| janfields |
Join us tonight in the
AUDITORIUM-Scheduled Events Room for open forum. Tonight's topic for
pontification is "Writing and Selling Fillers." Come and join in
five minutes from now.
|
| janfields |
Tonight's Forum on
"Writing and Selling Fillers" will begin shortly. While you wait for
chat to begin, feel free to use your ASK A QUESTION button RIGHT
BETWEEN THE YELLOW “MAP” AND THE RED QUESTION MARK IN ICHAT to post
some questions or comments on fillers -- how to write them, where to
sell them, and which ones are hot! Chat will begin two minutes from
now.
|
| janfields |
Hi, and welcome to
night forum on "Writing and Selling Fillers". I'm your
host/moderator, Jan Fields -- and over the years I've written
quizzes, fun facts, puzzles, short crafts, recipes, and poetry --
all of which magazines often use as fillers. So, feel free to ask
questions about any element of the process. If you want to ask a
question and be sure I get a chance to see it you'll need to use
either the "ask a question" button on the bar across the middle of
your screen. OR type /ask...then space once and type your question.
That passes the question to me and I can post it for
answer.
|
| janfields |
Good to see
y'all.
|
| janfields |
Tonight we're talking
about fillers.
|
| janfields |
Now fillers can take
many forms but what they have in common is that they are
short...
|
| janfields |
they are not usually
written on assignment...
|
| janfields |
And there is a constant
need for them.
|
| janfields |
Fillers can run from
riddles and jokes...to recipes...crafts...fun facts...and even
poetry.
|
| janfields |
In adult magazines,
poetry is usually considered a "filler"
|
| janfields |
because it's tucked in
among the text to break up the heaviness of the
page.
|
| janfields |
In children's
magazines, poetry is usually a thing unto itself and often gets an
illustration.
|
| janfields |
So in children's
magazines, we usually don't group poetry with
fillers.
|
| dragonlady |
what types of fillers are
most often purchased?
|
| janfields |
That depends on the
magazine.
|
| janfields |
For example, The
Boy
|
| janfields |
The Boys' Quest/Fun for
Kidz/Hopscotch group...
|
| janfields |
has a constant and
never completely met need for...
|
| janfields |
puzzles and riddles and
games.
|
| janfields |
Discovery Girls, on the
other hand has a constant and unmet need...
|
| janfields |
for short fact pieces
on technology of interest to girls.
|
| janfields |
The editor told me the
number one thing she would like to see more of is technology for
girls.
|
| janfields |
And
crafts.
|
| janfields |
Highlights filler needs
are picture puzzles and cummulative stories...
|
| janfields |
And short
crafts.
|
| janfields |
Sweet 16's number one
filler need is quizzes -- but they need to be fun and unusually
formatted if possible.
|
| janfields |
While Pockets says
their greatest need for fillers is recipes.
|
| janfields |
So really, to know what
a magazine needs, the quickest answer is read issues and look at
what kinds of fillers each uses.
|
| janfields |
Then decide which
magazine YOU most want to be published in...and meet the filler
need.
|
| janfields |
If you do that a few
times, you'll find your submissions for longer works get MUCH faster
responses.
|
| eggamy |
How long should crafts be
for discovery girls
|
| janfields |
She likes them to run
about a page or so in the magazine so I would say a couple hundred
words.
|
| janfields |
She wants crafts that
are particularly appealing to tween girls.
|
| janfields |
Nothing schoolish...and
nothing expensive to make.
|
| janfields |
But the look needs to
be professional in your sample.
|
| janfields |
And the end result
should be something a girl would want to keep or give as a gift...so
nothing to art class-ish.
|
| janfields |
too, not
to
|
| dragonlady |
how much can someone
expect to earn per filler, on average?
|
| janfields |
Wow, now there is
something that can vary like crazy.
|
| janfields |
You can make as little
as for things like riddles.
|
| janfields |
Or you can make well
over upon the market...for things like crafts or
recipes.
|
| janfields |
It's always less than a
full-length article in the same market.
|
| janfields |
But the word count is
also always low.
|
| janfields |
And really I like doing
fillers.
|
| janfields |
One really popular
filler is the "FUN FACT"
|
| janfields |
And that's a kind of
art form.
