A writing colleague emailed last week to get my feedback and some quotes for an ebook she’s working on (on how to freelance…imagine that!), and I was more than happy to help. I truly enjoy working with her–not just because she also serves as editor for one of the publications I write for regularly but because I’ve found that writers are the most friendly, most accomodating group of wonderful people in the world.
She liked my comments (I commented on how to find assignments, working with editors and something else that escapes me now) but I want to tell her one more little piece of info I forgot to mention in the section on how to find assignments/markets:
Be Nice.
Yes, in caps. Mom said (says) it never hurts to be nice and when it comes to writing, it can get you in doors you didn’t even think were doors…LOL. I’ve gotten more than one assignment by just sending a note to the editor about something I’ve enjoyed in their publication–an article, the way the theme was rounded out, the type of magazine they put out, etc–and casually mentioning I’m also a freelance writer (sometimes I mention ideas, sometimes not) then they contact me about my ideas or if I’d be willing to write something for them.
I love it when that happens–because those notes go to editors of publications I’d really like to write for (Sports Illustrated, are you reading this??!)
And, lucky me, it happened again yesterday. In working toward my serious goals for the serious writing girls (new goal set yesterday: ten circulating queries in the (e)mail at all times), I sent a nice note/query to an editor of a magazine I just picked up and really liked a bunch. I thought one of the ideas I’ve been toying with for like, five years (hey, writers, don’t deny you’ve had ideas that continue circling in your head for more years than you might own a pair of underwear…), might be a good fit for her publication–which resulted in her emailing back that she liked the idea and wants to talk about it.
So, Cheryl, if you’re reading, 
, copy my “be nice” comment from the “working with editors” section to the “how to find markets” section. Not that we have to tell writers that–but it never helps to try it in places you might not suspect!
beth
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