Hello, everyone! I’m Diamond, the Content Manager for DumbLittleMan.
We love receiving new submissions but get quite sad when we have to reject anybody’s article. So, we put together the DLM Writer’s Guide to set you up for success.
1.0 Requirements for Submitted Articles
Our team compiled all the common reasons for approval and rejection and here’s a concise yet comprehensive list.
The articles you submit MUST be the following:
1.1 Original
We run all your submissions through Copyscape and a Google search.
We reject:
1.1.1. articles that have already been published elsewhere
1.1.2. published articles that have been “spun”
1.1.3. an article that was previously published but later unpublished for whatever reason
1.1.4. an article that’s been stolen from another author and is being passed off as your work
1.1.4. in addition, we reject writeups pertaining to sex, sexual performance, gambling, and other topics running along this vein
1.2. Helpful
DumbLittleMan is a self-help and motivational site so our articles should be helpful to our readers. From our experience, we receive the following categories of articles: a list of tips, a helpful list of information, or a story of one’s experiences that others may learn from too.
We reject:
1.2.1. articles that are written primarily to promote or pitch oneself, one’s brand, or one’s website
1.2.2. articles that are descriptive but not necessarily helpful
1.3. Polished
Have as few edits as possible. Ask a friend or an editor to go through an article for you. Correct grammatical mistakes, flow, and format.
We reject:
1.3.1. Articles that would otherwise be very interesting but need intensive editing
1.3.2. Articles that don’t have a clear flow or progression of ideas
2.0 Writing Tips
What writing style do we prefer? It’s actually universal but just in case a list helps…
2.1. No wall of text. Please.
When you use paragraphs and short ones at that, it helps break your content into easily digestible pieces for readers. Plus, the white spaces help.
2.2. Use headings or subheadings in bulleted or numbered format
This makes your content highly skimmable for readers who don’t have a lot of time to read or for readers with short attention spans.
2.3. Use a casual, friendly, and personal tone
My idol Perrin Carrel said it best when he said, “I’d rather read a blog about plumbing supplies written by a funny plumber who comes across as genuine, friendly and trustworthy than a plumbing supplies blog written by a faceless, generic Fiverr writer. Wouldn’t you?”
2.4. Keep your writing simple
Compound sentences and compound-complex sentences do NOT impress us. In fact, readers find them hard to read. Instead:
2.4.1. Write like you’re talking to a kid
2.4.2. Revise towards simplicity
2.4.3. Use simple words and simple sentence structures
2.4.4. Write like yourself!
Again, keep it simple, casual, and engaging. (P.S. I lifted the first two bulleted tips from Perrin. Wink!)
2.5. Keep the introduction short
There’s no need to lead up to the meat of your article. Don’t beat around the bush to try to get your word count up.
A short introduction composed of 1 to 3 short paragraphs is plenty enough.
2.6. Make sure your write-up provides value
Before submitting, you may ask yourself the following questions:
2.7.1. Is my article helpful?
2.7.2. Who will it help?
2.7.3. How will it help others?
2.7. Be interesting!
Write an article YOU’D enjoy reading.
I’m quite sure I forgot a gazillion things so we’ll keep adding as we go along. Work in progress, guys!
If you have questions, write to us at [email protected]
