Would you like to make this site your homepage? It's fast and easy...
Yes, Please make this my home page!
How to Write Anything and Get PAID For It
A Beginner’s Guide to Freelance Writing
From Your Home!
OVERVIEW
Have you ever heard the expression, "everyone has a book in
them that's trying to get out?" What does this really
mean? Not everyone writes books, do they?
No, not many attempt the long, difficult process of writing
a book-length manuscript. But a growing number of
individuals are being paid for their writing -- and they've
never attempted to write a book!
Why? Think about it! When you're driving to work in the
morning, listening to the radio, what do you hear? People
talking, right? It may surprise you that very little of
that talk is spontaneous. The radio people work from
written material, which means ...? Yes, someone has to
WRITE the information down to be read over the airwaves.
Here's another example. Your mother's birthday is coming
up. What do you do? You buy a card. Did you ever wonder
who wrote the cards you look through when you're search-ing
for the right message? Well, it's not a big company where
people sit around all day writing cards. The writers of
greeting cards could live next door to you since most of
the material is submitted on a freelance basis.
How about your mail? Do you have days when you receive an
endless amount of junk mail? Letter after letter of come-
ons trying to get you to respond are not always thrown out.
Some people read them and do inquire about the product or
service mentioned. More importantly, those letters and
flyers are WRITTEN ... by someone!
You're getting the idea -- that writing is a common part of
everyday business life. From the brochures telling you
about savings accounts down at your local bank to the
billboard you drive by every morning on the way to work to
the bumper stickers you read on the back of the cars in
front of you ... all of this is written by somebody. Why
couldn't it be you?
Writing is an essential part of everyday life. There are
scores of opportunities waiting out there for anyone
interested in making some money through the written word.
It's not just Stephen King and Danielle Steele. Many of
today's successful freelance writers are completely unknown
simply because their name doesn't appear on their work.
Yet you see it every day from television commercials to
newspaper advertising.
Don't have any experience? Nonsense! Everybody writes,
from the notes you send with your holiday cards to lists
you make before grocery shopping. You probably don't
realize how much you write in a given week. In so doing,
you are likely adjusting your writing depending on the
subject or audience. When you send a note to school with
your child, you're writing in a certain style that's likely
different than a note you'd send to a relative.
This is exactly what writers do ... they alter their
writing content based on their subject or audience. So who
says you can't write for a living?
There's no end to the kind of writing you can do. However,
we do have a few suggestions for you to get started
thinking about a career, part-time or full, in the writing
field. As you review these pages, some idea may jump off
the page as something you could do. Great! More
importantly, don't think because you're never had a writing
lesson that you can't do it. All it takes is practice,
practice, practice and a determined desire to get it right.
If you're got the drive, writing may well be your career.
RESUME WRITING -- FOR OTHERS!
Nearly everyone, at one time or another, has written a
resume in preparations for a job search. So why not start
there? How many times have you done your own resume? If
you've written it at least once, think of all the other
people who have sat down to attempt it.
What an endless list of possible clients! Not matter how
large or small the town in which you live, hundreds and
even thousands of people are in need of resumes. People
change jobs a lot today, through their own wishes or due to
circumstances beyond their control like a downsize, merger,
buy-out or similar business adjustment. Besides, people
don't often keep their resumes up to date.
So, we've established the need -- resumes for people. Now,
can you write them?
Why not? If you haven't done your own lately, do it now!
Practice on yourself. There are a number of books that
offer help in formatting a "Modern" resume that you can
check out at your local library or bookstore. There are
employment resumes which lists your experience by positions
you've held. There are also functional resumes which lists
your qualifications by skill, with your employment history
listed at the end but of lesser significance to the overall
message you're trying to send, which is "hire me!"
The business world is increasingly competitive in the
number of positions available as modern technology has
eliminated some positions while creating a need for others.
The key today is specialization and a well-written resume
can help you "stand out" in a potential employer's eyes.
Since many individuals are either unaware of a résumé’s
importance or lack the con-fidence in their ability to
write a competitive resume, a resume writing service can
address both needs. Proper advertising of the service can
educate people as to the résumé’s importance, while
advertising alone may well generate more calls than you can
handle from people who know a good resume is crucial and
want some "expert" help in constructing their
"masterpiece".
Employers use resumes today to narrow down the list of
people they want for an interview. Specialization has
employers looking for particular talents, but often a
memorable resume can help get an interview even if all of
their "requirements" for the job aren't present.
You don’t need much to get a resume service off the ground.
