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The Makings of a Magazine: Do They Include You?
(writing magazine articles)
Magazines are everywhere. They are published on nearly every subject you can imagine, in duplicate and triplicate and more. All that a start-up magazine needs is a niche and an audience. While there may be hundreds of cooking magazines out there, a new one could come up if it should cover cooking for your pets. In fact, there may already be such a magazine in existence. The niche is cooking for pets. The audience is those people who want the healthiest foods for their pets and are willing to put the time and effort into making it for them. If you are interested in writing magazine articles, you’ll be sure to find one that is perfectly suited to your interests and abilities as a writer. Because there are so many magazines, it won’t be difficult to find one that you will enjoy becoming a part of.
What You Should Know
Magazines survive on advertising. The advertisers pay because the content is good enough that readers will invest in the glossy covers again and again. The best way to find a healthy magazine is to look through the racks for thick publications. They will only be full of content if they are full of advertisements. The big magazines can afford to pay their writers more, but they can also afford to pay only the best writers. Even though there is quite a lot of space to fill with content, you may have a hard time getting published in major magazines at first. Smaller magazines do not have quite the readership and so they also do not have quite the advertisement content. The space will be limited and the pay will be lower, but these magazines will be more open to new writing talent nonetheless.
The More You Know, the Better
When it comes to a writing career, the more you know the better off you will be. It is not hard to figure out that you will have the best chances for publication if you can write on a variety of topics. You should not limit yourself to a small area of expertise. Work to become an expert in every topic you come across. There is no possible way of course to be an expert in every area of human knowledge, but it will help you in writing magazine articles to learn every new piece of information that you can. For example, if you were to send a query to a health and fitness magazine about writing a short piece about general mountain biking tips they may accept it. They may also then request additional information about the pros and cons of using a road bike on mountain trails. If you only know about mountain bikes, you’ll be stuck. If you have worked on broadening your horizons though, you’ll be able to produce the work that the magazine editor requires.
Getting On Staff
Querying magazines is a way to get published, but if you need a more stable job, you may be interested in getting on staff with a magazine. Writing magazine articles is a talent. If you can consistently bring an editor what he is looking for, you might have a chance. To improve your chances, in addition to writing effectively, it will help to have some significant education behind you. If you are serious about making it to the masthead of your favorite magazine, it’s time to go to school. A degree will help your credibility as a writer and will help you open doors into the magazine publication world.
Writing magazine articles takes a special kind of writer. You have to have a feel for what people are interested in reading about. The magazine content will help you understand how to write for a particular magazine and audience. You can also improve your chances of writing accepted articles by improving your knowledge base. Don’t be picky about what you’re willing to learn and you could go very far in the writing business.
Writing Tips for all Styles of Writing (writing tips) Most writing tips you will come across are usually geared towards certain writing topics. You can find fiction writing tips, short story tips, and poetry tips among the different ones. These tips are suitable for any style writer. Setting aside a time to write: You have to choose which is best for you. Some writers prefer having a set schedule. They schedule their days as if they are working a 9-5 job. Or some write in the fly and impulsively. Neither way is right or wrong. It is just a matter of choosing the one that fits your lifestyle and writing techniques. Know how to prevent writers block. It often helps keep your mind fresh and writers block at bay when you write about more that one topic at a time. This can keep the creative juices moving and the brain actively thinking about what the next lines are going to be. Writing about topics you know about or have a desire to know about also help the words continue to flow onto your canvas. Writing daily keeps your imagination open and always running. If the words start to become difficult to create, take a break and change the scenery before they are lost. It is easier to add to ideas already in your head than it is to try and start from scratch again. Another great writing tip is to keep a notebook and pen with you at all times. How frustrating it is when you have this fantastic idea but you forget what it is before you can find a pen and paper to write it down. Or you have a dream and wake up thinking that a great story could come of it and then in a flash it is gone. Set daily goals for yourself. Whether you are on a schedule or an impulsive writer setting daily goals will make sure you reach your intended outcome. Daily goals are usually much easier to obtain than weekly goals. If you do not have an education in writing but love to write it will help your career to learn writing basics. Understanding the different writing techniques and styles or basic grammar are imperative parts in a writers career. There are low cost and even free online course that will lead you in the right direction. Another helpful writing tip is to have a proofreader. This can be a family member, a colleague, or a friend. Every writer proofreads there on work over and over but a proofreader will often pick up things that we miss. The writer of a story knows what they want to say; therefore it is to miss an out of place word because you often read what you know it should say instead of what it really says. A proofreader will read the actual words and let you know whether they make sense or need changed. The research you do for an article needs to be accurate and update. A topic with information can be detrimental to your career. It shows lack of responsibility to find correct information. It shows apathetic writing abilities and reflects poorly on your character. The most important tip that you should know is to know what you are trying to achieve with your writing and knowing what its purpose it. By knowing this you will be able to keep focus on the point of your writing. Whether you are writing a story and try to keep reader enthralled with your characters or a late breaking news article by remember the purpose of your story will help you stay focused and on the right track. Tackling those Second and Third Interviews to Land that Job If you make it to a second or third interview, you are a serious candidate for the job. The key now is to narrow down the candidates. This moment is when you will determine if you get called with a job offer or receive a notice of rejection in the mail. Arm yourself with the proper tools and make an even bigger splash on the second and third interviews than you did at the first one. The first thing to remember when you are going into a second or third interview is what you said in the first interview. The interviewer will have notes from the first interview so you need to be ready to follow up on things you said initially. This is why it is important to be honest and realistic in the first interview. If you work hard to impress the interviewer and end up lying, you may not be able to recall they lies you told in the first interview. Eliminate this from being the case by telling the truth the first time around. Be armed with questions about the position and the company in generally. Search through information online about the company and get a feel for day-to-day operations. Type in the name of the company in Wikipedia and see what comes up. Many corporations are listed in this massive Internet encyclopedia and information about the company can be found there. Find out as much as you can about the company you are interviewing with. If you are interviewing with the same person the second or third time around, ask about their experience with the company. Questions like, “What is a typical day for you on the job?” or “How long have you been employed with the company?” can help to build a relationship with the interviewer. It also signals that you are comfortable with the interviewer. Not to mention, who does not like to talk about themselves? This is a great way to keep the interview moving on a positive note. Have plenty of questions about the position. Show that you have researched the job and are very confident that you are going to get it. The more inquiries you have about the position the more serious and interested you will seem. By the second or third interview, you will probably meet a number of different people. Shake hands firmly and look them in the eye when talking to them. If you are given a tour of the facilities, ask questions. Do not just let your tour guide point out areas without you taking an interest in them. Although it may seem like second and third interviews should be easier, do not let your guard down. Stay on your toes and be even more prepared than you were for the first interview. As the interview process moves on you will probably be meeting with the person that will be your direct boss or the director. Interviews with these figures may be much more difficult than the first interview which was probably with a human resource person. Be aware of this fact and have answers for those tough questions like, “What makes you the right candidate for this job?” Also be prepared for hypothetic situations that may take some spur of the moment problem solving. No matter what number interview you are on, there are some standard rules to follow. Take copies of your resume to your second and third interviews. Even though the interviewer may have a copy of your resume, you want to be armed with extras just in case there are other people in the department that would like copies. If you meet with different managers they may all ask for copies of your resume. Yes, they have copies, but they want to see if you are prepared. |