When you are thinking about writing an article or want to pitch an idea to an editor, make sure your idea is specific enough. By doing so, you increase your chances of getting a "yes".
Example of How to Come Up With a Specific Idea
If you don’t have a specific slant, an article pitch is usually too generic. It would be like sending an editor a pitch about reducing your household water consumption. There’s nothing wrong with the idea but the editor won’t be itching to hire you to write it as it’s been done and redone a million times. Anyone could come up with that and it is generic and too broad of a topic.
One writer pitched an editor she’d never worked with the following idea - Water Conservation, Australia Style. There’s a region in Australia that had gone through years of the worst drought known to modern man. She suggested an article on what the people in Australia learned about water reduction and how North Americans could learn from them. Now that is an ideal slant. The editor loved it and the writer got the job.
Examples of Specific Article Ideas
Consider the following ideas. Which ones do you think an editor would be more willing to hire you to write:
- How to be a Great Realtor OR Why Realtors Fail
- Keep Track of Stuff at the Cottage OR Create a Cottage Manual
- Should You Cut Commissions OR Slashing Commissions for Loved Ones
- Advertising Your Services OR Should You Advertise Your Business on Your Vehicle
- How to Show Appreciation to Your Child’s Teacher OR Gifts for Teachers for the Holidays
- How to Survive a Fire OR Surviving a Hotel Fire
- Keep Your Home Safe OR Avoid Mould Issues in Your Home
- ABCs of White Water Rafting OR White Water Rafting Safety
- Stay Safe Online OR Don’t be a Victim of Cyberbullying
- How to Sell your House OR Staging Your Garage When You Sell Your House
- Trees at the Cottage VERSUS What to do With Dead Trees at the Cottage
In the list above, all of the second ideas (the more specific of the two) became published articles. The narrower the idea, the better your chances of hooking an editor’s interest. Had the writer pitched the first idea in each pair, chances are the editor would have taken a pass. Would you rather read an article about the history of chocolate or an article about Mars bars being the best selling chocolate bars in the world?
Final Thoughts on Specific Article Ideas
As Jennifer Carsen points out in her article What Makes a Good Magazine Query?, "Know your slant. It's not enough to tell an editor that you want to write a story for them about weight loss. You need a specific slant, e.g., "9 Ways to Lose Weight While Napping" or "How I Lost 38 Lbs. Eating Nothing But Bananas."
The next time you are thinking of an idea to pitch to an editor, remember to narrow down your idea. Good luck!
Toby Welch - Toby is a full-time freelance writer who specializes in magazine articles, online writing, e-books, and manuscript editing.
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