If you are one of these people, here are some writing and communications-related graduate programs offered throughout the US that are worth checking into further. (Disclaimer: I’ve recently begun taking classes to work towards my Master of Business Communication degree at the University of St. Thomas).

University of St. Thomas- Master of Business Communication (MBC)

California State University Fresno-  Master of Arts: Mass Communication and Journalism

University of Baltimore- Master of Fine Arts- Creative Writing & Publishing Arts

Illinois State University- Master of Arts Degree- Writing

Emerson College (Boston)- Master of Fine Arts- Creative Writing

Fordham University (NYC) – Master of Arts with a Writing Concentration

North Carolina State University- Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing

School of The Art Institute Of Chicago- Master of Fine Arts in Writing

University At Albany (S.U.N.Y.)- Master of Arts with a Concentration in Writing Practices

Texas State University-San Marcos- Creative Writing

University of Denver- Graduate Communication programs include Communication Studies, Advertising Management, Mass Communication and Public Relations

I’ve tried to include schools in all corners of the country but there are plenty of resources out there to help you find a program near you. GradSchools.com is a great place to start!

Are you currently enrolled in a writing or communications-related degree program? Are you thinking about it?

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Furthering Your Education: Writing-Related Graduate Degrees

The fear of rejection is far more powerful than logic. Here are a few ways to blast through that fear of submission and get on a regular schedule of handing your work over.

Aim Low

This may sound like bad advice, but hear me out. There are the big giants of the literary magazine industry – The Kenyon Review, the Paris Review, Tin House, The New Yorker – and of course we’d all like to see our name emblazoned above our work in one of those great publications.

But the very thing that makes those magazines so appealing is the same thing that keeps many writers from ever submitting to them — they’re nearly impossible to get into. Sure, it’s a mark of prestige if you make it, but if you’re nervous about submitting you’re never going to get over your fear of rejection, when rejection is almost inevitable.

You’ll probably make it worse, in fact.

There are dozens of literary magazines founded every year, though. Many of them badly need good writers in order to establish themselves. These magazines cannot possibly get the attention of the biggest-name writers, so they’re looking for talented unknowns.

They want to establish themselves as places where really good writing is published, and they’re completely open to new people. They are a brilliant place to start submitting.

Now here’s a hard question for you — how many new, small, or relatively unknown literary journals are you even aware of? If the answer is zero, that’s a problem.

So check out the online (and free) literary magazine database and find ten literary journals in your genre that you’ve never heard of before (it’s searchable by every genre and length you can think of). Go read a few back issues and submit to the publishers who would be interested in your style.

Aim High

We’re not talking about where to submit anymore – we’re talking about the sheer number of submissions you should make. One excellent professional writer said that she made a goal to get at least ten rejection letters every month.

That’s right. Her goal was to get rejection letters, not acceptance letters. Why? Because when she made that goal about rejections, they weren’t nearly as disappointing to receive. They were simply a mark of honor for having submitted at all.

Think of your rejection letters as a tangible receipt for your submissions. Stop thinking of them as a terrible thing, and start thinking of them as a perfectly ordinary way to find out your story was indeed received and that you had successfully submitted.

What happens when you don’t get a rejection letter? Why, then, you get an acceptance letter.

Since you weren’t even looking for those acceptances, they’ll come as a nice surprise. You’re trying to receive a certain number of rejections, but you have no goal for acceptances. So when they do come, they will fall in your lap like gifts from above and you’ll be far more thrilled by them than you would have been had you been planning on them.

Getting acceptances might also mean your allotted number of rejections for that month hasn’t been met. Oh well. I guess you’ll have to submit more often to make up for it.

If you have a writer friend who also has trouble submitting, make a small wager with one another that whoever gets the most rejection letters in the space of a month wins a prize furnished by the other. If you get more rejection letters, he buys tickets to your favorite team’s game. If she gets more, you have to buy her a day at the spa. That’ll light a fire under both of you.

Aim at a Friend

Speaking of friends, if you have work that’s ready for submission but you can’t quite bring yourself to send it, enlist a friend’s assistance in exchange for your own. Make an agreement with one another that you will submit each other’s work to an agreed-upon list of publishers.

It’ll work. Most writers take a certain glee in making other writers do things they’re afraid to do themselves.

Make it into a party, hey. Get a bunch of envelopes, stamps, and copies of your manuscripts. Get a list of your publications and a computer for the ones who only accept via email. Break open a bottle of wine, get some good food out and start writing cover letters for one another to approve. It’s far easier to edit your friend’s work than it will be to start a letter from scratch on your own.

