No time to write an article? Yeah, that\u2019s what I used to say. That is, until I started using little pockets of time to jot down an article between meetings, phone calls, projects, etc. <\/p>\n
I wrote an article this morning before eating breakfast because I wanted to feel as though I had accomplished something worthwhile before heading out for a meeting. In fact, I actually finished an article I started yesterday and wrote a new one this morning. Total time spent on both articles: about 90 minutes. That\u2019s around 45 minutes each.<\/p>\n
How can I write articles so quickly? First of all, these are articles related to what I know best\u2014writing and publishing. I am very familiar with my market and have an organized list of several dozen publications that are always seeking brief (300 \u2013 1,500-word) articles. <\/p>\n
I went through the magazine list, checked my article log to see when I last submitted something to them and what type of article they accepted from me. Then I studied their audience and their magazine focus for a few minutes. <\/p>\n
Sometimes I go to their letters-to-the-editor section or their forum to find out what their readers and site visitors are interested in, are concerned with or want to know. I check articles they\u2019ve published recently and then I come up with a topic and a slant. When you do this as a regular practice, this can take anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes.<\/p>\n
I title the article (sometimes the title changes, usually not). I note the points I want to make and then I start writing. <\/p>\n
Yesterday, I wrote a piece featuring how to write the Market Analysis for your book proposal. This morning\u2019s article featured 5 top types of magazine articles and how to write them.<\/p>\n
Hopefully, you will be reading these articles in Publishing Basics and in Writing for Dollars soon. And hopefully, I will sell some books and maybe gain a student or two for my online book proposal workshop. <\/p>\n
See how it works?<\/p>\n