Editors Love Briefs, Fillers & Quizzes

By Joan Stewart

Pick up any national magazine, flip through the pages, and count the number of short articles you see. They can include those little 3-inch fillers, short quizzes, 400-word “how-to” articles or resource boxes.

Editors love them. And you can generate some fabulous publicity for yourself by writing them. 

1.  Because they are so short, editors often rely on them to “fill a hole” on the page. A 75-word brief stands a much better chance of being published than a 750-article.

     2.  Briefs help portray you as an expert in your field.

     3.  They appeal to readers with short attention spans and can be skimmed quickly.

     4.  They’re easy to write. And you don’t need to submit a query letter to editors.
          Simply snail-mail, fax or e-mail the copy.

     5.  Unlike a story idea pitch, or a longer article you are submitting, you can usually
          submit briefs to editors at a variety of non-competing publications at the same
          time. Editors don’t expect exclusivity on these items and usually don’t care if they
          appear in other publications.

     6.  You can promote yourself, or your product, service, cause or issue much more in a
          brief than you can in an article you would write.

     7.  Briefs are an excellent way to promote a new book, particularly if you are willing to
          give away free advice in the brief that ties into the book. You an include a web site
          URL or contact information where readers can buy from you.

Types of Briefs

Briefs come in all shapes, sizes and formats. They include how-to articles, tips sheets, quizzes, new product announcements accompanied by a photo, and polls and surveys. If you work within a particular industry that has its own jargon, you can also supply a list of industry words and definitions so readers can better understand your industry.

Sometimes all you need to do is provide editors with a list of resources on a particular topic. If you write books on marketing, for example, you might provide a list of the top three marketing web sites, top three marketing magazines and top three audio tapes on the topic of marketing for small-businesses. This brief can be used as-is, or it can be used as a sidebar to accompany a longer article on marketing that someone else has submitted.

Now get going. Dozens of editors out there are waiting for your briefs. If you need step-by-step directions on how to submit briefs, see "Briefs, Fillers & Quizzes: How to Write Them and Why Editors Love Them."

Direct comments or questions about this article, including requests for reprint rights, to:

Joan Stewart
The Publicity Hound
3434 County KK
Port Washington, WI 53074
Phone: 262-284-7451
JStewart@PublicityHound.com