I’m using a new writer for one of the articles in the next issue of MyBusiness, and the article is due today. I’m always anxious the day the article is due—probably because part of me is worried that the article isn’t going to be very good. That doesn’t happen a lot, but trust me, it happens, and when it does you’ll tell yourself that you’ll never use a new writer again.
But it can’t work that way. If it did, you’d only be selling yourself—and your readers—short.
Ahh, the hyphen. The self-proclaimed grammar geeks here at Hammock have had many a debate about when to use it and when to avoid it. As with every rule regarding the English language, there are exceptions. But here are a few instances when using a hyphen is necessary and even makes sense:
When we began working with the Marine Corps League in 2006, we didn’t realize that we would begin a tradition here at Hammock Inc. — that of saluting the United States Marine Corps’ birthday every 10 November.
Of course, each November-December issue we produce of Semper Fi, the Magazine of the Marine Corps League, is designated as “The Birthday Issue” – in capital letters! This issue’s cover is a stirring shot of the Marine Corps Memorial whose bronze Leathernecks stand watch over the nearby Nation’s Capitol. Inside is a pictorial of Marine Corps League members celebrating the birthday last year.
USMC tradition holds that the Corps was born on 10 November 1775 at long-vanished Tun Tavern in Philadelphia, where a recruiter began carrying out instructions issued that day by the Continental Congress to create “a Corps of Marines.” Marine recruiters carry on that legend today (though not in taverns), looking for a few good men and women to comprise the next generation of Marines. Ordered to expand the Corps to 202,000 by fiscal 2001, Marine recruiters are—of course!—ahead of schedule, as we report in this issue.
Battlefield medicine has of course come a long way from the crude and often lethal care provided those early Marines. In our feature “Corpsman Up!” author Otto Kreisher examines how brave medics are working ever closer to the fight, and bringing more Marines home alive.
Each issue reports extensively on League programs. This issue marks the 50th anniversary of the League’s Young Marines Program, which helps high school students find discipline, order and purpose in their lives. We also report on the League’s Youth Physical Fitness Program, which encourages boys and girls from kindergarten through high school to get fit and stay fit. It’s offered free to any school. There is also a program that recognizes high school band students’ talent.
Freakonomics author Stephen Dubner says magazines can learn from air-conditioner companies — which confuses me a little, but it’s something about when independent writers should get paid by magazines for the work they do. While I’m not sure I understand the analogy, I do know that for the past 17 years, Hammock enters into its payment system the invoices of writers — and photographers — “upon acceptance,” not “upon publication.” Publication dates can be months after the photo is shot or article is written and accepted, but that shouldn’t have any impact upon when the contributor gets paid.
We don’t often have the kind of major assignments that involve the long lead times that Stephen describes in his blog post. However, on a few occasions, we have contracted with independent editors and videographers for such projects and set up a relationship that takes into consideration the need to “advance” such individuals for work they are being commissioned to do.
Being fair makes a lot of sense to me.
Always an exception to the rule: I double-checked with our accounting department to make sure our policy adhered to the post I was about to publish. It does. However, on very, very rare occasions, I was told, in the tsk-tsk sort of way that accounting department people are known for, an invoice may disappear into thin air. (Translation: It gets stuck on an editor’s or art director’s desk.) Again, that’s very, very rare. And even more rare now that this post has be made.
It’s almost cute to hear a little girl dressed up like a princess say things like “I is a big girl.”
But when an international car company runs a national commercial with a terrible example of subject-verb agreement — “Its popularity in the hearts and minds of millions have solidified its reputation for quality and high MPG.” — it’s not so cute.
I won’t mention them by name, but “oh what a feeling” of pain I endured when my ears first heard that. I had to rewind a couple of times to make sure I heard correctly.
We work with clients to plan content months ahead of time. It’s not uncommon to write a story on the history of Christmas cookies in June or interview entrepreneurs with summertime businesses in February. This early and detailed planning is just one essential piece of the publication puzzle.
Recently I asked three of our printers why it is so important for us to deliver our files on schedule. And all three basically gave the same answer.
We’d already been toying around with the idea of writing a post on soliciting and handling content from your members, when SNAP beat us to it. So first, we recommend you check out Gregory Fine’s tips on handling volunteer content on the SNAP website.
I’ll add these thoughts, based on Hammock’s years of working with association publications. Consider these ideas as you manage your publication and your volunteers. Every association is different, so you’ll need to create a process that works for you.
It’s the beginning of September and we already have one of the features (edit, photography and layout) ready for the December/January issue of MyBusiness. How’s that for working ahead?
Are we studious? Umm, yes, but that’s not exactly why the story’s ready to go. You see, that feature was slated for October/November up until pretty much the last minute, but we ended up not having room for it, so we’re putting it in the next issue. You didn’t think we were just going to throw it away, did you?
Awards contests are the term paper/finals of the publishing industry. As a custom media company, Hammock enters a number of contests each year, and we’ve done well. Entering a competition is a true team effort – at the minimum you involve at least one editor, a writer, and a designer, More often, you have to pull everyone in and engage in serious discussions about your product and about strategy.
That takes a lot of time – and the fact that competition sponsors often extend the deadlines testifies that most companies go down to the wire to get the job done. If you’ve done it, you know. If not, I’m here to help you through the process.
Over more than 21 years with custom media firms, I have somehow regularly drawn the award entry wrangling duty. So I feel that I can speak as an expert when it comes to making it to the FedEx collection center just before closing.
Here are my tips for my fellow competition wranglers: