Most freelance writers have to find ways to overcme the problem of time management. I recently ran across this article on time management, and I thought it had some really good advice...wish I'd written it myself!
http://www.thesykesgrp.com/TSGBlog/archives/cat_timemanagement.html
Hope you find it as insightful as I did!
Thursday, June 15, 2006
Tuesday, June 06, 2006
More About Creative Query Letters
Query letters are you first impression on the editor, your customer. That’s why you need to use all your creativity to write an effective query letter. Telling an editor you have an idea isn’t enough. Writer’s Digest editor Thomas Clark has identified five essential aspects that should be in every query you write:
1. A working title
2. A projected length
3. Your idea’s place within the publication’s departments (where it will fit)
4. Reference to previous articles
5. Results of some initial research done for the project
Remember, at this point you haven’t actually written the article. You’ve come up with a unique idea, researched publications until you found one that fit, and done initial research—both to prove you’re serious and to show what direction the article might take.
As I mentioned before, the query letter needs to fit on one, typed page. If it exceeds one page, you need to go back and rework, or tighten, your story angle. Write your letter in traditional, business-letter format, on professional letterhead if you have it. If you’re a novice, you probably don’t, but computer programs like MS Word come with several templates you can use in a pinch.
Your first paragraph is the most important, a creative, curiosity-arousing first paragraph hooks the editor, just as the first paragraph of your piece hooks the reader, and gets the editor to read more. Then outline—briefly—your story idea, in a way that makes it sound exciting and fresh. (If that’s hard, you probably don’t have the right idea yet.)
Aside from that, your letter needs to contain:
1. Address, email and phone number
2. Your background as a Writer (If you’re a beginner, don’t reveal that. Act professionally and you will be treated professionally.)
3. Your particular qualifications to write on your chosen subject
4. Your availability and prospective timeline for completion if you get the assignment
5. A request for a response.
There’s more to writing query letters, much more than I can put here, but there are lots of excellent reference books that can give you more details. I use Professional Feature Writing: Third Edition by Bruce Garrison (which is now in its fourth edition), which also contains excellent advice on feature writer in general.
Visit my website at http://www.andreadisalvo.com
1. A working title
2. A projected length
3. Your idea’s place within the publication’s departments (where it will fit)
4. Reference to previous articles
5. Results of some initial research done for the project
Remember, at this point you haven’t actually written the article. You’ve come up with a unique idea, researched publications until you found one that fit, and done initial research—both to prove you’re serious and to show what direction the article might take.
As I mentioned before, the query letter needs to fit on one, typed page. If it exceeds one page, you need to go back and rework, or tighten, your story angle. Write your letter in traditional, business-letter format, on professional letterhead if you have it. If you’re a novice, you probably don’t, but computer programs like MS Word come with several templates you can use in a pinch.
Your first paragraph is the most important, a creative, curiosity-arousing first paragraph hooks the editor, just as the first paragraph of your piece hooks the reader, and gets the editor to read more. Then outline—briefly—your story idea, in a way that makes it sound exciting and fresh. (If that’s hard, you probably don’t have the right idea yet.)
Aside from that, your letter needs to contain:
1. Address, email and phone number
2. Your background as a Writer (If you’re a beginner, don’t reveal that. Act professionally and you will be treated professionally.)
3. Your particular qualifications to write on your chosen subject
4. Your availability and prospective timeline for completion if you get the assignment
5. A request for a response.
There’s more to writing query letters, much more than I can put here, but there are lots of excellent reference books that can give you more details. I use Professional Feature Writing: Third Edition by Bruce Garrison (which is now in its fourth edition), which also contains excellent advice on feature writer in general.
Visit my website at http://www.andreadisalvo.com
Friday, June 02, 2006
Communicate WIIFM with Creative Query Letters
If you’re a new writer, you may be confused about how you’re supposed to convey to the editor what’s in it for them. Maybe you’ve heard of query letters, or have read guidelines that say “query” or “query with clips,” but you don’t really know what that means. Or, maybe you’re like me and know what it is, but find the whole concept frustrating. Well, we’re both going to have to get over it, because query letters, or queries, are a necessary part of selling your writing.
True to its name, a query letter is a letter asking an editor to publish a particular piece or series. Though you may find exceptions, queries are generally used for nonfiction pieces and sent to magazines or other periodicals. The query letter serves two main purposes: to find out if the editor needs a piece covering your topic and to sell the editor on the idea that he or she needs a piece covering your topic.