Before you know it, you’ll have a submission letter for every manuscript, and every one will be stamped and sent.

Even better? You won’t have had to be the one who pulled the trigger. Completely painless.

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How to Overcome Your Fear of Submission

What happened here? The book had potential! How did it become so boring?

Most likely, it lacked conflict.

For any kind of writing, from journalistic non-fiction to literature to science fiction to film to blogging, conflict is highly necessary. It’s what creates drama and urgency. It’s what creates anticipation. Conflict is what compels your readers to find out what happens next, and to read more to see if it comes out all right in the end.

Sometimes it does. Sometimes it doesn’t. But the story, whether true or fictional, is dependent on whether there is any debate in the matter. Being uncertain of the outcome is why any story interests you.

Conflict in Fiction

Conflict in fiction is usually easy to find. Your character wants something, and other events or circumstances intervene to make achieving that goal difficult. That’s conflict.

The trouble that many writers encounter in fiction is mistaking dramatic action for conflict. For example, if the main character is walking down the street and a sea bird suddenly assaults him, many writers point to that as an instance of conflict.

That’s not conflict. Unless the sea bird prevented that character from achieving a specific goal that was very important to the individual, then the situation is merely dramatic. It isn’t conflict.

So how can you tell the difference? Ask yourself what your character wants, overall, in the story. Maybe he wants to achieve a certain quest, or reconcile with someone, or get out of the one-horse town. Then ask yourself if the situation you created for that character actively prevents the character from achieving his goal.

If not, your plot could use some tweaking to be more interesting.

Conflict in Non-Fiction

Conflict in non-fiction is often harder to manage because you’re bound by the facts. Whether or not conflict occurs seems wholly dependent on whether conflict actually happened in real life.

However, most non-fiction writers forget that they aren’t limited by just the facts of a particular situation. They can add in facts from surrounding situations to create necessary conflict. For example, a senator caught cheating on his wife is not conflict – it’s just fact.

Add in the fact that his actions may mean he won’t be re-elected, and that this has repercussions for the government at large, makes it a conflict. Will he get re-elected? Will he fail? Who’s on which side? Should he win or should he lose? Who’s saying what?

That’s conflict.

Figure out whose goal you support and see what’s in the way. For a non-fiction situation, you have free rein. You could take the senator’s standpoint and display the conflict from his point of view: he wants his seat back so he can achieve certain goals, but will he be able to get it?

You can also present conflict from other peoples’ point of view. The people the senator represents want certain goals of their own – will his re-election help or hinder them? Will they get what they want? Will the senator’s family get what they want? Will the president get what he wants if the senator fails?

Every Story Needs Conflict

Without conflict, you don’t have a story. Not for your journalistic piece, not for your blog post, not for your novel. Sit down and figure out who has a goal in the piece you’re writing, and what needs to happen for that person to achieve it.

Then find out what’s in the way.

When you have sufficient conflict in your story, no one will ever walk away from your writing thinking, “That had such potential . . .” They’ll walk away thinking, “I wonder what happened.”

That’s what you’re looking for. Go rustle up some conflict.

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Where’s Your Conflict?

Extraordinary writing exists because of extraordinary rewriting.

Contrary to popular belief, the right words don’t just come forward ready, willing and able. They are discovered, fought for, and captured. Writing, as you know, is hard work.

Your editor stands alone as the biggest ally in this battle for the correct and powerful use of language. Embrace him or her and the feedback given to you.

Yes, feedback comes at a cost. It sometimes chips away at your confidence as a writer, not to mention your word choices, organization, and writing style.

However, editors give out priceless feedback and advice more often than not. They represent the outsider, the person who doesn’t possess such a huge vested interest in every single word – like you.

You need them.

And yes, taking their compliments remains easier than absorbing their criticisms. But that constructive criticism can make your writing shine brightly instead of faintly.

So here are three ways to take an editor’s feedback better the next time you face the red pen:

Be open to new ideas. The correct way to write often has many paths to success. If your editor suggests reworking this or that, or just plain scrapping a passage, give it a try. It might be the right road or lead you to the perfect one.

Learn to love drafts. No one can churn out perfect writing on the first try. That’s why people refer to writers as artists. So much of an artist’s job relies on patience and persistence, so embrace those principles as you write toward your final piece. The more drafts, the more patience and persistence you show, the greater the payoff in the end.

Embrace change. You must see a theme developing here. Great writing comes from embracing change – in your own writing and beyond. Good editors will push your boundaries, and that means reaching for new ways of writing. Change a little with each piece and it won’t be so painful.

