These tips for writing for trade magazines are directly from a panel of print trade publishers and editors. The good news? Not all trade print magazines are shutting down! I was part of a writer’s craft fair recently; the panel of trade magazine editors and publishers said their readers don’t read online e-zines or use Google to find information. They [...]

What about submitting multiple query letters to magazines? I’ve been avoiding this on Quips and Tips for Successful Writers for months…and it’s time to ‘fess up!
Before the tips, a quip on writing:
“Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of, but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards.” – Robert A. Heinlein. 
This is [...]

I’ve been using an Excel spreadsheet to track my magazine article pitches and submissions for over two years. Here’s how and why it works like a charm – and a question for my fellow scribes!
“Work with yourself, not against yourself,” says Julie Hood of TheOrganizedWriter.com. “Understand your personality and what works for you.  Do what [...]

Pitching queries that contain article ideas that actually sell is a huge part of successful freelance writing – and luckily, it gets easier and easier all the time! Here are several tips for freelance writing and generating article ideas.
First, a quip from the best-selling author Lawrence Block:
“I suspect television is a great source for story ideas. [...]

A ”payment upon publication” offer from a magazine editor means writers get paid for article when it’s published. A ”payment on acceptance” assignment, on the other hand, means the writer gets paid when the article is submitted.
Which is preferable for working writers? Payment on acceptance, of course! But, even the most successful freelancers get a “payment on publication” offer [...]

This sample query letter includes several ways to improve it. It’s a pitch I sent to Child magazine two years ago; the editor didn’t assign the article, and here I explain why. These tips can be directly applied to your own query letters, to help you sell your freelance articles…
Before the tips, here’s a quip from two experienced freelance [...]

These ten tips for recognizing great article ideas will help you focus your pitches and land more assignments, fellow scribes! Especially if you’re into magazine writing…
Before the tips, here’s a quip from this fantastic book about magazine writing:
“Editors frequently complain that freelance writers don’t study their publications before they submit unsolicited ideas and manuscripts,” write [...]

Some of these magazine article writing tips and hints for pitching to editors come directly from editors (thanks Reader’s Digest!)…and others are from my own experience as a full-time freelance writer.
Before the tips, a quip from bestselling author Sidney Sheldon:
“Usually, when people get to the end of a chapter, they close the book and go to sleep,” says Sheldon. [...]

If you want to be a successful freelance writer, you need to know how to write query letters for magazine articles. The following tips are from a great “Query Letter Clinic” from Writer’s Market 2009; I’ve also included a sample of a strong nonfiction magazine query letter.
Before the tips, a quip:
“Write while the heat is in you. [...]

While there’s no “winning formula” to writing excellent query letters, it is good to see how published freelance writers pitch their ideas! So, here’s a query letter I sent to MSN Health, which the editors accepted a couple days later.
“The most effective query letters get into the specifics from the very first line,” write the experts [...]