Susie Kearley

Summary

Susie Kearley shares her experience and tips on finding work in foreign markets as a freelance writer, focusing on the UK, USA, and Australia.

Abstract

Susie Kearley, a successful freelance writer, shares her experience and tips on finding work

Make Good Money Writing for Magazines Around The World

How to identify foreign markets for your work

I make a good living writing for magazines around the world. I was once quizzed on how I found work in foreign markets, so I thought I’d share some of the answers here…

Finding work in the UK

I live in the UK, and the best guide to magazines in the UK is the Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook. Inside, you’ll find an A-Z listing of all the magazines and newspapers, as well as book publishers. The listings include contact details for the editors and guidelines on what they cover. For extra information on each title, you can take a look at their websites to see sample articles and the sorts of things they publish. Obviously, if like me you live in the UK, it’s worth spending time browsing the shelves of the newsagents too.

Finding work in the USA

When I first wanted to get work in America, I used the US equivalent of the Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook, called Writer’s Market, to find US clients. I worked through the magazine section from A-Z. It’s a very useful book, which again gives editorial contacts and information about what they publish.

I also looked at articles on individual magazine’s websites. I have occasionally asked for a sample article to help me get the style right. Some editors send sample magazines out in the post to new contributors.

Finding work in Australia

In Australia, the equivalent resource is online. The Australian Writer’s Marketplace lists all Australian titles, but I’ve also been lucky finding Australian magazines just by searching Google for Australian health magazines, or Australian travel magazines, for example. This has the added advantage of bringing up any that aren’t listed in the yearbook.

Some editors posted me magazines to give me a feel for their work, and invited me to submit ideas.

Reworking material for a new market

Where possible, I try to rework articles that I’ve written for UK markets, adapting them for overseas markets. Publishers in the USA and Australia invariably want something slightly different to what I’ve already produced. They might also want first world rights to the material. So often it’s a complete rewrite of a topic, but having written about it before can still be useful.

I used to write a fair bit about food and you have to be aware that in other countries, food preferences differ, the names of some foods differ, and what’s popular and in season differs too. I’ve had to make considerable adjustments to British health articles, modified for the Australian market, to take account of climate differences and dietary differences.

I’ve also had to research which vegetables grow well in Australian gardens at different times of year. You can’t assume the same vegetables that are popular among British or US gardeners are popular in Australia too. I’ve also used different research studies to illustrate my points and make my work more relevant to Australian or US readers.

Teething problems

One of my first pieces published in the USA was in Auto Week, who commissioned a time-sensitive piece and then had some editorial changes. My emails got lost. No one replied. I didn’t know if my piece had been published. I certainly hadn’t been paid.

I finally managed to get hold of someone, nearly a year later, only to find out about the editorial changes. They did eventually use my piece (updated) and paid me. But I never got to see a copy, either electronically or in print. I gave up at that point, just happy to have been paid!

Advice for writers approaching a foreign market for the first time

Make sure you tailor your pitch to their domestic market. Use information relevant and topical to the country, and know the language differences. Try to write in American English if you’re approaching the American markets, for example. My book, Freelance Writing: Aim Higher, Earn More, has a chapter on writing for overseas markets.

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