While I've been drafting BEHIND THE BIT, I've been thinking about my freelancing and I'm feeling the seven year itch. ;)
Since I was fourteen, I've been writing for teen magazines. That's fantastic and I absolutely love it, but I think I'm going through a new phase. I've been reading lots of GLAMOUR, REDBOOK, ALLURE and FAMILY CIRCLE. These were magazines that I used to look at and say, "Can't write for them yet. I just don't have the clips and I'm not in their target age range yet. (I think Redbook is for the 25+ age group, but I might be wrong. Pretty sure, though.)
But the more I read of adult mags, the more I realize they're JUST like SEVENTEEN, TEEN VOGUE and COSMOGIRL (RIP, CG!! Thanks to Melissa Walker for bringing that to my attention. Melissa knows EVERYTHING about the mag biz!)
No, the magazines obviously don't publish articles in the same tone, but the subjects and topics are often the same--men or boys, beauty, health, lifestyle, etc. Just with more of an adult tone.
I almost feel as if I'm starting over in the magazine field. Maybe I am! Teen magazine clips might mean NOTHING to adult mag editors, but I'm going to try.
Now, I've got to:
* read a zillion back issues
* figure out the mastheads
* find a topic
* write a query
* rewrite the query
* obsess over the query
* repeat!
I'm still going to keep freelancing for teen mags, but it feels like the right time to give adult mags a try.
Fingers crossed. :)
Anyone else go through something similar when shifting from the teen market to the adult publications?
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5 comments:
Best of luck!!!
I loved writing my adult book and hope to write more, but the teen voice somehow comes easier--go figure!
Thanks! I'm not even sure if I can write in a more mature tone for magazines, but I might give it a shot. :)
From my experience, an editor's ideal is a writer who can deliver the story assigned on time. You've proven you can do that.
But if you're worried about not having the right voice, when you're pouring over all those back issues, pull out some stories and re-type them entirely. I got this idea from author Terry Kay (To Dance with the White Dog). He re-typed the sports editor's columns every night to learn how to write like a sports writer during the early days in his writing career.
Yeah, I actually went the other way around. I did a lot of technical writing, including some pubs in smaller special interest mags written for adults. And now I've moved on to teens. I think it's just a matter of finding the right voice for you. And if you're one of those people who can switch easily from one to the other? You've got me gnashing my teeth in envy for that one!
Good luck!
Teri
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