You said you had no contacts when you began, so how did you start getting article assignments? I know that low-end publications are perhaps more open to new/unpublished writers, but I know that it can still be extremely difficult to land assignments without them.
I have several published clippings, but they’re only through local newspapers. What would be the best way for me to start getting paid assignments despite not having a huge amount of published articles and certainly none in the high-end publications? I was curious how you tackled the catch-22 of needing assignments to get experience but having a hard time getting assignments without much experience. I’ve heard looking into trade journals/magazines is sometimes the easiest route.
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Right, most writers do actually start out smaller, but that’s not a rule. I know of several writers who started out writing their first articles for major national magazines. One writer I know got her first assignment from Cosmopolitan, another wrote her first-ever article for Brides. One even got her start with The New York Times. I’m sure there are many others as well.
The most important thing to remember is that more than your writing (which has to be top-notch, no doubt), you’re pitching an idea. So if you can bring an editor an idea that gets her excited enough to assign it, you’re good to go. You do have some clips already, so there’s no reason why you can’t start pitching the big leagues right away.
(I’ve laid out a lot about my experience with finding markets, writing queries, etc, in these entries.)
As for contacts, the more you work, the more people you’ll meet. Like I said, I didn’t have any contacts either, and while it’s absolutely helpful to know people in the industry to get a kick-start, it is by no means a necessity. The way I got assignments was simple: I found great story ideas, I looked up publications where I thought they could be published, I found the names of the editors and their contact information, and I queried them. Sure, initially I had more rejections than acceptances, and I didn’t pitch the nationals for a long time, but there’s absolutely no reason why you shouldn’t.
I’m not convinced that trade magazine clippings do anything to impress consumer magazine editors simply because of the difference in the nature of reporting, writing style, and the way the assignments are handled. Of course, it does prove to an editor that you can write, but you know what– so does your query letter.
I’m also not convinced that you have to work for smaller publications before making the big leagues. Yes, the clippings help, and sure, I’ve heard stories about editors who won’t even look at the work of an unpublished writer, but in the end, no matter how many major magazines or newspapers you’ve written for, if you don’t have a story idea that appeals to the editor and works well in her magazine, as well as the reporting chops to pull it off, no amount of prior success is going to help you.
Also, you really have to find your niche. Let’s say you want to write about health and fitness. Well, there are hundreds of writers who already write about health and fitness. What sets you apart?
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