The Business of Writing: Volume 2: Business of Writing, #2

By Simon Whaley

How do you attract an agent? Ever thought of funding your next book through crowdfunding? How do you deal with failure? Do you understand your royalty statements? What's a media kit, and should you have one?

This, and many more questions, are answered in this second collection of articles that first appeared in Writing Magazine.

Contributors include:
Susie Kearley, Fran Tracy, Wendy Clarke, Sally Trueman-Dicken, Maggie Cobbett, Jo Sadler, Meg Kingston, Kayla Whaley, Imogen Howson, Kate Nash, Solange Hando, Jo Derrick, Esther Newton, Richard Blake, Judith Cranswick, Jennie Ensor, Sarah Plater, Carol Anne Strange, Morgen Bailey, Linda Priestley, Tracy Baines, Diane Wordsworth, JT Ellison, Jo Fitzsimons, Beatrice Charles, Alex Gazzola, Diane Perry, Jane Davis, Carolyn Henderson, Leah Mercer, P R Ellis, Sherry Ficklin, Catherine Cooper, Penny Legg, Helen Yendall, Julie Phillips, Janet Johnstone, Eric James, Caroline James, Hilary Jane Jones, Ros Ephraim, Margaret Murphy/Ashley Dyer, Ann Cleaves, Martin Edwards, Chris Simms, and Kate Ellis.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simon Whaley
• Release date: Oct 11, 2018
• ISBN: 9798215588086

Simon Whaley

Simon Whaley is a writer, author and a photographer. Like many writers, he's had a few proper jobs along the way (high street bank, local government, civil service) but found that life as a writer suits him better. Since his first book hit the UK bestseller lists in December 2003, he's authored and contributed to several books, written hundreds of articles and seen several of his short stories published across the world. To find out more about Simon visit his website at www.simonwhaley.co.uk. To sign up to receive occasional newsletters visit: www.simonwhaley.co.uk/newsletter/

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EXPORTING TO FOREIGN MARKETS

Writing in the English language means we have writing business opportunities all over the English-speaking world. So if you want to break into these foreign markets, how do you go about it, and what sort of things should you consider? I spoke to two writers who’ve succeeded abroad: one non-fiction writer, and one specialising in fiction.

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When it comes to the business of writing, we’re fortunate that our native tongue is the official language in over 60 sovereign countries, and widely used in many others.

Key markets like the USA, Australia, and South Africa, publish thousands of magazines in English, but some countries in other continents, such as Africa and Asia, use English as a second language, often printing magazines in their native language as well as English. There is, literally, a whole world of opportunities out there for writers, both for non-fiction and fiction, if we know where to look, and how to approach them.

Identifying Markets

Finding potential markets may seem daunting at first, especially if your nearest magazine outlet is a couple of shelves at the local corner shop. The Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook lists many UK publications, but it also identifies over 100 markets in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and the USA. However, a similar annually updated, but more substantial, handbook exists for American markets, called the Writer’s Market. Like the UK’s Writers & Artists it’s possible to purchase a subscription to their online database version, which gives access to their most up to date information.

Susie Kearley, author of Freelance Writing: Aim Higher, Earn More, found this to be a great way to get started, although it’s not the only technique for sourcing foreign markets she uses. ‘I use Writer’s Market to find US clients, and work through it from A-Z in the magazine section. I intended to register on the Australian Writer’s Marketplace website, but so far I’ve actually found Australian magazines just by searching on Google, using the following approach: Australian magazine *insert topic*. This brings up magazines that aren’t necessarily listed in traditional writers’ yearbooks, so it’s a useful approach when you’re writing on niche topics in any country.’

A common complaint editors make is that writers fail to look at their publication and therefore submit completely inappropriate material. Solving this conundrum with foreign publications has become much easier with the Internet.

‘I look at articles printed on the magazine’s website,’ says Susie. ‘I don’t try to get physical copies. I have occasionally asked for a sample article to help me get the style right. The editors have then sent me a copy of the magazine or a PDF of a similar article.’

