This FAQ is posted here with permission. This FAQ is a primer on freelance writing.
All comments welcome.
Electronic redistribution allowed so long as you make no changes in the file. Writing an article and then casting about for someone to publish it is not the efficient way to get published. There may in fact be no publication anywhere that can use an article with exactly that focus, length, voice, kinds of sources of information, etc. You have a much better chance of success if you send off queries before you write your article and then tailor it to the preferences of an editor who has expressed interest in seeing it or buying it. Send it in to a specific editor along with a short cover letter stating what you're enclosing and who you are.