If it happened to you, write a personal essay

Personal essays are an easy sale – even for new writers. If you’re a complete novice, and want to see your byline in a top magazine, consider what’s happened to you, and most importantly, how you can give readers a takeaway.

Help others to learn from your experiences

Major magazines receive hundreds of personal essays a month, but accept few of them. This is because of the universality factor: the experience you’re writing about must resonate with readers, and reward them (the takeaway) for reading your piece.

So while you’re writing, remember to search for the factors which make your experience universal, and emphasize them.

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