More Ways To Earn Income (and why you should diversify)

Posted on May 31, 2011 by Steven

Now that I’ve gone over the various ways to deduct expenses (again, do your homework and get this part right!), it’s time to look at the many ways to earn an income as a travel writer.  I’m very focused on writing travel articles, but you can apply much of this information to whatever type of writing you want to do.

Early on, I wrote about a number of ways to make money while traveling the world.  And I said I wanted to explore them all.  Here’s the list:

  • Become a travel writer and sell articles to magazines and newspapers.
  • Sell products of my own design, such as e-books and training courses related to travel.
  • Work hard to build traffic to my website and sell advertising.
  • Become an affiliate for various travel-related companies to earn commissions.
  • Prepare myself to teach English classes to make an extra income.
  • Get involved in Internet Marketing.

I’m still working on the first one.  It’s a slow process to get started and will take a while to have some successes.  I haven’t heard back from Sunset magazine yet.  I’m starting to wonder if I will.  My thought is that they probably screen the query letters coming in and just delete any that aren’t from a seasoned, well-known (to them) writer.  Time will tell and I need to wait at least 2 months before coming to that conclusion.

It’s been a while since I posted anything here on the blog.  That’s mainly because I have been looking into internet marketing.  I am also going to pursue this as a way to earn extra money.  If done right, it can be lucrative.  However, I realize that it takes a great deal of time in the beginning ( a year of concentrated effort, at least) and continuous work after that.  But the rewards can be great and the income can be steady and reliable.  So I want to jump into this and make it work for me.  As I go through this process, I’ll write about my experiences.  If you don’t know what I’m talking about, then Google internet marketing to get an idea.  I want to learn this business for the long term.  Just like writing articles and selling them.  I plan to have a diverse group of income generators for the future.  You should diversify as well, and not put all your eggs in one basket.

Having multiple streams of income can help you weather the storms life brings.  I’ll explore some of the other ways to earn an income in future posts.  Please subscribe to my RSS feed.

How to Get Your Book Published Free in Minutes and Marketed Worldwide in Days
Test Your Niche Book First!
Travel Writer’s Guide (Trade Paperback Book)
How to Set Up and Market Your Own Seminar (audio series)

I’d appreciate hearing from anyone who has internet marketing experiences to share!

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Travel Query Letter #2 (No rest for the weary)

Posted on May 12, 2011 by Steven

It might be a while before I receive the verdict on my first query letter (sent 20 days ago).  There was no indication in the Writer’s Market (online version) as to how long I could expect to wait for a reply.  It could be another month.  So I want to start on letter number 2 and get it sent off to a yet-to-be-determined magazine editor for their consideration.  One query letter does not a writer make.

I haven’t decided what to focus on this time.  I am thinking about a photo round-up.  That’s where you visit a number of related places, take pictures of each location, and then assemble a series of pictures with captions and comments under each photo to tie everything together.  I’ve read that this can be a really effective way to put together interesting pieces for magazines.  The photos help to make the article flow from shot to shot and make the article interesting.  After I read a bit more about it, I’ll share the technique with you.  The best part is that you can sell these round-ups over and over as reprints.

Your goal as a travel writer?

As a travel writer, what should your goal be?  If you plan to make money on your work, your goal should be “work smarter, not harder”.  Working smarter means to squeeze every nickel out of your work.  Why write one article when you can write many and sell them often?  That’s what you should strive to do – sell everything you do more than once (many times, in fact).  Sell the original article, and then sell reprints.  Change the article around a bit and sell the article to newspapers all over the country.  The key for you as a writer, is to learn how to sell all of your work many times and collect many paychecks.  If you had to spend $300.00 to travel to a place near your home, rent a hotel room, eat in restaurants and pay for admission to museums and various other attractions, you would have to sell your work for $300.00 just to break even.  No one can afford to do that for very long.  Making money is a very good motivator and will allow you to go more places and do more things.

