Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Vergil's 10 Tips to Freelance Magic Writing

Hello folks and welcome back to another edition of the emporium, as we are all aware, most of the time with magic the gathering, the game consistently changes and introduces new decks/variants and the like to the format, well for you freelance writers out there, I'm here to give you 10 tips to help improve your magic writing skills, so let's begin.

#10) Writing on your own terms - Sure some of those sites which have deadlines such as Channel Fireball and the like have pro writers who write once a week every week is good, but stop, take a deep breath and remember, you play magic, you have fun, don't write because you are forced to write, write because you WANT to.

#9) Proper Spelling and Punctuation - Most magic players these days are in their early teens, finishing school or have a stay at home profession, one thing to remember while writing is to always have proper spelling and grammar, so don't forget to always remember the one of the most important keys of any good writer, proper grammar.

#8) Pick a topic that suits you - If you play a format in magic like Commander or any casual format, go for it, I always encourage new and aspiring writers out there, you can write about anything you set your mind to, or if you play a format like Modern, which consistently changes, you can always talk about that, whatever it may be, it's gonna be good, since you wrote it.

#7) Proper Editing Procedures - Always ensure to go back and check the source you use, check for updates and add them in while editing, editing is super important here, since a self edit is often the best kind of edit and helps you learn.

#6) Be sure to always credit your sources - Sure, the profession is freelance, but give the appropriate credit to the proper source material, wherever you got it from, give them the views as well, to ensure everyone is satisfied here.

#5) Spread the word - Sure you may be a rising star in the magic freelance scene, but it's always important to keep your fan base in the know, with social media these days it's often easiest through variants like Twitter and even Facebook.

#4) Be Descriptive - A article should have a fairly decent description to it, regardless, if it is a short one, try and keep a bit of a description to it, giving it some depth.

#3) Personal Experiences - Sure everyone has this on the to-do list in terms of writing, but each person's experiences vary from person to person, so try and add a personal touch, with a interesting sign off, or perhaps something else to peak interest.

#2) Enjoy the Game - Magic's been around for a long time at this point, going on 20 years now, so the game gets older and the more people who enjoy it, the better, so if you enjoy the game, you should also enjoy the writing process that comes along with it.

#1) BE YOURSELF - This is perhaps the most important tip I can give to anyone who is aspiring to write about MTG, relax, enjoy it and just be YOU.

And that is all she wrote, I hope these 10 tips will entice further readers to go out there and attempt the freelance magic scene, since it is still growing, so until next time magic fans, this is vergil signing off.

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