How to Sell More than 75% of Your Freelance Writing

by Gordon Burgett

Amateurs write, then try to sell. Professionals sell, then write. This is just one of the truths about publishing revealed in this comprehensive guide to the art of getting published and making a living as a writer.

256 pages, Paperback

First published February 5, 1990

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book back around 1990, when I was doing a writing course. I re-read in 2001 after I'd been doing quite a bit of non-fiction writing for magazines and newspapers. Whether the method still works in an online age is a good question. I think it mostly does, but it was geared for an age when article writing was profitable. The problem is you don't get paid for this kind of writing in the online age, at least not in general.
But the book's best focus is that it's wasteful to write something completely new (in the non-fiction area) each time you sit down to write. If you have a good idea, why not make the most of it, and write on that idea from a variety of angles, each of which can be sold to a different outlet. As I say, this may not work so well nowadays, but in its time it was a profitable approach.

[Aaron · Rating 2 out of 5]

The process described in this book probably worked years ago...and it might work now - but only for people who are willing to turn writing into a job, a job that turns you into a cookie cutter-slash-copy machine. Gordon describes how someone can research what is popular in magazines (or newspapers), and basically reproduce that work adding your own spin. The problem is, you're probably not going to find what you want to do in the popular magazines. Of course, I'm speaking from the perspective of someone who wants to think outside of the box...someone who wants to push the envelope, and break barriers. I'm a creative person. I write as a hobby because it allows me to write what I love.
If you do find yourself selling out, and all you care about is money, then this book is for you! I agree with the premise - you can make money while writing! His main point is very powerful - writing what you love first, and then trying to find someone to buy it is a long and risky process. Instead, if someone were to do minimal research, then approach the editors with query letters, and find acceptance BEFORE WRITING then the time they spend writing (3 weeks is the magic deadline) is much more valuable...according to Gordon if you get that initial acceptance letter, then there's a 30-50% chance of being published. Compare that to a year of writing (like myself) and then having a 1% chance of being published! Ok, so Gordon's formula works, but as I said before, you have to sacrifice the dream....you have to cut out the fun...if you want writing to be your job, then that's what it will be - your J-O-B.
I am also curious as to how well this scheme works now, seeing as how magazines and newspapers sell so much less than before. Maybe there is an similar market in the on-line world. Either way, I'm happy writing for fun. Why turn my passion into something boring?