Markets & Marketing

I'm starting this thread because marketing is really the name of the game. You can be the very best writer in the world, but you won't butter any bread if you don't know how to effectively market your work. The Writers Market is a great jumping off place, but that's only the beginning.

This is where writers helping other writers market their work will share information. It is intended as a place where you can find information on specific publications that try to scam writers in various ways. It is also intended as a place where great publications should be given the credit they deserve.

My specialties are in science, health, and environmental topics. I recently published in HLR Publishing - Long Term Care Magazine, a Canadian Trade Journal - They're great people to do business with. I also submitted a query to Naturally Good Magazine. They were excited to do business with me until they learned they would have to pay for my work. That seemed to shock this startup magazine. Pay for professional copy? Who ever heard of such a thing? However, they're listed as a paying publication in Writers Market. I responded politely (I don't burn bridges) stating that it would be a pleasure to write for them at no cost, however since my grocer and utility company wouldn't extend the favor to me, I couldn't afford to do that.

Here's a few pointers on marketing to magazines:

• Select a specialty
• Select the publications you intend to target
• Read the magazines to be certain your writing style fits well
• Check out who advertises with them, that will tell you a lot about the readers
• Do preliminary research on the topic - This will help you write a better query and tell you how much information will be readily available. If you check carefully, it can also tell you a bit about the popularity of your topic.
• Write your killer queries (Multiple queries, each with a separate slant).
• While waiting for a response, you can start the process all over again with another topic.

Now it's your turn. What's your marketing approach? In your experience, who are the good and bad folks to do business with?