Helpful How-to Tips for the Beginning Writer

Are you a beginner writer and feeling confused and alone? You won't have to be if you follow these tips that should help you on your road to publication.

A rejection, though it may be worded nicely, is still a rejection. Only be happy with a total acceptance. It is very nice when an editor takes the time to comment on your piece, but if it doesn't have a check with a congratulatory letter, just move on to sending out other work.

If an editor does say, "Please try again," they mean it. Perhaps they saw something in your work that they liked. Don't hesitate to send in another piece, but make sure it's polished to a tee. If you need to, read your submission out loud to yourself and/or to a writer friend who can see what needs improvement.

Always follow the writer's guidelines. So many beginning freelancers lose out solely because they didn't follow them to the letter. It is an important step to getting your submission accepted. In time, it gets easier, but don't get lax at any point. If you cannot afford to buy a copy of the magazine, borrow it from your writer friends, or read it at the library and copy the guideline's page if they have a copy machine. They usually do.

If you network with other writers, you will learn about markets, what publications are looking for as far as genre, etc. and writing won't seem so lonely. It has made a big difference in my path to seeing my work in print, and online. It will for you, too. If there isn't a group that you know of, form your own. No doubt other writers will be interested in joining. Try to get experienced writers to join also, so they can help the beginners become better writers. Who knows, they will probably learn things as well.

Keep a notebook with columns for the type of magazine you sent your manuscript to, the date, whether it was rejected or accepted, the amount paid, and what rights you gave them. It is important to keep this handy for your own reference, and for tax purposes. You will be less likely to run into trouble if for example, you gave a publication full rights for your article and you sell it to another publication, which of course, you cannot do.

If you follow the above five tips, you will no doubt get a better edge on your competition, and hopefully soon see that most-welcomed acceptance letter. I know it worked for me.