You Can Write for Magazines by Greg Daugherty

Daugherty, Greg. You Can Write for Magazines. Cincinnati, OH: Writer’s Digest Books, 1999.

You Can Write for Magazines is a practical primer on writing and selling magazine articles. This short book is loosely divided into three parts: how magazines work, how to write types of articles that are popular, and how to handle the business of writing.

As an editor, Daugherty is familiar with how magazines work. Since this is a book for writers, it treats the subject lightly and briefly. It’s enough to help the novice freelancer know what to expect without unnecessary detail. In an early chapter, he juxtaposes what is going on with the writer with what is happening at the magazine.



For the hopeful freelancer, the several chapters on popular types of articles are likely to be of most interest. These chapters are short and won’t save writers any of the hard work of putting together articles. They will help them start of in the right direction and avoid problems. This section works well as a possible reference. Since each chapter deals with a single type of article, one can turn to it for relevant pointers without sorting through the entire book. They also highlight the types of materials magazines use beside long feature articles.

The final chapters are very important to those freelancers who might hope to make a little money from their efforts. They cover the art of selling, the writer’s rights and money management. As in the rest of the book, Daugherty concentrates on the essential facts that will be useful to the writer, especially a beginner.

Throughout, Daugherty’s own writing style can be a lesson to beginning magazine writers. He sticks to the main points, focuses on the important aspects of his subject, organizes each chapter well and writes with an appropriate tone. Each chapter could be an article on some aspect of magazine writing.