First, you should study the various books on how to write a
good resume. Practice a few formats and have samples ready
for potential customers to review.
Second, you will need a computer with a word-processing
program or even just a good memory typewriter. If you have
a computer and can afford a laser printer, all the better.
But remember, you're not in the printing business, you are
simply creating the resume for your client.
Finally, this is an easy business to operate out of your
home. If you have an area sufficient to put a computer or
typewriter, you can start. Pick up a file cabinet, or the
smaller, plastic file boxes to store client files. Your
client's need for a resume probably won't end one effort.
Another job search is likely to occur down the road and the
client will probably come back to you for an update,
especially if they were successful getting a job the first
time around. Keeping a client's past resume on file can
assist you for further work later.
As you research your resume writing, make a list of verbs
that are common for resume writing, such as:
- administered - managed
- analyzed - operated
- completed - organized
- coordinated - prepared
- created - started
- designed - supervised
- developed - trained
- evaluated - wrote
These lists will assist you in writing your resumes very
quickly without constantly referring to a thesaurus. Time
is of the essence to a freelance writer; there are
shortcuts to producing quality work without spending hours
and hours on a given piece.
You're ready to start, now you must attract clients. Put
together a business card and a flyer and start tacking them
up on every community bulletin board in town. Send them to
large company personnel departments who may refer employees
who are being laid off. Advertise in the classified of
your local newspaper and in the smaller, often free
publications that are circulated around town like the
"Pennysaver". Tell friends and family members and give
them your card/flyer. They can spread the word among
friends -- someone's bound to need help.
What should you charge? A simple one-page resume could be
priced as low as $25. The more complicated the resume, the
more you charge. Much depends on the amount of work you
have to do. Keep track of the time it takes you to
complete a resume -- the more work, the longer hours, the
higher your price.
WORKING WITH LOCAL BUSINESSES
Now that you understand the idea of the versatility of
freelance writing, let's turn our attention to
organizations you will come in contact with through your
resume services business.
As individuals come to you with resumes, make a list of all
the local company names you write on the resumes. This is
your next prospecting list.
Companies, particularly small ones, have a great need for
writers. Think about it! Every day, a business is
corresponding -- with a customer, a potential customer or a
supplier. That correspondence often takes the written
form.
Well-written correspondence can make the difference between
getting a job, landing a customer, increased growth in the
business. Writing’s importance can never be over-looked.
Yet the majority of people, even business people whose
prosperity de------pends on customers, place little
emphasis on good writing and spend very little time at it.
Your opportunities here are many. Businesses write
letters, create brochures, advertise their services, send
out direct mail to potential customers; in short, they
WRITE!
You'll have to alter your Resume Services business card or,
better yet, create a new business card to advertise your
"all-purpose" writing services. Prepare samples of
different type of writing you can do. Instead of throwing
out that junk mail, save those letters and practice
perfecting their idea -- to get a potential customer to
respond to what's in the letter. Have a family member of a
friend bring home samples of correspondence from their
places of work. Read them and practice writing business
letters. Go to the library and check the reference works
on writing good letters. Read the newspapers and magazines
for sample advertising copy. Take a product you like and
write an advertisement for it. Practice! Practice!
Practice!
Correspondence: Your best clients here are small
businesses, sole proprietors or partnerships who may not
have the time to spend on their correspondence. Contract
with them to do their written work. You can probably
charge $25-100 for a letter. Businesses may have form
letters they use, and you can redesign them for the better.
The quality of correspondence is often an indicator, to a
client or a potential client, of the company's
professionalism. You can help businesses increase their
sales simply by improving their correspondence.
Brochures: Most businesses try to sell their services
through the use of a brochure. Brochure writing and design
is not something that takes ages to perfect.
The most important consideration is identifying the purpose
of the brochure. Is it to sell a client on the company
itself, or a specific product or service? Once the subject
is identified, then you can pinpoint the key features of
the specific idea that should be emphasized.
Keeping brochures simple is important. Writing everything
there is to know about a com-pany, product or service may
seem great, but it is usually ineffective because it's too
much for a casual reader to take in. Simplicity, on the
other hand, can trigger a potential client's interest and
have them seeking out the company to ascertain more about
the product or service identified within the brochure.
Once they call, the company has a better chance of
transforming that curiosity into a new customer.
