How to Nurture the Markets You Know

How to Nurture the Markets You Know Recently, I hung out on an online writers workshop group, and the talk traveled to diversification. My fellow  Ã‚  writers tried to convince me, yet again, to write for businesses and corporations. This didnt sound totally right to me. Wasnt magazine publishing a business, too? I said that, for now, I would stick to articles. The moderator, an internationally praised freelance journalist, praised my fortitude. In the end, I guessed, it was about sticking to what you know, what made you comfortable. Over the last year, I realized that sticking to good markets, like staying faithful to a good spouse, could save your life in the end. I learned to nurture the markets I knew. Like most people, I hated selling myself to strangers. Strange magazine editors, with their cold inboxes and expectations of knock-your-sock-off queries, were no exception. This realization had improved my relationships with editors. Now I feel more confident that Ill get off welfare and succeed, again, as a full-time writer. I have hope again in the â€Å"meat market† freelancer situation of 2014, where A+ authors are competing like never before with the merely very good. I always considered myself a wonderful writer, but fighting for crumbs with Columbia Journalism School grads had really depressed me. In the end, I ended up being the girl who learned that she didnt have to attract the captain of the football team, or even had to work overtime to be pretty and dateable – at least in this cutthroat market. She just had to be laid-back with unglamorous but well-paying and consistent magazine markets. Finding Faithful Markets I have three rules to finding, keeping, and nurturing markets. 1. When contacting a magazine with a query or letter of introduction, I like to deal with publications that respond quickly. For first-time assignments, I dont deal with any magazine that doesnt make a decision within two weeks. The old-style, three-month rule of New York publishing doesnt apply to most magazines currently looking for freelancers. Your market should be like a date thats TRULY interested in you. 2. I also prefer magazines that are generous with assignment information. Obviously, knowing how to create a professional article is paramount. However, I hate it when an editor leaves everything to me; possible conflicts can and often do arise. I always verify length of article, deadline, slant of article, and of course payment amount. 3. After finishing an article for a publication, if they encourage me to submit more stuff, they make me especially happy, and they go to the head of my idea queue. I admit that some publications are not pro-active. They are like the shy but good guy, and sometimes, I make the first step to maintain a good relationship. However, perpetually making the first step with markets that dont respond is a waste of time. I only have a limited time for my career. For the best use of my effort, I emphasize my work with markets that respond to me quickly, consistently, and professionally. Markets Here are five trade magazines currently looking for freelancers who deliver consistently. Minority Nurse Magazine minoritynurse.com Contact: Megan Larkin mlarkin@springerpub.com Tea Coffee Trade Journal teaandcoffee.net Contact: Vanessa Facenda v.facenda@lockwoodpublications.com Vineyard Winery Management vwmmedia.com Contact: Tina Caputo tcaputo@vwmmedia.com Medical Economics http://medicaleconomics.modernmedicine.com/ Contact: Dan Verdon dverdon@advanstar.com Cleveland Business Connects (CBC) Magazine cbcmagazine.com Contact: Thomas Skernivitz tom@cbcmagazine.com Find out more about Behlor Email: thebxscribbler1980@gmail.com Website: behlorsanti.net LinkedIn: linkedin.com/pub/behlor-santi/53/32/193