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Craft of Writing

Kamala Thiagarajan

Breaking Into Health Writing, Part I

If you have ever suffered a day’s illness in your life, you certainly would have learned to appreciate the saying, clichéd as it may be, that health is truly wealth. As a health writer, though, you will find that this old adage certainly takes on a new meaning, especially since your bank balance grows agreeably in proportion to every article that you publish!

Health is perhaps the only industry that links all human beings regardless of age, race, color, and cultural background. It also offers a great deal of variety for the writer to dabble with. There’s just no getting bored when new and exciting experiments and scientific breakthroughs are occurring at every minute, helping us understand our bodies and their functioning like never before! Worldwide, health publications are doing booming business, and that translates into good news for the writer. Whether it may be a general interest magazine, a lifestyle glossy for women, a journal for male fitness buffs, a magazine specializing in children’s health, or a prenatal monthly, there are a plethora of opportunities for publication.

Let’s take a look at the skills you’ll need to succeed.

Trying To Get That First Assignment
No matter where you are based in the world, as a health writer, you can keep your keyboard as well as your cash register ringing merrily into the wee hours of the dawn. The age-old writing axiom that urges you to write only of what you know may not stand you in good stead here. The health industry is constantly changing and you must make it your business to keep yourself updated and abreast of the latest developments. Presenting this information in an exciting way that would captivate your readers and editors would be your ticket to your next meaty assignment!

You’ll find that getting that first assignment may often be your greatest challenge. So, how do you get your foot in the door and have those editors sit up and take notice? The first step is to think of an idea that would be beneficial to the readers of the magazine you are pitching for. And the only way to do this is to understand and analyse your market thoroughly.

Exploring Markets
Breaking into health magazines may be touted as an impossible task for a new writer, but you’ll soon learn that all it requires is a little patience and a lot of meticulous study. The first thing that you would notice about health publications is that though the market may be cluttered with them, they are as different from one another as night and day. It would be impossible to query a health magazine without reading it at least once from cover to cover. And woe betide you if you just send the same generalized query to about ten publications at the same time. That would be begging for rejection!

Though health publications are about the body in general and good health in particular, you must understand that each publication will focus only on a certain specialized aspect of health care. Discovering what this specialization is would be the first step to breaking into print. But beware—at first glance, it can be extremely misleading!

For example, if you did not know the magazine first-hand, you would hardly have guessed that Oxygen is a guide for women on the subjects of fitness training, or that Body & Soul Magazine deals only with holistic, natural, and alternative therapies to provide the answers to physical and mental well-being. You would also hardly be expected to know that the length and tone of the articles in American Health and Fitness (published in Canada) is determined by their first issue to hit the stands that year! And better still, American Health and Fitness is a magazine for male health buffs that focuses mainly on body building and strength training!

While the general magazine guidelines can sometimes give you a clear picture about the focus of the magazine, you would need to see the publication for yourself before you can hope to contribute.

Writing For Health Journals Overseas
For some, reading the magazine first-hand may be quite impossible—especially if you live in a country other than the one in which the magazine is published and circulated. In such a case, you have two options.

One would be contacting the editorial staff via e-mail and requesting them to send you a recent issue. This would mean that you would have to bear the postal charges and the cost of the issue yourself, not to mention steeling yourself for an endless wait before the copy actually reaches you. Unfortunately, magazines can rarely afford to give away copies—especially overseas—to potential contributors and some may not even welcome the hassle of trying, even when you do offer to foot the bill.

If you find yourself in this situation, you are left with no choice but to pitch an idea first after studying the guidelines and request a contributor’s copy after your article has been accepted. If you are taking this long route that most would call a shot in the dark, then search out these clues, which could prove to be an invaluable aid to getting your foot in the door.

Learn What's Expected From Content
Analyzing a magazine’s target audience will give you an idea of who will be reading the articles you write—and it is the first thing that you should examine before you shoot off a query. This is because it is here you will find the key to a better understanding of the publication’s purpose and spirit. The wise writer will tailor his or her queries after studying the likes and dislikes of the publication’s target audience.

