Dear Reader,
Yesterday’s Featured Publication, Coastal Living (read about it here:
http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/2009/04/coastal_living.php ), is a big, glossy magazine -- and a high-paying option for freelance writers.
But you can’t just send a story in and hope it’ll get published. At Coastal Living, as with many other publications, you have to query first. And the stronger your query letter, the more likely an editor will want to read (and buy) your story.
A while back, freelance writer Jennifer Stevens shared her five surefire query letter strategies with us, and reader Fred Braun wrote in to say that, before he read Jen’s tips, he was sending out query after query and getting no response from editors.
Today, he says, editors not only respond but one accepted his first piece on the inner working of the Ringling Museum... and then agreed to a whole series of similar articles about other sites near his home in Florida.
“Please tell Jennifer Stevens I said thank you,” he said. “I am a ‘newbie’ in this writing business so I really appreciated her article. I used the ‘painting a picture strategy’ and almost immediately saw results.”
I’m including Jen’s five tips below in case you missed them in our archives.
These tips were taken from a presentation by Adrienne Stolarz, Associate Editor at FamilyFun magazine. Jen interviewed Adrienne about what it takes to sell family-style travel articles to magazines and newspapers in our Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program. Adrienne’s interview (along with several other editor interviews) comes free on CD with the travel writing program. You’ll find it, here: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/sh/website
Don’t forget to scroll down and read Jen’s advice below.
And stay tuned tomorrow for Steenie Harvey’s advice on working with editors.
-- Lori
Lori Allen
Director, AWAI Travel Division
P.S. At the Ultimate Travel Writer’s Workshop coming up this July in Denver, Colorado, Jen and Steenie will share all of their tricks to wooing editors into publishing your stories and paying for your travel.
You’ll find a $300 discount, here: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/tww/denver09
Here are Jen’s five tips for getting published fast…
EXCERPT FROM: FIVE PROVEN QUERY LETTER STRATEGIES, BY JENNIFER STEVENS
You've got about five seconds to catch an editor's attention.
That means you must use your first two sentences wisely. Don't waste them by introducing yourself, telling the editor how much you like her publication, or explaining that you've never been published before but have this great idea...
Your letter must grab an editor's attention fast.
** QUERY LETTER STRATEGY #1: The Problem/Solution Hook
You define a problem and, in your article, offer a solution. For example:
"In this post-9/11 age, when you can't get through airport security with more than 3 oz. of liquid or gel and airlines have all but stopped serving food, traveling by plane with a baby or toddler can become a real logistical headache. What to do about the diaper ointment... sippy cups... applesauce...? And what about feeding the kids lunch at 30,000 feet when the only thing coming out of the wheeled cart is pretzels?
"In my article, 'Five Proven Carry-on Strategies for a Smooth Trip with Kids in Tow,' your readers will learn... "
** QUERY LETTER STRATEGY #2: The Information Hook
You'll need an astonishing statistic or an arresting fact to make this hook work. But with one, you can snag an editor's attention easily. For example:
"One of the most popular pastimes in Dubai -- where the temperature regularly hovers above 100 degrees -- is snow skiing. And that's just one of the many astonishing facts about this worthwhile travel stop I discovered there recently and reveal in my article, "Surprising Dubai:
Window to a Middle East You Never Knew Existed."
** QUERY LETTER STRATEGY #3: The Question Hook
Asking a question can prove very engaging... if, that is, the answer interests the editor. So craft yours carefully. For example:
"What would you do if you woke up on a train in Kenya to find your backpack gone and a family of eleven piling into the seats near you, carrying with them mounds of baggage, a steaming pot of goat stew, and a box of live chickens?"
Or how about: "Have you ever wondered why the French don't eat peanut butter? It's because they don't do "quick lunch." And neither should you when you're in France. That's the premise of my article, 'A Good French Lunch: How to Find Authentic, Good-Value Fare in Tourist-Laden Paris.'"
** QUERY LETTER STRATEGY #4: The Personal Anecdote Hook
By revealing a snapshot of your travel tale, you can effectively grab an editor's attention. This can work well when pitching a first-person account. For example:
"Six-hundred thread count sheets, a Bose surround-sound system, a mint-green cloth ribbon tied around the small stack of washcloths on the bathroom vanity... at the Rose Inn -- a new establishment opened surf side in Bethany Beach, DE, -- no detail has gone neglected. I was sitting on our private balcony, feet up on the rail, when a knock at the door brought a steward offering a complimentary cocktail. 'Can I offer you a glass of wine, or a gin and tonic?' he suggested.
If your Washington-based readers are looking for good-value pampering close to home, they'll not find a more satisfying excursion than the one I describe in my article, "Affordable First Class Pampering at Bethany's New Rose Inn."
** QUERY LETTER STRATEGY #5:. The Attention Grabber or “Painting a Picture”
Take the editor to the place you write about in your story. For example:
"It's 11 degrees Fahrenheit. The wind is whipping blade-like off the St. Lawrence River. Locals, shoulders hunched into the blow, keep warm under fur trapper hats and long, black wool overcoats. On snow-dusted cobblestone streets, against a backdrop of 18-century stone buildings with ceiling-high windows and gargoyled porticos, we might as well be in Europe -- in a Victor Hugo novel.
"You could argue Montreal wasn't the most prudent choice in a two-night getaway in March. But it turns out the cold lingers only on the streets. In the candle-lit cafés, the hearth-toasted restaurants, the steamy-windowed coffee shops, the welcome -- always offered in both French and English -- is unfailingly warm.
"In winter, Montreal is all about ducking into tidy retreats where you can thaw your ears and eat well. We did both with grand success, and I explain how in my article, 'Warming Ears and Eating Well in Canada's Frigid North' which describes a weekend getaway (toddler in tow)."
[EDITOR’S NOTE: You can meet Jen this July in Denver, Colorado, where she and a cadre of other well-respected, working writers will reveal exactly what to do to get your name and articles published everywhere from local newspapers to the world's most prestigious travel magazines. For all the details -- and an Early Bird Discount -- visit:
http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/tww/denver09 .]
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