More than once, I’ve been able to turn a ‘maybe we can run your article’ to a ‘when can you get it to us’ with the addition of a sidebar. It’s been my experience that editors love sidebars, not because of the space they take up or the useful information they contain but because most readers focus on headlines, pull quotes and sidebars and then the story, if you’re lucky. That makes it a good practice to include a sidebar suggestion with almost every query. Even if the editor decides to give a sidebar a pass, she might still pick up the article — and the mere offer a sidebar speaks well of you.

Sidebars can be any sort of information tangentially related to the main article — and when you’re writing about travel, sidebars are simple. There’s always a sidebar you can add:

1. A travel itinerary
2. Contact information for a hotel or museum
3. Necessary gear
4. Quotes from other travelers
5. Similar trips in other areas
6. Children’s (or other specialized) activities
7. Nearby lodgings
8. Local customs or rules
9. Packing lists
10. Any other information that doesn’t quite fit in your article

Odds are generally pretty good that you have more information than you can fit in the space an editor has allotted you. Using that information to create a sidebar can win you some brownie points with your editor and — depending on the publication — maybe a few extra dollars in your check.