5 Things You SHOULD Say to an Editor

Last week I named a few things you shouldn’t say to an editor “5 Things You NEVER Say to an Editor” and the post was pretty darn popular so I figured it was only practical to give a couple of tips on things editor’s love to hear from writers.

5. “I need help.”

Writers like to present a tough facade. They want to show they have everything under control and worry that asking their editors for help on a piece will cost them future work. On the contrary, editors love to know a writer will come to them for help because it ensures they will get the article they asked for, not the one a writer thought they wanted. If you are unsure of what the editor wants, encounter a major issue, i.e. with sources, or are having trouble working a particular angle, let your editor know. They’ll help come up with sources or approve a new angle, it’s their job. Just don’t wait until the last minute.

4. “You can reach me at: (614) 555.1234.”

There is nothing worse than having an issue with an article right before you go to print and you can’t get in touch with the author. Sure there is email, but as you anxiously refresh your Twitter page and email hoping for a response, you find yourself wishing, woefully, they had included a phone number in their correspondence.

Many editors are assigning work to writers without ever speaking to them over the phone – the power of technology! Unfortunately, where there is power, there is pain. Contrary to popular belief, writers aren’t in front of their computers every hour of the day and in every time zone. We leave the house, have internet troubles, and *gasp* take a break from social media and microblogging! Having an alternate means of contact an incredibly important, often overlooked courtesy.

3. “I’m available for edits.”

A Twitter friend reminded me after the 5 Thing You Never Say article that writers should keep themselves available for revisions. (Thanks NancyDWrites!) Some writers will say they are too busy to do revisions or become offended at the request. Both responses are a sure way to make the Do Not Call list. You want to do your own rewrites and edits. You are familiar with the information, sources, etc. it really is your responsibility. Do you really want someone else calling all the editing shots on your piece when you can do it yourself?

2. “I saw the great piece you published on (subject here).”

This helps establish a relationship with the editor. You don’t have to be best pals, but it helps keep your name in the front of the editor’s brain and shows you are keeping up with the publication. It’s a good idea to touch base with an editor every so often without asking for work. That’s building a relationship. Remember to keep the emails short and friendly professional.

1. “Here’s my article (turned in early!).”

OK, you don’t have to say the “turned in early part,” they’ll know. Getting a quality, ready to publish article in early is like sending a gift wrapped hug to an editor – it gives them warm, fuzzies, makes their lives easier and instantly puts you into the ‘favorable writer’ category.

Self Editing Tip #3: Check if You’re Not Sure

Lay versus lie, awkward spellings, AP style versus Chicago – all can be difficult things for even the most accomplished writer to navigate. That’s why great writers check and double check their resources to make sure they are not relying on hunches when it comes to editing their articles.

Style guides are there for a reason – to guide writers to the correct usage of words and standards that the publication follows. Some publications have more than one guide – they may use a general one like AP Style and then another one that is specific to them.

The World Wide Web is at your fingertips so there is absolutely no reason why some writers continue to guess and use lay, lie and all of their forms incorrectly. It’s lazy and no one wants to hire a lazy writer.

When that little voice in the back of your head says “Hmm…” pay attention and use your resources.

Here are few sites I like to visit when I have a question or a “Hmm…”
Quick & Dirty Tips: Grammar Girl

AP Associated Press

Chicago Manual of Style Online

alphaDictionary.Com

Do you have a fav grammar site? Tell us below!

Stumped for Article Ideas? Query Your Friends!

It happens to all of us every once in a while. You need an idea for a column, blog or  article and you can’t quite seem to come up with an idea that grabs your interest. Sometimes normal sources of information just doesn’t cut it. Sometimes you gotta have friends.

Soliciting article advice from friends is a great way to put your social networking skills to good use. Tap your Twitter buddies and your Facebook friends to help you come up with the next, best idea for your work.

