How To Get Editors
To Buy Your Articles
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Writing is the easy part, researching a little harder, but getting editors to buy your work, now that’s hard work. First, you have to come up with the idea, then you have to do a little research so that you know you can back up the idea with solid information and even a few interviews, then you have to draft the query letter, and finally you have to send it out in hopes of getting a positive response. That’s the tricky part, really.

Editors receive hundreds, if not thousands, of query letters every single week. Some are easier to accept than others. Sometimes the editor really wants to accept a query, but can’t because of reasons beyond her control, like budget, advertiser responsibility, and even the wrong idea to the wrong publication. And sometimes editors see a good article and have to pass simply because it’s already been covered in the past or a similar idea has already been accepted.

That of course, makes getting your articles accepted a long, hard road. In fact, you may find yourself wondering, “What does it take to get editors to buy my articles—not once, but twice?”

Here are five quick tips to help you sell your articles:

1. Give Your Best
   As an editor, it can sometimes be difficult to choose which articles to keep and which to pass on. There are times I'd love to buy a whole bunch of articles, but the budget just isn't there. During times like these, I've discovered it's easier—and pain-free— to accept the submissions that require very little editing and/or tweaking. And passing on the rest, no matter how much "potential" the articles have. So key one is to do your best the first time, regardless of how much the publisher pays or the fact that it’s only the “query letter”.
   
   
2. Act Professional
   Address your query letter to the right person and the right department. Double check your query letter for grammar, punctuation, and facts. Make sure the person you suggest to interview has already given you the go ahead. And NEVER come off as an irritant in your emails.
   
   Don't pester editors about your submission if there's a timeframe for correspondence in the writers' guidelines. And never show the editor that you didn’t take the time to read the writers' guidelines by asking questions that have already been covered in the guidelines themselves: like asking about the editorial calendar, pay scale, word count, etc.
   
   
3. Don’t Be A Prima Donna
   NEVER get snippy with an editor if he comes back with an email stating your submission doesn't fit—especially if you've told the editor in an email that you know the article isn't what the publication normally accepts.
   
   
4. Accept Requests For Rewrites
   If a rewrite is requested, and you don't want to do it, back out graciously. Don't tell the editor off by stating how great of a writer you are and that if he had any skills at all, he’d know what a great piece he had in front of him. You may not agree with the editor's decision or the requests for changes, but that's no reason to be cruel. You are entitled to disagree. If you really don't like the changes and cannot reach a compromise, graciously turn down the offer then submit your piece elsewhere.
   
   All writers understand that rewrites are inevitable, even when we believe we've written the perfect piece! When you take the time to meet the editor’s needs, you’re almost guaranteed another assignment—or at least a quicker look at your query letter the next time around.
   
   
5. Show Respect
   Not all editors are easy to work with. Not all editors treat you kind. Some editors are prima donnas themselves. If you run into a bad situation with an editor, don’t blast your feelings across every message board, in every chat room, or during your local writer’s group meeting. You never know where your editor will end up, or how his friends are. Bad mouthing your editor could cost you greatly. Not only could you burn a few bridges along the way, but should that editor transfer over to another company, you could find it difficult to get into that publication as well.