In his book, The Travel Writer’s Guide, Gordon Burgett describes a trip to Santa Barbara, California.  His plan is to write nine articles; having as many go-ahead letters from editors as possible. Once the original article has been published, he will offer reprints (called “second rights”) to other magazines that deal in reprints and usually pay on publication.  Then, by modifying the travel article, he will send out newspaper articles to many of the regional newspapers and collect checks from those who purchase his work.  So all-in-all, it is very clear that you won’t make much of a living if you just sell an article once.  But compounding your earnings can be a very lucrative way to earn the income you want.  So learn to sell your work over and over again.  It will serve you well over the years as you build up successes and your reputation as a writer.

This makes me think of recording artists and book authors who produce a novel or an album of songs and then proceed to sell copies of their work for years and years, earning royalties and residual income for the rest of their lives.  Movie actors and television stars do the same thing.  As a travel writer, you need to sell your work many, many times, just as others do.  If you don’t, you probably won’t realize the kind of income you want or need to have a satisfying career.  So think about how you can (smartly) maximize your income and prosper!

This is all laid out for you in the Travel Writer’s Guide.  I recommend you get a copy if you are serious about travel writing.  It can be a confusing process at first.  But, you’ll soon see that the process is doable and repeatable!

How to Get Your Book Published Free in Minutes and Marketed Worldwide in Days
Test Your Niche Book First!
Travel Writer’s Guide (Trade Paperback Book)
How to Set Up and Market Your Own Seminar (audio series)

Come on!  Who has had a success in selling your writing?  I want to hear about it!

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How To Deduct Your Expenses When You Travel

Posted on May 7, 2011 by Steven

I’ve previously touched on the subject of expenses and (legal) deductions.  I’d like to provide a little more guidance on the correct way to structure your writing business so that you can stay out of trouble with the tax man (or woman).  If you ignore this part of the business, you will most certainly pay a heavy price later.  So it is to your advantage to get this right.

The IRS expects new businesses to have start-up costs (buying a computer, office supplies, renting an office, buying a car or truck for business use, buying insurance, etc.).  These are all legitimate and necessary expenses, depending on the type of business you will have.  For a travel writer, it becomes necessary to travel to various places and to see and experience the things you will be writing about.  So, how can you deduct those expenses and prove to the IRS that your reason for traveling was to earn an income from it?

The absolute best way to accumulate strong evidence that you are serious about travel writing (and that you are a professional) is to get magazine editors to give the go-ahead on a query letter you’ve sent them.  Their response to a query letter is proof-positive that magazine X wants to see your writing and will pay you if it is accepted.  This is why I have made such a big deal out of writing a good query letter.  The query letter is your proof that you are actively trying to sell your work.

Here’s another very important piece of information that I was thrilled to learn:

Even the query letters that are rejected by the magazine editor are very useful.  Keeping every response from every query letter you send is important.  The rejection letters also show that you were trying to sell your work to a magazine, but they declined.  You then sent another query letter to the next magazine on your list.  Maybe they declined the query also.  You might have three or four rejection letters before an editor says “yes”.  With that one “go-ahead” letter, you can take the trip, write the article and deduct the reasonable travel expenses that you will incur.

Does that mean you can’t take the trip and deduct the expenses if none of the editors say “yes”?

This is the beautiful part.  If you don’t get a “yes” response from any of the editors you’ve sent a query to, you can still go on the trip as planned, gather the information, take the pictures, and return home with the makings of a great travel article (you should actually have enough material for many articles).  As a new business, you can still deduct the expenses, even though you don’t have any income from the trip yet.  You must now start sending query letters to magazines about the trip you just took.  You will be trying to sell articles based on what you have already seen and heard.  You should be able to write a strong query letter because you can now match the potential article to what the magazine readers are most likely going to want to read about.  So this is a plus for you!  You can still sell your work and earn a check to offset the expenses.  You will have a small stack of letters from editors to prove that you tried to interest them in your trip and your writing.  If and when the IRS wants to talk to you about your business, you can pull them out and prove that you are a professional and you’ve been trying to sell your work.  You’ve properly documented your activities so there is no doubt that you are not just pursuing a hobby (the IRS does not allow these deductions for hobby purposes).  You are a serious writer doing things in a professional manner!  Just don’t forget that you only have about a year to try to earn an income.  You can’t have all expenses/deductions without showing some income!  Red flag, penalty, audit for sure!  So sell some work and keep records and prosper.  I believe the general rule is that you will have to show a profit for three of the first five years or the IRS will want to have a chat about what you’re doing.