As you begin to do writing, you will work with other
professionals in the field such as graphic artists. These
are individuals whose artwork can help create a terrific
bro--chure. But, for small businesses, it is often
convenient to find the copywriter or graphic artist in one
person. For that reason, the use of a computer has great
potential rewards. There is a wide variety of "desk-top
publishing" software that can be used for both writing and
graphic design. There are specific programs that design a
brochure.
Being able to offer the whole package will be attractive to
the business. Brochure writing can bring you a nice
paycheck per piece, as high as $500-1000 for some elaborate
pieces.
As a writer, your object is to put the message within the
brochure across effectively. Remember -- keep it simple.
The easier to read and comprehend, the higher the likely
response to the piece.
Advertising: The art of advertising is only slightly
different from the brochure. In a brochure, you have more
time and space to put your message across. With
advertising, only a few words. Advertisements must stop
the reader and thus need a "grabber" headline. You must
always remember the purpose of the advertisement. It's not
to SELL anyone, but to attract enough INTEREST to get the
person to call for more information. Then the real selling
can start!
There are words that are consistently effective in pulling
in an audience and initiating a response. Here’s a short-
list:
- amazing - profitable
- easy - secret
- free - simple
- now - privileged
- special offer - win
- incredible - don't wait
- make money - startling
Businesses need to attract clients. Advertising can do
that if done well. This is where you come in. Read
advertisements! Which ones do you respond best to? Try
this: cut out a few of the advertisements you like best
and show them to several friends. Record their level of
interest and rank the results. You'll probably see a
pattern where one or two of the advertisements emerge at
the top of everyone's list. Study those to see why. Very
likely, you'll see that the use of a few key words and the
message they imply will prompt people to respond positively
to those ads.
Direct Mail: Many businesses do direct mail as a method of
acquiring new customers. These works must be written well
to achieve the type of response that will make the effort
worthwhile financially since postage and printing costs
make it an expensive method of advertising .
But it works! Well-written direct mail can bring in
hundreds and thousands of new customers . Your writing
efforts are not merely a cost in constructing a direct mail
letter; in fact you can help a company earn substantially
more as a result of a successful direct mail cam-paign.
Effective direct mail creates an image in a client's mind.
That vision is primarily one in which the person's life
will be enhanced by the purchase of the product or service
being advertised. This is your goal -- to help the
potential customer see how much better things will be
because of what you are "advertising" in the letter.
Here are ways to make a direct mail letter effective.
-The opening of the letter should be treated with the same
reverence as a headline. You have to grab the reader's
attention quickly and make them want to keep on reading.
It mat be the outside of the direct mail envelope that
starts the process. If it's good enough, the person tears
open the envelope and begins reading. Then the headline
/first paragraph of the letter must create the same
effect -- to keep the person reading.
-There must be reasons to keep reading, usually in the
form of some benefits. Because the person opened the
envelope, there is a free offer. Then, when reading the
first paragraph, more benefits jump out -- the value of the
service or product, perhaps. Put in a good "benefit" with
each paragraph -- and keep the paragraphs short!
- Don’t offer benefits that aren’t believable. Don’t make
promises you can’t keep. The idea is not to make people
skeptical, but to see the tangible benefits you offer are
valid. To this end, be specific. General terms usually
provoke disbelief, while actual specifics are shown to have
more honest-sounding appeal.
- Understand the product or service yourself. Would you
buy it? If so, why? If you understand why you’d buy it,
you can set about convincing people using the same
thoughts.
- Use third party affirmations, if available. If it’s only
your copy, it won’t leave as good an impression as the
insertion of a few "outside" quotes from others, testifying
to the effectiveness of the product or service.
- Simplicity sells! Short sentences. Short paragraphs.
Easy words. You’re not out to win the Pulitzer Prize. You
only want individuals to respond to your letter. They will
if they understand the benefits of doing so. Keep it
simple!
- Be explicit with your instructions. The letter must not
only detail the great benefits, but tell the person exactly
what they must do to obtain them. Be specific and make it
easy to respond -- including a postage-paid card or a toll-
free number are usually great methods.
- Freebies earn responses. Giving something away usually
helps the response dramatically.
- Convince the reader that the product or service being
advertised is backed up by a strong company that guarantees
the results and benefits detailed in the letter. Readers
must be convinced of the authenticity and the ability to
back up the strong comments within the letter.
Letters can be 2 to 4 pages in length or even longer and
you can probably charge $50-100 per page to write the copy.
This is a small investment for a business in exchange
for the sales growth direct mail can achieve.
In summary, small local businesses are a great source of
writing work for you in a variety of forms.
