The recent Flock conference of Fedora contributors included a Fedora Magazine workshop. Current editorial board members Ryan Lerch, Justin W. Flory, and Paul W. Frields covered how to join and get started as an author. Here are some highlights of the workshop and discussion that took place.

Writing process

The process of writing an article for Fedora magazine is simple and involves only a few steps.

The writer pitches an idea which summarizes the topic and its objectives. Once the pitch is approved, the writer creates a draft. The editors work with the author to get the article finished and scheduled for publishing.

The Fedora Magazine’s editorial board meeting happens every Tuesday, where approvals and scheduling happen. If you follow the process, you can usually expect your article to be published within a week or two, depending on the queue and time critical articles.

The full process of writing an article is covered here on the Magazine itself.

Tips for better articles

The Magazine provides articles about and outreach for Fedora. As a result, articles focus mainly on Fedora users, rather than just contributors. However, the Community Blog provides a focus on contributors, and might be the right place for some news. Ask yourself a few questions as you think about your pitch or article:

Who’s your target audience? What kind of readers are you talking to?

What do you want them to know or achieve by reading the article?

Also, articles don’t have to be big and complex. If you think your article is going beyond 500-600 words, you may want to break it up into two or more shorter, simpler articles. The Magazine also hosts series of articles, as long as authors are willing to write several entries before publishing the first.

The Magazine features a dedicated page full of tips and advice on writing better articles: Tips for article style, grammar, content, and SEO

Get your red hot pitches

During the workshop, some fantastic pitch ideas were discussed.

Kernel bench-marking in Fedora

Add-ons to improve your privacy on Thunderbird

How to use Thunderbird mail filters

Installing Mycroft.ai

How to use Webex on Fedora

Awesome GNOME extensions for developers

Installing Hawkular on Fedora

How to create a stratum 0 time source

The editorial board has already pre-approved each of the above pitch ideas. One of them might be a good start for your article for the Magazine. To claim a pitch, just follow the process described above and claim an idea.

Join the team

The Magazine’s reach and readership grows steadily every release. You too can be part of this team — it’s easy to get started and fun to work on. Your contributions directly impact the growth of the Magazine. Why not join today?

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash