If you’re a magazine junkie like me, you’ll know that editors love attention-grabbing headlines with numbers in them;
Ten Guaranteed Stress-Busters!
Five Tips to DeClutter Your Closet!
Six Must-Eat Vegetables for Optimum Health!
You get the picture.
I’m having lousy success with pitching my Wales story to some traditional press outlets and wondering if Thin Thighs in Thirteen Days! might be the grabber subject line that might crack it all open for me?
Unfortunately, readers that go for those kind of headlines aren’t likely to be interested in walking 300 kilometers to reduce their thighs by 1/2″ (besides, I’m making that number up. How the heck would I know if my thighs were thinner after that hike? If anything, they probably bulked up from all those ascents and descents).
Maybe I could sell it as a combo-story; Less Than Two Months to a New You!
Just fly to the U.K. and spend a few days in London eating everything in sight, then Two weeks hiking in Wales, few more days eating everything in London, followed by a month of being a vegetarian (two weeks in an Indian ashram and then two weeks sitting on your butt touring around Rajasthan in a chauffeur-driven car). Return to Vancouver and immediately move from the house to a city apartment…(goodbye chickens!)
Results? I’ve got the numbers. I’ve lost ten pounds. Surely there’s a story in there somewhere.
Editors?
Your wonderful writing and stories, aside, I think I missed something. Why are you moving to a city apartment? You inspired a secret little fantasy I have of living in a sweet cottage on the seashore. Somehow a city apartment just isn’t the same.
Sharry…thought I’d see if you were paying attention. Ha! Seriously, I guess I just slipped that in there with no real explanation. I just came from the apartment steam room, pool and hot tub and was musing on the city life vs. our country life and thinking…I should blog about this, only to come up to our apartment and find your question. That confirmed it. I will explain further tomorrow but for now, please keep your fantasy alive knowing the cottage is still in our lives and awaiting your visit 🙂
I would read all those articles, the problem with people like me is that I usually do not tell anyone that I’ve read “sexy thighs in sixty days” Hey! there’s another one for yah. You could write it from the relationship stand point, “if your marriage is on the rocks, read this”.
As far as I’m concerned everyone can benefit from your trek through Wales Colleen. Fitness buffs, nature lovers, historians, couples of all ages & genders, adventurists, explorers, romantics……….
Honestly, a worth while read for all. Someone will come to their senses and scoop you up, hang in there! Oh and maybe you should rest up a bit , you have been a tad busy.
Karen, I wish all editors were like you… Bless you and thank you for your endorsement, not to mention the Sexy Thighs in Sixty Days headliner!
Not sure if quantifying your story with numbers is the best way to go as it’s so much more. Here are a few feeble suggestions:
Epiphany in India (bec it was an intuitive leap of understanding)
Fab India in so many ways (plug for FabIndia as well as the country)
Top 10 reasons to go trekking in Wales (ho hum)
Hiking on top of the world in Wales
13-day trek in the Welsh countryside (if you like numbers, 13 makes it unusual)
Breaking away from civilization in Wales
Hey Martha, I think the number thing might be a tad limiting too. Having said that, I realize that I quite like your suggestion of using thirteen. You’re right it’s an unusual number that stands out a little. Hmmm…