The value of information is more important than the value of intellect if you want to write for consumer magazines. Most young writers start out with the intention of impressing the world with their genius. Herein lies the mistake. I can illustrate my point by giving the lesson which taught me to write of the everyday occurrences of life.

In Illinois there lived a young lady of unquestionable genius, who began sending her lengthy, long-winded, jargon-filled articles to national consumer magazines some years ago. Unfortunately, she met the same fate many aspiring writers face: rejection and criticism. Although many factors may have led to her rejections, one factor was obvious: she was not writing for the magazines' readers. Her article ideas may have been squarely on topic with what the magazines published, but her writing style, dialect and the amount of information was way off on what readers needed and could comprehend.

One of her friends was a woman of sixty years. She wasn't a writer by trade, but she had acquired the habit of jotting down items of interest in a newsy, "chatty" way. When, for instance, she discovered that she could wash delicate "unwashable" fabric in bran water, without fading, she made a note of it.

Her information was not confined to "household hints." She also gleaned tips from every phase of life with which she came in contact, and properly sorted and organized these useful tips in several coupon organizers.

When she found how often her friends benefited from her tips, she conceived the idea of spreading her territory of usefulness; without an ambitious thought, and only the desire to help others, she mailed an unsolicited short "useful tips" article to Reader's Digest.

The thought of the editor rejecting her plainly constructed article never troubled the old lady; and one day, to her surprise, the editor replied via email with an acceptance of using her article in the next issue.

All this strengthens the belief that an editor prefers information to genius; that he holds the interests of his readers paramount to the aspirations of the individual.

Individuality must stand behind the author's theme—and that theme had better be something to amuse, if not instruct, the publication's readers, rather than showcase a fusillade of rhetorical genius.

Perhaps it is interesting to note that the young lady of "genius" moved to Philadelphia a few years ago; and remembering the success of her elderly friend, she wrote a faithful, reader-centered account of Philadelphia's cultural history, and had the satisfaction of seeing her three column account published in a local newspaper the next week.

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