|
| janfields |
You take something in
the news...like a new technological product.
|
| janfields |
Say talking books you
can download to your cell phone.
|
| janfields |
The key is to dig for
what in that would interest girls.
|
| janfields |
Do they do teen
books?
|
| janfields |
Or teen
magazines?
|
| janfields |
Or
textbooks?
|
| janfields |
Look for the angle that
would capture the interest of the audience.
|
| janfields |
And try to be witty in
presentation.
|
| janfields |
For example, in
Discovery Girls (I thing...could have been Girl's Life...I have a
rotten memory sometimes....
|
| janfields |
They did a newsy blurb
about national thrift store shopping day.
|
| janfields |
And it ran maybe 75
words...about building a funky wardrobe that is just "your"
style.
|
| janfields |
From thrift store
treasures.
|
| janfields |
So, whenever you're
reading the paper...consider mining for nuggest you can spin into
something interesting for kids.
|
| janfields |
nuggets...not
nuggest.
|
| janfields |
I really cannot spell
after dark.
|
| janfields |
Sometimes when you're
dealing with a desperate filler need.
|
| janfields |
The fillers in a
magazine might not be as high quality as the magazine would
LIKE.
|
| janfields |
Or you may find the
fillers have the bylines of magazine staffers...
|
| janfields |
which can make you
think...they don't buy freelance.
|
| janfields |
Really, sometimes it
means they don't GET freelance.
|
| janfields |
I asked Discovery Girls
editor Sarah Varney about crafts...
|
| janfields |
because the craft in
the issue I had was written by her.
|
| janfields |
I thought maybe it was
an in-house feature.
|
| janfields |
And she said, NO...they
were desperate for crafts.
|
| janfields |
So much so she had to
write the things.
|
| eggamy |
confused' Is it Girls
Life or discovery girls which wants cr
|
| janfields |
Discovery Girls is the
one that is really desperate for crafts.
|
| janfields |
Girl's Life also does
very DIY crafts...decor stuff.
|
| janfields |
Inexpensive room "make
over" stuff.
|
| janfields |
Inexpensive clothing
decorating.
|
| janfields |
American Girl, by the
way, also uses craft fillers -- lots of them.
|
| janfields |
Lots of fillers in
general, in fact.
|
| janfields |
But you have to read
that magazine to really match their filler style.
|
| janfields |
It's rather
unique.
|
| dragonlady |
so if i approached
something like Ladies Home Journal...
|
| janfields |
Women's magazines do
tend to use a lot of fillers.
|
| janfields |
But they sometimes do
part of them in house.
|
| janfields |
Read the bylines...then
compare it to the staff list
|
| janfields |
If it's got a lot of
staffer names...it may be in house.
|
| janfields |
Some of the big
magazines can discourage freelance.
|
| janfields |
Though if you have some
sold credits from recognizable teen/tween
magazines...
|
| janfields |
and maybe some smaller
women's or parenting...
|
| janfields |
even the magazines that
seem discouraging can be much friendlier.
|
| coloradokate |
Guidelines aren't always
specific for fillers--do most want you to query, or just send stuff
in?
|
| janfields |
Guidelines in adult
magazines are TERRIBLE for not even mentioning
fillers...
|
| janfields |
even when they buy a
lot of them.
|
| janfields |
I don't know
why...maybe they think we're born knowing this
stuff.
|
| janfields |
Kids magazines are
slightly better but not a lot.
|
| janfields |
Many times they talk
about departments...
|
| janfields |
and some of the
'departments' are actually filler collections.
|
| janfields |
So you have to know the
magazine.
|
| janfields |
But you can watch word
counts as well...they may not CALL it a filler, but if it's 100
words or less
|
| janfields |
it's a
filler.
|
| janfields |
And they buy a lot of
them.
|
| janfields |
Even some magazines
that are basically buying nothing from no-one...
|
| janfields |
like the National
Wildlife magazines
|
| janfields |
and the Children's
Better Health Institute...
|
| janfields |
will still sometimes
bite on a filler submission.
|
| janfields |
Because fillers are
less expensive than features.
|
| janfields |
So it's harder to
interest their "main" writers in doing them.
|
| janfields |
Or in the case of the
CBHI, using fresh fillers can make a magazine look
fresh...