So that’s the process in a nutshell.  Keep good records and you will never have a problem proving your intent to share your prose with the world (for a fee, of course!).

I highly recommend Gordon Burgett’s wonderful book, The Travel Writer’s Guide for anyone wanting to learn from a pro.  Gordon has been both an editor for magazines and a freelance travel writer.  He’s had his writing published in magazines and newspapers over 1,700 times.  I’ve taken his 4-hour travel writing course and loved it.  You can benefit from reading the Travel Writer’s Guide.

How to Get Your Book Published Free in Minutes and Marketed Worldwide in Days
Test Your Niche Book First!
Travel Writer’s Guide (Trade Paperback Book)
How to Set Up and Market Your Own Seminar (audio series)

Here’s a little disclaimer: You should do your homework and consult with a CPA before starting out.  Make sure that you know what the rules are (exactly what is deductible) before you go on any trips, not after.  In this case, it’s not easier to say you are sorry later.  The IRS won’t want to hear that.  Be knowledgeable about your business and you can stay out of trouble, prosper and travel happily ever after.

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Writing, Traveling, Living (Part Two)

Posted on May 3, 2011 by Steven

Since I can’t sing, play an instrument or read palms, I need a way to earn a little extra money when I finally do get to pull up stakes and hit the road.  Right now, I’m fully employed, but that won’t last forever.  And it shouldn’t.  So in order to make the most of my life when the time comes to travel, I need a plan.  I need a way to afford the lifestyle I want for my wife and me.  She deserves that as much as I do.  As you already know, I’ve chosen to try travel writing as my new career.  I hope it will supplement my income and let me find the freedom I seek.  And, I want to stay busy and not turn into a couch potato!

Let’s talk about you.  What do you want to do with your time and talent?  Can you take your show on the road, so to speak?  Will anyone pay you to do what you do on the road?  I’ve heard of many different ways that people make money while living their dreams.  Let’s make a list:

  • Web designer
  • Life coach
  • Computer programmer
  • Photographer
  • Blogger (a good choice!)
  • Consultant (many possibilities)
  • Writer (not just travel – can be anything that interests you)
  • Import/Export Business
  • Webmaster (sell ebooks, services, courses)

I’m sure you get the idea.  Think of something that is portable, and in demand, and take it on the road.  Some people go to other countries and buy items to resell in their home country.  I read about a lady who was buying a type of sweater from a South American country and shipping them home to sell.  She made enough doing that to keep her lifestyle going.  She was living the way she wanted to, and on her own terms.  That’s truly the way to achieve freedom in life.  Do what is fun and interesting and you really can’t go wrong.  You might find just the right thing to propel you into a second life!

A word of warning, though.  I’m sure you realize that there are a lot of people out there who want to sell you courses, programs, money-making schemes, etc.  Many of these are on the up-and-up.  But, some of them don’t provide much more information than you could find in a paperback book you can get on Amazon.com.  So be careful and choose wisely.  You can spend way too much on courses that offer little more than a lot of audio interviews, with video thrown in.  Reading a book might not be as exciting as getting a series of emails or joining a secret facebook page.  However, there are many excellent training and education materials that won’t set you back much more than the cost of a few fancy cups of Starbucks coffee.

I will list some training materials (courses, books, e-books, etc.) that are a good value when I come across them.  For now, I can say that I have purchased e-books from chrisguillebeau.com and nomadicmatt.com .  Check them out when you have a chance.

Finally, I have plugged his materials before , and I’ll plug them again.  Gordon Burgett has a whole collection of excellent products to help YOU learn what you need to know.  Visit his website here and take a look.  I heartily endorse his book, The Travel Writer’s Guide!  I am an affiliate for his website and proud to be associated with such high quality products.

How to Get Your Book Published Free in Minutes and Marketed Worldwide in Days
Test Your Niche Book First!
Travel Writer’s Guide (Trade Paperback Book)
How to Set Up and Market Your Own Seminar (audio series)

If you are making money on the road, then please share a little about what you’re doing.  We’d all appreciate some input from those who are making it happen!

