Probs submitting article for Public Request

[escturtle]

According to the Constant Content blogs and FAQ, authors are discouraged from simply contacting clients to discuss projects listed on Public Request. Instead, authors are encouraged to simply write and submit the articles.

Yet there are a few items on Pub Req right now, which do not contain a link that allows the article to be submitted. So I wrote the client directly - who was very friendly and told me to please submit my article for her review. SO - I wrote the article, but when I tried to submit it, it is not listed on the drop-down menu for Public Requests! Anyone have advice on how to proceed?

How can I submit this article, and have it reviewed and directed for a Public Request?

Thanks!

[Word Gypsy]

It sounds like you are dealing with one of the "casting calls" rather than one of the "call for articles." The client can switch the request to a private request in your name, giving you the ability to submit your article. Alternatively, you can send a link to the article once it has been approved without linking it to the request.

[escturtle]

Yep, you are right, it's a casting call.

When I wrote the client, she actually asked me for instructions on how to proceed - she told me she couldn't figure out how this site works! (CC editors- take note!) Then she asked me to please submit an article to her.

you wrote: " Alternatively, you can send a link to the article once it has been approved without linking it to the request." I presume you mean that I should just send that link directly to the client, once CC approves my article? (And I should just hope that the client hasn't already purchased it via Private Order from someone else?)

Did I totally do this wrong? Did I waste my time on that article?

I can't get the hang of this site, and I'm not usually such a bubblehead! But I guess I can take some reassurance from the fact that the client also had no clue how to proceed!

[Lysis]

If it makes you feel better, I still have no clue how the casting calls work. There was one that I thought was good for me, but I'm a lazy programmer who gets too frustrated after 3 seconds of trying to figure it out. So, it's open pool articles for me!

[Word Gypsy]

It is best if the client can switch the request to a private one. I had a client who could figure out how to do that. Personally, I can't tell you how it's done, but I think clients have that option. Maybe someone from CC could assist you with this?

[Abbamay]

If you've ever received an email from CC with the editor's email address at the bottom of it, that's the quickest way to get a reply on this. It wouldn't be good to let the client wait too long, and submitting something that isn't attached to a request usually seems to take longer to be approved.

If your client can make it private for you, that will be perfect! Surely the client has contact details for an editor or project manager if they've managed to make a casting call? He/she can ask them how to proceed. As a last resort, seeing as you're communicating with the client already, tell them you're submitting it and that when it's approved you can send them the link so they can find it and purchase it. Also give them a link to your CC profile page so they can find you, maybe?

I hope this goes really smoothly for you.

Abba