Make sure you tap your friends who are not writers, they often give the best ideas and angles for a story. These are people who aren’t tainted by the writing process and the burden of reading so much in a particular niche. It is also an exercise in digging for the story because most of the ideas thrown at you aren’t in query, blog, or article ready form. Turn a general “What about health care” suggestion into a working topic by asking questions about people’s concerns, local health care issues, or something germane to your niche or target audience.

“What about health care?” can breakdown into:

• Pet Insurance Do’s & Don’ts
• Finding coverage for children
• Local health care advocate news
• Health issues in your state, city, school
• Where your local Congressman stands on health care

The options are endless and I guarentee you’ll not only be able to gather great ideas from your friends, you’ll be able to find some pretty good sources among them as well.

Have you ever used a social networking site to gather ideas for an article? Tell us below.

Scheduling Time for Your Articles, Part 2

Yesterday we looked at scheduling time to research information, conduct interviews and prep an article in the first part of “Scheduling Time for Your Articles ” today we are going to wrap up this mini-series with a look at writing and editing.

• Schedule time to write the article. Once your preliminary work is complete it’s time to write. Short articles you may wrap up the initial draft in an hour or so, longer feature articles or more detailed subjects may take you anywhere from a couple hours to a couple of days. You should know your writing style by now so you are the only one who can plan out the time. I will caution you, however, to avoid spending an entire day on one piece. When something takes all day it is easy to get bored or frustrated with it. A couple of focused hours over the course of a couple of days tends to give writers a better perspective on where the piece is going. Which brings me to the next item:
• Schedule time to edit. “I edit as I write.” I hear that a lot when tutoring English students or students who are having trouble with papers in other classes. I usually respond “I can tell.” (Don’t worry, I am nice about it. Never crush a student’s writing confidence, it takes forever to get it back.) When you edit as you write you can end up with disjointed ideas, compromised flow and miss a gaggle of things you would have caught if you had gone back over the piece with your editing pen. Editing time is just as importing as writing and research time. I always advise students, writers, whomever, to take a day or two away from the piece. Give your brain a rest and then look at it with fresh eyes, you’ll have a much better idea of what works and what doesn’t.

Does the article writing process have to be a weeks-long odyssey? Absolutely not, but each step should be taken whether the step take 2 hours or 10 minutes. Giving the writing process time and diligence is what produces great writers, great articles and generates more income which is what we are all hoping for right? It also helps eliminate those pesky writing rodents “Procrastination” and “Missed Deadline.”

Do you break down the writing process differently? What works for you? Share it with your fellow writers below.

Are you finished with that article or just finished?

Deb had a great post this week: Freelance Writing: You’re Only Competing Against Yourself. It got me thinking about how often we can sabotage our success. One area writers can set themselves up for failure is ‘just finishing’ an article.

Just finishing is getting an article in just under deadline, under duress and under your standards. Procrastination is usually the right hand man to just finishing. The root causes of procrastination are as varied as the writer – poor time management, fear of tackling the piece, cockiness that you will get it in on time and it’ll be fab because you’re just that good, etc.

The consequences of just finishing show up in a variety of ways. When you have set the standard that you will likely be the last writer to get their piece in, an editor knows you are the worst person to call with a rush piece. This cuts down not only on your ability to get more of the juicy last minute gigs and the rush fees that may accompany them, it will make your services less valuable to the editor. There’s no competition between a writer that will work hard, get things in before deadline and deliver tight work, versus one that will squeak in under the deadline with an obviously rushed piece and a sheepish emoticon grin.

Another possible scenario – if you have set yourself up as a stellar writer who turns in great work before deadline and you start down the path of last minute, your editor is going to notice. Editors and teachers can tell when something has been written last minute. It, at times, reeks of desperation. The article will likely need more tightening/editing than any of your previous pieces and if seen repeatedly the editor/publication will begin to wonder if you are still passionate about working for them. That’s never a great conversation – trust me.

Now let’s be real, everyone has off days and even months. There are times when things don’t click, won’t click and can’t be persuaded to click. Editors understand, they are people too and are more likely to give their favorite writers the benefit of the doubt.  Don’t take advantage of their humanity and avoid being in that position if you have just started establishing a reputation and a career. Getting comfortable with ‘just finishing’ is like cozying up to mediocre – it will just hold you back.