Feedback Form photo by Dominik Gwarek.

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How to be an Editor’s Best Friend – And Take Feedback

With the obvious assumption that I enjoyed this masochistic tendency, my brain settled on a workable pattern. A few weeks before my essay was due, I would complete the required reading, research and notes.  All the information needed to write my essay was now ready for me.

As time elapsed I started to believe that writing under pressure had less to do with the mechanics of time, and more to do with self-restrictions and limitations, i.e. stress, worry, doubt and disbelief.

As I’m sure many people can attest to, no one placed greater pressure on me than I did. It was just my way.  While I wrote my final submission for a course, I fought to keep the pressure at bay.  I did not want to allow destructive thoughts to cloud my words or ideas.  I began to visualize and believe that writing under pressure was an exercise in my personal growth.  I knew I had the ability to write an engaging short story. I did not fight or try to hide from the weight of the pressure. Instead I used it to my advantage.

Whether you are a student, a journalist or a copywriter at an ad agency or large corporation, the ability to produce your best work can very well be attained from writing under pressure. You are forced to align your creative and productive natures into a cohesive unit. The result, well, you tell me.

What happens when you are forced to write under pressure?

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The Beauty of Writing Under Pressure

1. Mashable: The Social Media Guide: www.mashable.com
Mashable, the number 4 site on Technorati’s List of Top 100 Blogs, is the go-to-blog for all things social media and Web 2.0-related.
Click to learn more about writing for Mashable. Also, follow @mashable on Twitter.

2. Freelance Switch: www.freelanceswitch.com
Freelance Switch is a must-have resource for freelancers of all types. The blog hosts a job board and directory, as well as an active forum community where you can engage fellow freelancers and potential clients. Plus, Freelance Switch offers tons of great resources, like financial tools to help your business.
Click to learn more about writing for Freelance Switch. Also, follow @FreelanceSW on Twitter.

3. eHow: www.eHow.com
Do you know how to change a tire? Or cook a rack of lamb? Perhaps you are an expert seamstress or have a knack for selling real estate; whatever you know how to do, eHow wants you to write about it. eHow not only receives guests post, they also have over 160,000 videos created by its community members. Plus, should your article gain popularity, eHow may even pay you for your submission.
Click here to learn more about writing for eHow. Also, follow @ehow on Twitter.

4. Examiner: www.examiner.com
Examiner covers a wide-range of topics, from entertainment to business news and everything in between. “Join others across the country as they provide a wealth of local information, insider perspectives, helpful resources, and a view into a variety of events and activities within their cities.”
Click to learn more about writing for Examiner. Also, follow @examinercom on Twitter.

5. Demand Studios: www.demandstudios.com
Demand Studios is looking for guest writers, copy editors and filmmakers to share their work. Visit them today to find out how to make the most of your creations and make some money working from home.
Click here to fill out an application to write for Demand Studios. Also, follow @demandstudios on Twitter.

6. Care2 Make a Difference: www.care2.com
Is there a special cause or important local news you would like to share with the world? Care2 is “the largest online community of people passionate about making a difference.” Share your important message with an online community of over 9 million members today.
You must become a member of Care2 in order to submit a new story. Also, follow @care2 on Twitter.

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Write On – 6 Sites Accepting Submissions

Writing is all about timing.  While the events, research, interviews and other due diligence are fresh on your mind, start writing. Even if this means you have to write on a piecemeal basis following the gathering of new information, the outcome will be much more reflective of the facts.  For example, you’ll be able to include the visuals and tone of an interview through your choice of adjectives and verbs.  “Academicians took turns at the microphone” versus “dozens of academicians anxiously awaited their turn at the microphone”.  Similarly, “We voted him out,” said Professor Jones doesn’t convey “We voted him out,” shouted Professor Jones.

As writers, our job is to accurately relay an experience to people who weren’t there. When you can pen the story as soon as possible after you’ve completed an interview, researched some facts, confirmed some details or attended the event, you and your readers benefit.

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When is the Best Time to Write?

This is not a definitive list; I tried mixing some well-known blogs with some not-so-well-known ones. If you have a site to add, please feel free to make your suggestion in the comments section!

Culture

Absolute Arts This is actually a niche-blogging community, where you can start your own art-related blog. You can place your portfolio on this site as well, under one of three different portfolio offerings. There is a free portfolio level, as well as an “Artist” level for $44 per year, and a “Premiere” level for $100 per year. Premiere level portfolios are judged by a jury for acceptance, for which there is a $25 fee.

