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Writing, Talent or Marketing?
What makes a good writer? If it’s talent, why do so
many writers slip by unnoticed by mainstream media. Today it’s
more important to be a talented marketer.
As an example, my first submission was to Cosmopolitan.
(Mistake 1.) I was lucky – the editor sent a lovely rejection
letter. Did that mean the article was no good? Not at all, I
just hadn’t applied the 3 principles of marketing – Price,
Promotion, Product.
Price – Try to establish industry norms in terms of
payment. Editors don’t necessarily want the cheapest.
Promotion – What did I do to catch the editor’s
attention? I wrote a covering letter that branded me an amateur
from the outset. I still cringe when I remember that I mentioned
how much the book club ladies enjoyed my short fiction. Would a
professional editor even carry on reading? Did I have any
statistics to sell my article? Tell the editor how the article
connects with the magazine’s target demographic. Can article
connect to previous themes? Tying the article to previous issues
shows that you’ve read the publication. Was my article important
to readers? I never read the “Letters to the Editor” so I
wouldn’t know.
Product – My article was humorous. My colleagues were
amused. Did any of the people I showed it to read my targeted
publication? No. Was the length appropriate? I didn’t even know
the word count. Huge mistake. It was too long to be a filler and
not long enough to cover a full page. Was it free of grammatical
errors? I hope so but I didn’t proofread it, I only ran a spell
check. Proofread twice. Spell check only checks spelling. These
errors scream amateur.
What else was wrong? I hadn’t done my homework. They’d
done a similar style opinion piece once but it had never been
repeated. Furthermore, my article was a humorous in a
down-to-earth way. The magazine tended towards a more
sophisticated satire. My article was completely wrong for them.
Get to know the publication. Your article needs to fit the
magazine, not the other way around.
Fortunately, I have come a long way. I approach
writing as a business – I am constantly looking for ways to
improve. I read books, see what worked for others and get all
the advice I can – a successful writer knows that there’s always
room for improvement.
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