Finishing Strong – How to wrap up an article

Every writer knows creating a great lead (lede) is key to a great article. It piques an audience’s interest and pulls them in for you to deliver the goods. What some writers fail to realize is a good ending or conclusion is just as important.

We’ve all been there – one minute you’re reading a piece, zooming right along and then it just trails off… An article is not a novel, it shouldn’t have a cliffhanger.

When writing a newspaper article, there are a few set standards for finishing up a conclusion, such as a final quote. Features have more room for creativity. Unlike a news article (particularly with inverted pyramid style), the ending is not in danger of getting cut off by a copy editor because of space issues. Depending on the type of feature you’ve written, you need to decide what you want readers to take away from the piece.

Do you want to leave them with a thoughtful quote? What about the end of the story – what happens? What is likely to happen next? Is there an opportunity to provide an update or give them information to take action? Blogs will often end with a question to spur readers into commenting.

An article shouldn’t end simply because there is no more information. An article needs to end when the ‘W’s’ of writing are satisfied. The conclusion should leave the reader with something to think about and a sense of finality – as far as the article is concerned. They shouldn’t look at the bottom of the page for the next page arrow or a note on where the rest of the article picks up.

Is this article finished? Why or why not? If not, write a conclusion for it below! Got any tips on creating a great conclusion? Tell us below.

There’s No Whining in Freelance Writing

This week I am pretty disturbed at the amount of angst Deb received when she took a break from writing leads. There was a distinctive tone I heard in many of the comments that was very familiar…it was like so many of the writers I’ve had the opportunity to work with throughout the years.

I heard a level of entitlement. I’m sure you’ll find it in every line of work, a host of people who like to stay in their comfort zone, particularly when that comfort zone has a bit of hand holding.

As an editor, I love to work with writers who have flexiblility and who strike a good balance between independence and knowing when to seek counsel. These writers are confident in their knowledge and skills enough to know when things are under control and when it’s important to contact an editor with questions. These writers are more likely to be the ones who accept edits and input with professionalism and make editing a breeze.

Then there are writers who really like their comfort zones. They never want to vary from their writing style or story angle no matter if it’s better for the audience or publication. They view critiques and edits as a personal attacks and they require a fair amount of hand-holding. An editor’s job is tough enough without having to baby-sit a writer.

Here’s the problem with loving your comforts too much – it prevents you from stretching and growing as a writer. So while there are some things as a writer you’d prefer to live without – a good cup of coffee, or in my case cocoa and a sharp pencil, there are some things you can’t live without and thrive in this profession: flexibility, independence and a “plan-b.”

Caller You Say What? Questions About Queries

By Terreece M. Clarke

I always wanted my own talk show :0) Today I’m going to answer a few of the great questions I’ve received:

Rupa Says:

Hi Terreece,
Off topic – but I wanted to return to the query challenge. (Yes, I am working on it!)
I have spent some time studying query letter tips and sample queries online. I have never done this before and want to learn to do it right.
I have a few questions -
Is it absolutely necessary to mention in the query some of the names of the people I will be talking to and the quotes I will be using in the article? I guess names and quotes do add some personality and interest and convince the editor that I actually am capable of doing the research…But currently I don’t have the sources or quotes, although I will be getting them before starting the article (If I get chosen to write!) So, is it ok to leave that part out in the query or should I first work on the sources and quotes?

Hi Rupa, thanks for the question. It’s not necessary to include exactly who you will interview. While yes, it does give the query an extra kick to list a respected expert or someone who’s recently published a book on the subject, it is also okay to list a general roster. “I will interview an expert in the field of origami as well as a member of the National Origami Organization,” one way to leave yourself open to some wiggle room.

