Help please! Putting together proposal to edit small mag

I am a little confused. Is the proposal to edit the magazine, or for a query letter to pitch a story?

If it is a query, I can help. If it is a proposal to edit the magazine, I can't help- but I'll do my best to point you in the right direction.

live4today said:

Sorry I wasn't very clear - it's a proposal to edit (and write for) the magazine. I'm getting the query thing down pat. The publisher actually wanted to talk to me based on a recent assignment they gave me for a different mag they publish.

Thanks!

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Hi live4today,
I'm still confused about what you're trying to do: the publisher of the magazine wants you to put together a proposal for what the magazine would contain, or how much you'd charge to edit the magazine you describe? Or something else? How can we help you? What are your questions?

live4today said:

I must be confusing! LOL Let me try again.

The publisher asked me to put together a proposal for being the editor of the magazine. This would include:

- issues published every 6 weeks,
- I would need to find stories, edit all stories, and find freelance writers (in addition to writing myself) (there are 8-10 stories, plus sidebars and short informational pieces in each issue)
- I would assist with final layout (as in, yes that looks good, no I'd change that, etc),
- Ghostwriting the president's (not of the USA haha, but of a local busines organization) message each issue
- Attempting to sell advertising to some of the interviewees' companies
- and any other editor duties (I'm not sure what these would all be, I've never done this before!).

I'm thinking he wants a flat-fee per issue proposal, and I'm just not even sure how to determine how much work will be involved. My initial thought is to tell him $2,000 per issue for all duties, but I'm honestly not sure that is enough or not. If I personally wrote all 10 stories at $.25/word that would be roughly $2,500, and this position would entail much more than "just writing".

Boy, I'm beginning to think maybe I'm simply not even qualified! **sigh**

Hope that clarifies (and thanks for your patience)!
Denise

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Okay, got it (I think). So you won't have to do layout, but you'll have to oversee it? Who will do it--someone in house, or will you have to find a layout person? And what's the part about having to sell advertising to interviewees' companies? That's not a great line to cross if you're trying to edit and write a proper magazine.

Have you ever managed a magazine/newsletter before? It's a lot of work, and you should probably make it clear what your fee covers and what it doesn't. Do you have to distribute the mag? Are the freelancers subcontractors through you, or does the magazine pay them? Do you get files printer ready? How do you get advertisers to submit their ads? And do you share the revenue from the ads you sell? If you do sell ad space, who does the creative for them?

This sounds like a big job, so think of it that way: say they want an issue out every 6 weeks all year: if you charge $2500 flat fee per issue and you publish, say, 8 issues (48 weeks' worth), you're making $20,000 before taxes. Is that enough for you? If what you'll be doing is coming up with column templates (in every issue we'll have these standard columns: x, y, z, and m), writing the copy (or finding freelancers that the mag--not you--pays), see how many words it will be, and see how much research time is involved.

I hope this has helped a little bit--from your post it sounds like all the parameters haven't been really defined, and that maybe you'll have to do that for the publisher: explain what you'll do, how you'll do it, and how much YOUR role in the magazine will cost the mag.

Let me know if you have other questions, or if this has been even remotely helpful.
Take care,
Lauri

There's a "sweet spot" in quoting for this type of work, determined somewhat by the competition as well as page count, level of involvement, etc. That number is roughly $1,500 for a 40-ish page business publication.

Be very careful about what you agree to. Some trade/business groups are very good about submissions and cooperating within reasonable bounds with the contract editor; others can turn into a nightmare.

For example, I was asked to bid on a monthly magazine for a well-known trade organization about three years ago. On the surface, it seemed straightforward enough. But when I followed up, I was shunted to a mid-level manager with aspirations of rapid promotion who knew nothing about what was involved. The ensuing chaos over two meetings led me to realize that I would end up making less than minimum wage, and most of that time would be spent managing this person's drama addiction.

On the other hand, there are organizations that understand the value and are willing to work reasonably with contract editors. But in terms of value, the group you're talking about raises a red flag for me when they say that they normally pay 10 cents a word, and hope to encourage you by highlighting your 25-cent deal (which is just slightly less than average for mid-sized publications). That's a WRITING fee; you'll be required to do much more than write.

I would get away from the word count consideration altogether and look at it from a standpoint of time. At first, you'll spend a lot more time getting things together and formatting your approach. As you go on, you'll streamline the process and make more per hour because things will go more quickly. But I wouldn't quote a rate based on your actual hours; I'd look at the overall project, consider how long I estimated it would take me for the first three editions and how long I believed each one would take afterward, then set a dollar value.

For example, at the start it might take, say, 40 hours per issue. After three issues, it might take 20-25 hours each. Since you're doing one issue every six weeks, that's eight issues per year ... and one of them is likely to be a "special issue" centered around a major trade show or annual convention (more work).

3 issues X 40 hours = 120 hours
5 issues X 20-25 hours = 100-125 hours
Total hours for the first year = 120-145 hours

Let's round up to 150 hours. If you value your time at $40 per hour, that's $6,000 for the year, or about $750 per issue. At $80 per hour, you'd want to charge $1,500 per issue. (By the way, I wouldn't tell them your hourly rate; that's for YOU to know, and for them to decide whether your flat-rate bid is worth it or not.)

You can move the numbers around any way you need to based on your circumstances, but the point remains: you need to place a value for your TIME on the project and then quote a flat rate per issue.

The thing to remember about business publications is that they're read by decision-makers: people who own or make major decisions for businesses. The business organizations that publish magazines for these audiences cannot survive with substandard editors, and as such they're willing to pay a moderate fee for competent work.

Your competition at the organized level is with companies such as Naylor and Lester (and a dozen other Naylor-knockoffs that have sprung up in the last few years), who will get the contracts with business organizations and then turn around and outsource the editing. That's where the $1,500 "sweet spot" comes in.

One last thing: it helps to decide what business YOU are in! I'm a freelance writer and editor, but I no longer do editing for business print publications because: 1) I don't enjoy it enough; and 2) I make more money WRITING for these publications. My point is, I decided a few years ago to focus on what I do best (which happens to also pay better!) and leave the chaos of freelance print publication editing to those who are more suited for it.

Hope this helps!

You're very welcome ... and good luck!

Something that I repeatedly mention on the Trade Press board is the fact that the biggest complaint by trade and association editors -- and by extension, the decision-makers in trade associations -- is that there are not enough GOOD writers interested in writing for this arm of the industry.

If you've gotten hold of a prospect who won't let YOU go, there's a good reason! It puts you in an excellent position to negotiate a fair arrangement, even if you (for whatever reason) don't feel that you're ready for it yet. This prospect obviously sees something of value in you. The worst thing that can happen is that you'll go through the process of investigating it, learn a few things about the business and about yourself (!), and be better equipped for your career.

Go ahead and explore the possibilities! Remember who you are and what you want to accomplish for yourself, but stay open to opportunities that come to you that may not "fit your picture."

You might be pleasantly surprised!

Good luck to you!

Fantastic, Denise! Good luck--let us know if we can help with anything along the way. Sounds like it's going to be a great 2006 for you!
Ho ho ho,
Lauri

Good for you, Denise! Please keep us posted once in a while as to how things are going -- what a great way to start a new year!