advice for wannabe travel writers

Been on a trip recently and want to make some money off of it (or at least write off your expenses)? If you're interested in travel writing, travel writer Andrew Hempstead gives what looks to be realistic advice and a good overview of where and how to get travel pieces published. (I say "looks to be" because I know squat about travel writing.) In addition to magazine writing, he also covers guidebooks and provides tons of links to relevant organizations and other helpful websites.

blog: copyblogger

A colleague just told me about the CopyBlogger blog. It has lots of great tips on blogging, all intended to help you get traffic, gain subscribers and attract links.

stop whining and do something about it

I'm with Craig Silverman on the constant complaining about freelance writing rates: we know the state of the industry sucks, now adapt. Among others, he offers two pieces of advice I've always believed in: build your brand, and always be learning.

[Came to Craig's post through Canadian Magazines]

a refresher on why plagiarism is bad

Posted in the Ed2010 daily newsletter, this article on Slate reminded me of a girl I once worked with. Fresh out of school, she asked me one time, "Why does it matter?" when I pointed out that her copy was nearly an exact duplicate of an article from another magazine, which she had submitted as fact-checking material for her piece. Jack Shafer gives eight reasons why.

are big publishers treating professional writers as hobbyists?

A few days ago, I attended a panel discussion put on by the Rotman School of Management's Martin Prosperity Institute at the University of Toronto. Entitled The New Economics of Selling Digital Media Online: How IP [Intellectual Property] Protection Fosters Economic Prosperity, the discussion covered the usual refrains of intellectual property, the right of creators to charge for use of that property, and the lack of enforcement of IP laws in the "Wild West" of the internet. Most of the comments related to the music industry and the difficulties it has had with peer-to-peer networks, including a point made by the Canadian Recording Industry Association's president, Graham Henderson, in his closing remarks. He brought up Chris Anderson's article on the free economy in the March issue of Wired magazine, and took Anderson to task for the following passage from the article:

Some artists give away their music online as a way of marketing concerts, merchandise, licensing, and other paid fare. But others have simply accepted that, for them, music is not a moneymaking business. It's something they do for other reasons, from fun to creative expression. Which, of course, has always been true for most musicians anyway.

Henderson bemoaned the attitude that musicians shouldn't expect to make money at creating music, and that the creative class may increasingly come to be viewed as hobbyists.

It got me thinking. Are publishers treating professional freelance writers as hobbyists? Since writing, both online and in print, is subsidized by advertising, and readers already expect to get content for free or nearly free, it could be argued that the assault on freelance writing income comes not from those who consume it, but from publishers who are asking for more rights for less money. There are even those who expect writers to produce well-conceived copy for free. My question is, are publishers relying on the for-the-love-of-it drive in writers, and in turn revealing their disrespect for the profession – or perhaps "hobby" – of writing? Are publishers turning professional writers into hobbyists?

writing workshops

Two workshops that may be of interest (as posted on Canadian Magazines):

The PWAC chapter in Moncton is hosting "The Write Stuff: Writing for Profit Workshop" on Sat. Jan. 26, in which they'll cover carving your niche, finding appropriate markets and protecting your rights.

The Ottawa Art Gallery is presenting a series of workshops on critical art writing, called Articulation. The six workshops run on Saturdays between Jan. and May.

what do I charge?

Curious as to how much your work is worth? One handy resource is the What To Pay a Writer page on the Professional Writers Association of Canada website.

edit beautiful

In an interview with Mediabistro, House Beautiful EIC Stephen Drucker talks about the shelter category, rising to the top and the art of editing. Here's what he has to say...

On over-intellectualizing

"Editors feel the need to make it really important, and they make it important by over-intellectualizing it. It's really about pleasure. It doesn't need a big intellectual justification. It doesn't have to be puffed up into something big and important. What often happens is that while everyone is intellectualizing, all the reader just wants to know is, "What's that great color blue on the wall?"

On getting to the top

"When I started, it was really very simple. You started as an editorial assistant. You hoped your boss left, retired, or died, and you stayed, stayed, and stayed, and the last person standing, with luck, got to be editor-in-chief in their 40s or 50s. ... Now, there is much more respect for people at every level of a magazine, because the staff is smaller. It's recognized that a 24-year-old editorial assistant may have a lot to contribute with voice, their knowledge of the Internet, and what they like, because it's an indicator of what's to come."

On writing fashion copy

"It's a great art to write fashion copy. It is a really specialized and under-appreciated skill to write those haikus that go into fashion magazines. To write captions for magazines like ours, they have to sound really musical. It's all in the ear."

On knowing your reader

"When you come to a magazine, it's a mistake to think you can just walk in and succeed. No matter how much experience you have, you have to come in and get to know the reader of your particular magazine, even if you've worked at five other magazines in your category. The reader of your particular magazine has very particular likes and dislikes, and it takes an ear to learn what they are, no matter how astute an editor you are."

Read the entire interview here.

recommended reading

Whatever you may think of his bestselling novels, Stephen King turned out a must-read in his book On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. Part autobiography, part textbook, On Writing makes the case for clear, concise and engaging storytelling, which should be the ultimate aim of every writer, from fiction authors to investigative journalists.

will work for free

At the recent Ed2010 Toronto Happy Hour, I was asked about volunteering and writing without getting paid. At some point, every writer and editor feels the pressure and need to work for nothing in order to build up his or her resume. But whether it's money or some other benefit, you should always get something for your time, effort and talent. Here are a few quick thoughts; watch for more on this subject (and about internships) in the coming months.

• Volunteering for a cause or nonprofit organization is a good thing. Getting involved with groups like Ed2010, the National Magazine Awards or your charity of choice gives you an opportunity to learn, network and give back to the community (yes, the magazine industry is a community worth giving back to).

• Writing for free makes sense only if you need the clippings. If you're not getting paid, there needs to be another benefit to doing the work. If you're at the beginning of your career or trying to cover a new beat (say, you're a business writer aching to wax poetic about food), sometimes the only people willing to give you a chance are the ones who don't pay. Advancing your career is a perfectly good substitute for cash.

• Working as an editor for free is an entirely different thing than writing for free. Taking on the editorship of a small independent should exempt you from doing an internship. And it's much better experience.

• Don't do it forever. No matter how much you love it, eventually you'll burn out. Always ask yourself, "What do I get out of it?"