by publius
Another question for the bloggy masses. This is obviously a self-interested question, but others may benefit too. I'm wondering about the process/format of article/op-ed-ish submissions to magazines (whether print or online). For instance, do you send in articles footnoted, or does the fact-checking process come later? Should you reach out to an editor first, or just send it in? What are the preferred formats, etc.?
I'm sure these answers vary depending on the place and the author's level of fame. But assuming zero fame, I'm just curious how the process works. The goal is not so much to exude professionalism, but to avoid looking like a jackass. Any insight appreciated.
On other matters, I've reached the very important conclusion that this is the best song on the Feist album. The somewhat goofy video detracts from the sexiness of the chorus and her voice, but a good album nonetheless (and yes, I know it's been in Starbucks -- it rips me up inside, believe me).
No to Obama Osama !
this country is crazy
Posted by: cleek | July 22, 2007 at 10:33 AM
cleek, the crazy part is not the sign itself (as crazy as it is), nor is it Romney (as crazy as he is) but rather that the number of people who have made that insane connection is as high as it is.
This country not only has its share of crazy people, but the percentage is awfully high.
Posted by: john miller | July 22, 2007 at 11:09 AM
I see our B.O.S.H.M.O.* campaign is proceeding apace, cleek.
*Barack Osama Saddam Hussein Madrassa Obama
Posted by: Ugh | July 22, 2007 at 11:29 AM
Sure, it's been in Starbucks, but at least it's not objectively awful like McCartney's latest cash-in.
Posted by: Joshua | July 22, 2007 at 11:30 AM
Someone in my family made that Obama/Osama connection, saying that it was a reason not to vote for him. This person isn't a rightwinger either.
So yeah, it seems likely a fair number of voters are influenced by totally irrational considerations. Not really news.
Posted by: Anonymous | July 22, 2007 at 11:40 AM
but rather that the number of people who have made that insane connection is as high as it is.
Yeah that is a little frightening. In Romney’s defense, it looks like he has a pen in his hand. I think he was just signing the back of the sign and probably never even saw the front of it. Unfortunately you don’t get to choose your family or your political supporters.
Posted by: OCSteve | July 22, 2007 at 11:49 AM
The new They Might Be Giants album is worth checking out. There's even some political stuff in there:
http://tmbw.net/wiki/Lyrics:I%27m_Impressed
I kind of winced when The Shins and The Decemberists showed up at Starbucks, but I'm glad they're getting exposure.
Posted by: dkilmer | July 22, 2007 at 11:56 AM
Unfortunately you don’t get to choose your family or your political supporters.
actually, by way of the policies you promote, you do choose who your supporters will be.
I kind of winced when The Shins and The Decemberists showed up at Starbucks, but I'm glad they're getting exposure.
i discovered the Shins (and Gillian Welch, and Lucinda Williams) from a Starbucks/ "Hear Music" sampler that someone gave me as a b-day present four or five years ago.
thankfully.
Posted by: cleek | July 22, 2007 at 12:17 PM
An extended family member who I normally think of as having very sensible, fair, and moderate political views told me she was uneasy about Obama because he might be unduly influenced by 'those people'.
I asked who 'those people' were and she seemed to mean Muslims. This was back in April; the crap about the madrassas been on the cable "news" by then, but I don't remember if it had been weeks or months. Given what I've known of her politics up to now, this disappointed and unsettled me deeply.
Posted by: Nell | July 22, 2007 at 12:27 PM
publius - your very important conclusion is incorrect. "1234" is the best song on Feist's new album, but the clever video you embedded compliments "My Moon My Man" better than the "1234" video works for that tune.
alas, have never sent in an article to be published, so cannot help you directly, but my sister is a well published audiologist, so i can ask if you want to know how fact checking works in her field.
Posted by: tarylcabot | July 22, 2007 at 12:50 PM
OCSteve: Yeah that is a little frightening. In Romney’s defense, it looks like he has a pen in his hand. I think he was just signing the back of the sign and probably never even saw the front of it. Unfortunately you don’t get to choose your family or your political supporters.
Dan Riehl also tried this line of spin, since picked up by the Bananas in Pajamas (BTW, I hold you in much higher regard, OCSteve). Do you seriously believe Romney, in this post-Macaca era, would not have the sense to read a sign before being photographed with it in his hands? He'd have to be an ignoramus.
Romney is many things, but he's not stupid. I believe he knew exactly what he was doing when he held up that sign (YMMV, of course). Unlike Sharpton or Jackson, Republicans can't go after Obama over race (he's too safe, clean and articulate, dontcha know) so intsead they continually harp on his cursory ties to Islam.
