Question of the day: How did you make the switch from magazines to books? Was it easier to find an agent via your magazine experience?

I made the switch in the most elemental way possible: I wrote a manuscript and shopped it around to agents while still juggling my freelance work. It really was that simple! I don't think there's a magic formula or anything to making this transition, though certainly, it requires discipline, as you're not getting paid to write your fiction, and without a deadline, it's very easy to let it lapse. Most magazine writers are excellent at meeting mandated deadlines, but when they're self-imposed deadlines - with no guarantee of publication - they're a lot easier to ignore.

Actually, let me rewind - it wasn't simple. That's probably not the right word to use. But in terms of overall formula, that's how it worked. The details though were a little trickier. My first manuscript took me four years to write, thanks partially to what I stated above: deadlines and motivation, but also partially thanks to the fact that I didn't know what I was doing. Once I finally completed the ms, I landed an agent but an agent who didn't end up selling the book. So I wrote another one. Which did sell. Albeit with a new agent after I parted ways with the old one. All the while, I was still freelancing at a very rapid pace to keep the checks coming and to keep my byline out there. I would work on magazine pieces in the morning - they had concrete deadlines after all, and I needed to be sure that I met them - and write fiction in the afternoons. I was crazy busy, too busy probably, but I didn't want to let that deter me: once I'd written fiction, I knew that I had to see it through. So I did. 

Again, both simple and not. I wrote a good query letter (which, yes, referenced my magazine experience) and cast a wide net in a blind agent search. I found one (after the first agent didn't work out) who I knew was right for me, and well, four books later, she still is. That's truly all I did - not much different than anyone else. Now, did my magazine experience help? It probably got my query letter read more frequently and also probably got me more requests for partials. But 100%, it did NOT land me representation. The manuscript has to stand on its own - I don't care if you have ever magazine credit known to man - without a strong manuscript, you're not going to land an agent. So again - and I've stressed this countless times here! - please be triple sure that your manuscript is ready to see the light of day.

So that's how I did it. There really isn't a secret handshake or magic formula. It's mostly about self-discipline and writing a good book. (Really! And that should come as good news to those of you who don't come from the writing world - it really is anyone's ball game.)

Question of the day: I don't have any clips since I worked on my college daily newspaper 15 years ago.  I started a blog a couple months ago. Should I include a link to it in query letters?  

A few years ago, my answer would have been no, that blogging was thought of as sort-of amateurish and a sure-sign that you didn't have any "real" publication clips. Now, I think the waters are murkier as an increasing number of blogs serve as legitimate outlets (albeit unpaid outlets) for writers to demonstrate their skills and their voice. In your case, I think that offering up your blog as an example of your capabilities is better than highlighting your college clips, so yes, I'd include it. Would I stress that it's your only source of "published" writing credits? No. But if you think it's a strong representation of your voice, then, yeah. (And I put "published" in quotes because much as I love blogging - AND many, many bloggers out there - I still will argue that there's a distinction, in terms of editors' perception and prestige, between someone paying you for your work and not. Like it or not. In the industry, there IS a difference.)

That said. Blogs can go many different directions, and maybe this goes without saying, but I would be 200% sure that your blog looks clean, professional, smart, savvy and has zero typos or grammatical mistakes. If you're asking your blog to be representative of the product you can deliver to your editor, you better be damn sure that it's perfect. SO many out there are downright sloppy, and again, if this is your calling card, make it sparkle.

Readers: yay or nay? Has your blog helped you gain entry into the freelance world? Or can it shoot you in the foot? In this case, since our reader doesn't have a lot of clips, how would you advise her?

Question of the day: I queried a magazine who wrote back with guidance on their editorial calendar and asking me to submit the piece for their review without promise of acceptance. I wasn't sure if I should be excited or not! Can you explain what exactly they meant?

Yup, what they meant is that they wanted you to submit on spec. Which means that they want you to put all of the work into the piece without any promise that they'll pay you for it. In other words: all benefit them. No benefit you.

If you've been reading my blog for a few years, you'll know that way back when, I heartily discouraged writing for free. I always said that treating your writing like any other business is critical - it ensures respect and value for your work, and you'd never ask, say, a doctor to treat you and then decide if you wanted to pay him or her, or have your house painted because you thought it was kind and nice advertising for the painter. I stick to this theory, but I will say that in the age of blogging, things have changed. Plenty of people write for free now, but they do so on their own terms, and yes, there is value to this sort of work. You're furthering your brand, you're putting your voice out there, you're building your platform.

What I dislike so much about writing on spec is the imbalance of power that it creates. So much about becoming an established writer is, well, bottling some of your own power and self-worth, that it makes me crazy, c-raz-y, to think of a writer doing diligent research, composing a thoughtful piece, and then having a magazine deem it not worthy. It makes the magazine look greedy - and I don't think that this is a false assumption. I don't care if they're offering $20. You offer to pay someone something in exchange for the service he or she provides. But in asking writers to submit on spec, they're essentially taking no risk - they're amassing plenty of submissions and then can cherry pick which they prefer. 

In other words: yuck. I know that it's a competitive market and that you want so badly to get bylines and clips, but in my opinion, it's just hard to validate anything worthy about writing on spec. Again, I've rethought my stance on writing for free, but there's a difference between the two. A subtle difference but a difference all the same. (Again, I'm not endorsing that people give their work away, but with blogs, etc, it's simply a reality these days.) With one, you at least have a commitment and an endorsement of your work, with the other, you don't.

