Last post I talked about reslanting. If you're thinking of doing it, you're probably wondering what happens if you have have two or more stories on the same subject assigned at the same time.
Take the
example from last post, where I pitched a similar idea to Chicago Parent and Complete
Woman. These are noncompeting markets, so the audiences for my articles—the
readers of those magazines—are quite different. Chicago Parent, not surprisingly, is aimed at Chicago-area moms and
dads. Complete Woman’s readers are
women in their twenties to midforties who are looking for articles about love,
sex, health, beauty, diet, fitness, career, and finances.
So I wrote two completely different articles about social media. One described what parents need to know about social media, focusing on how Chicago-area parents are using it to socialize, keep up on children’s health issues, and create a new online neighborhood of sorts. It included a sidebar about whether you should “Friend” your teen on Facebook.
The piece for Complete Woman focused on the dos and don’ts of using social media as a dating tool, exploring issues like what a man’s online profile may reveal about him. My sidebar focused on a woman who had connected with a former classmate through social media—and married him! (Readers love happy endings.)
The very heart of the idea-harnessing social media—was the same. But the angles, the sources, the approaches, and the overall articles were very different. Yet because I knew the difference between Facebook and MySpace and could define a Tweet by researching the first article, the second took little time to write.
To double dip this way without writing the same story twice, use this five-step process:
So I wrote two completely different articles about social media. One described what parents need to know about social media, focusing on how Chicago-area parents are using it to socialize, keep up on children’s health issues, and create a new online neighborhood of sorts. It included a sidebar about whether you should “Friend” your teen on Facebook.
The piece for Complete Woman focused on the dos and don’ts of using social media as a dating tool, exploring issues like what a man’s online profile may reveal about him. My sidebar focused on a woman who had connected with a former classmate through social media—and married him! (Readers love happy endings.)
The very heart of the idea-harnessing social media—was the same. But the angles, the sources, the approaches, and the overall articles were very different. Yet because I knew the difference between Facebook and MySpace and could define a Tweet by researching the first article, the second took little time to write.
To double dip this way without writing the same story twice, use this five-step process:
1. Consider the markets you're writing for (and their
audiences) and create a slant specifically for each.
2. Use different expert sources whenever possible. (If you must reuse a source, get fresh quotes that are relevant to the specific story angle.)
3. Use a different structure for each story.
4. Find new “real people” to include as anecdotes.
5. Write different sidebars that complement each story.
2. Use different expert sources whenever possible. (If you must reuse a source, get fresh quotes that are relevant to the specific story angle.)
3. Use a different structure for each story.
4. Find new “real people” to include as anecdotes.
5. Write different sidebars that complement each story.
That’s it!
Keep these five steps in mind, and you can write about the same subject at the
same time, without writing the same thing twice or upsetting an editor--while you work more efficiently and yes, make more money. Readers, what do you think? Have you used a similar process to reslant?
[This post was drawn from Secret 23: Write two stories at once, fromWriter for Hire: 101 Secrets to Freelance Success. If you prefer bite-sized nuggets to help you toward freelance success, check out my Dollars and Deadlines' ebooks:
- Dollars and Deadlines' Guide to Selling your First Article. If you've ever wanted to see your byline in print or pixels, or want to launch your freelance career, this 10-step process will show you how...no matter how inexperienced you are.
- Dollars and Deadlines' 10 Most Popular, Proven Ways to Make Money as a Freelance Writer. Based on my annual survey of freelancers, this ebook lists the 10 most popular ways to make money from your words--and how to break into each.
- Dollars and Deadlines' 10 Essential Freelance Templates. Early in 2011, I devoted a month to sharing freelance templates; this ebook compiles the 10 you must have in your freelance arsenal.
- Dollars and Deadlines' 10 Truths Every Writer Who Wants to Get Published Should Know. This ebook is a little bit of a departure for me, and is aimed at every writer who wants to get published, not those (like me) who write for money. The fact is, even if you don't care about the money, understanding how the publishing business works will boost your chances of publication.
- Dollars and Deadlines' 7 Biggest Mistakes POD Authors Make--and How to Avoid Them. POD companies are making millions of dollars on their authors, most of whom are pretty much clueless when it comes to how POD companies work. This ebook is priced at $4.99, but it will save you hundreds of dollars--possibly thousands--if you plan to publish a POD book.
Great piece on writing multiple articles on the same subject matter. That's a subject I'm still tackling. I think I've been fairly successful choosing different markets and providing different enough sidebars and information, but I always have this niggling fear that I'm ripping off my own work.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Shiromi! Glad you found it helpful. I am careful to write different stories about the same topic and double-check to make sure I'm not using the same phrases, etc...something that tends to happen to us as writers. :)
ReplyDelete