Magazines...anyone have writing experience for one?

United States
March 26, 2007 4:59pm CST
Anybody have writing experience for a magazine, such as People, Time, or even a smaller magazine? How's that?
2 responses
• Canada
27 Mar 07
Writing for magazines can be enjoyable and lucrative. There's nothing like getting an acceptance letter. You are on a high for the rest of the day! It's a great feeling to see your name in print and your article in a glossy publication or online. I've written for a number of different publications and the pay rate keeps going up with concurrent publishing credits. http:writeandearnaliving.blogspot.com
• Canada
27 Mar 07
Most magazines now take e-mail or Word submission, so the days of sending out hard copy are nearly over. In recent years, I've found that pay seems to come in sooner. I submit electronically to magazines because even if it may take awhile to get paid, it's an instant process; then I work on the online stuff.
@Stringbean (1273)
• United States
26 Mar 07
I have never written for major magazines such as People or Time, but have written for quite a few smaller ones. Family Circle, Sunday Digest, My Counselor, Jack and Jill, etc. A lot of them are church publications. I like writing online better because you usually get results right away. If you write for a magazine, you have to send the article along with a stamped, self-addressed envelope to the publisher and then wait whatever length of time they want you to wait. Some never respond. I have had published take 6 months to a year just to let you know if they want your article or not. It is true that magazines pay more than online places do, but I can get 20 articles published and paid for online in the time that it takes to get one in print in a magazine. Also, the magazine may be discarded in a few weeks while my work that is published online sometimes stays for years. If you aren't already writing for Associated Content online, you should try it. Here is my referral url: http://www.associatedcontent.com/join.html?refer=7093
• United States
26 Mar 07
Thank you for the link at AssociatedContent. Do you have the option of using a stage name or do you have to use your real name? How does that work? Furthermore, how will the profits be shipped to me? In addition, if I do online writing, how can I prevent thieves from copying my work and using it for devious means? I'm trying to get published as a children's novel writer, and some of the companies want "previous writing experience" in their query letters. Would writing for an online site look bush-league or professional? I would hope a site where significant money is doled out would appear professional. Real-life publishing does take *forever* from what I've heard, sometimes upwards of 18 month cycles. Thanks for the tips Stringbean.