|
| janfields |
even when all the
longer stories and articles are actually decades old and being
reprinted again and again.
|
| janfields |
So -- for me -- I just
send it in.
|
| janfields |
The worst they can say
is NO.
|
| janfields |
Heck, I've been "no'd"
by the best.
|
| janfields |
I am not delicate about
no.
|
| janfields |
There is no black list
they make of folks who do naughty things like send fillers to
magazines without querying.
|
| janfields |
So, I will sometimes do
things that are consider naughty.
|
| janfields |
But I try not to be a
nuisance.
|
| janfields |
If I KNOW a magazine
doesn't use fillers.
|
| janfields |
Because I've never seen
one inside it.
|
| janfields |
I won
|
| janfields |
won't send one to
them.
|
| janfields |
And I try to match the
style of what they use.
|
| janfields |
That shows a level of
professionalism that tends to make them forget about whether I
queried or not.
|
| dragonlady |
what is the protocol
about sim subs to magazines about fillers? do mags tend to mind
getting a reprint on a filler?
|
| janfields |
If the reprint is from
a noncompeting magazine -- they don't tend to care.
|
| janfields |
Mostly.
|
| janfields |
Some magazine flatly
buy nothing except fresh content.
|
| janfields |
They pay a lot for that
right.
|
| janfields |
But most...fillers are
a special case so they don't care about reprints.
|
| janfields |
As long as it's in
their style and looks like their fillers.
|
| janfields |
You couldn't, for
example, take a craft you sold Fun for Kidz and send it in the same
format to American Girls.
|
| janfields |
They wouldn't buy
it...their crafts look TOTALLY different.
|
| janfields |
But the problem would
be that it looks like you didn't read them, not that it's been
published.
|
| dragonlady |
how would I format the
fillers for consideration? Can I send more than one at a time to the
same mag?
|
| janfields |
Fillers LOOK like any
other manuscript...only short.
|
| janfields |
If you're doing Oddz
and Endz pieces for Discovery Girls for example.
|
| janfields |
And I had two...and
they were each 50 words...
|
| janfields |
I would probably put
them on one manuscript page with a bar to separate
them.
|
| janfields |
But I might also do
them on separate pages.
|
| janfields |
Depends on my mood and
how much paper I have on hand.
|
| janfields |
The editor would
probably like them on separate paper --- really...makes it easier to
just accept some.
|
| janfields |
But you can certainly
send them in the same envelope.
|
| janfields |
With a kind of
"checklist" cover letter that mentions each filler
|
| janfields |
and what department
it's for or what it's about.
|
| janfields |
If you know, though,
that different departments have different editors (which sometimes
happens) then send in separate envelopes.
|
| janfields |
The editors will find
it easier to deal with.
|
| janfields |
Especially if the
editors don't work in office.
|
| janfields |
For example, Discovery
Girls is out of...somewhere hot.
|
| janfields |
California or
Florida....I think
|
| janfields |
Anyway, the editor
lives in Connecticut, not far from me.
|
| janfields |
So their other editors
probably don't live in her house.
|
| janfields |
Thus, different
departments in Discovery Girls would warrent separate envelopes so
it goes to the right editor from the central mail
out.
|
| dragonlady |
what about science
fillers, how popular are those?
|
| janfields |
Science fillers are
HUGE.
|
| janfields |
The key is to make them
fun.
|
| janfields |
And
relevent.
|
| janfields |
relevant
|
| janfields |
Meaning, the reader
needs to feel a need to know about the science.
|
| janfields |
Or the science should
produce something fun (like an edible end result, for
example)
|
| janfields |
They don't want ANY
science filler that looks like it might have shown up in a text
book.
|
| janfields |
But if you can do fun
-- they would love you.
|
| janfields |
I constantly hear
editors say they wish they could find more science
writers.
|
| janfields |
You want an editor to
track you down? Write an article about writing science articles for
Kid Mag Writers
|
| janfields |
Or one of the writing
magazines -- editors actually write to you.
|
| dragonlady |
which ones, jan?