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Writing, Traveling, Living (Part One)

Posted on May 1, 2011 by Steven

As I wait for a response to my first query letter, I’ve been thinking about where I want all of this to go.  How do I want it to turn out?  What would be the best result I could have?

I really think that you get clues all the time about what you want to be doing in your day-to-day life.  Some people to seem to know from an early age what they want to do.  I always think about the people who pick up an instrument and before long, have nearly mastered it.  A lot of people like that come to mind.  Others are gifted in sports and end up in the major leagues.  They decide what they want to do and run with it.  Many are successful for many years just because they were able to run with a particular talent.

But what about the rest of us?  For some, finding the “right thing” can be elusive.  Because we’re expected to get a job and work until social security kicks in, we don’t always have the opportunity to experience things that might help us to sort out our real interests.  I think this is why many people ditch their regular jobs and head out on the road.  They want to experience life and not get stuck in a cubicle somewhere.  I can certainly see that.  I’ve been trapped in various jobs for a lot of years.  As I’ve said in earlier posts, I have many things to be thankful for, and I can’t complain (at least not too much).  But I think it’s time that I find out what interests me so I can pursue it.  This blog is about my journey, but it can also reflect your journey as well.

What makes you get all excited about getting out of bed each and every day?  My clue for the longest time has been the feeling I get when I boot up the computer.  I can’t wait to connect to the internet and work on my website.   I am always anxious to make progress and see if anyone is interested in what I’m doing.  Is that you, too?  What do you look forward to every day?

These days, I know what I want.  I want to travel and tell others about it.  I also want to help others to figure out what they want to do with their lives.  After a 2006 trip to Europe (Germany, France, Monaco, Italy, Switzerland), it became clear that I had to find a way to live for extended periods in other countries and experience life there.  I built the 10 Minute Travel website and later added this blog.  After some research, I decided that I should try travel writing.  I wasn’t sure how to do it, though, until I found Gordon Burgett’s Travel Writer’s Guide.  All the answers to all my questions were there.  I finally had a place to start.

So here I am, moving forward with my ideas (and dreams).  I want to share this journey with others who want to do the same type of thing.  You might decide to earn a living in another way, but I’ll bet there are a lot of people out there who want to travel but don’t have the means to do it without some source of income.  Traveling can be very expensive if you don’t do it right!

So, what talents do you have that can be turned into an income?  Can you write?  Maybe you are a painter, or a musician?  Do you have high tech skills?  Web design or programming skills that allow you to work from anywhere in the world?   The first step is to identify what you can do to make a living and still travel to the places that interest you.  For me that is just about the best possible scenario in life.  Being able to move from place-to-place is the ultimate freedom.

I’d love to hear from you!  Let me know what you’re doing to achieve the freedom in life that you want to have for yourself!

Note: Part 2 of this post will cover some of the things you can do to make a living while traveling.  You can subscribe to the RSS feed and follow all of the blog posts and travel articles, reviews and tips as they are added to the site.

How to Get Your Book Published Free in Minutes and Marketed Worldwide in Days
Test Your Niche Book First!
Travel Writer’s Guide (Trade Paperback Book)
How to Set Up and Market Your Own Seminar (audio series)

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My First Query Letter!

Posted on April 24, 2011 by Steven

Well, it’s out the door.  My first query letter has left my computer and gone out into the world.  I guess all that’s left is to wait for a response.  I’m curious to see how long it will take to get a reply.  My query letter went to Sunset magazine.  As you saw last time, Sunset was at the top of my list.  They want queries emailed to them.  So, I packaged it up and sent it.  This is a pretty good way to go, because I think I will hear from the editor a lot sooner.

I’m looking forward to the reply because it means I’m on my way.  This is a competitive business and you have to push all the right buttons to break in to travel writing.  But, I’m in it for the long term, so this is the start of my learning process.

I’d like to pass along some things I’ve learned to this point about query letters.  I haven’t mentioned any of this before.  But it tickles me that there are people out there who just write a letter and send it to an editor, without even trying to get it right.  No research or planning at all.  I’m talking about letters that are multiple pages, ramble on aimlessly, are printed on funny paper (or odd-colored paper), are formatted wrong (tiny margins, double spaced), and letters that say the wrong things (“I have no experience but I was an editor on my college newspaper”, or “I love to write and I could assemble whatever you want”).  Those kinds of things.  I’ve read about some of the strange letters editors get.  You can imagine what happens to them (reject!) and what a waste of time it is for an editor to have to read them.