And, as several commenters have pointed out, the meme appears to be spreading.
Posted by: matttbastard | July 22, 2007 at 01:19 PM
I don't go to Starbucks (coffee makes me jittery)- I found Feist on my own (well, not really, Paste Magazine had them on their sampler). I'm going to split my 'best of' vote between 'Secret heart' and Mushaboom.
Posted by: VR | July 22, 2007 at 02:15 PM
matttbastard: I believe he knew exactly what he was doing when he held up that sign
Entirely possible I guess. It just looked to me that he was gripping the sign with one hand to stabilize it and he had a pen in the other. In both photos he was behind the sign. I have no special thing for him (or any of the R candidates at this point). This just seemed to be in line with the haircut and the pole dancer and the trophy wife business. The dude has plenty wrong with his stated politics to criticize him for. This seems like one of those gottcha moments that don’t amount to much. Maybe there is a video that will show me to be completely wrong…
Posted by: OCSteve | July 22, 2007 at 03:06 PM
Maybe there is a video that will show me to be completely wrong…
I’m collecting “crow” recipes BTW. So far a stew or soup in the crock-pot seems least objectionable. ;)
Posted by: OCSteve | July 22, 2007 at 03:09 PM
@publius: It depends very much on the paper to which you plan to submit the op-ed. If it's one of the majors, it has to be exclusive and you're almost certain to be rejected (with no notice, though including a SASE might get them to return a declined piece) unless you have an advocate with some influence with the op-ed editor (or some recent media exposure as an expert on the topic).
Fact-checking should be done by you before submitting, regardless of the capacity of the receiving publication. I'd see no harm in noting in the cover letter that you've prepared a document with sources for all the facts in the piece that you'd be happy to share if it's accepted.
Hope that's helpful. Good luck!
Posted by: Nell | July 22, 2007 at 03:37 PM
I seem to remember Kevin Drum had an op ed in the LATimes a while back. I bet he'd be willing to help you benefit from his experience.
Posted by: Nell | July 22, 2007 at 03:40 PM
"Should you reach out to an editor first, or just send it in?"
Never (I repeat NEVER) just send it in. That's about as effective as tossing a message in a bottle to be rescued from a desert isle.
Best way: find someone who knows someone who can get you a name and/or an email address or phone number, and contact them that way. That was how I got to pitch Steven Spielberg two years ago (an old friend of mine has a daughter who was a hair-stylist who cut the hair of an agent at CAA and while she had the agent under the dryer foisted my script-idea to her, which in turn got me the agent's direct phone number, and that call got me another phone number to Spielberg's liaison at the agency, which in turn produced another phone number.. and the rest, as they say, is history (well, sort of pending history).
But if you don't know someone who knows someone, last resort: send them a brief note saying who you are, what you've been doing (renowned blogger from Obsidian Wings/Legal Fiction, etc) with a description of the article you want them to consider.
Posted by: Jay Jerome | July 22, 2007 at 04:13 PM
This seems like one of those gottcha moments that don’t amount to much.
to someone who doesn't know much about Romney, this picture says "Romney's most-eager supporters equate Obama with the man behind 9/11. you may not know much about him, but they do. and they like him. and he likes them."
Posted by: cleek | July 22, 2007 at 04:17 PM
cleek: Fair enough. Is it 11/08 yet? Man this is going to be a long one…
Posted by: OCSteve | July 22, 2007 at 04:25 PM
I'm going to disagree with Jay Jerome. Op-ed editors aren't Stephen Spielberg; they don't take pitches from anyone who's not already been widely and frequently published.
It doesn't at all hurt to have an advocate or several, but only once your piece is sent in. The vouching helps increase the op-ed editor's comfort level with someone who is unknown. The piece itself needs to be timely, to connect with an issue under active discussion in Congress or being covered or opined about in the newspaper to which the piece is being submitted.
Posted by: Nell | July 22, 2007 at 04:36 PM
OCSteve, I think you're grasping at straws. Even the Romney campaign didn't try an explanation that lame. In the first photo Romney is clearly posing for the camera. Are you telling me a presidential candidate didn't bother to look at the sign he was posing with?
The official response doesn't criticize the message at all and certainly doesn't apologize:
Posted by: KCinDC | July 22, 2007 at 05:07 PM
You may be right, Nell; I haven't worked as a freelance magazine and newspaper writer for many (make that many-many) years, and maybe things have changed now. But when I was living and writing for a living in NYC I never once sold anything I sent in unsolicited.
Posted by: Jay Jerome | July 22, 2007 at 05:13 PM
KCinDC: I think you're grasping at straws.
