Tips for Freelancing for Nationally Distributed Magazines
It is a dream of many freelance writers to break into large, nationally distributed magazines. These are the big name publications that many associate with a high level of prestige. After all, most will agree that writing for Sports Illustrated is much better than a website that nobody reads. So how are you going to break into these competitive markets?
Personally, I have never freelanced for any of the “big name†publications that are out there. But with that being said, I have picked up a few gigs with magazines that have a national reach. My work is not read by millions, but national exposure is always a good thing. Not only does it give you a chance to show off your work, but a couple good features could lead to projects with other like publications.
If you want to freelance for these types of magazines, consider the tips below.
1. Many of the largest magazines do not accept a lot of freelance work. Since they are popular and have a large budget, they instead employ a full-time staff to handle most of the work. But with that being said, every publication is different. Even if a magazine only uses freelance writers for 5 percent of each issue, this still gives you a chance to get involved. There have been many writers who started out freelancing, and were then offered a full-time staff or editorial position. While you may not strive for this, it shows that breaking in wherever possible is important.
2. Do not set your sights too high early on. As I mentioned above, I have done some work for large magazines, but even then, none of them would be considered extremely well known by the masses. They may have national distribution channels, but they are far from main stream. In most cases, it is these publications that are easier to break into because they more commonly use freelance writers.
3. Put together a killer query letter for each magazine that you are interested in writing for. Make sure that you never use the same generic letter for each publication. This will show that you are more or less lazy, and editors will not tolerate this.
Most people who want to freelance for nationally distributed magazines have two things in mind.
1. They want to be featured in these magazines because they are read by a lot of people, and as mentioned above, are perceived as prestigious. There is nothing wrong with this, but do not get caught up in the “ego†of the situation.
2. Of course, money is always better when writing for the bigger magazines. They have the cash to pay, and the subscription base and advertisers to back it up. There are quite a few large magazines that pay $1/word or more. Can you imagine having a couple of clients like this? Talk about a great way to make a full-time freelance writing income.
The best piece of advice that I can give is to go for the gusto. If you have experience and work samples, you might as well start sending query letters to nationally distributed magazines. Remember, the worst thing that can happen is you lose a few minutes of time, and sometimes money for postage.Â
