Published on www.fwointl.com/artman/publish/article_859.shtml January23rd 2007
Expose yourself &
Guard your rights
First rights only
is the right call
By Amanda Eaton
Sometimes it can be frustrating. Sometimes it can be infuriate.
But
what you want to think about is the publication and the airing of your article. Your
article is gaining exposure, with your name on it.
So
go ahead and write an article for free every now again, but remember this is your livelihood not a hobby. The majority of
editors will take advantage if they know you will write something for free all the time.
Now personally I give away an article
about once a month sometimes even once every two months and I am very selective about the magazines I choose. If I am going to give away my hard work then I have a few simple rules that I abide by, if they want my
article for free.
-
I want my by-line on the same
page as the published piece.
-
I get to advertise for free
in the magazine.
-
I always make sure that my ad
is on the same page as my article to correspond with my services.
-
I also write articles related to my writing services I offer - again with the advertising.
Trade publications are the easiest magazines
to break into the market for first time writers. Thats how I started.
Now, I've been writing articles for
about three years now, but my true passion is writing annual reports, speeches, brochures, and newsletters. This is my bread
and butter.
I write for companies and various
magazines in the following industries veterinary medicine, early childhood education, home economics and of course writing
web-sites, magazines and e-zines. These are subjects that I know a lot about and I don’t have to do a lot of research,
but I do write about other things too. It’s just I have to do more research for those topics which is a lot of fun.
Remember, you don’t have to stick
with a topic you confidently know about. You can choose something different that you don’t quite know about and do the
research involved it is a very rewarding experience. Research, learn, and write. You will be surprised at how much you
can learn and how much you already knew about subjects you hadn't considered.
Also remember, if you are
going to write an article for free, make sure you only give the publication first rights or first electronic rights.
This way you retain all other rights and once the magazine has published your article all rights revert back to you. Then
if you want to you, you can sell it to another publication.
Never sell or give away all rights to
your work. You want to maintain your rights so that you can resell your work. I made the mistake of doing just that when I
first started out. I soon learned the lesson not to do it again. Don't make the same mistake.
So, if you’re a first-time writer,
enjoy what you’re doing and write! Writing is the first step to getting published, and offering only first rights is
the first step towards getting republished. Write lots and lots, and remember to give up first rights only- no matter what.!
Published May 16th 2007 www.fwointl.com/artman/publish/article_942.shtml
Dealing with rejection
Find it acceptable
By Amanda Eaton
Rejection letters, I like to think are
the demons of the writing business, and that’s how most new writers see them too. This is how I saw them when I first
started out in the writing business, but I soon got rid of that attitude because with that approach you don’t get anywhere.
I try to look at rejection letters as
a symbol of someone else’s inadequacies its not you personally the editors don’t like, it’s your article
that doesn’t fit their magazine style for that particular month, and if you let them get you down your're letting
the editors win. Always take the letters like a grain of salt. There are plenty of magazines out there that
will publish your work. Continue to submit other peices to magazines that have rejected your article; don't give
up on them just because they didn't accept you the first time. Keep sending your work, and make sure you check the theme
and editorial calander for that year--follow it.
Most magazines have a theme for a reason;
so don’t send articles that don’t match.
I pin all my rejection letters up on a bulletin board in my work space,
so I can see what didn't work out at which magazine. then I write and submit some more.
Keep rejection in perspective--it's not that the editors hate you personally.
Rather, they have a job to do sifting through piles of manuscripts and query letters.
Most publications have an editorial calendar. Look for it online or
ask for it along with the writer's submissin guidelines. Follow these editorial clues to success exactly to the letter. Some
editors like manuscripts by good old fashioned postal mail and won't accept email or fax submissions. Others want only email
or fax submissions. Be sure toknow the guidelines for each publication and meticulously follow them.
Creat an article specifically aligned with the publication's theme for
a specific month, and then submit that one. If your're persistent enough, you'll be getting published without a problem.
Create articles as ideas come to you, and then find just the right publicaton
for submission. Once I sell an article to a publication that has previously rejected me, I take the rejection letters
from that publication down off my bulletin board. This process is like an incetive program for me, and believe me, it works.
You get so determined to sell that magazine an article that you don't want to stop, and then you don't even think about
the rejection letter coming in any more.
Once you see that first article--or maybe it's your second or third--it's
so exciting to see your name in print! Rejection letters just become a thing of the past and you continue on to
the future. Whenever I get one, though, I continue the incentive program, putting it up on my bulletin board and sending articles
to that magazine. I'm no longer upset by it. It's a function of being a writer. You learn to live with it. They're not really
that bad; you just have to find the best way for you to deal with the letters. Whatever system you invent, don't give up.
Once you see your first article or maybe it’s your second or third
you should still get excited. Especially when you see your name in print over and over again, you don’t even think about
the rejection letters anymore they just become a thing of the past and you continue on to the future. Whenever I still get
a letter though I continue to put it up on my bulletin board and still continue to send articles to that magazine, but I don’t
get as upset as I used to.
Really it’s just a thing you have to live with if you plan to
become a full time or part time writer. And to be honest with you they’re not really that bad, you just have to find
the best way for you to deal with them. Whether that’s putting them on a
bulletin board or whether you have to put them away in a draw, whatever the reason or system you invent, don’t give
up.
Amanda Eaton writes direct mail packages,ads, brochures, speeches, annual
reports, newsletters, and other marketing. She also consults with clients on marketing strategy, mail order seelling, and
lead-generation programs. a winner of the editors choice award, Amanda is the author of the mysterious stranger and stranded.
Amanda has also written various magazine articles. Visit http://dolphhinfish.tripod.com or email: dolphinfish@writeme.com