:)
|
| janfields |
I know YES mag and KNOW
are always looking.
|
| janfields |
They still don't have
all the science writers they need.
|
| janfields |
CLICK is really looking
and so is ASK.
|
| janfields |
They both want resumes
and samples, I think...and like to send
assignments.
|
| janfields |
Beyond that...it taxes
my brain so late in the evening.
|
| janfields |
I know many of the
tween girl magazines really really want more
science.
|
| janfields |
But it has to be girl
science...and even the editors aren't exactly sure what that
is.
|
| janfields |
But they know it when
they see it.
|
| eggamy |
Are the
Puzzles
|
| eggamy |
written?
|
| janfields |
Lots of magazines buy
puzzles.
|
| janfields |
The Boys Quest etc
group.
|
| janfields |
The Cobblestone group
is ALWAYS interesting in new and innovative puzzles related to the
themes.
|
| janfields |
They get too many word
search things.
|
| janfields |
Almost no one wants to
see word searches...ever.
|
| janfields |
Now one magazine that
LOOKS like it takes puzzles, but doesn't is
KidZone.
|
| janfields |
Just so you
know.
|
| janfields |
They run a lot of
puzzles, but they really are all done in house.
|
| janfields |
That's
unusual.
|
| janfields |
I'll give you a
tip.
|
| janfields |
If the puzzles seem
really dull and lame in a magazine -- there is a good chance they
are done in house.
|
| janfields |
Not because the staff
isn't creative.
|
| janfields |
But because it's the
last job on their list of priorities.
|
| janfields |
So they tend to do the
same puzzles with new faces...over and over.
|
| eggamy |
How about Keys for Kids
are they staff written?
|
| janfields |
I really don't
know.
|
| janfields |
My guess would be
no.
|
| janfields |
They are really a
wide-open market.
|
| janfields |
I would bet they buy
puzzles but I really don't know.
|
| janfields |
Featherpen asks How
does one sit and dream up puzzles...just
Brainstorm?
|
| janfields |
Actually I
cheat.
|
| janfields |
If I'm feeling like
selling puzzles...and I have in the past.
|
| janfields |
I buy a bunch of those
puzzle books for adults...expecially word puzzles.
|
| janfields |
Of variety
puzzles.
|
| janfields |
And I look for
something...a puzzle form...
|
| janfields |
that looks
unusual...
|
| janfields |
and looks like it could
be adapted for kids puzzles.
|
| janfields |
I've done logic puzzles
that way.
|
| janfields |
And one I did a puzzle
where you had to alphabetize a list of names of
"explorers"
|
| janfields |
Then once you did...the
first letter of each name formed a word.
|
| janfields |
A famous
discovery.
|
| janfields |
I got the idea from a
fairly complicated puzzle
|
| janfields |
in an adult
magazine...it was really quite different, but working it made me
think of that.
|
| janfields |
So I would highly
recommend those puzzle books as idea generators.
|
| janfields |
To create puzzles, you
often have to work backwards.
|
| janfields |
For example, for the
one with the famous discovery.
|
| janfields |
I decided on a
discovery...then looked for explorers with first names that could
fill the letters.
|
| janfields |
I actually had to
discard my first discovery because I couldn't come up with explorers
for certain words.
|
| janfields |
So, in many ways,
creating puzzles is like working them and can really be
fun.
|
| dragonlady |
how do you format a
recipe?
|
| janfields |
Most recipes are
basically title, introductory paragraphy (a sentence or two), WHAT
YOU WILL NEED: (followed by a list) and DIRECTIONS: followed by a
list.
|
| janfields |
Now, within that, a lot
depends on the magazine.
|
| janfields |
The Hopscotch group,
for example, often does the directions step
|
| janfields |
in paragraph form
without numbers.
|
| janfields |
And American Girls does
the WHOLE thing in paragraph form.
|
| janfields |
No ingredients/then
directions.
|
| janfields |
But the ingredients pop
up in the directions.
|
| janfields |
So...like a lot of
things...format it the way you see it in the
magazine.
|
| dragonlady |
how much do the women's
mags pay for recipes, as compared to kids mags?
|
| janfields |
I don't sell recipes to
adult magazines because my cooking stinks.
|
| janfields |
But in general, adult
magazines pay more for everything than kid's
magazines.
|
| janfields |
Still, the pay is all
over the board.
|
| janfields |
I've seen adult
magazines pay a recipe and others paying in the
hundreds.