The query letter saves both you and the editor time. For you, you haven’t wasted precious time researching and writing an article that won’t be published. On the other hand, the editor doesn’t have to wade through a series of manuscripts and read each one to see if there’s something there. He or she can pick up your one-page query letter, see if the topic is suitable or if they’ve recently done something similar (if you’ve done your homework, they haven’t), and judge the writer’s skill at a glance. So, what are the editor’s needs?
• Brevity—editors are busy people, so they don’t have time to read five-page missives
• Topic—they want to see a topic that fits with the theme of their publication and that is timely and interesting
• Skill—editors want to know how good your writing is
Next time I’ll go into more detail on how to use query letters to sell editors on the idea that you have what they’re looking for.
True to its name, a query letter is a letter asking an editor to publish a particular piece or series. Though you may find exceptions, queries are generally used for nonfiction pieces and sent to magazines or other periodicals. The query letter serves two main purposes: to find out if the editor needs a piece covering your topic and to sell the editor on the idea that he or she needs a piece covering your topic.
The query letter saves both you and the editor time. For you, you haven’t wasted precious time researching and writing an article that won’t be published. On the other hand, the editor doesn’t have to wade through a series of manuscripts and read each one to see if there’s something there. He or she can pick up your one-page query letter, see if the topic is suitable or if they’ve recently done something similar (if you’ve done your homework, they haven’t), and judge the writer’s skill at a glance. So, what are the editor’s needs?
• Brevity—editors are busy people, so they don’t have time to read five-page missives
• Topic—they want to see a topic that fits with the theme of their publication and that is timely and interesting
• Skill—editors want to know how good your writing is
Next time I’ll go into more detail on how to use query letters to sell editors on the idea that you have what they’re looking for.
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Where’s the WIIFM?
Here’s something most beginning writers don’t want to talk about: marketing your writing. For most writers, writing is the “fun” part, but turning around and selling that work is the bane of their existence. It may help to realize that, like every other aspect of writing, marketing requires creativity.
It may seem like your writing should sell itself. You know, you send your precious baby out into the world with no introduction, and the first editor to see it simply snatches it up. Reality check! Selling writing is like selling anything else, and the first rule of selling is to tell the prospect (in this case, the editor) what’s in it for them. You can think of it as WIIFM – What’s In It For Me. It’s okay to put in something about your credentials. If you have an impressive track record or some awards under your belt, some editors will be impressed enough to take a look at your piece or query letter. Don’t make it all about you, though. Say what’s in it for the customer. In the advertising world, there’s nothing more important than WIIFM. People won’t buy from you because you have the most degrees, know the latest writing tricks (okay, maybe they will…sometimes) or have state-of-the-art story-spinning software. Editors usually don’t care how many years you’ve been writing or how many credentials you have. They care about how good your piece is and what your writing will do for them. How many readers will it attract? Will advertisers want to be featured near it? Will it win their publications awards? What’s in it for them?
People only pay attention when you meet their WIIFM criteria. They only want to know what’s in it for them. They have a problem or desire, and all they care about is whether you can solve their problem or give them their desire. When selling your writing, show the editor the WIIFM!
It may seem like your writing should sell itself. You know, you send your precious baby out into the world with no introduction, and the first editor to see it simply snatches it up. Reality check! Selling writing is like selling anything else, and the first rule of selling is to tell the prospect (in this case, the editor) what’s in it for them. You can think of it as WIIFM – What’s In It For Me. It’s okay to put in something about your credentials. If you have an impressive track record or some awards under your belt, some editors will be impressed enough to take a look at your piece or query letter. Don’t make it all about you, though. Say what’s in it for the customer. In the advertising world, there’s nothing more important than WIIFM. People won’t buy from you because you have the most degrees, know the latest writing tricks (okay, maybe they will…sometimes) or have state-of-the-art story-spinning software. Editors usually don’t care how many years you’ve been writing or how many credentials you have. They care about how good your piece is and what your writing will do for them. How many readers will it attract? Will advertisers want to be featured near it? Will it win their publications awards? What’s in it for them?
People only pay attention when you meet their WIIFM criteria. They only want to know what’s in it for them. They have a problem or desire, and all they care about is whether you can solve their problem or give them their desire. When selling your writing, show the editor the WIIFM!
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