Freelancing?

[deliciously_naughty]

I need to make some extra $$$ on the side and I was thinking of freelancing, since I live in nyc where most magazines are published. Anyone have any idea where I start? Are there guidelines? Do I just write an article and start submitting it to magazines? Do I solicit them for articles that they'd like to see written? I'm not talking erotica, but just writing.

 

[Whispersecret]

I'm not that familiar with magazine freelancing, but I believe some good advice would be:

Target the market. Really be familiar with the publication so that you know if your article fits their needs.

Since you're just starting, I would write an article for a certain magazine that you're already familiar with and send them a query letter that summarizes the article and asks if they would like to see it. Remember that magazines work on issues months before they go to press.

Somewhere I read that Anniversaries are good leads. Like if it's the twenty fifth anniversary of Clifford the Big Red Dog, writing an article about Norman Bridwell, the author, and how he's been delighting children with his stories could sell to a parenting magazine.

That's about all I know. I'm sure there are freelancers here with better advice.

 

[jon.hayworth]

Write for the market. Research your target magazines for both content and style. It is no good using language that is inappropriate for the magazines' target audience.

Remember that Monthly Mags work a long time in advance - right now they will be assembling articles for at the earliest Easter and probably for next Summer.

Also look at the "filler market" those silly little one and two liners you see in the Readers Digest etc. They pay exceptionally well, when calculated per word.

Another source of income - is to write reader's letters to those publications that pay for them.

The main thing to remember is that Publishing is a commercial business, if you don't offer the customer the product the customer wants you will not sell. So you must do your research, before you start hitting the keyboard.

Keep up to date files so you know what you have sent to who and more importantly who has accepted articles and then keep track for the check.

Maybe this will help give you some ideas.

jon

 

[Un-registered]

I need to make some extra $$$ on the side ...

Why not e-novels? The cash flow is much better because they pay faster and they pay more. You finish a novel and in two days it's up and earning. At the end of the following month you get that month's royalties (at least I do with my publisher provided they have reached $200 i.e. 89 copies sold).
OK it's 60k words but I do it as well as a day job and can average 5k finished words a week, so 4/5 books a year if I were hungry enough.

 

[deliciously_naughty]

Re: Re: Freelancing?

Why not e-novels? The cash flow is much better because they pay faster and they pay more. You finish a novel and in two days it's up and earning. At the end of the following month you get that month's royalties (at least I do with my publisher provided they have reached $200 i.e. 89 copies sold).
OK it's 60k words but I do it as well as a day job and can average 5k finished words a week, so 4/5 books a year if I were hungry enough.

I will admit I had thought that freelancing was a bit easier than it is turning out to be. Especially in NYC, where most magazines are headquartered. I think that I still want to pursue it to push myself as a writer and gain experience.

 

[Diane Marie]

I’m given this advice before, it your seriously considering this then you really need a copy of the "The Writer’s Handbook." I took the liberty of checking Amazon, they do have the current addition "Writer's Handbook 2003." They also have a companion book "2002 Writer's Market."

Review for "The Writer’s Handbook 2003": Book Description
The 67th edition of the definitive career resource for writers, now with over 700 pages of updated market listings! The Writer's Handbook 2003 provides professional writers with over 1,000 pages of essential information, how-to advice, and paying markets they won't find anywhere else! Part I presents more than 50 invaluable articles with specific solutions to the everyday problems writers encounter. Here is practical advice for overcoming writer's block, finding an agent, negotiating a better contract, designing an author website, protecting and negotiating electronic rights, and much more. Readers will also discover time-tested techniques and surefire ideas from dozens of prominent writers, such as Elmore Leonard, Anita Shreve, and John Irving, as well as fascinating, timeless advice taken from past issues of The Writer magazine. Part II offers more than 3,000 quality book and magazine markets from publishers who regularly buy fiction, nonfiction, poetry, short fillers, plays, and screenplays. Each listing includes detailed and complete contact information. Also featured are more than 300 additional resources, such as agents, writer's organizations, literary prize competitions, and conferences. Updated and revised throughout, this brand new 67th edition features an entirely new section filled with practical, A–Z advice for beginners entering the writing profession, as well as dozens of new sidebars with tips and suggestions for submitting work for publication, writing queries, and much more. For writers seeking a reliable one-stop source of top-notch professional advice and quality paying markets, The Writer's Handbook 2003 is the ultimate choice!

Review of 2002 Writer’s: Amazon.com
Kirsten Holm's door-stoppingly thick Writer's Market provides about the best bang for your buck if you're looking to place your writing. The 2002 edition boasts listings for 1,100 book publishers, 1,900 magazines, 700 contests and awards, and 75 agents interested in the work of new writers. You'll also find insider reports on writing for pet magazines, women's magazines, and sports magazines; articles on public relations writing, script treatment, e-queries, pay rates, and online markets (including a primer on "the only HTML you actually need to know"). And finally, Greg Daugherty spills the beans on the best ways to get great ideas for articles. First among them: "Take a lot of showers." --Jane Steinberg

 

[its Leslie]

The writers handbook is helpful they also have a Canadian version, but what you are looking for is the annual copy of the Writers Market.

It explains EXACTLY what each possible source you might write for wants. How they want it, what you can offer, specific details that will make you look informed competent and not a waste of staff time.

If you want to get paid, and you haven't got this years copy, stop go to the store, get a copy then worry about who you might write for.

If the bookstore doesn't have a copy try the next store. Any store that doesn't stock this routinely is a not worth your business. This is THE book for writers.

 

[deliciously_naughty]

The writers handbook is helpful they also have a Canadian version, but what you are looking for is the annual copy of the Writers Market.

It explains EXACTLY what each possible source you might write for wants. How they want it, what you can offer, specific details that will make you look informed competent and not a waste of staff time.

If you want to get paid, and you haven't got this years copy, stop go to the store, get a copy then worry about who you might write for.

If the bookstore doesn't have a copy try the next store. Any store that doesn't stock this routinely is a not worth your business. This is THE book for writers.

perfect...have my copy of writers market now on order

 

[Whispersecret]

You might not want to buy the Writer's Market until you're ready to submit. I bought a copy in 2001 but didn't submit until 2002, and editors change houses frequently, making the information obsolete.

 

[christo]

I bought Writer's Market last year, fully intending to write some stuff for "mainstream" publications, and I ended up posting about 100000 words here at Lit. Gotta start weaning myself away from the porno teat.

Writer's Market is almost TOO big and inclusive. I went nuts looking for places to write for. I think this year I'm going to buy the "Novel and Short Story Market" book, published by the same folks. I don't plan on leaving Lit entirely, but in the coming year I'd like to publish a story I can show to my mom without causing a massive coronary.

 

[Diane Marie]

In my opinion the "The Writer’s Handbook" is the more essential of the two books. Although the source information does become dated, the other advice does not. I have two older copies, one from the mid 60’s and another from the early 70’s both have valuable information for an author.