[epub] Re: Article Submission

["Paul Myers" <arkham@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Lewis asked:

> > Out of curiosity, If you snail mail an article to 40
> > magazines, do you get a reply from each? 

Be careful of comparing offline to online publications. The 
two animals only have a very small number of things in 
common.


Doug replied:

> If you snail mail the *same* article to 40 print magazines
> - you need your head read. You'll only do it once if -by
> chance - more than one editor wants to buy first N.A.
> rights. You won't get a second chance with print editors
> unless you are very, very, very good.

This has a corollary online. If you want to be published in the 
big zines, you stand a MUCH better chance if you give them 
an exclusive for a specific time period.

I hear a lot of people recommending hitting every zine you 
can with every article you write. Some claim that's better. I 
say it's hogwash.

If you know your subject well, it's not at all difficult to write 
several variations on the theme. The investment of time is 
worth the effort.

Consider the following advantages to tailoring your articles 
as exclusives for the larger and more well respected 
publications:

A. If the editor knows you always offer them an exclusive, 
they are MUCH more likely to read your article. They have a 
working relationship with (and professional respect for) you.

Nothing is more valuable than that for a writer except their 
own established readership base.

B. You get more credibility and actual readers from an 
established and well run publication with 100,000 
subscribers than from 30 mediocre ones with 5,000 
subscribers each. A LOT more, even ignoring the issue of 
subscriber overlap.

C. You do better work when you know it's going to be read 
by a lot of people. That quality of content is important for 
things beyond the original distribution. 

Consider what you're going to do with the material AFTER 
it's published. There's more mileage in it there than in any 
publication. 

== Aside ==

I have seen people that I call "fluff mills" that turn out article 
after article, all of it mediocre. They then post it all on their 
web sites, thinking that quantity is enough to impress 
someone.

Sorry. "A lot of junk" makes the site look like a flea market. 
A selection of quality looks like an upscale jewelry store.

As an example... I have a folder of 688 articles sitting here 
from the past two years that have been submitted for my 
newsletter by various authors (More than 60 individuals). 
That's about one every two months per contributor.

I have a separate folder containing 123 articles from ONE 
individual over the last 18 months. He has increased his 
pace to the point that I now get 2-4 articles from him per 
week.

His material is fine for certain audiences and formats, but it's 
*extremely* basic and simplistic.

My newsletter handles in-depth stuff. One really good article 
is worth more to my readers than all 123+ pieces of gloss 
this fellow sent me.

He never asked me if I wanted them. He sends me two 
copies of every one. (I delete one every time. Sometimes 
both.) And he has never sent me anything that was even 
close to appropriate for my format.

He's made an impression. DO you think it's the one he 
wants to make? If he developed a product, do you think I'd 
take it seriously enough to even look at it?

The important question: How many other people may feel 
the same way?

Who you don't approach at the wrong time can be as 
important as who you do approach at the right time.

== End of Aside ==

D. If you publish a really good piece that people like, a 
number of them will contact you with requests to reprint your 
material. This is a much better position from which to start 
and develop a relationship with a publisher.

Doug makes some excellent points in his post. The main 
one being, you need to learn the way the pros do it if you 
want to be treated like a pro.

The publishers decide how the pros do it. Because the 
publishers decide what gets into print.

(I heard that... "Without authors, they have nothing to print!")

Don't count on that, folks. There will always be more people 
who want press than there is press available. Even online.


Paul
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