Nina Says:

Hi Terreece,

This may be off topic. But I am looking for some answers. I am starting my query process, I have never been published in a print magazine. I have read that a great way to break into a magazine, would be to interview an expert. My issue is, how do you come up with questions that are news worthy? For example I want to query a magazine about a natural health supplement. How can I construct a solid interview? Any help would be appreciated.

Hi Nina! A great place to start would be to research current news on the health supplement. What do proponents of the supplement say about it? What about those who dispute its use? You can also think about it in terms of the magazine’s focus. For a parenting magazine you could interview an expert in natural medicine and its affects on pregnancy or use while breastfeeding, for a male fitness magazine the emphasis could be on performance enhancement – and I mean athletic, not the other kind, though if you find information on that it would be a good angle! Find an angle that appeals to your publication and construct an interview around the angle. Remember to be flexible during the interview because there are times you never know where the interview will take you.

Got a question about writing? Working on the query challenge & need some help? Email me or post your questions below!

How Well Do You Fact Check?

by Terreece M. Clarke

The BEST writing “how-to” ever!.

Our first job as non-fiction content writers/journalists is to present the truth fairly and accurately. Whether it’s on the web, in glossies or newsprint we are obligated to uphold a certain standard. It is what makes people trust what we say and what makes them look to us when they need information.

Most of us do our jobs well. We seek out knowledgeable sources and we try to stay as objective as possible. But how well researched is that knowledgeable source?

You’re writing an article on clothes detergent – the best kind for a large household. You smartly bypass detergent companies because they obviously have a vested interest and instead set up a meeting with a textiles or hospitality service professor from a respected university. What they have to say will be gold right? Maybe not. Thoroughly check out your expert. Did they work for a detergent company before turning to academia? If they’ve completed research on cleaning agents, who sponsored the study? What’s their stance on environmentally safe cleaners? Depending on your experts ties to industries, you may get a less than objective viewpoint.

Does this mean you have to ax a source because they have certain leanings on a subject – no, but there are times when those leanings should be disclosed to the readers.

Before the election, when pundits weighed in on which candidate was telling the truth and what information was misrepresented, they would often relate to the audience “this person, a democratic strategist” or “commentator so-and-so, owner of conservative think tank blah, blah.”

When a study hits the newswire, always ask who sponsored the study, the information should be easy to find. When you look for sources foundations and associations always sound great, but investigate the opinions or industries the organization represents.

For example, owners of social networking web sites will say social networking is the future of all internet activity and the leader of the National Association for Seat Belt Liberation will likely say that seat belt laws are a sinister plot by the auto and insurance industry and is a violation of civil liberties.

So be a Max and not a Bloo and fact check!

Thoughtful Thursday: How’s that Working For You?

By Terreece M. Clarke

Tuesday in “Date Your Publication” we talked about getting to know the publications you want to query and got some great feedback, specifically from Mary who commented on how frustrating her first year writing was because she hadn’t tailored her queries to specific publications. Once she started however, her success rate climbed. Mary is an excellent example of a great writer stopping to take stock in their career to see where things could be improved.

This time of year is a great time to take stock in your career and goals as Deb wrote in her “Setting Goals for 2009” post. What worked for you in your freelancing career? What didn’t? How is your querying process? Your time managment? What about your sources?

In other words, to channel Dr. Phil, “How’s that working for you?” A successful freelance career depends on being able to adapt so making the same mistakes – rush work, scrambled billing practices, not so great, or worse, tired sources are not going to get you to your goals. You’ll never be able to take James’ advice on “Preparing Yourself for Better Writing Rates” if you can’t justify an increase. Think about these areas of your writing life:

• Are you meeting your deadlines?
• Do you allow sufficient time to edit and proof your work or are you always rushing to the finish line?
• If an editor called you today to check on a sources’ quote, could you find the notes?
• A client is disputing a bill, could you pull up the accounting information, including hours?
• Quick, what are your average business expenses for a month?
• Could you find a clip in your clip file from 2006? What about last month?

Take a little time this Thoughtful Thursday evening and ask yourself “How’s that working for you?”

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