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Craft of Writing

Suzan L. Wiener

Ten Secrets To Writing Fillers For Fun And Profit

Tired of writing short stories or articles only to get rejections? If that's the case, don't quit writing. Instead, try your hand at filler writing. You will be surprised at how much fun it is to write and how profitable they can be. The pay sometimes is even more than you might get for a longer piece. For instance, Reader's Digest, the cream of the crop for filler writers, pays $300 for an anecdote. If it doesn't get printed in their "Life in these United States" feature, it could still be used on another page, and they pay $30 a line. They also have other features, such as "Laughter, the Best Medicine," where the pay is $100.

I find most publications pay $25 for anecdotes, $15 for quips and $15 for jokes. If you get enough of them, the payments add up nicely. I got started writing fillers when my young niece said something cute, and I typed it up and sent it to a well-known publication. To my surprise a few months later, I received a check for $25. And, they asked me to send more. It was the easiest money I had made, and after that, I kept at it.

Other sources you should watch for are bumper stickers, church signs, and store signs. They are wonderful outlets for a filler writer's source of material.

Of course, I still write articles and short stories, but the fillers help keep me going should those rejections show up in my mailbox, which unfortunately they do from time to time. But when I get a rejection on a short anecdote, it doesn't seem quite as bad. When I get an acceptance, it's well worth the effort.

Even though fillers seem much easier to do, they still need to be polished and entertaining. Editors get thousands of anecdotes, jokes, etc., per week, so make yours shine.

It should work for you too. Also, don't be disappointed if yours isn't selected right away. Remember, it takes time for editors to go through them and select those that meet their needs. If you don't hear from an editor within six months, it is usually all right to send it to another publication.

l. Always gear your anecdotes toward what the magazine wants. For example, if it's a baby magazine, don't send in an anecdote pertaining to your 7-year-old daughter. No matter how cute it is, the editor won't be able to buy it.

2. An anecdote should always be true and written like a mini-story with a beginning, middle and end. Humor is always welcome, and if the editor laughs, it is most likely he/she will purchase it from you.

3. Listen to what your family, clerks, acquaintances and friends say. If they say something cute, write it down and ask their permission to use it.

4. Keep a list of markets (publications) that will take anecdotes. It makes sending them out much easier and quicker.

5. Try to remember their addresses as this will make sending out the anecdotes, jokes, etc., much easier and quicker for you.

6. Send in holiday anecdotes at least six months beforehand. Sometimes editors want them even before that. Check each guideline to find out just when you should send them in.

7. If you send your anecdotes online, it will save you lots of money on postage. I've done that, and it really makes a difference cost-wise.

8. Always keep enough fillers circulating, so if one gets returned, you won't dwell on it. I try to send out at least ten a week.

9. Sending out your material online will save you a lot of postage. Check http://www.google.com to see which publications take online fillers.

10. When doing your taxes, make sure to keep your rejections, check stubs, etc., to show whether you're doing the fillers as a hobby or as a full-time occupation. It's important to keep it in order. It is highly unlikely that you can quit your day job writing fillers, but if you get enough acceptances, anything is possible.

Here are several places to send fillers I found are quite eager to have them.

Grandparents' Brag Board
Mature Living
l27 9th Av North
Nashville TN 37234
--------
Kidspeak
Woman's Day
1633 Broadway
New York NY l00l9
-------
Last Laugh!
Woman's World
270 Sylvan Av
Englewood Cliffs NJ 07632

Following these ten tips, you'll most likely get an acceptance and be as happy as you would if it were for a short story. I know that to be the case for me.


About the Author
Suzan L. Wiener has had numerous poems, stories, writing articles and fillers published in national publications such as T-Zero: The Writer's Ezine, Canadian Writer's Journal, Riverrun, Impetus, Saturday Evening Post, Poetry Press, Verses, etc.