I'm not sure where I first read about customer publishers. I think it may have been from Linda and Diana of The Renegade Writer. From what I understand, a custom publisher puts together and distributes magazines or newsletters for corporations, businesses, or organizations. It can be an in-house publication, an industry specific journal, or a companion magazine for a store or business. I came across information about custom publcations while doing some research on letters of introduction for freelancers. So I decided to revisit this market venue to determine if this would be a good option for me to pursue.
From what I've learned, custom publications are definitely worth looking into. Here's why.
Less Competititon
From what I've read, there is less competition from other freelancers when it comes to custom publishers. Most publications put out by these publishers are specific to a particular industry or consumer group. They may not be as widely read as the glossy national magazines. It's this low profile that allows freelancers to approach customer publishers with a letter of introduction, rather than a full-fledged query.
Targeted To Your Interest
I love the idea of writing for custom pubs because you can choose ones that fit your area of expertise and interest. You'll find some links to custom publishers in this Writer's Weekly article on letters of introduction. I plan to target pubs that cover topics I'm interested in like beauty, fashion, parenting, and education. I've just started researching various publishers, but I've found a number that seem like a good fit. In fact, I've even sent out a few letters of introduction.
Good Pay
It looks like custom publishers offer a fairly decent rate of pay. Some can even compete with the national magazines. There are large corporations like Walmart and Curves behind some of these magazines, so there's a budget to pay writers. So often, new freelancers settle for low paying gigs because we feel that we have to work our way to the top. Any established freelancer will tell you not to simply settle for low pay. There are a lot of good paying markets out there for talented newbies. I think custom publications are definitely a good place to form relationships and obtain high paying writing jobs.
So what do you think? Will you try breaking into the custom pub market? For more information, you'll want to read this article on how to get into writing for custom publishers. Good luck!
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