|
In the Trenches with Marcia Layton Turner
The six-figure writer diversifies her revenue streams to cope with waning magazine budgets
by Loren Pritchett
Marcia Layton Turner seasons a passion for writing with business savvy to consistently gross more than $100,000 a year despite media industry tumult. The Rochester, N.Y.-based freelancer and book author puts her University of Michigan MBA to use conducting market research, managing cash flow and diversifying revenue streams for her writing business. And she wouldn't have it any other way.
"By my own definition, I am a success because I can work when I want to work and make a decent living while doing what I love," she said.
Turner didn't always have that freedom. She started her career in the marketing department at Eastman Kodak Co., where from 1989 to 1993 she wrote press releases, copy for brochures, case studies, and marketing communication plans. During this time, she also penned her first book, Successful Fine Art Marketing (Career Press), a project that grew out of a desire to help her artist father build a larger following. She researched publishers who were interested in art and business in Writer's Market, a publishing reference guide, and sent proposals to 20. Two requested sample chapters and one went on to publish the book, which took nine months to write. Soon after other publishers approached her to write additional books.
In 1996, Turner attempted to break into magazine writing, but found selling stories more difficult than she'd imagined. "I didn't know how to approach editors or how to pitch ideas," she recalled. "I thought I could just approach them and they would be impressed that I had written some books. I thought they would say, 'Oh, yes, Marcia! Here, we'll give you your own column.' I was wrong."
To sharpen her skills, Turner enrolled in professional-development seminars and courses offered by Writer's Digest and freelance writer Diane Benson Harrington. She took Harrington's "Crafting the Query" course more than once. "My pitches improved considerably," Turner said. "The key for me--and I think the key for everyone--is to start with what you know. For me, it was with business topics, because I had an MBA and I had worked in the corporate market. I built on that. I expanded from writing about taxes to marketing, and eventually the assignments grew."
In 2001, Turner finally broke into magazines by writing a profile for American Painting Contractor Magazine. She later tweaked the idea for other markets and sold it five more times. With that 2,000-word article and its offshoots, she successfully launched her freelance career. "I demonstrated that I could write business articles. Once I got that one recognizable clip, it helped me break into larger-circulation publications," she said. "I started getting assignments from other trade magazines."
Turner has since expanded her focus to other topics that interest her. "I have children, so I started writing about parenting. Like everyone, I like to save money, so sometimes I write about savings and coupons. As my interests grow, I add to my list."
Turner realized magazine budgets were shrinking in the spring of 2009 and reallocated her workload accordingly. "There are fewer freelance opportunities [in journalism]," she explained. "Either magazines are closing down or they are depending on their staff writers to deliver. Ghostwriting has been a big part of my revenue stream, and I'm doing a lot more with the Web and creating products for writers to break into the industry."
Although Turner continues to explore alternative means to make money, she believes it is possible to be a success in writing for newspapers and magazines alone. "I have several friends who do, though it is harder," she said. "Combining several types of writing makes it possible to ride out any downturns in some areas of the market - as we're seeing with magazines right now."
Turner's work appears in numerous trade and consumer magazines, books, and on various Web sites. Her clients have included BusinessWeek, Cyberhomes.com, Woman's Day, The McGraw-Hill Companies, and Penguin Group Inc. Turner strives to maintain contact with all of her clients, to remind them that she's available for additional work. "It is important to stay in touch. I send e-mails to pitch story ideas and keep them updated on what I'm working on," she said. "Some of my editors are even my Facebook friends, so I can stay connected with them that way also."
Additionally, Turner uses FreelanceSuccess.com, to help find other avenues for writing. "It's a community of writers where you can share information and find out where and who to pitch to. It's a great place to turn to for help," she said.
She also keeps an eye on industry news and magazines to network with other writers and pitches ideas to editors she's never worked with before.
By exploring new opportunities and staying connected with previous clients, Turner is able to work on an average of eight to ten stories at once. She juggles her assignments with proper planning and execution. "I try to do something on each story every day," she said. "Most stories are in different stages, so I might be drafting for one story or finding potential sources for another, while editing and proposing story chapters."
Although she considers herself a business, she markets herself as an individual. "I used to market myself as a company when I had employees," Turner said. "But I realized that the people I wrote for wanted to work with me and not to be handed off to someone else when dealing with me, so that is who I worked on marketing, myself."
Turner said she is always looking for more work, even when she has several stories in progress. She positions herself so that clients want to work with her again. "I'm easy to deal with, I meet the requested deadline, and I pitch stories editors haven't heard yet," she said. "If you are difficult, editors are not willing to come to you."
Shelley Moench-Kelly, senior editor at Beauty Store Business, has worked with Turner for two years and says she's a valuable contributor to the magazine. "She is one of my top two favorite writers," Moench-Kelly said. "She communicates well, lets me know immediately if there is a problem, follows direction perfectly, and she's thorough and accurate. I know I can send her an assignment sheet and go on with my next problem. She has the kind of work ethic that I have and appreciate."
That's good news for Turner, who aims to continue her already successful freelance career. Her current goal: "I want to continue to do exactly what I'm doing," she said. "Just more of it!" |