Writing Magazine Articles: Writing is writing, right?

April 12, 2019 by in category The Writing Journey by Denise Colby, Writing tagged as , , with 2 and 0
Home > Columns > The Writing Journey by Denise Colby > Writing Magazine Articles: Writing is writing, right?

Magazine articles may not be a full novel but I have found the process in writing smaller articles to stretch me in ways I didn’t expect.

The Need to Write Something

As a writer, it’s one thing to write down your thoughts, ideas and inspirations. It’s another to hand it over to someone who is going to take it and print it. Doesn’t matter if it’s a full-length novel or smaller articles.

I’ve always loved writing, and had many experiences in the corporate world creating pieces for our customers to use with their customers. But these were always product related and the specifics were crafted by a team of people.

To have something that I wrote from the beginning to completion on my own, is a completely different experience.

You never know where opportunities are going to come from. Because I need to find a way to generate an income if I want to write full-time, I thought to look into other areas. Last spring I happened upon a booth for a regional magazine and inquired about writing articles for them. She gave me the contact for the editor, I reached out and submitted some writing samples. She offered me a choice of some articles and in the July/August 2018 issue, my first two magazine articles were printed. Little did I realize they would be cover stories! 

Magazine cover articles written by Denise M. Colby for Westcoast Magazine July 2018

They even used a few of the pictures I submitted, which made it all very exciting!

Denise M. Colby receiving her white roses for writing magazine articles at the Orange County Council of Romance Writers of America September 2018

And then I received a precious rose!

See, in our Orange County Chapter of RWA, roses are awarded for publishing. Different color roses represent different types of works. Novels are Red, and so on. For articles they are white. I have been watching for YEARS, waiting for the day I would receive a rose, so it was so meaningful to receive roses for these two articles plus one more for the next issue.

Three white roses for three magazine articles - Denise M. Colby

Each time a new issue publishes, I’ve been asked to write for the next issue (picking from a list already decided upon by the editor). It’s been great writing experience writing different types of topics. I feel my writing is growing stronger. I’m gaining experience in working with an editor, meeting deadlines, submitting and the concept of letting go (which we all know is difficult to do).

Three of the articles are part of their digital library on their website.

July/August 2018 – Adventure Awaits on Route 66 and Homeward Bound

Celebrating Milestone Events written by Denise M. Colby for WestCoast Magazine September 2018
Celebrating Milestone Events by Denise M. Colby, September/October 2018 issue.

Jan/Feb 2019 – Safety Tips for Your Family – Kids and Tech

Other articles include:

September/October 2018 – Celebrating Milestone Events

March/April 2019 – Finding New Ways, to Thrive Follow Your Passion Now which is the Current issue online.

And printing in the May/June 2019 issue: Women Learn to Brag…you can’t be modest in business.

So today I’m celebrating a few publishing milestones. It’s been a blessing to write these articles and gain this experience. It’s fun to look back and see how far I’ve come. I’d love for you to join in the celebrating with me.

Thanks for reading,

Denise

Author Bio
Author Bio
Although new to the writing fiction world, Denise Colby has over 20+ years experience in marketing, creating different forms of content and copy for promotional materials. Taking the lessons learned from creating her own author brand Denise M. Colby, Denise enjoys sharing her combined knowledge with other authors. If you are interested in a marketing evaluation and would like help in developing a strategy for your author brand you can find out more here http://denisemcolby.com/marketing-for-authors/
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  • Featured Author: Denise M. Colby

    Denise M. Colby loves to write words that encourage, enrich, and engage whether it’s in her blog, social media, magazine articles, or devotions.

  • Featured Author: Denise M. Colby

    Denise M. Colby loves to write words that encourage, enrich, and engage whether it’s in her blog, social media, magazine articles, or devotions.

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Although new to the writing fiction world, Denise Colby has over 20+ years experience in marketing, creating different forms of content and copy for promotional materials. Taking the lessons learned from creating her own author brand Denise M. Colby, Denise enjoys sharing her combined knowledge with other authors. If you are interested in a marketing evaluation and would like help in developing a strategy for your author brand you can find out more here http://denisemcolby.com/marketing-for-authors/
  • Congratulations on the roses and the articles that they celebrate.

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