Sarah asks: “If I only have one clip — and it’s print — how do I handle this when sending email queries to editors?”

You can scan the article and create a PDF file, ask the editor to send you a PDF if they have one (sometimes they do!), or simply send the text from your original Word file, pasted into the e-mail.

One plus I’ve found in pasting in my original article text is I can say to the editor, “The benefit of this pasted-in clip is that you can see what my writing looks like before I send it to the editor!” (In other words, you’ve alleviated the editor’s fear that your clip is great because an editor made it great though extensive rewriting.) I’ve done this a few times and gotten nice comments from editors who are impressed that my copy is so clean. And because it’s still a published clip (though perhaps not exactly as written), it shows that you know how to work with editors and that you understand the article writing/editing process — unlike if you simply sent the editor an unpublished piece of writing. The best of both worlds!

As for PDF files, keep in mind that editors will often toss e-mails with attachments from people they don’t know, so it’s better to mention at the end of your query that you have a clip available, and then send it only if the editor asks for it. [lf]

If you liked that post, you might also like:

• Clips 101: What They Are (and Aren’t), How to Get Them, and How to Make The Most of Your Clips
• You Ask, We Answer: Do I tell an editor the article I’m pitching was killed?
• How to Battle Scope Creep in a Writing Assignment
• You Ask, I Answer: What If I Don’t Have Relevant Clips?
• You Ask, We Answer: Which Editor Should I Pitch?