Put yourself in the editor’s chair and imagine what a GOOD query would look like:

It would set the subject in the first few lines.
It would also quickly describe the article idea.
It would be interesting and cause the editor to want to read more.
It would pitch the idea and ask for a “go-ahead”.
It would say something about the writer and include anything already published.
It would lastly provide a way for the editor to respond (favorably, of course!).

Makes sense, doesn’t it?  There is an established procedure that you should follow when writing these query letters.  If you do, you will quickly rise above the people who send in the “lousy” queries and dramatically increase your chances of selling your work.  If you make your query a pleasure to read (instead of a chore), you have a much better chance of getting published.  It’s that simple.  You want to be in direct competition with the PEOPLE WHO UNDERSTAND THIS!  Don’t compete with the people who are too busy or too lazy to send in their very best work.  You have already lost at this game if you do that.

I look forward to telling you what happens with my first query letter submission.  I really hope I don’t have to wait too long.  But, while I’m waiting, I plan to read Gordon Burgett’s book again and try to improve my processes.  What are you doing to improve yours?

Check out Gordon Burgett’s website.  I’ve found his materials to be fairly priced and excellent quality.  The Travel Writer’s Guide is superb!  Twice THE TRAVEL WRITER’S GUIDE was a Writer’s Digest Book Club top selection!

How to Get Your Book Published Free in Minutes and Marketed Worldwide in Days
Test Your Niche Book First!
Travel Writer’s Guide (Trade Paperback Book)
How to Set Up and Market Your Own Seminar (audio series)

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Preparing a Market List

Posted on April 18, 2011 by Steven

The hardest thing I’ve had to do so far is to assemble a market list.  A market list contains the magazines you want to query with your article idea.  Going through the Writer’s Market, I reviewed many publications that at first glance seemed like they would work.  But little by little, you have to put a strong list together, with mags that pay on acceptance at the top of the list.  This makes a lot of sense, since you don’t want to query a magazine editor, get the go ahead for the article, write it, submit it, and wait until it is actually published to get paid.  That could be a year or more.  Magazines that pay when the article is actually published are referred to as pay on publication.  This is important, since a market list needs to have the best paying, most compatible magazine at the top of the list.  You would want to send the query letter to the first magazine and wait for acceptance or rejection.  If necessary, you would send your query to the next magazine on the list and wait for acceptance or rejection.  Just keep doing that until someone (an editor) says they want to see your article or you run out of magazines to query!

After your article has been published, you are free to resell the article to magazines that buy reprint rights.  You can sell an article many times as a reprint and make a pretty decent amount of money this way.  So the attractive thing about travel writing is that there are many opportunities to sell an article once you’ve been in print.

There are also sales to newspapers.  You can send out an article to many newspapers and you will hope to sell many copies to regional newspapers.  The are some rules to follow here, so be sure to do your research to avoid running into problems.

Constructing the List

I used a spreadsheet to build a market list.  I started with an empty column, then the title of the magazine in the next column, then in the next columns I listed how the magazine pays (on acceptance or on publication), and the percentage of freelance articles bought by the magazine.  The next columns had the number of words the magazine usually buys for feature articles, columns and departments.  I followed that up with the amount the magazine pays.  The last two columns were the “category” of the article (travel, history, family, etc.) and then if it was available, I copied the URL of the magazine’s guidelines to the last column so I could click it and review that particular pub’s guidelines quickly.  Once I have all of this information, I can copy and paste it into a new spreadsheet when I want to build a new market list for the next article idea.

The first column mentioned above was initially left blank.  As I did more research on the magazines, I assigned a number to each one.  When I had gone through all of the magazines and ranked them, I sorted the data and the #1 magazine appears at the top.  It’s easy to order the list this way when the research is done.  You can construct your list any way that works for you.

Here’s what the finished list looks like:

spreadsheet market list

This is how my market list was constructed.

One thing that is missing is the name of the editor and their email address.  I’ll add that info as I get it for future reference.