Asking to see examples of the publication shows the editor your professionalism. I discovered something similar when I first began approaching American markets. One market I targeted sold back issues, but only to US-based buyers. I contacted the editor, asking if I could buy a couple of copies to study, so I could tailor my pitches to his readership. He liked my approach, asked for my address, and then put three back issues in the post to me, free of charge. He also remembered me when I made my first pitch (which he bought).

Digital subscriptions make market research even easier. Websites like Zinio, Pocketmags and Readly, make it possible to download the latest issues, and back issues, so there’s no excuse for not getting to know their readership. These digital portals offer access to several foreign markets, such as America, Canada, Australia, India, the Middle East and other European markets, all without having to leave your desk.

Different Readerships, Different Angles

When it comes to non-fiction, our British ideas often need adapting for foreign markets. Although it should be possible to resell articles sold to British markets, foreign readerships are different, even though we use the same language. An idea sold to a British market may work well for a foreign market, but it still needs adapting to suit that foreign market’s readership.

‘I try to resell British articles,’ Susie explains, ‘but almost invariably find that the foreign markets want something slightly different. I write a fair bit about food, and I’ve had to make considerable adjustments to British health articles, modified for the Australian market, to take account of climate differences and dietary differences. You have to be aware that in foreign countries, food preferences differ, the names of some foods differ, and what’s popular and in season differs too. I’ve had to research which vegetables grow well in Australian gardens at different times of year. You can’t assume the same vegetables that are popular among British gardeners are popular in Australia too. I’ve also used different research studies to illustrate my points and make my work relevant to Australian readers.’

When selling abroad we have to work harder, because we’re competing against those writers working in their own country. But we can also use this to our advantage. We need to sell our expertise. Sometimes, being UK-based means we’re best placed to write about British issues. For example, many of the contributors to the US travel publication British Heritage are UK-based writers.

Draw upon successes you’ve had with UK-based publications in your area of expertise. Push yourself as a UK expert on that subject matter. I spotted an Australian walking magazine had a regular slot in each issue about foreign walking locations. So when I pitched an article about great places to go walking in the UK I explained I’m a regular contributor to UK walking publications. They commissioned the piece.

Working with foreign publications means that communication tends to be electronic, mainly because of time differences. This can lead to challenges, as Susie experienced. ‘One of my first pieces published in the USA was in Auto Week, who commissioned a time-sensitive piece and then had some editorial changes. My emails got lost. No one replied. I didn’t know if my piece had been published. I certainly hadn’t been paid. I finally managed to get hold of someone, nearly a year later, only to find out about the editorial changes. They did, however, use my piece and paid me. But I never got to see a copy, either electronically or in print.’

Foreign Fiction

When it comes to exporting fiction, the extremely useful Womag Writer’s blog (see Business Directory) has great information and guidelines for submitting to foreign fiction markets in Scandinavia, Ireland, Australia, the USA and South Africa.

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But, as with non-fiction, our stories need to reflect the local readership too. Short story writer Fran Tracy has had stories published in the UK, Australia and South Africa. She’s found it necessary to think about her stories from a foreign angle. ‘I don’t write many seasonal stories,’ she says, ‘but being aware, for instance, that in Australia the long summer holidays for kids fall in our winter, is useful, and that days such as Mothers’ Day and Fathers’ Day may not fall on the same day as ours.’

There’s a lot we can do ourselves when writing for foreign markets, such as using American spellings for an American readership, but it’s still easy get something wrong culturally that may annoy readers. Fran gets around this problem by being part of an international group of writer friends who communicate via social media.

‘We send each other stories for comment. We’ve been together for about 12 years now. There’s one in Canada and one in the US, so we check their stories for spellings and differences. All are womag writers and some write novels too. There’s about 20 of us, although some are not as active as others.’

One of the benefits for writers of social media is that it’s easy to make contact with writers all over the world. I have writer friends in Australia, South Africa, India and America, so if ever I have a query I get in touch. We help each other out. When I need to know what time a typical school day in South Africa finishes I drop my South African writer friend a Facebook message. An American friend wanted to know how long it would take her character to drive from Birmingham to Manchester. Yes, Google can tell us so much, but it’s much better to get the information straight from a native.