THE "READER’S DIGEST ANGLE"
Successful writers usually begin by writing about
themselves or events which have happened to them. The
familiarity about the material makes it easier to write and
there is an air of authenticity about the writing for
obvious reasons. It is these life experiences which
even the beginning writer can fashion into small works that
can be published.
Anyone that has children has plenty of humorous stories to
relate. As television personality Art Linkletter used to
point out, "Kids say the dandiest things." If you have a
funny story like that, try writing it down. Or if a friend
tells you a tale in a similar vein, record it and read it
back to them. Practice writing these short pieces.
Short anecdotal type writing must relate the story quickly.
Short means short! Work at cutting out all the excessive
words you can. Trim the piece to its "bare bones," yet
don’t lose the humor in it. It’s almost like writing good
comedy bits for stand-up comedians. Their material is
never overly long. Henny Youngman and Rodney Dangerfield
talk in rapid-fire delivery, a joke to every sentence.
This is the kind of writing you would ideally do since
there are plenty of paying outlets for these funny works.
The best known "is Reader’s Digest", who has an array of
popular columns like "Life in these United States", "Humor
in Uniform" and "Campus Comedy", among others that pay $400
for each anecdote of less than 300 words (1 page, double-
spaced is about 250 words). That’s good pay, but you
should realize that "Reader’s Digest" receives thousands of
submissions each month. If your anecdote is one they think
is publishable, it will probably go on a waiting list. But
this is one outlet.
For other outlets, check the book, "Writer’s Market" for
the current year. They list all the outlets for short,
funny pieces. You might also try the magazine, "Writer’s
Digest", which has a list of specialty publishers each
month. Contact the magazine to see which issue lists the
short pieces such as these. Very often, they publish
articles about how to get the short works published.
To help trigger thoughts about stories you can relate, try
compiling a list of phrases which can help you recall a
story or two that could be publishable. Showing the list
to friends can also help them remember a story that you
could use. Here’s a few phrases to get you started:
- repairs - skiing trip
- job hunting - fishing trip
- mail delivery - sports activities
- holiday gifts - military service
- car pooling - local tavern
- doctor’s appointment - grocery shopping
- dentist’s appointment - shopping (general)
- fast food - in-laws
- kitchen cooking - neighbors
- substitute teaching - scouts (girl, boy, cub)
Short anecdotes can be the basis for a couple of paragraphs
that fit into a "Reader’s Digest", or the basis for a
longer article that other magazines (usually family-
oriented) may have some interest in. It is the easiest
method for beginning writers to start acquiring good
writing habits by actually writing over and over again.
It’s easy because the material is familiar. You’re not
laboring over research to achieve a proper article.
Keep in mind the supreme rule of successful writing: keep
it simple! Simple sells, especially with short, humorous
pieces like these.
KEEPING IT SHORT AND SIMPLE
As long as we’re on the subject of simplicity, there are
other types of writing that lend themselves to the short
and simple principle. Items such as bumper stickers, radio
spots and greeting cards are all outlets for simple, short
phrases or paragraphs that can put across a message--
preferably a humorous one--very quickly.
Did you see the movie "Forrest Gump"? In this film, the
movie’s hero answers a reporter’s question with a bumper-
sticker-like phrase. The reporter stopped short, as it
dawned on him what a great phrase for a bumper sticker he
had just heard. The next scene in the movie is a car
traveling down a highway sporting the phrase on a bumper
sticker.
That’s how it happens. There are numerous bumper sticker
opportunities. Busi-nesses, associations, charities and
other organization use the bumper sticker to deliver a
memorable phrase to the general public. What a simple,
great, easy way to advertise!
If you are familiar with any local group, you may have an
idea for a bumper sticker advertisement for them. Try
playing with catch phrases in your head. If one occurs to
you that you like, try it out on your family first and then
your friends and co-workers to see their reaction. If it’s
overwhelmingly positive, approach the organization with
your idea. They’d pay for advertising, so why not for
bumper sticker ideas?
Some slogans are just funny and don’t necessarily apply to
any type of advertising. Try these phrases out on some
people and see if they like it. Again, if the response is
heavy on the positive side, you may have an idea you can
sell yourself. Bumper stickers aren’t that expensive to
print and if you sell 50 or so, you’ll likely make back
your investment and start to make a profit.
Be sure it is a marketable slogan, though. A beach theme
would do well in a community by the sea. A slogan about
the forest would play well in the northwest. The heart-
land may buy bumper sticker themes about farms. Pet themes
have universal appeal.