For instance, Current Health 1 based in Northbrook, Illinois, is written for fourth to seventh grade health education students. They prefer their articles written with a lot of scientific information, but presented in a lively and intelligent style that will appeal to the average fifth grader. American Health and Fitness is for weight trainers; some articles cater to advanced weight trainers, whereas others are for beginners. Each issue has a fair mix of both.

By studying the psyche of the target audience in this way, writers can equip themselves with an idea of the voice and style that would appeal to the audience. All health publications have very well-defined niche audiences with extremely specific needs. This technique would be especially helpful if you have no way of studying the actual magazine beforehand. Additionally, most health journals today have Web sites that will make your task of analysing their audiences easier.

Understanding How Publication Frequency Affects Your Chances
Knowing the frequency of publication (whether it is a monthly, bi-monthly, or quarterly) can help you gauge the magazine’s response rates, the nature of material required, and the chances you have for acceptance.

A monthly magazine will use more material than a bi-monthly or quarterly; however, much of their material may be about current breakthroughs and, therefore, extremely time-sensitive. Also, the editor of a monthly publication may be very busy, for no sooner is one month’s issue out when preparations begin for the next. Keep up with the latest health news for a monthly journal and be aware of the fast changing trends in the international health scene. A brief, topical query in these instances will often work best.

For bi-monthly magazines and quarterlies, keep in mind that the Editorial will work months in advance. This would rule out any time-sensitive material unless it is still relevant at the time of publication, so pitch your ideas accordingly.

What You Can Learn From Advertisements
One aspect of magazines that writers often ignore are the advertisers. It is a misconception that advertising material would have no relevance to you as a writer. There are many good reasons why a health writer should be familiar with the advertising material that appears in the magazine that he/she is contributing to. Since advertisements are directed at a clear-cut, target audience, this knowledge will further your understanding of the magazine’s outlook and reach. Most importantly, you won’t offer an article that is bound to hurt the publication’s advertisers—and this will prove to be an excellent way of avoiding outright rejection.

So if you are writing an article on the horrific health hazards caused by exercise equipment, be wary of expounding on length of the damages to the knee and back caused by stationary bikes—especially if the health magazine you write for is backed by advertisers promoting exercise cycles!

Where To Find Ideas
The reality is that most topics of concern in the health industry have been written about before. Rehashing old subjects in an interesting way is the only means to survival in an already cluttered arena.

Don’t always concern yourself with reporting developments to grave illnesses and progress on the spheres of rare and terminal diseases—unless the magazine’s specialization calls for articles of this kind. In effect, the writer should always be looking for new ways to handling age-old but minor health hazards. Whether it may be battling the common cold with cloves of garlic, suggesting steam inhalation as a part of an overall physical detox program, or breaking myths by telling people why chocolate is actually good for them—the ideas you offer should have a fresh twist that will help readers battle with the smaller problems that affect them on a daily basis. This will not only be more relevant, but also will prove to be easier to place in most magazines.

Attending conferences and workshops is another way to source out ideas. The importance of networking can’t be stressed enough! Go to pharmacists' gatherings, meet salesmen who peddle health-related equipment and who could perhaps give you access to the industry’s most prestigious doctors and qualified professionals. Cover medical conferences for your local paper or sign up at your neighborhood gym to meet fitness instructors and dieticians. Each one of these people can provide non-stop fodder for your health articles.

How To Pitch Your Ideas
After analysing your publication, its readership, and advertising material thoroughly, the next step is to sell your idea to the editor. Here’s where you put your knowledge to good use. Craft a query letter that outlines your idea clearly and tells the editor how readers would benefit from your article. In effect, your query letter should have three paragraphs.

The first paragraph should set forth and explain your health idea/theory clearly.
The second should announce how this idea would relate to and affect the readership of the magazine.
The third paragraph should be a brief outline of your qualifications.

Your query should have enough relevant research on your subject to arouse the editor’s curiosity. Stick to the facts and make absolutely certain that all your information is authentic. The query should act as a sample of the promising article to come!