I’m nearly finished with my query letter and I’ll be sending it in the next few days.  I had to make some changes to it, but now I’m ready to move forward.  Wish me luck!

I’m anxious to hear from any writers out there who have been through this process.  What can you add to the mix?

If you want to get an expert’s guidance on how to successfully sell your articles, please consider purchasing a copy of Gordon Burgett’s excellent book titled The Travel Writer’s Guide.  This is the best book on the mechanics of selling your work to magazines I’ve ever come across.  It has given me the confidence and encouragement I needed to start working toward my writing goals.

How to Get Your Book Published Free in Minutes and Marketed Worldwide in Days
Test Your Niche Book First!
Travel Writer’s Guide (Trade Paperback Book)

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Deducting Your Expenses as a Travel Writer

Posted on April 9, 2011 by Steven

In order to (legally and successfully) deduct your expenses when you travel, you must demonstrate that you are actively engaged in efforts to sell your writing.  The IRS will believe you if you do the right things to prove your intentions.  The query letter is your best proof that you want to sell your writing and that you are not just indulging a hobby.    Even the letters that get rejected and returned to you are proof that you are serious about your profession.  So make writing good query letters your priority and good record keeping a habit.  If you do both well, you can then deduct your travel expenses and have little to fear from the IRS!

Any business that has sales, will also have expenses.  Your travel writing business will not be nearly as successful if you spend all of your time going through tax audits.  The IRS will not allow many of your deductions without clear proof that you should actually get them.  Being a writer of any kind would be a miserable existence if all you did was fight with the IRS over how much you could deduct.  So take this part seriously and you’ll be glad you did.  It is super-important to sell your work and have money coming in.  It is equally important to be able to easily defend your deductions when the time comes.  Save all of your query letters and organize them so you can find what you need.

There are many expenses that you can deduct when you get set up.  Writing courses you take are deductible.  Supplies that you need are also deductible.  You can deduct computers if you use them for business.  Hotels and meals are deductible as well.  And of course, transportation to the site can be deducted.  Just about everything involved in getting there and spending time gathering facts, taking pictures, interviewing people and looking around is an allowable expense.  You need to get guidelines to follow from your accountant or the IRS.  There are many books that will help you to do the right thing when it comes to your business expenses.  A little education on the subject early on can keep you out of trouble later!

As I wrote earlier in this blog, I read the IRS guidelines for deducting travel expenses.  However, I couldn’t determine what I would need to know (or do) if I wanted to deduct my expenses from a writing trip.  I couldn’t find a clear way to conduct business and properly document my intent to earn a writer’s income.  Gordon Burgett’s book answered all of my questions and much more.  When you’re dealing with the IRS, you don’t want to go into a business without having a clear idea of what you will need to do to stay out of the IRS’s way.

The Travel Writer’s Guide is an invaluable reference for the budding travel writer.  I highly recommend that you get a copy for yourself and get smart on this subject and many others you’ll need to know about.  You’ll be glad you did, since you won’t feel lost in the wilderness any more (like I did when I first started exploring the field of travel writing).

Do you have any personal stories of expenses and taxes?  I’d really like to hear from people who also need to keep accurate records.  How do you do it?  What advice can you offer?

How to Get Your Book Published Free in Minutes and Marketed Worldwide in Days
Test Your Niche Book First!
Travel Writer’s Guide (Trade Paperback Book)

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A List of Magazines to Query

Posted on April 1, 2011 by Steven

Wow – I’m having a brain cramp.  I didn’t think it would be hard to gather a list of magazines to send an article to.  However…

This weekend, I’ll be doing research as needed to get my list together.  I know how to order the list once I get it together.   But for some reason, it’s really hard to get started.  I just can’t seem to pull my thoughts together and start writing them down.  I’ve been through searches in the Writer’s Market, but it doesn’t seem like any of them are right.  The subject of the article is going to be a winery with an interesting past that has been associated with some very famous (and wealthy) people.  With that said, I’m thinking that the readers who would most likely be interested in this article would be:

  • Travelers
  • History Buffs
  • Wine Tasters and Wine Aficionados

I know that it is important to select the right magazines to query – after all, you won’t get a “YES” from a fishing magazine if you are selling a rodeo article.  This is another case of “analysis paralysis”.  This has been a real problem for me all my life.  Once I get started and make some progress, I’m usually fine.  But man, is it hard to shift into DRIVE sometimes.