OK, well I’m not going to go to any great lengths to defend him. I don’t have any particular love for the guy. I just think we are all blowing everything out of proportion in this early election cycle.
matttbastard linked to Riehl (thanks Matt). If you follow that link he has the relevant portion of the photo enlarged. It sure looks like a pen. Looking at that and the other photos, it appears he is holding a corner of the sign so as to be able to autograph the back. At least in the photos we have seen, there is no indication he saw the wording on the sign. Video would likely be more definitive.
If he endorses the osama/obama crap then yes he is an idiot, but he didn’t have my vote anyway…
Posted by: OCSteve | July 22, 2007 at 05:24 PM
Has anyone considered that the sign really was just a play on words? No to Obama, No to Osama, No to Chelsea's momma? Just a political sign, nothing more?
Posted by: rdldot | July 22, 2007 at 05:38 PM
Right, rdl. Just a political sign, nothing more. Why, two Democratic presidential candidates and an international terrorist, they're just three peas in a pod, to which someone can be opposed in just the same way.
Pull the other one.
Posted by: Nell | July 22, 2007 at 06:02 PM
When I was living and writing for a living in NYC I never once sold anything I sent in unsolicited.
Op-eds are different than magazine pieces or other free-lance writing.
My experience isn't vast, but I've been told by people who have had op-eds published in medium-big papers (not the giants) that pitching op ed editors is Not Done.
Now, in the real world of power, people who already have a ready platform -- who get invited to speak on Nightline and the News Hour and get quoted by reporters -- can probably have their people pitch an op editor with success.
But the non-plugged-in would be better off submitting a topical piece and using whoever they know to put in a plug for the piece itself.
Posted by: Nell | July 22, 2007 at 06:09 PM
OCSteve: If he endorses the osama/obama crap then yes he is an idiot
Yes, he is. According to one of his own spokesmen "The governor stopped briefly for a picture with a supporter who just happened to be holding their own sign with an alliterative play on words." cite
Posted by: Jesurgislac | July 22, 2007 at 07:27 PM
No to Mitt
Bull-Sh - t
And red state
nit wits...
Am I the only one who's noticed Obsidian Wings rapidly closing in on the 3M visitors mark?
All I can say is it should be 30M!
Rock on.
Posted by: xanax | July 23, 2007 at 12:06 AM
The answer on submissions: It depends.
If you have a specific market in mind, check their Web site or their Writer's Market listing for what they want and how they want it (most times--but not always--they'll want you to query first). Then read a few issues to see how the guidelines translate in practice. I remember one writer describing how her two state magazines had totally different approaches to profiles: One liked ex-pats who'd made it big elsewhere, one wouldn't touch them, neither spelled it out in their guidelines.
Newsweek does--or did--take unsolicited opinion pieces for the "My Turn' section (I know because I got one in a decade ago). Generally, I'd say it helps if you have a good publication track record, but if you have a particular expertise, that counts too (I was writing about hurricanes and flood insurance right after coming through Hurricane Opal).
Don't bother with footnotes unless the magazine asks for it. If they have specific requirements--they want contact numbers for everyone you talked to--they'll tell you so.
For hard copy submissions, manuscript format is pretty standard (Writer's Market or any other how-to will give you the details). Online, not so: Some want it in attachments, some want it in the body of the email, some want RTF or Word ... But the Web site should explain all of that.
As to whether blogging would help your pitch ... I don't know. It might be a plus (especially if your idea is similar to the stuff you write here), but then again they might equate that to "spotty geek living in Mom's basement."
Posted by: Fraser | July 23, 2007 at 10:17 AM
Aargh. I wasn't reading very carefully, apparently. My responses to publius are all on the question of op-ed submissions to newspapers, which function very differently than magazines.
Consider me totally unqualified to opine on the latter, but my guess is that because of longer lead times and smaller readerships that the editors for opinion pieces would in fact be open to pitches in a way that papers' busy op editors, swamped by submissions, are not.
Posted by: Nell | July 23, 2007 at 12:03 PM
Where do "spotty" and "Mom" coexist? Canada? It looks like mixed dialects to me.
Posted by: KCinDC | July 23, 2007 at 04:52 PM
Canadians I know say 'Mum'.
Posted by: Nell | July 23, 2007 at 07:01 PM
Romney was asked about the sign at a "town-hall" event. His response: "Lighten Up".
This is the best and the brightest the Republicans have to offer?
Posted by: Jeff | July 23, 2007 at 09:08 PM
This is the best and the brightest the Republicans have to offer?
yes.
Posted by: cleek | July 23, 2007 at 09:15 PM