Avoid This Common Writing Flaw

 

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin

As a young writer, I trained as a journalist creating original stories. In the newspaper business during the pre-computer days, I learned how to create the story in my mind, then put my fingers on the typewriter and compose my story.  In my opening sentence, I grabbed the reader and then kept on typing until the final sentence. Then on the center of the last line, I typed -30- (which meant the end). At the newspaper, we had a morning deadline of 11 am to complete our story, then the editor worked over our stories and gave them to typesetting. By 3 pm, my story was printed in the paper for readers.

I’ve been pitching stories for magazines and books for years. In each case, I’ve written original material which was not used beyond the single focus. I applaud each of you who complete an article or a book manuscript because many people start or think about it and don’t complete it. That completion takes focus and determination on your part. The common flaw and focus of this article is the single use and not considering beyond that use.

At a writer’s conference, I met a couple of authors who had self-published a book about an amazing Christian in India. These authors were looking for broader distribution for their book but also had a singular focus on the book and not beyond. I encouraged them to re-examine their book looking for 1,000 to 1,500 word stories. This word count is typical for magazine articles. The material would likely need some reshaping and adjustments to become a magazine article. If the writer did this work then submitted it to magazines and got accepted, then published, their stories (and book) would reach more readers. Also the magazine article would promote their book with the one or two sentences in their bio at the end of the article. 

A typical self-published book sells 100 to 200 copies during the lifetime of the book. If a typical traditional published book sells 5,000 copies, then that number is a good one. In the magazine business, it is common to reach 100,000 to 500,000 readers. It depends on the circulation of the publication but it is a much larger readership. 

Each market is different and the writer needs to study the guidelines and the publication to interest the editor. Follow these links to learn more about the magazine market.

Also This Works for Fiction

Some of you are reading this article and thinking this strategy is only for nonfiction and you write fiction. This is not true. These storytellers can take a scene or shorter piece from their novel and with a little reshaping, sell to magazines as a short story. 

These writers have missed the opportunities to get more exposure from their initial work on a nonfiction book or a novel. For this article, I had a photo of a long highway. In many ways, the road symbolizes the writing journey each of us are on with our work. If you are in your car, to get better mileage, you watch your speed. It's the same with your writing, to get more eyes on your original work, you need to keep in mind the possibilities then use them in those areas.

I have more detail and ideas on this topic in a free 27-page Ebook called Get More Mileage From Your Content. Follow the link to get it. As writers, we are surrounded with incredible stories and opportunity. I encourage you to seize these actions.

Have you use your original material in a different way to get more exposure? Or maybe you've been trapped in this common writing flaw. Let me know in the comments below.

Tweetable:

Many writers fall into the trap of original writing for their nonfiction or fiction. This bestselling author and editor contends these writers have fallen into a common writing flaw. Get the details here. (ClickToTweet)

My Writing In Other Places:

With these articles, I encourage you to publish your work beyond your blog in other places. Below are three articles which were published in other online locations than this blog. I have continued to write each month on each of these websites. Find your opportunities to get your work into some other websites through guest blogging.

In their pitch to editors, many writers will say their book is for everyone. These authors need to refine their target audience. Get the details in this article.

What are the critical book proposal elements? I've reviewed thousands of submissions and provide the details in this article. 

When you see something off or incorrect in someone’s writing do you say something? I encourage you to actively help someone else in this article. 

Publishing is a complex business and much of the process is outside of anything an author can control—no matter how they publish. I wrote 10 PUBLISHING MYTHS to give authors realistic expectations  and practical help. You can get decades of insights in 10 PUBLISHING MYTHS for only $10, free shipping and over $200 of bonuses. 

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Since 2004, I have blogged about The Writing Life over 1,800 entries and one of the top 27 content writers. With this simple form, each week you can get my new articles, encouragement and insights at: https://t.co/W6uU64u6aA