Writers, will you chime in and share your thoughts on writing on spec AND writing for free? Do you, like me, think that times have shifted? And thus, as your attitude shifted too?

Question of the day: Is it totally impossible to become a freelance writer and actually make some money at it?  I've seen some websites like "Suite101," that indicate it's a piece of cake to write a 500-word blurb, and make $100 overnight.  Is that too good to be true? 

To begin with, if something is too good to be true, it probably is. I don't know anything about Suite101, but I can tell you, in my experience, most successful freelance writers became successful by getting their feet (and hands) very dirty while establishing themselves, and that, like it or not, there are no easy shortcuts on the way to ascending the ladder of writing success. 

I've blogged about starting out in the industry before - so you might want to check out the archives - but I'll suggest once again that you start small while aiming big. When I say start small, I don't mean a quick fix for $100 (again, I'm not slandering the above website - I took a look at it, and it looks like a decent enough place to learn a few things, though I really have no information on them at all, so please don't infer this as either an endorsement OR a disparagement). I mean taking the time and care to attempt to build your clips and portfolio with decent work that can lead you to a bigger platform. These days, websites are an incredible way to do that: many of them are looking for a lot of content with a quick turn-over, and though I've been out of the freelancing trenches for a bit, in my experience, they were usually much more willing to take a chance on a greener writer than the national magazines were. Will they pay you a ton? No. But will you hopefully get a great clip to prove to a bigger market that you're indeed a writer? Definitely. 

Back when I was starting out, front-of-book pieces (the short 100-300 word blurbs in the first 1/3-1/2 of magazines) were another excellent place to get your feet wet. Editors are never, ever going to take a chance on a totally new writer by handing them a feature, but they might give you something smaller to prove your worth. These days, with so many magazines shuttering and others handing assignments to in-house editors, this venue may be even tougher to crack, but like I said - there really aren't any shortcuts in this industry, and like it or not, you'll have to put in long, hard hours (and probably years) until you're earning a steady income.

Which, of course, doesn't mean that you can't or won't. I did, and I have plenty of friends who did and who do. But freelancing has a snowball effect: you need to build momentum and keep that momentum going to really build into something great. It's okay to start small, but I wouldn't suggest trying to cut any corners - I think you'll likely only be put back at square one when those corners prove to be dead ends.

Question of the day: I am a freelance writer whose byline frequently appears in magazines (SELF, Women’s Health, Fitness, etc). Lately I’ve had friends (writers and even people in other business, like PR, hoping to cross over into journalism) asking for editor’s contacts so they can pitch stories. While contacts are not difficult to come by I feel very protective of them. Have you ever had this issue come up? What do you do? Am I being selfish for not giving them the contacts?

Ooh, juicy question, and I'm sure that every writer has a different answer, but I'll give you mine. Others, please weigh in below! 

I definitely know of what you speak. When I was writing for mags frequently, this happened often, and now that I'm primarily doing fiction, I get asked for my agent's information quite often, and well, sure, it can be tricky. I think if you're being asked by folks who aren't writers, well, then that's doubly-tricky because you have no idea if these people have any clue what they're doing. As I'm sure you know, when someone uses your name, the quality of their work can reflect back on you, so of course you're hesitant to share!

That said, when I was in the thick of magazine work, I pretty readily shared my contact info because this information was so easily available for public consumption. I also always found that when I was generous with my fellow writers, there would eventually be a time when they'd help me out when I needed a favor in return. (Not that this is why I'd share, but you know, karma and all of that.) That said, again, these weren't hard-won contacts...they were google-able, and yeah, people should google first before asking because really, aren't freelance writers researchers at heart?...and if you can't even attempt to unearth the most basic of information, I'm not quite sure that you're adept at your job...but...sometimes it's easier to send a friend an email instead of plugging something into google.

HOWEVER. IF I weren't familiar with a person's track record OR if I didn't have a close relationship with the editor such that he/she might get annoyed that I'm sharing contact info, I'd actually say something like, "Here is the info but I'd rather you didn't use my name." This isn't a slight at all on the writer: in fact, I'd say that when and if YOU/I offer someone the ability to use YOUR/MY name, well, THAT'S going above and beyond. THAT is the favor, and that's more than enough, more than you owe someone. The fact that you're taking the first step is still generous. (In fact, there is nothing more disrespectful than dropping someone's name without their permission: it's is a big NO NO in our industry - so remember that just because someone was generous enough to pass you an email does not give you the right to say that she referred you. Ugh. This will INFURIATE the person should she ever find out - I've seen countless rants on writers' boards about this, FYI.)

However you choose to deal with this, I think it's fair game. Again, my instinct was to pass on a name/contact if I respected the writer's work because, well, I've long believed that there's enough work to go around, and if this writer had a great idea, well, I DIDN'T have that idea, so why shouldn't she be able to sell it? It wasn't really infringing on my ability to drum up other work. I also believe, as I noted above, that sometimes it's nice to have collaborators and know that there's someone you can turn to when it's your turn to ask for a favor. But if this doesn't work for you, I understand. I'm much more guarded with referrals to my agent because I'm not going to waste her time, and I'm not going to ask her to go out on a limb for me when I have no idea if the work will speak for itself. Again, this isn't an issue of whether or not I like or respect the writer - I have countless writer friends/contacts, but I can't refer all of them to her...I just...can't. It's not fair to anyone involved. 

So I say do what feels right for you in that specific situation. You already know that who and what you refer reflects back on you, so be judicious while also remembering that someone might cop you a much-needed favor someday too.

But I'd love to hear what others have to say. Will you weigh in below?