Use your imagination! Be creative! That’s what this type
of writing is all about! The whole trick to it is to think
of the phrase, not write a lengthy piece. If you’ve
written advertising or read our suggestions for good
copywriting earlier in this text, remember the key to
successful advertising was the headline. A bumper sticker
is nothing more than a good, snappy headline.
Successful bumper stickers can lead you to using a great
slogan on coffee mugs, hats, T-shirts, banners and similar
low-cost, easy to sell material. They make great handouts
for business sales meetings and contests. A little
creativity can go a long way.
In addition to bumper stickers, there are similar chances
to write short, catchy phrases, sentences and short
anecdotes for the radio.
You’re probably familiar with your local radio stations.
You’ve heard many of the disc jockeys, usually the morning
drive-time ones, do their usually zany bits to attract a
listening audience. Since ratings drive the advertising
which makes the station pro-fitable, the better the disc
jockey’s material, the greater the potential for higher
ratings.
These disc jockeys quite often think of their own material,
but are also willing to look at bits written for them.
More importantly, the radio stations are often willing to
buy comedic pieces for their radio personalities.
The best approach is to familiarize yourself with a radio
disc jockey’s particular style and work with it to create
your comedy. There may be particular themes or issues a
particular disc jockey likes to relate and you can build
your material on it. Don’t take the disc jockey out of his
or her regular character, simply blend your material in
with theirs.
You may be able to create a character for the disc jockey
to play off of during comedic exchanges between music
plays. There was a radio personality that we remember that
had an alter ego, complete with a different voice, called
"Mr. Friendly". Mr. Friendly was anything but and the
radio disc jockey would tape this character’s sen-tences
and phrases ahead of time and play them in response to
questions or comments he personally made during his show.
The results sounded like an actual conversation exchange
and were often hilarious as a result. This is the type of
creation that could earn you a sizable amount of money if
it works well with the radio disc jockey.
So, the next time you’re listening to the radio, think
about the type of things you’d say if you were on the radio
and then blend it in with the disc jockey’s style. You may
be sur-prised at the reception you’d receive if you wrote a
few pieces for them to use on the radio.
Disc jockeys are always on the lookout for good material to
use on their shows. It’s not unlike all the great
comedians you’ve seen that have writers supply them with
their lines. What these individuals are best at is
delivering the lines, but very often someone else has
written it for them. Why not you?
Another short writing option for you is the greeting card
market. Did you know that nearly 50% of the first class
mail market consist of greeting cards? Cards are not
limited to birthdays and holidays any more. You name the
event, there is a card for the occasion.
Three companies dominate the card market today, according
to "Writer’s Market". These companies are Hallmark,
American Greetings and Gibson Greetings. They are your
primary markets, although you may well find it easier to
break in to one of the smaller card companies listed in
publications like "Writer’s Market" and magazines like "The
Writer" and "Writer’s Digest" which are available at the
newsstand or your local library.
Women are the traditional card buyers by an overwhelming
number. Visit a few card racks yourself to see the
different styles under the various company names. This way
you can find which style you feel most comfortable in
pursuing and can direct your output at the proper
distributor.
Card companies are always on the lookout for promising new
material. Again, these are short pieces which require
quick, snappy thoughts that tell the message clearly and
rapidly. It’s the same style as headline, bumper sticker,
anecdotal type writing and if you’re doing those
successfully, greeting cards may be a good choice for you.
Each editor of a card company may prefer to see your
submissions in a particular type of format so once you’ve
identified the companies you believe you can write for, end
in a request for their writing and submission guidelines
along with a self-addressed, stamped envelope for
their convenience. In so doing, you’ll save yourself the
trouble of submitting material outside of their usual
format which they’ll discard.
Some like individual card ideas submitted separately while
other prefer a list of ideas at one time. Typical
categories of cards are:
-humorous, either by written word or visual gag. These are
exceedingly popular and ones that are difficult to write
and therefore in demand constantly.
-traditional, which is usually the sentimental type of
verse constructed message. These are generally the longest
pieces of writing, often poetic type verses.
-contemporary, which is also humorous, dominated mostly by
one-liners about modern society while also conveying the
specific message - birthday, anniversary, holi-day, etc.
-personal, which most often is a blank card inside for the
buyer to writer their own message. The focus of your work
is to come up with an appropriate picture or phrase (or
both) on the front of the card.
