If you want a fast way to increase the number of your queries that are accepted, focusing on a very specific niche can truly help. A niche can make it much easier for you to find markets that match your audience, as well as decide on just which facets of a trip will be most interesting. I know I’ve had a lot of trouble in a big city like Washington, DC, when I need to decide on just what attractions or restaurants I want to mention in an article. Knowing exactly the niche I’m writing for, whether it’s college kids on Spring Break or grandparents interested in travel opportunities where they can take their grandkids, makes it easier to both query and write an article.
When In Doubt, Pick Yourself
In yesterday’s interview, Sheila mentioned that she started writing about family travel because that’s what she knows best. After all, she’s traveled with her own family. When you’re picking your niche, look at the kind of travel you’re interested in. Where do you want to go? Who do you want to take with you? These sorts of questions can give you a head start on a whole stack of articles that will appeal to readers in your demographic.
Over time, you may move on to new niches, through your own travels or through editors looking for different articles. But if you know the target market you fit in well, you’ve got an automatic niche.
Using A Niche to Find Markets
A good niche does more than make your writing easier: it can increase your income. If you write travel articles for markets that focus on your niche, but aren’t necessarily travel publications, you can often create different slants of a particular story and sell it several times. For instance, if a parent wrote an article on exploring the French countryside, the article could fit just as easily in a lifestyle magazine, in a parenting magazine and in a travel publication. Heck, it could even go in multiple parenting magazines if you have enough material to add a new slant for each publication.
