FanPost

Contributing Writers, a Glance Behind the Curtain.



First of all, let me say that I’ve been thinking about writing this for quite some time so this is not intended to offend anyone, only to inform. Second, I’m not writing this with the intentions of giving away any “company secrets” so I hope the moderators don’t read this the wrong way. That said, I wanted to share my insights into what the contributing writers do around here so that, as a community, we’ll have a better idea of what these good people actually do.

The first thing you need to know is that none of these writers get paid for the articles they write. They write for free, on their own personal time, with nothing other than the occasional kind word or “rec” for their efforts. These are unpaid volunteers.

The next thing you should know is the writers have the freedom to write about anything they want. The only guideline is it must tie into the Chicago Bears or at least be sports related with the preference being a tie to professional football. So the writers have a great deal of freedom but as Ben Parker would tell you with great freedom comes great... something something.. The point is, if you can write about whatever you want you’d damn well better have a creative mind, because no one is going to give you any topics, themes, or suggestions. It is all on the writer to generate new ideas week in and out.

Which leads me to the last thing I think you should know about the writers. They each have deadlines. Each writer has volunteered to fill a specific time slot and many have several time slots to fill. For example, a writer may have to submit an article every Wednesday by 11 AM. As I stated earlier, many of these writers have multiple slots to fill. Some may have to submit 3 or more articles per week, each at specific time slots. Occasionally one writer will fill in for another if life gets too hectic but each writer is expected to be accountable for the time slots they signed up for. They have a schedule to maintain so that you get several new articles, at regular intervals, throughout the day.

So next time you’re perusing through the latest submission from your favorite WCG contributor take the time to hit the little “rec” button down at the bottom of the article, or better yet, compliment the writer in the comments section. They do appreciate it. And if you think you have what it takes to be a contributing writer, even after reading about all the responsibilities they have, submit a fan post and see where it takes you.

This Fanpost was written by a Windy City Gridiron member and does not necessarily reflect the ideas or opinions of its staff or community.