Here are various reasons cards are sent, to help set your
thoughts towards particular ideas that are easy for you to
express:
Holidays:
- New Year’s Day - Father’s Day
- Valentine’s Day - 4th of July
- St. Patrick’s Day - Halloween
- Passover - Thanksgiving
- Easter - Hanukkah
- Mother’s Day - Christmas
Special Occasions:
- Birthday - Anniversary
- Belated Birthday - Graduation
- Get Well - First Communion
- New Baby - Confirmation
- Congratulations - Bar Mitzvah
- New Job - Engagement
- Vacation/Trip - Retirement
- Sympathy - Thank You
General:
- Friendship - Good-Bye
- Missing YOU - Haven’t Heard From You
- Thinking of You - Sorry I Haven’t Written
Don’t forget that many of these categories have sub-
categories with variations like "mother", "father",
"niece", "nephew", "son-in-law", and so forth. Cards can
also be from "the two of us", "your brother" and other
people. There are even card for single parents.
There are different types of card styles, too, like "pop-
ups", children’s cards and bawdy humor for adults only.
Don’t limit yourself. Experiment with all types of writing
styles and themes. You’ll eventually establish a comfort
level and a knack for a par-ticular category.
Bumper stickers, radio comedy bits and greeting cards.
Think short and you may well be on your way to a successful
freelance writing career.
FROM FAMILY LIFE TO CHILDREN’S STORIES
Earlier in this text, we suggested that your conversations
with your children or younger relatives might make good
short anecdotal tales for submission to outlets such as
"Reader’s Digest". There are many more children’s
magazines that are possibilities for this type of writing.
Children’s stories are not only the humorous recollection,
but can be both fictional and non-fiction articles that may
be easy to write because they are, again, for your PER-
SONAL EXPERIENCE! If you are a teacher, you probably have
an endless source of material to put down on paper.
You can write about children or you can write to children
for them to read. It all depends on your subject matter
and your angle. If, for example, you’ve come with a good
method of getting your child to clean his or her room, this
might make a good short article for a magazine like
"Growing Parent" or "Christian Parenting Today".
You may have a story about your child’s first date, which
you can turn into an article about teens and dating that
kids themselves might like to read in a magazine like
"Seventeen" or "Teen". Parents, too, might enjoy it, so
you can try submitting it to both types of publications.
If you’re writing towards a teen audience, you’ll have to
keep the story on a written level that your young readers
can comprehend. There are easy ways to do this, by using
no more than three syllable words and writing in short,
sharp sentences and brief paragraphs. Simply reviewing
spelling books for various age levels will help you develop
a vocabulary list that will be useful when directing your
piece at a specific audience/age-group level.
Writing for children should be done in a style that
empathizes with them, as if it were written by someone
their age. Don’t write like a parent! If you’re trying to
get a message across, do it in a way another child might
tell it.
Parent magazines are quite different and here you can write
for an adult audience, although the simple, spare style
will always work for you (and, quite often, the editor) as
it is easy to read. Assume, as you would with children,
that the parent needs even the most basic explanation. A
common mistake writers make is to assume that a reader
under-stands a particular subject on some level already.
Don’t make this mistake! Explain yourself and assume the
reader knows nothing. You’re usually teaching when you
write and repetition helpfully reinforces the subject
matter or the specific key points you wish to illustrate.
Assuming the reader is not conversant with the subject is
your best bet.
Here are some possible magazines for submissions:
PARENTAL: Aimed at the parents
American Baby Magazine
475 Park Avenue South
New York, NY 10016
Christian Parenting Today
P. O. Box 3850
Sisters, OR 97759
Expecting
Gruner & Jahr USA Pub.
685 3rd Avenue
New York, NY 10017
Growing Parent
Dunn & Hargitt, Inc.
P.O. Box 1100
Lafeyette, IN 47902
Home Education Magazine
P.O. Box 1083
Tonasket, WA 98855
Parenting Magazine
301 Howard Avenue, 17th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94105
Parents Care
P.O. Box 1563
Lancaster, CA 93539
Parents Magazine
685 3rd Avenue
New York, NY 10017
Today’s Family
27 Empire Drive
St. Paul, MN 55103
TWINS
P.O. Box 12045
Overland Park, KS 66212
CHILDREN’S MAGAZINES:
Businesship
Business Kids Suite 1080 E.
