Part 1 – Anatomy of a Magazine
Yesterday, February 26, I was one of 20 wannabe magazine writers who took part in a workshop led by Amy Frykholm of Leadville. We met at the Sangre de Cristo community room in Buena Vista. Amy is a writer and editor for The Christian Century, where she writes feature articles, book reviews, interviews and blogs. She has authored two books: Rapture Culture: Left Behind in Evangelical America, published by Oxford University Press and Julian of Norwich: A Contemplative Biography, published by Paraclete Press in May, 2011. This fall, her third book will be released by Beacon Press: See Me Naked: Stories of Sexual Exile in American Christianity.
Amy’s workshop covered the process of writing for magazines—finding ideas; searching for the right fit with a specific magazine; submitting the article; and dealing with editors. She also addressed questions about credentials, obtaining interviews, pay expectations; magazine contracts and support from editors.
This blog will be in two Parts. Part 1, “Anatomy of a Magazine,” will talk about how you determine if you want to write for a particular magazine. Next week, Part 2, “Anatomy of an Article,” will discuss how you submit an article and deal with editors.
I’d love to convey everything Amy told us, but there simply isn’t room. I’ll try to condense this into the points I found most useful.
Know what you want to write about – We all have our own pet interests and passions. Amy asked us to write for five minutes about this. Then we went around the room and she recorded the list on a white board. Mine topics of interest lean towards art and the metaphysical. I’m good with how-to’s and personal narrative. I like to research and can interview if I have to.
Writer’s Market is a good place to begin, but don’t stop there. Amy says to use it to find possible target magazines, but that is only the first step. You must get to know the magazine and create a relationship with an editor.
Research the magazine –You might consider subscribing for a year or looking at a year’s worth of back issues. At the very least, examine three back copies (order them from the publisher if you have to). Find out these things:
- Circulation (subscription figures) –36,000 – 50,000 means the magazine is doing well enough to pay freelancers decently.
- How often do the publish? – How many issues a year? For example, the Christian Century is published twice a month; therefore it needs freelance writers. Versus a magazine that produces four to six issues a year.
- Who produces it? – Is it a group of editors? (10 is a huge editorial staff) An organization like the Sierra Club? What is their political leaning? Are you in line with their ideals?
- What are the feature articles like? – Features are longer pieces. Find out the typical word length. Analyze the articles—Profiles of people? Opinion? Personal narratives? Self-help? Instructional? Travel? Reporterly (6 or 7 interviews)? Historical? Which area of the magazine could you write toward?
- Voice of the magazine – The magazine isn’t about you and your voice. The magazine has a voice (tone) of its own. The Mountain Gazette, for instance, has a youthful, edgy voice. The High Country News has an educated, liberal, eco-centered, activist voice. Some writers get upset when editors change their voice, but it’s up to the writer to conform to the magazine’s voice. Would you want to write with the tone of this magazine?
- Editorial Structure – Find the person you want to target to send your query to. Amy says that often the “Associate Editor” is the best. Look at the list of people who create the magazine to get a feel for the magazine. Google the different editors and see what they write. Discover their personalities from online research. Is there someone you would feel comfortable addressing your query to? (An aside: If you want to work for a magazine, it behooves you to make personal contact at a conference.) The better you know the editors of a magazine you want to write for, the better chance you have of their paying attention to your query letter.
- Economic Structure – For-profit or non-profit? Is it funded by ads, donations, subscriptions? An endowment? Is the magazine word-driven or ad-driven? If the magazine is filled with words rather than ads, you’ll have a better chance as a freelancer.
- Table of Contents – What kind of Departments does the magazine have? How many features? What are the voices of the different departments? Would your article fit a department? If yes, then mention this in a query.
- Contributors – “contributors” are freelancers. They are not on salary. They may be regular contributors or occasional freelancers. How many does the magazine use? Would there be room for you?
When you have thoroughly researched the magazine and know which person on the editorial staff you will direct your query to, then you are ready to pitch the article.
Next week: Part 2 – Anatomy of an Article
GREAT REVIEW, Maria. Thanks.
Love,
Debby
Thanks, Debby!