by Ken Gordon

HI, I'M KEN GORDON, Associate Editor of 1099, the mother of all online self-employment magazines. How are ya?

Me, I'm annoyed.

I've just been reviewing the clips of a would-be 1099 writer -- actually, "reviewing" isn't quite the right word; I've been reformatting. Unlike most of the clips I receive, these weren't e-mail attachments or faxes or a list of links. They came in disk form. Hand-delivered. With great care and superb packaging. Which would have been dandy, except the shiny green iMac 1099 gave me to work on has no disk drive.

So instead of reading some exciting new writing, I went looking for a colleague with one of those old disk-driven computers. Then I had to bug this person -- who had other things to attend to -- to pop in the disk, open it up, open e-mail, address an e-mail to me, attach the files, and send them all my way.

By the time I was done, I had lost virtually all my enthusiasm for our would-be 1099 writer.

Now this might sound suspiciously like pissing and moaning, but there's a moral here. The point, as you've surely guessed by now, is that I had better things to do with my time: I didn't need to be reformatting clips.

And neither does any other online editor.

Which is to say, if you want us to take you seriously, you should know a thing or two about formatting your writing samples. You may have a swell set of clips, but if you format them in some screwy way, chances are, your editor will be too annoyed to be wowed by your work.

So what should you do?

Check With Your Editor

Editorial formatting preferences can usually be found on a zine's editorial guidelines page. A smart writer will locate this, and pay attention to it. (Note: not all webzines print this stuff; 1099, for one, doesn't.) But don't take the page as the final word on formatting -- policies change, and the changes don't always make it online. Also, editors have their own quirks, and not every editor digs every editorial guideline. Call or e-mail the editor and ask if your chosen method is kosher.

Of course, some of you might not want to follow my advice here. You might be too shy, too fearful of rejection, too primed for a kamikaze-style attack on your editor of choice to directly communicate with this person. Or your editor may be out of the office, on vacation, or on the run from the cops. In any case, I feel it's unfair to submit your stuff without any editorial advice at all. So here are six opinions on formatting.

1. Links Don't Stink

If you've been published on the Web and can simply cut-and-paste the URL into an e-mail message, you probably should do it. I love the directness of being able to click right onto someone's clip. Plus, if the clip was written for a well-designed or well-known webzine, it's sure to impress an editor.

On the other hand, this method isn't such a terrific idea if your articles were written for, say, your brother's Beauty and Bestiality e-newletter or Hitler Wasn't So Bad Magazine. If you think that the content of your editor's site is somehow compatible with the content of the place where your clip sits, make the connection. Otherwise…

2. Word to Your Editor

I don't mind when writers send their clips as Word document attachments; my computer has no problem opening either Mac or IBM Word documents. They are easy enough to work with, print from, and save. And they're portable -- for example, I can pass Word documents very easily from one editor to another.

Of course, once in an azure moon, a Word document will get scrambled. If this is the case, I'll have a writer take a crack at another format. Which is to say, you should always have several ways of sending out your clips on hand and ready to go.

3. But Not Cutting and Pasting

I wouldn't recommend the old c-and-p method as the ideal way to introduce your work to an editor. Move a Word document into the white rectangle of an e-mail box and you risk making things needlessly complicated. If your editor wants to get a readable printout of it, he's going to have to export it into Word and spend a lot of needless time futzing with it.

This method hits high on the editorial aggravation meter and is sure to keep the number of your online assignments down in the healthy one digits.

4. He's Got Your Whole Oeuvre in His Hands

I'm not one to sneeze at (or cough at, for that matter) faxes. In fact, sometimes this is an excellent way to submit your stuff. If you've got a piece that's been published in a reputable print magazine, why by all means fax that fella over to your editor.

Truth is, some online editors still suffer from a feeling that they're not "real" editors; if you show them that you've been published in a reputable print rag, they're likely to dance a small celebratory jig.

Also, it's good for editors to hold a hard copy of a published article -- even if your hardcopy is on that not-quite-silky fax paper. If the editor likes your stuff, it makes it all the more easy for them to start a physical file with your name on it.

5. The Slicks

There is, of course, the old analog mail. If you've got some cool four-color clips from fancy-schmansy magazines (and you're in no particular rush to get a new assignment), you might want to go the way of the U.S. mail.

There's something about typing up a real letter, cutting out tear sheets, putting it all into an envelope, and dropping it off at the post office, that says to online editors, "This cat is first class."

Using the mail may also suggest that you are in no hurry. That you have more than enough work to go around. That you are a certified pro who doesn't send her clips out to every fly-by-night Web publication.

6. Editor Has Nothing Personal Against Disks

Well, despite the way this letter opens, I have nothing personal against disks. If you want to go to the expense and trouble of mailing a floppy to your editor of choice, that's fine. But ask your editor first.

Whew… I feel much better.

I hope that these six tips have helped you; writing them has been an enormous help for me. Now that you know what I want -- and what I don't -- in the way of online formatting… maybe you can send some good stuff to 1099.

Your online pal,

Ken G.

Ken Gordon lives in Newton, Mass., and he isn't usually this cranky.