1300 I Street
Washington, DC 20005
Exploring Magazine
Boy Scouts of America
P.O. Box 152079
Irving, TX 75015
Guide
55 W. Oak Ridge Drive
Hagerstown, MD 21740
The New Era
50 E. North Temple
Salt Lake City, UT 84150
Keynoter
Key Club International
3636 Woodview Trace
Indianapolis, IN 46268
Magazine for Christian Youth
United Meth. Publ. House
201 8th Avenue S., Box 801
Nashville, TN 37202
Seventeen
850 3rd Avenue
New York, NY 10022
Teen Magazine
8490 Sunset Boulevard
Hollywood, CA 90069
Transcend
4 Daniels Farm Road
Suite 134
Trumbull, CT 06611
Youth Update
St. Anthony Mess. Press
1615 Republic Street
Cincinnati, OH 45210
SELF-PUBLISHING FOR PROFIT
Now that you’ve mastered the shorter forms of writing,
perhaps you’re ready to write a book-length work of fiction
or non-fiction. If you’ve developed strong writing skills
over the course of your writing for profit career, you will
likely be able to master the discipline necessary to write
a longer work.
The problems are more likely to lie with getting the book
published. It is often easier to write a book today than
to see it finally get published. Writers often see
multiple numbers of rejection when submitting to book
publishers. Some persist and do well like Richard Bach who
survived more than fifteen rejections before getting
"Jonathan Livingston Seagull" published. Many others
simply give up.
There are other options, however. Getting a book published
by a large New York firm is probably the least likely way
to break into book publishing. Many of these houses are
owned by large corporations today whose interest lies
primarily with pub-lishing blockbusters, book that can sell
50-100,000 copies in hard cover. Since few books by
established authors do this, the beginner’s chance in this
market has virtually disappeared.
In addition, you need an agent in order to approach a large
publisher like Random House or Doubleday. If you try to
submit directly, your manuscript will likely lay unread.
Some may even give you the courtesy of mailing it back.
Still others will send you a postcard essentially saying,
"Thanks, but no thanks".
The editorial director of the popular magazine,
"Publisher’s Weekly", believes that self-publishing is the
best alternative for new writers to get a book out there
for others to see. If an author is convinced of the
quality of his or her book, and is receiving dozens or
rejection letters, this editor suggests publishing the book
yourself. Com-paratively simple equip-ment, he says, can
be used to turn out a reasonable facsimile of a finished
book.
This establishes a writer as serious about one’s work and
can lead to publishers looking at the author’s future
manuscripts more closely. It always looks good to say
you’ve been published, even if it is self-published.
Some self-publishing books have gone on to bigger and
better things. "Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations," a
standard reference work now was originally self-published
by the author as was the writer’s bible, "The Elements of
Style". They sold well, publishers noticed them and bought
the rights to publish it in greater quantity.
If you decide to go ahead with self-publishing you book,
you will have to be prepared to make an investment. It
isn’t cheap to publish, but you can save on costs by doing
as much work ahead of the printer as possible.
First, desk-top publishing software can often let you type
set you own book yourself. Or, if not, you should try and
type your book on a computer and furnish a typesetter with
a disk. It will make it much easier, quicker and less
expensive for the typesetter to actually lay the book out
in its eventual published format.
Next, work with a graphic artist to design the cover. A
photograph of you as author will likely suffice for the
back cover copy.
Print your book in soft cover. It’s cheaper to print and
thus you can keep your book priced lower for resale. This
could improve the volume of your actual sales. The most
popular book size is 5 ½ by 8 ½ inches. Depending on
typeset size, there are usually 350-400 words per page. It
is easy to fit this book on your shelf, in a briefcase, or
an overnight bag for airplane reading, thus making it a
good size to market. Many original soft cover paperbacks
are in this standard size.
Have the book perfect-bound on 60 pound offset paper. The
text printing should be black. The cover should be in 2
color while the cover stock should be 10 point coated, one
side only.
Look for a printer that can print a book. Only a few of
them can! Get at least three or four price quotes. The
unit cost of each book will vary depending on the volume of
copies you print. 5,000 books, for example, will have a
much smaller per book cost than will printing of 500 books.
The reason is due to the high cost of setting the machine
to print. Once the press is running, you simply pay for
the paper and materials.
Don’t have 5,000 books printed, however, simply to save on
your unit cost. If you don’t anticipate selling that many
books, don’t order that many. Judge how many you think you
can sell and then have that number printed. You can always
do a second printing cheaper than the first since the set-
up charges will not repeat unless you make changes to the
book.
