1. Write tight. Novelists are accustomed to a hefty word count. Lengthy descriptions. Extensive characterization. Magazine articles don’t allow you that same luxury. Editors will be looking for tight, concise pieces. If you can say it in ten words, you can say it in eight. Kill off adjectives, adverbs, and any other words that don’t keep the piece moving forward. (And by the way, learning to write tight will help you with your novel, too!)
2. Think like a freelancer. A magazine article writer has to drum up his own work. If you’re the shy sort, get over it. You’ll be pitching, pitching, pitching. You’ll also be interviewing, generating ideas, and basically thinking outside of the box. If you’ve never studied the life of the freelancer, this is the time.
3. Touch your reader where he lives. In other words, your article topics have to hit home. They must meet felt needs. If you’re unsure of what those “needs” are, become a people watcher. If you’re still unsure, ask a magazine editor for his or her list of upcoming themes.
4. Learn the basic components of a great article. (We’ll talk more about this next month.)
5. Understand the various article types: how-to pieces, roundup articles, personal experience pieces, “Hear it from the Pros,” as told to, inspirational, profile/bio, essay/opinion, confession/tell-all, travel, food, etc.
6. Develop a solid understanding of the submission process. Learn how to craft a killer query letter. Keep author-editor relationships strong by doing what you’re hired to do—writing tight, relevant pieces and turning them in on time. Don’t leave any stone unturned.
7. If you’re interested in writing for the newspaper, study the world of journalism. You might consider a class at your local junior college.
8. Build a platform. If you’re a novelist, you’ve heard this hundreds of times. You need a following. The same is true with magazine article writing, but probably not for the reason you’re thinking. People (traditionally) don’t care who wrote the article they’re reading. Don’t let that hurt your feelings… it’s just a cold hard fact. However, as a savvy writer, you should care. Why? Because those article topics could one day lend themselves to your novel or nonfiction book. And speaking of nonfiction books…
9. Write articles that can be turned into nonfiction books. (I know, I know! I hear you saying: “But I’m not a nonfiction author! I’m a novelist!”) Here’s my take on that: Nothing in your life should be wasted. If you’re writing those magazine articles on, say, menopause, why not take them, tweak them a bit, and turn them into chapters for a nonfiction book on the subject? If you’ve been building a platform by publishing a host of articles on the same topic (menopause), you’ve been setting yourself up for a nonfiction book, anyway. And who knows! You might just use that same topic as the foundation for your novel! Before long, you’ll be known as “that menopause writer.” (Hey, it’s better than being known as “that menopausal writer”!)
10. Learn the tricks of the trade. Hang out with other magazine article writers. Get to know editors. Figure out new angles. In other words, be savvy. Think on your feet. Be prepared to turn anything and everything into an article.
BONUS TIP: Join www.writersmarket.com. Take the time to learn how to navigate it properly.
