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“Topic Spoking”: Steer Your Way to More Resales by Gordon
Burgett I found that selling
articles one at a time—then racing off to new fields to query,
research, write, and sell again—was too exhausting and time-consuming
if I wanted to have any kind of non-writing life. So I had to devise
something better. I call the result “topic-spoking.” No doubt what I’m
about to describe has been invented and perfected a dozen times before.
But I never heard of it and I needed it, so at least I’ve given it a
name and created a repeatable process! Here it is. You can sidestep its
reinvention. Just modify it for your own use. A Topic
First I need a topic
with legs. One that had a broad enough core that many readers would want
to read about it as it pertained to their peculiar interests. The key is
revealed: put the topic in the center and dress it appropriately for
many biased eyes. “Hats” might be a
good example. (I might have chosen whales, eyes, loneliness, snoring,
brotherhood, knitting—almost anything works that has wide appeal or is
sufficiently well known.) Research
Having chosen a topic,
my second step diverges most from the usual writer’s rush to query:
instead, I put aside a set period of time for research. Usually 12 hours
by the clock, but sometimes as many as 20. This is when I fill my
mind bowl with as much knowledge as I can about hats. From the
dictionary I move to the encyclopedia to the library or web to find the
broadest and best books, articles, studies, or other material about the
topic. I keep my results,
figuratively, on five index pads. The first pad is for
facts. Here I note everything I think I’ll ever use, followed by its
source. The second pad contains the references where I found those
facts. In my case, references mean written sources. The fact may have
“A-17” after it. On pad two “A” with be the author, book title,
publisher, and date. “17” is the page where I will be able to find
that fact forever. The third is for
resources, which to me means oral sources: interviews, speeches, tapes,
movies, radio, etc. After the oral information on pad one I might write
a Roman I circled—I use Roman numerals circled to distinguish them
from the written references. Then on the third pad, Roman I circled will
be followed by that oral source. Perhaps: “Radio interview, Billie
Buttons and Michael Jackson, KABC, 3/2/98, 9-10 am. Topic: clown
hats.” Then every fact I draw from that interview will be followed by
Roman I circled. The fourth pad contains
expert biographical information. This is where I list additional
information about any person whose name I find in the research (or of
whom I may know) who might provide more interview material should I call
them later. These include experts quoted or cited, article or book
writers, people named by others as knowledgeable. I list everything I
learn about them: name, affiliation, employer, publications, age,
relationship to the subject…. Here I note the details about Billie
Buttons. (I will add to this list if I interview him later.) The fifth pad is the
gold mine. It contains every article idea that comes to mind while I’m
researching hats. This is where the “topic-spoking” fits in: I put
the core topic in the center and put all of the best, related ideas on
spokes that radiate from it. Sometimes I list titles. Sometimes
approaches or slants. The important thing is not to pre-select. Just put
anything down, however distant or difficult. Later, I may find ways to
tie several good ideas into an even better article. Prioritizing Article Ideas
If I have 25 or 80
article ideas on Pad Five, I must pick out the six or eight for first
focus. Marketability and ease of preparation are first thoughts. Also,
by writing a basic piece about, in this case, hats in the broadest
sense, I will gather up much information I can scatter in narrower
pieces later (often as a sidebar). Timeliness is particularly important,
especially for newspapers. Since life is too short, excitement is a
factor for me. If I’m only marginally interested in a slant, I save it
for later. Matching the Ideas to the Potential
Buyers
Now I take the six or
eight and I put each through the steps I would for every article: a
feasibility study. Is it feasible to
write? I pull from my fact bowl what I’ve gathered, then do a bit more
research (if necessary) to know two things: (1) Do I have enough key
info to write a selling query letter, and (2) If the editor gives me a
“go-ahead,” will I be able to write the article? If so… Is it feasible to sell?
Here I ask of each idea, Who would be interested in reading about this?
And what do they read? I list after each idea the kinds of readers who
would eagerly read my words. Then I go to the current Writer’s Market
and list every magazine they read, prioritizing those that pay on
acceptance by when they pay, how much, how often they publish, and the
percent of freelance they buy. (I save those who pay on publication for
second or reprint sales later.) At the same time, I list the kinds of
newspapers (or the sections) that might be interested. Querying and Newspaper Submitting
Now it’s time to send
many queries off to different magazines, one at a time for each
respective article idea. One editor about “derbies,” another about
“protecting bald heads from skin cancer with hats,” a third about
“baseball caps in the female wardrobe,” a fourth about “mercury
and the Mad Hatter.” If an editor is rude enough to reject that query,
I simply go to the second of my list in that category, and keep
submitting slightly refocused queries until somebody says yes or I run
out of magazines for that piece. Later, once an article
is sold and in print, I will simultaneously submit a copy of it (with an
individualized cover letter) to all of those magazines that pay on
publication, offering non-exclusive reprint or second rights. As for newspapers, my
rule of thumb is that I never sell the same article to magazines and
newspapers. And I almost always sell to the higher-paying magazines
first. If I’m going to submit a related article to a newspaper (in
final form) while that topic is bouncing around the magazines, the slant
and approach is clearly different, which at least means a different
title, lead, transitional paragraph, conclusion, and structure.
Sometimes I use the same quotes, but rarely. Writing the Magazine Article
When I get a positive
reply, I again scour the last couple of issues to see what the editor is
buying. Then I give the editor the best I have tucked into the style
form, length, and approach they want. If photos are involved, it’s the
same there: lots of choices of good shots that illustrate and amplify
what I’ve said in prose. The Advantage of “Topic-Spoking?”
The beauty of this
process is that I’m getting extraordinary yardage out of communal
research: it’s far easier to query a dozen different editors about a
dozen related topics than having to do five times a much initial
research for each of a dozen different ideas. Granted, I’m gambling
the initial 12 to 20 hours of research on the prospect that I will glean
a sale. And the first sale, say for $600, may take me 30 hours to get,
for a $20 an hour return. But the twentieth sale, drawing on all the
research of the previous 19, may take three hours, for a fat $200 an
hour. Work the higher-paying markets and it gets progressively better! Does the system work?
It sure does for me. It lets me work about five ideas a year and live a
decent, balanced life with writing near its heart but not its slave
master. Do I sometimes write
one article and shoot it off? Sure. Mostly humor. It also provides a
great foundation for going beyond articles. Most of my 19 books came
from topic-spoking bases. And I often give speeches and offer workshops
about the topics too, in addition to providing easily accessible
information for audiocassettes, all of which lessen the narrow financial
burden of relying solely on magazines and newspapers to live comfortably
with writing as my primary skill. Most of the ASJAers
probably do most of what I’ve described. I hope this provides an
usable format or outline. I learned early on that by writing only one
article at a time I would have been lucky to afford a hat. Gordon Burgett is the
author of 1700+ printed articles and 27 books, including five selected
as top choices by the Writer’s Digest Book Club: Sell &
Resell Your Magazine Articles, Travel Writer’s Guide,
Publishing to Niche Markets, How to Sell 75% of Your
Freelance Writing, and Query Letters/Cover Letters: How
They Sell Your Writing. Gordon has offered 2000+ keynote or
workshop presentations, and currently speaks most about his latest book,
How to Plan a Great Second Life: What are you going to do with
your extra 30 years? He can be reached at (800) 563-1454 or at Gordon@super-second-life.com. |