What price do you set for the book? Much depends on the
market and your own costs in printing the book. Go down to
your local bookstore and see what the range of prices are
on books of your size and style (soft cover). If the
average price is $12.95, this will tell you what a
competitive charge would be. Now, contrast that with the
unit cost of your book which is the total printing,
typesetting and graphic arts charges for your books divided
by the number of copies. If your unit cost is, say, $3.50
per book, you’d like to ideally charge about three or four
times the cost on the open market, which would be around
$10.50 to $14.00, for which the $12.95 average price fits
quite nicely.
You must copyright your material and it is recommended that
you also register your book and obtain an International
Standard Book Number (ISBN). To do this, you must write to
a couple of organizations.
First up is the Copyrights Office. If you write to:
Register of Copyrights
Copyrights Office
Library of Congress
Washington, DC 20599
and ask for the copyright registration forms and the
booklet entitled "Copyright Basics". This will give you
explicit instructions on copyrighting your material.
Copyright protection now lasts for your lifetime plus fifty
years.
While we’re on the subject of copyrighting, you can also
obtain a Library of Con-gress catalog card and number for
your book. Libraries around the country often use this
number to identify books and order them.
You can obtain information about this process by writing
to:
The Registrar, CIP Division
Library of Congress
Washington, DC 20540
International Standard Book Numbers (ISBN) are another type
of classification system for a book. Libraries, bookstores
and wholesalers all use this number system for ordering
books.
As a self-publisher, you will be assigned a number prefix
which is part of the ISBN. There-after, for future
publications, you will assign your own ISBN based on the
pre-assigned codes you’ll receive.
To get more information about this, write to:
ISBN Agency
R.R. Bowker & Company
205 E. 42nd Street
New York, NY 10017
Ask specifically for the "ISBN System User’s Manual" and
the "ISBN Log Book" when contacting the ISBN Agency.
All of this work, including copyrighting, ISBNs and Library
of Congress cataloguing is crucial in establishing your
book as a professional entry. You have a far better chance
of having your work noticed if it is officially filed.
Just because it’s a self-published work doesn’t mean it
isn’t a good book and worthy of attention. This work en-
hances your image and your potential as a serious writer.
Publishing yourself can be a rewarding experience and
launch a whole new career for you. If you like to write,
book publishing can be a worthy goal.
LISTING OF BOOK PUBLISHERS
Here is a partial listing of book publisher to whom you
could submit a manuscript or a book proposal. These are
not the major publishers, who will only work through an
agent. These firms to whom you could submit a book
manuscript directly. For a larger listing, consult with
the publications, "Writer’s Market 1995" or "The Literary
Marketplace", both of which are usually available at your
local library.
Almar Press
4105 Marietta Drive
Vestal, NY 13850
The Benjamin Company, Inc.
21 Dupont Avenue
White Plains, NY 10605
Camino Books, Inc.
P.O. Box 59026
Philadelphia, PA 19102
Down East Books
P.O. Box 679
Camden, ME 04843
East Coast Publishing
P.O. Box 2829
Poughkeepsie, NY 12603
Donald I Fine, Inc.
19 W. 21st Street
New York, NY 10010
Gardner Press, Inc.
19 Union Square West
New York, NY 10003
Hancock House Publishers
1431 Harrison Avenue
Blaine, WA 98230
Imagine, Inc.
P.O. Box 9674
Pittsburgh, PA 15226
Intervarsity Press
P.O. Box 1400
Downers Grove, IL 10011
Kodansha International
114 5th Avenue
New York, NY 10011
Liberty Hall Press
11 W. 19th Street, 3rd Floor
New York, NY 10011
Madison Books
4720 Boston Way
Lanham, MD 20706
New Rivers Press
420 N. 5th Street, Suite 910
Minneapolis, MN 55401
Paladin Press .
P.O. Box 1307
Boulder, CO 80306
Pelican Publishing Company
P.O. Box 189
Gretna, LA 70053
Perspectives Press
P.O. Box 90318
Indianapolis, IN 46290
Rainbow Books
P.O. Box 430
Highland City, FL 33846
Rutledge Hill Press
513 3rd Avenue South
Nashville, TN 37210
St. Martin’s Press
175 5th Avenue
New York, NY 10010
Sasquatch Books
1931 2nd Avenue
Seattle, WA 98101
Signature Books
350 S. 400 East #G-4
Salt Lake City, UT 84111
Ten Speed Press
P.O. Box 7123
Berkeley, CA 94707
Walker and Company
720 5th Avenue
New York, NY 10019
Remember to always request manuscript submission guidelines
first. Send a request letter accompanied by a large
mailing envelope, self-addressed and with at least three
first class postage stamps on it. Good luck!
Back