This is a new blog and I’m sure there aren’t a lot of readers out there, yet.  If you can help me get this started, I’d really appreciate it.  Leave a comment if you have suggestions. I’ll write again early next week and report on my progress.  Good luck on your own writing!

How to Get Your Book Published Free in Minutes and Marketed Worldwide in Days
Test Your Niche Book First!
Travel Writer’s Guide (Trade Paperback Book)

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Query Letter Revision and Review

Posted on March 28, 2011 by Steven

By now, I fully understand the importance of writing a good query letter.  If the letter doesn’t speak loudly and clearly to the editor you send it to, it will most likely be rejected.  So getting the first few lines right is critical. I went over my first query with a fine-tooth comb last weekend.  I made quite a few changes that I was pleased with.  However, I had a nagging feeling that the first paragraph wasn’t right.  I figured it was time to have another pair of eyes read it and give me some feedback.

I asked my brother to read the letter and comment.  He confirmed my suspicions – that the first paragraph was poisoning the rest of the letter.  I couldn’t see it because I had invested so much time into it.  But there it was; the first paragraph stated that the winery hadn’t produced a good product 120 years ago, so the reader (editor) would logically conclude that it couldn’t produce a decent wine now.  I didn’t read it that way until someone else (my brother and sister-in-law) pointed it out.  It’s sometimes difficult to step back and see exactly what your words are saying to the reader.  After all, you know what you meant, right?  But that’s why it is good to have someone read your query and see if it makes sense and excites them to want to read on and find out more.

I’ve rewritten the first paragraph.  I’m much happier with it because it flows better and should have the desired effect: to get the editor to read the rest of the letter.  I’m now in the process of trying to bring the letter to life.  I don’t want to present a robotic tone.  I think (from reading all the sample query letters I could get my hands on) that besides format, the letter needs to be a personal presentation.  It must present the article idea in a way that reaches the editor’s way of thinking.  It has to touch him or her in a way that makes them take action and want to see your manuscript.  You have to sell the idea to each editor individually.  As soon as you start sending out form-type letters, you have two strikes against you.  This is not my opinion. I’ve read that in numerous books and blogs.  There are people out there (people who have worked as editors) who explain what THEY were looking for when THEY were in the editor’s chair.

So seek out advice from people who have been writers AND editors to get the best, most informed ways of presenting your ideas. They can tell you what they know from experience.  You can benefit!  I’m going to finish up the query letter in a day or two.  I suppose it will never really be finished until it sells the article idea.  I’ll have to modify it for each editor I send it to.

The next thing I will need to do is prepare a list of magazines and editors to send it to.  That’s one of the things I’m struggling with at the moment.  How do I go to the Writer’s Market and choose the right magazines to query?  I’ve been thinking about this for quite some time.  It’s not clear which magazines I should target.  By the way, the Writer’s Market is a book, in case you haven’t seen one.  You can look through it at the local library.  And, you can buy it online.  You can also go online and sign up for the Writers Market at www.writersmarket.com – although you’ll have to pay a monthly subscription fee to use it.  You can pay for one month to have a look at it and decide if you want to subscribe long term.  I believe the cost is about $6.00 a month.  It’s cheaper if you sign up for a longer term.  I’ve been paying monthly, but it makes sense to pay for a year and save a few bucks.

Once again, I’m going to plug Gordon Burgett’s travel writing resources.  I have an affiliate link you can use here to see Gordon’s excellent products.  I highly recommend making the modest investment in his book, The Travel Writer’s Guide.  It’s worth its weight in gold to aspiring travel writers.

By late next week, I hope to have a list of magazines to send my query letter to.  I’ll concentrate on getting at least 5 lined up so I can start sending out my queries.  The goal is to get a “yes” before you run out of magazines to query.  Seems easy enough!  ;-)

Do you have any advice for me as I seek to sell my first article?  Leave a comment and let’s have a discussion.

How to Get Your Book Published Free in Minutes and Marketed Worldwide in Days
Test Your Niche Book First!
Travel Writer’s Guide (Trade Paperback Book)

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