Write for Free

I've heard many writers and editors echo this thought from Mark Twain:
"Write without pay until somebody offers to pay."

I was always astounded when aspiring writers would bring their work — short stories, feature stories, poems — to the newspaper to "give" me the opportunity to publish them for some outrageous fee. Often they left angry and insulted when I told them I might consider their work as space was available, but I would not pay anything for it. I tried to explain that this was not a comment on the value of their work, which is entirely subjective, it was just dealing with reality. Their work, no matter how clever or enlightened or entertaining, wasn't worth anything to the newspaper, which is a business. And the business of every business is to make money. With the possible exception of their parents, who might spend a couple of bucks buying extra copies of the paper, it wouldn't benefit the paper in any way. But the writers could benefit just by getting a published byline. Many writers stand in the way of their own success by making unrealistic demands. If you want to get published, follow Mark Twain's advice.