Book Reporter – This site, and its sister sites, reviews books. You can sign up to be a reviewer for a variety of genres including fiction, memoirs, mysteries, nonfiction, fantasy, science fiction, romance, youth, and graphic novels.

CPAL – Officially known as the “Cultural Property & Archaeology Law” blog, this legal blog accepts submissions for “scholar[s] looking for a forum to discuss [their] area of special interest.”

Design/Web

Pro Blog Design – Every accepted post is $50 in your pocket, but you get a $30 bonus if the article is a “social media success.”

SitePoint – Both articles and full-length books are accepted at this site. SitePoint is well-known for publishing definitive how-to guides for web designers and developers.

Smashing Magazine – Seriously one of the largest design blogs out there. A post here gets you exposed to over 138,000 subscribers. They’re looking for both single article submissions and long-term contributors. Payment varies depending on article length and quality.

Tutsplus – The TUTS+ network (psdtuts.com, nettuts.com, etc.) accepts tutorials and other articles for submission on any of their eight niche sites.

Webitect – For $150 per accepted submission, Webitect is “a resource blog for webmasters” looking for interesting tutorials or articles.  Their topics range from blogging to development to website traffic.

Yanko Design - If you have a review or article you’d like to post about any design related topic, you can share your 250 word post to this blog. They like things short and sweet and related to modern industrial design.

General

Associated Content – You can write about any topic, or choose from the assignment desk. Submissions can be in any medium — text, video, audio, or images. Money is paid upfront and over time as people read your posts.

Freelance Writing – This website lets you search through thousands of jobs that you can either apply for or bid on. Other site features include writing advice, discussion forums and a reading room.

Fuel Brand Network – A network of blogging sites “dedicated to creative development.” Each of the 12 niche blogs focus on a separate topic, and are always looking for contributors.

Funds for Writers – Recipient of Writers Digest’s accolade as one of the “101 Best Websites for Writers,” this site lists paying opportunities for writers as well as offers payment for articles submitted to its site. They’ll even pay for articles you’ve already written elsewhere.

Health

Disabled World- This online community for “persons with disabilities” accepts articles of at least 400 words that are related to health or disabilities. Subject areas include seniors, assisted living, disability sports, and more.

The Health Care Blog – This health blog posts original material only. It’s been mentioned in a number of media publications such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Economist, to name a few.

Marketing/Media

Marketing Profs – Over 350 contributors help develop the content over at Marketing Profs already. Exposure is a guaranteed with this site, which publishes the blog as well as daily newsletters.

Mashable – The Mecca of all things social media related. Quality content on new media, technology, and social media fill this site. With over 280,000 subscribers, and over 1.15 million twitter followers, guest writers have to apply to the popular program.

Sports

Sports Blog Net – This is another blogging community, where your blog is connected with others that will help you to promote and build your own site. Content on your blog is fed through the main site to help drive traffic. There are many, many other sports blogs looking for content, but most are targeted to specific areas.

Technology

Digital Inspiration – Over 37,000 subscribers comprise the readership of this technological blog.  This “online tech magazine” publish reviews, guides, tutorials, news, and tips.

GeekEstate Blog – Specifically for the real estate industry, this blog is founded by Zillow.com. Contributions should related to technology uses or applications for the industry, including MLS, APIs, SEO, and office gadgets.

Read Write Web – This blog focuses on web technology news and reviews, often reporting on trends and popular tech use. Guest posts are accepted upon approval of topic and content.

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22 Places to Get Published Now

In my personal experience as a Marketing Assistant, I had to improve my skills in graphic design, public speaking, project management, planning and negotiation. But when you have to learn something from scratch and you’re not at school anymore, you may end up running into some difficulty.

In those times, whom do you call upon? Google, of course. Google introduced me to all those blogs, guides, tutorials and cheat sheets – any helpful, wonderful and FREE tips. I am grateful for all of those experts-in-their-field sharing their experience and know-how for the sole purpose of contributing to the web community, thus giving a hand to budding professionals like me.

That’s precisely the point. It’s my turn now! Copywriting is what I’m good at (please, don’t contradict me on this point), and I’d love to share some tricks with the non-copywriters out there who need to make up a formal letter, do a PowerPoint presentation or write a product description. Of course you don’t have to become a professional copywriter to do all of these things. I haven’t become a designer just because I watched all of the Photoshop video tutorials available on the Internet. But I did achieve better results thanks to those tutorials, so maybe there’s something I can do to help you write effective, engaging text.

