If you’re more practically minded and don’t think writing fiction is for you then this could be. It’s the non-fiction alternative…writing articles and features!
Writing articles isn’t half as difficult as some people make out. Let’s be honest, it’s not like writing a bestselling novel. It’s quick, it doesn’t take years to succeed. You don’t need any qualifications or previous writing experience…and you only need fairly basic writing skills. If you can read articles in newspapers and magazines, well, you can probably write them successfully as well.
You can write and sell articles and features about whatever you like and would enjoy writing about. The very best way to start is to start writing is on something you already know about. That way, you won’t even need to do any research!
How about writing on these subjects: pets, children, politics… history, food and cookery, local news, current affairs, DIY, the environment, crime, motoring, money, consumer issues, book reviews, hobbies, travel and holidays (one of the very best things to write on!). You could write for the women’s pages, or even be an ‘agony aunt’. The list is endless.
As ever, before you start writing research your market. Pop along to your local library reading room or newsagents and pull out all the magazines on your chosen subject, and newspapers which have sections on that subject. Note the subjects, style, tone and length of the articles already published carefully. Keep yours within similar guidelines…don’t try to be too different or controversial initially.
Good tip. Don’t forget writing articles and features for the Internet. You can sell articles to magazines and newspapers but don’t forget websites many of which now publish articles and features. This is probably the fastest growing sector of the article market and there’s massive demand for good content. These are a fast growing market and the advantage is that they usually require shorter pieces – under 1,500 words and often under 500 words.
As most articles are short it’s a good idea to write a few and send them on a speculative basis to editors. Tell them that you have ideas for similar articles too, which will help stimulate their interest.
One of the best things about writing articles is that, if your articles don’t sell initially, you can tweak, edit, cut down or expand them and simply submit them to a different market until you find someone who wants to buy them. Once you’ve got one article published you’ll find it’s much easier to find more buyers for your articles.
More information. I’ve written and sold hundreds of articles over the years. Take a look at my own article writing course which explains exactly how to make money from writing articles. It’s here: http://www.make-money-writing.info