|
| janfields |
It depends on the
magazine, how important cooking is to it, what you credentials are
as a chef, and how unique the food.
|
| janfields |
I would have to pull
out one of my market guides.
|
| janfields |
But it would be one
with a cooking focus, glossy, likes to buy from
chefs.
|
| janfields |
Honestly, we're not
likely to get hundreds because most of us aren't
chefs.
|
| janfields |
The high payers like
credentials because readers of some of the trendy glossies don't
even care if it tastes good as long as it's plated nice and looks
nifty.
|
| janfields |
I know Family Fun pays
pretty well for recipes...probably the highest of magazine we'd be
likely to run into...but I would need to check.
|
| janfields |
Mostly
not.
|
| janfields |
Better paying magazines
"test" the recipes and take the photo.
|
| janfields |
Because they have "food
stylists" who make it look really really pretty.
|
| janfields |
Oh...the "mostly not"
was in response to -- do I have to provide
pictures.
|
| janfields |
I sometimes forget to
pass a question along for the transcript.
|
| janfields |
These transcripts must
be a hoot to read and try to figure out.
|
| janfields |
A puzzle in
themselves.
|
| janfields |
Can you give me an
example of a short bit -- asks ROBINB
|
| janfields |
By short bits, I simply
meant short articles -- crafts, recipes, quizzes, puzzles, jokes,
anecdotes...
|
| janfields |
news
flashes
|
| dragonlady |
what is the market for
news flashes?
|
| janfields |
I meant the "current
events" kinds of things -- you see them MOSTLY in the glossy
magazines for teens and tweens.
|
| janfields |
It's just stuff taken
from the news and spun for the age group.
|
| janfields |
Virtually ALL of the
teen/tween magazines buy them.
|
| janfields |
Though some like some
sort of celebrity spin.
|
| janfields |
Actually they are
amazing to read.
|
| janfields |
If you really want to
study fillers, get a pile of these magazines and look at what they
do with current events.
|
| janfields |
It's a great market for
folks who are witty and think outside the box.
|
| janfields |
I've not actually ever
done them, but I like them.
|
| eggamy |
Do most editors want
samples of crafts?
|
| janfields |
You can usually get
away with sending a snapshot when you send the
manuscript
|
| janfields |
If you aren't
querying.
|
| janfields |
But MOST of the time,
they are going to want the craft eventualy.
|
| janfields |
So I tend to make LIGHT
crafts (I'm so cheap about mailing stuff)
|
| janfields |
I know Discovery Girls
said really they just need a snapshot because they'll make
it
|
| janfields |
and shoot a
picture.
|
| dragonlady |
so would this be where
you would write something short about a teen who has done something
for another/good deeds/beyond the call etc?
|
| janfields |
Oh yeah, those always
sell.
|
| janfields |
By the by, I am amazed
no one has done some of these on the editor of
YALDAH.
|
| janfields |
She's only 14 and she
started a print magazine!
|
| janfields |
She's be a great
subject for one of these -- Look what the cool kid did"
pieces
|
| coloradokate |
Do any kids' mags use
gardening-related fillers?
|
| janfields |
I hate to be a pooper,
but editors have almost a horror of gardening stuff these
days.
|
| janfields |
I happen to know all
the gardeners in america seem to be sending gardening articles to
kids magazine.
|
| janfields |
About the only thing
you really cannot squeeze in is gardening
|
| janfields |
Unless you do something
really wild.
|
| janfields |
I heard about a teen a
few years back
|
| janfields |
Who did "commando"
gardening.
|
| janfields |
She would wrap potting
soil and seeds in rice paper
|
| janfields |
Or some other really
degradable stuff.
|
| janfields |
And toss them over
fences into trashy overgrown spots in the city.
|
| janfields |
And some grew into
flowers.
|
| janfields |
Now, that would be
something an editor would take.
|
| janfields |
Well, it's been an
hour...I had fun. And I really want to thank you for
coming.
|
| janfields |
Oh...dragonlady wants
to know about somethign on reintroducing bees to the
city.
|
| janfields |
That might be
interesting actually.
|
| janfields |
Not exactly "gardening"
per se, though related.
|
| janfields |
Could be
cool.
|
| janfields |
Would depend on how you
presented
it.
|
