a great title? Well, because it could get your article accepted–or at least help you get an editor’s attention. When you send a query letter in, having

Magazine Writing — Gathering Intel

So you want to write for a magazine? If that is the case–one of the most important things you will do is study publications that you want to submit material to in query form. But what is the best way to go about that? Let’s face it, buying tons of magazines can be really expensive. (Fun, but expensive!) So how do you do your research

Home & Away: Writing The Travel Piece

Have you always wanted to be a travel writer? Do you long to see your byline next to some great pictures and a narrative about a cool place to visit? Do you want to know how to get there? I’ve mentioned the first part of this before–but it bears repeating. In my humble opinion, writing about where you live is the best way to break

Magazines: Reading To Write An Essay

Want to write for a nice glossy magazine? If the answer to that question is a “yes” – I have a question for you… How often do you read them? If you want to make a career out of writing for magazines reading matters. This is especially true if you are hoping to get an essay published in your favorite print publication. Think of it

Writing For Local Magazines

Most magazine writers don’t start out getting published in Cosmopolitan or Travel + Leisure. Breaking into the bigger magazine market typically comes after you’ve built a stable of clips from smaller publications that show you have the “chops” to handle a big assignment. Although it is certainly possible to get a gig in a mainstream mag, local magazines offer a great opportunity as well. You

Print Writing: Getting The Goods

Today we have a few tips for “getting the goods” in print writing. Let’s begin with finding guidelines so you can craft a query… Getting The Guidelines When you are writing for print, the guidelines for the publication are the golden rule you need to follow. Problem is…not every magazine puts these on the web for you. So where do you find them? Here are

Combining Print And Web

I’ve run into some interesting situations while doing print writing. As publications started to develop their presence online, there were some opportunities to make a little more money here and there. What? More money? Do tell, right? Some magazines also offer partial (or full) articles on the web as well as in their print version. And some of them will pay more for it. This

Writing For Print: Reader Expectations

I was thinking about what to tell you this month, and really wanted to highlight what it is that I enjoy so much about writing for magazines and print publications. It is definitely a different experience to craft a piece for this medium as opposed to writing one for the web, but it was a challenge for me to explain exactly what I like better

Writing For Print: Why Local Relationships Matter

If you are a writer, chances are good that you already understand that relationships in this industry matter. If you want to write for print, this can actually be a subject that is even more vital. When you write for an online publication it is fairly typical to never meet the person you are working with. Most contact is established via e-mail and subsequent information/instructions

Print Writing And The Holidays

If you are trying to break into print writing, the holiday season can be friend or foe, depending on how you use it. Over the years it has been my experience that trying to query in the period from Thanksgiving until around the Superbowl is a huge waste of time. That said, you can use that time to get your foot in the door if

In Print: Thinking Outside The Magazine

In this column we’ve covered a lot of different ways to break into print. Today, I’d like to talk about some unconventional ideas for getting jobs in the industry. So we’re going to delve into “Thinking Outside The Magazine”… Glossies and trade mags are all well and good, but there are other things you can do if you want to get published in the print

Promoting For Print: Social Media

Writing for print isn’t just about writing for print. What? What I mean by that is this–you have to promote yourself and your work if you expect to make a dent in the print publication market. These days, a big part of this has to do with social media. Social media may seem like a strange thing to think of in terms of self-promotion–especially if

Magazine Writing: Tools Of The Trade

Writing for print has a lot in common with writing for the web, yet they are also quite different. Today I’d like to share some “tools of the trade” that have helped me navigate my writing career–especially when it comes to magazine writing. That said, many of these can also be used for freelance writing in general. Here goes: Desk Calendar There’s nothing quite like

Print Writing And Contracts

Today we are going to talk contracts. When you write for a print publication, you will often sign a contract for the work agreement that you will have with the publisher. There’s a lot to know about this subject. Although I can’t cover everything here, I am going to go over some basics so that you aren’t going in cold…here goes… First of all, always

A Pep Talk For Print Writers

Hello hello! How about some good news? Today, instead of telling you ten thousand things you need to make sure that you are doing, or emphasizing how difficult it is to break into writing for print, I’m simply going to encourage you. That’s right. Today is a pep talk! I was not a good writer when I began. Seriously. I was pretty average, used cliches,

Magazine Writing: Working With Your Editor

I’ve touched on this a little bit in the past, but it’s such an important subject that it deserves a post all by itself. When it comes to writing for print, understanding your editor is a key piece of the puzzle. Editors for print are different than those that work on the web. There are different demands and priorities. While some things are universal (example:

The Print Industry: Realistic Expectations

This is going to be a different kind of post. Call it a sharing post. I’m going to talk a bit about what my expectations were when I got into the magazine industry–and also about the reality. I was pretty surprised at how different those two things are, and I’m going to throw my experience out there for you–just in case I can help clarify

Magazine Writing Questions Answered

When I first began writing for magazines I had so many questions. I read forums, bought books and scoured every piece of information on the web looking for answers to some of these–and found nothing. So today–I am going to share a few of the things I learned early on so that if you happen to be wondering, you can find the answers on the

Getting Paid Extra

Catchy title, eh? Everybody likes to get paid a little extra for their work—and writers are no exception. When you write for magazines, you will sometimes have the opportunity to hold out for a bit of extra cash. Here are some of the top ways to earn more from a print article: Reprints/Royalties I wrote for a magazine that wanted to publish my article again,

Magazine Writing: The Travel Piece

Let’s face it—almost every writer would love to land the coveted “travel article” in a glossy magazine. Writing about a destination is considered one of the most glamorous things you could do as a writer—but how do you break in? Competition is fierce, and there are some pretty established pros out there doing it, so knowing where to begin is important. The Good News It

Magazines: The Art Of The Follow Up

One of the questions I get asked most frequently about writing for print is when to follow up on a query or submission. Ready for the frustrating answer?  It depends.  Unfortunately, writing for print is much like the English language itself—riddled with exceptions. Most people will tell you to check the publication to see what their guidelines say. This is all well and good—if they

Magazine Writing: Increase Your Bottom Line

I’ll tell you this–you won’t get rich quick writing for print magazines. However, if you are patient and creative, you can build yourself quite a business. You just have to think outside the box a bit. Trying to come up with new ideas all the time can be draining, and sometimes the pay isn’t great per word, or per article. Still, there are some smart