Having this network also means a greater chance of getting hold of a copy of our work, too, once it’s been published. This can be physically, or digitally. Fran’s group likes to see a physical copy, if possible. ‘We post the published stories to one another, usually just the story and the front cover.’ That’s considerably cheaper than posting the whole magazine.

In particular with fiction, it’s important to keep track of whether we’ve already sold a story to an English-speaking market. Australia’s That’s Life, for example, used to buy stories already published in the UK, but now they only accept stories unpublished in the English language.

There’s lots to think about when approaching foreign markets. But editors are happy to buy from writers all around the world, particularly those who do the groundwork and research their target market. Payment is usually electronic, sometimes by Paypal, so there’s no need to worry about taking foreign currency cheques to the bank.

It’s interesting discovering how foreign publications operate. Many of the American markets I’ve written for give me a contract to sign, when they commission work from me. Here in the UK, I’m more used to emails being the commissioning document.

We write in the English language, which gives us a strong advantage. Targeting foreign markets is not only rewarding, but it can make good business sense too. My highest paying markets are American publications. There’s a whole world out there … so what are you waiting for?

Business Directory

Online Databases

Writers and Artists (UK publication) https://www.writersandartists.co.uk/listings (Subscription £19.99 per year.)

Writers Market (USA listings) www.writersmarket.com (Subscriptions from $5.99 a month to $39.99 a year.)

Australia Writer’s Marketplace: https://www.awmonline.com.au A$24.95 a quarter or A$49.95 a year.

Digital Magazine Portals

Zinio gb.zinio.com (Buy subscriptions or individual copies.)

PocketMags pocketmags.com (Buy subscriptions or individual copies.)

Readly gb.readly.com. (Monthly subscription of £7.99 enables you to download and read as many magazines, and as many issues as you like, while your subscription is active.)

Foreign Fiction Markets

Womag Writer’s Blog www.womagwriter.blogspot.com

Duotrope https://duotrope.com (Worldwide database of fiction and non-fiction publications. First month free, then $5 per month.)

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Contributors’ Websites

Susie Kearley: http://www.susiekearley.co.uk

Fran Tracy: https://twitter.com/frantracey?lang=en

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Ends

TIME TRAVEL

Writing for print publications means working several months ahead. I took the opportunity explain why we need to work so far ahead, and then chatted to one writer to find out how she manages it.

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Doctor Who might be one of the world’s most famous time travellers, but any writer hoping to see their words printed in a weekly, monthly or quarterly publication needs to be a little adept at the time-travel practice too. Welcome to the July 2016 issue of Writing Magazine, published in June. While we’re currently enjoying the warm, balmy days leading up to the summer solstice (this is where I find out how good my fortune-telling skills really are), it’s February as I first write these words and the snow, hail and wind are hammering at my window. But that’s not the start of this time travelling piece, because it was actually last November when I first had this idea and pitched it.

When it comes to print publication, magazines are planned well in advance. Although the news and readers’ letters pages are some of the last of the magazine to be finished, editors like to get the main features planned and finalised as early as possible.

Some monthly magazines plan features twelve months in advance, and may even put this editorial calendar on their website (Search the Internet for Editorial Calendar and the name of your target publication). They may not have the actual features commissioned that far ahead, but editorial decisions will have been made about the themes and topics to be explored in these issues. This is partly to help the advertising department. Magazines are advertising vehicles, after all. If a magazine chooses a family summer days out theme for its July issue then the advertising department will approach businesses keen to target this segment of the community.

Those of us in this business of writing must consider this time-travelling forward-planning when it comes to writing articles or short stories. Check out Writing Magazine’s editorial calendar piece in this issue for some upcoming ideas.

Time Slip

Monthly magazine editors tend to work three or four months ahead of the issue’s publication date, which means as writers we need to be submitting our final, edited material to them at this stage. Weekly publications can work six to eight weeks ahead, but will also plan several months, if not a year, in advance. Therefore, we need to slip even further back in time to come up with our idea in the first place and develop it, as well as carry out any necessary research. As a rough guide, we should be thinking at least six months in advance.

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