Expert Breaks the Rules of Magazine Writing

Interview With Magazine Writer and Author Linda Formichelli

Dec 9, 2008

Renegade writer Linda Formichelli breaks all the rules of magazine publishing. Yet, she manages to write for top national magazines. Here's how she does it.

Linda Formichelli's writes for popular national magazines, including Health, USA Weekend, Fitness, Women’s Health, Multi-Channel Merchant, Target Marketing, Writer’s Digest, and many other magazines. She co-authored The Renegade Writer: A Totally Unconventional Guide to Freelance Writing Success and The Renegade Writer's Query Letters that Rock. According to Linda, she "has broken just about every rule of freelance writing and lived to tell the tale."

Today, Linda shares with Suite 101 readers how breaking the rules has contributed to her success.

Suite 101: You write for top national magazines -- Woman's Day, Health, USA Weekend, Writer's Digest, Oxygen and more. Yet, you describe yourself as a "renegade writer." What rules have you broken so far in your magazine writing career, and how has it contributed to your success?

LF: I negotiate for better pay and deadlines, which every writer should do; I turn down assignments that don't pay enough; and I use humor in my articles, in my sig line, and on my business cards (my business cards say, "My editors think I'm swell."). Each of these little rule-breaking activities has helped me land better clients or earn more money.

Suite 101: How did you land your first magazine assignment? What was the topic and magazine?

LF: Even though I always enjoyed writing, I didn't always plan to be a writer -- in fact, I got my master's degree in Slavic linguistics! There wasn't much call for Slavic linguists in the job market (who knew?), so after grad school I thought I'd go into publishing. I went on some informational interviews, where I interviewed publishing execs to find out if this was the career for me. It wasn't, but I thought that my experiences in informational interviewing would make a great article for a career magazine. I got a copy of Writer's Market and a book on writing query letters, wrote up my very first query, and sent it to several pubs. The article idea sold to EEO Bimonthly magazine for $500!

Suite 101: When it comes to writing queries, what common "rules" do you break?

LF: I definitely break the "one-page query" rule. I was writing one page queries like all the books and magazines said, and one day an editor from Woman's Day called and said she liked my query, but wanted to see more research. I added in more info, turned it into a three-page query -- and it sold! It was my first woman's magazine assignment. After that I started writing longer queries and soon broke into Family Circle and Redbook.

I also call editors to follow up on queries, and I call editorial departments to find out which editors to pitch. I'm not afraid of the phone at all.

Finally, I was e-mailing queries way back when all the books and magazines insisted that you snail mail them. And some books STILL say you should snail mail your query with a SASE! What a bogus rule. E-mail is quicker and cheaper, and most editors these days expect e-mailed queries.

Suite 101: Can new writers break in by breaking the rules, or should new writers hold to convention?

LF: I recommend new writers find out what works for them by experimenting. For example, even though you heard that you should never call an editor, maybe you find you have great luck calling to follow up on queries. You need to do what works for you -- but the Renegade Writer helps speed up your leaning curve because you can find out what rules worked and didn't work for experienced writers.

Thank you for sharing your time and insights into the world of magazine publishing.

The copyright of the article Expert Breaks the Rules of Magazine Writing in Magazine Publishing is owned by Mary Yerkes. Permission to republish Expert Breaks the Rules of Magazine Writing in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.