Well, exhaustive enough for an introduction! Let’s start right away with some links you might want to add to your bookmark list:

WordReference

WordReference is my favourite site free translation dictionaries. It might come in handy with idiomatic expressions in foreign language. The Spanish, French and Italian dictionaries and forums are the most popular.

Online Spell Checker

Online Spell Checker is a free and accurate tool for spell-checking in 28 languages.

Advanced Text Analyzer

Get useful statistical information out of your pieces of text such as word/character count, lexical density, readability, word analysis, phrase analysis and graded analysis with Advanced Text Analyzer . It’s free, but it requires registration: Wordcounter is a plug-and-play alternative.

Visuwords

Learn how words associate with Visuwords. This graphical dictionary draws diagrams from the words you look up, highlighting their meanings and the type of relationship with other words and concepts.

Definr

Definr is a nice, suggest-as-you-type English dictionary. You can add it to your Firefox search box for turbo-charging your word search.

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A Non-Copywriter’s Guide to Effective Writing

Knowledge is a foundation; whether that foundation is built from working your way from being the copy person to editor or from spending four or more years hitting the books to learn every nuance of the AP style guide, one thing is certain: a degree sure wouldn’t hurt.

There’s 347 colleges across the country that offer journalism programs according to The Princeton Review, but what are the top schools?

Factors used to rank J-schools often include:

• Professor Quality
• Opportunities for hands-on experience
• Facility and technology investment
• Specialties offered
• Presence of student newspaper, radio, or television station

Unfortunately, J-school rankings haven’t been done by U.S. News and World Report for years now, but there’s still quite a number of highly regarded ACEJMC-accredited university programs. Among them are the following:

Ball State University

Department of Journalism
Degrees Offered: Bachelor of Arts, Masters of Arts
Why: Award-winning publications, the student-run public relations and advertising agency, industry networking, and innovative projects like the “J-IDEAS” iTunes First Amendment class.

Columbia University

Graduate School of Journalism
Degrees Offered: Master of Science, Master of Arts, Ph.D. in Communications
Why: Experienced faculty, internationally recognized award programs, continuing education programs, and commitment to ethics and advancement.

Indiana University – Bloomington

School of Journalism
Degrees Offered: Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts, Ph.D.
Why: Hands-on opportunities, honor programs, the Journalism Ambassador program, and its long history as one of the oldest journalism programs in the country.

Michigan State University

School of Journalism
Degrees Offered: Undergraduate, Masters, Doctorate
Why: Internationally known faculty, study abroad programs, and over 100 years of establishment at the university. The largest undergraduate program in the country.

Northwestern University

Medill School
Degrees Offered: Bachelor of Science, Master of Science
Why: Expert faculty, integrated specialties, hands-on experience opportunities, real-world clients, and the National High School Institute Journalism Division Program.

Ohio University

E.W. Scripps School of Journalism
Degrees Offered: Bachelor of Science, Masters of Science, Ph.D.
Why: Long history of expert faculty, variety of undergraduate sequences, on-campus newspapers, magazines, and broadcast stations.

Syracuse University

S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications
Degrees Offered: Undergraduate, Masters, Doctorate
Why: Emphasis on ethics and skill development, variety of specialty programs, internationally expert faculty, and a competitive admissions process.

University of California, Berkeley

Graduate School of Journalism
Degrees Offered: Master of Journalism
Why: Commitment to professional growth, program of study variety, and award-winning professors.

University of Florida

College of Journalism and Communications
Degrees Offered: Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts, Ph.D.
Why: It’s the second-largest undergraduate program in the nation.

University of Georgia

Grady College of Journalism & Mass Communication
Degrees Offered: Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts, Doctor of Philosophy in Mass Communication
Why: Influential programs, renowned faculty, and its distinguished history.

University of Maryland

Philip Merrill College of Journalism
Degrees Offered: Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts, Master of Journalism, Ph.D. in Journalism
Why: Award-winning programs offering hands-on experience in national settings.

University of Missouri

School of Journalism
Degrees Offered: Undergraduate, Masters, Doctorate
Why: The world’s first journalism school. University-owned commercial network.

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

School of Journalism and Mass Communications
Degrees Offered: Undergraduate, Masters, Doctorate, graduate-level Certificate in Technology and Communication
Why: Expert faculty, comprehensive program specialties, commitment to advancement, and award-winning alumni.

University of Southern California

USC Annenberg School for Communications
Degrees Offered: Bachelor of Arts, Masters of Arts
Why: Multidisciplinary programs, hands-on opportunities, and access to the entertainment and technology industries.

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14 J-schools worth their tuition