Nuts & Volts Articles

I got an email from the chief editor of Nuts and Volts magazine the other day. He liked some of the circuits I had posted on my Discover Circuits website and suggested that I publish some of them in their magazine. Of course, they want a detailed circuit description of the project, a schematic, a detailed material list, photos of the packaged device and printed circuit board artwork. They pay only $100 per page with a maximum of $450. Why would anyone spend a week or two putting together such a circuit for only a few hundred bucks? No wonder the magazine seldom has anything interesting in print. Other than vanity, seeing your name in print, I don't see the point. Has anyone really gotten any consulting work from publishing such articles? In all the circuits I have published in EDN and Electronic Design, I have yet to get anything.

David A. Johnson, P.E. --- Consulting Engineer

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dajpe
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I have gotten leads from articles published in Embedded Systems magazine, but I have an identifiable, useful expertise (control systems).

I think having published articles lends weight to your name even if it doesn't produce work directly. Example:

Project Manager : "We need an outside expert. I've found this guy in Oregon named Wescott who I think can do the work".

VP : "Oregon? I thought all they had there was unemployed leftist lumberjacks. I don't need some commie in a plaid shirt working on our product".

Project Manager : "Well this guy knows what he's doing -- look, he has these articles published".

VP : "Ooh! Words in print on glossy paper! Yea, this guy _must_ be competent".

At least that's how I hope it works...

--
Tim Wescott
Wescott Design Services
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Tim Wescott

David,

First of all I really like Discover Circuits.

I don't see how writing an article for any magazine is very profitable as far as money goes, but writing one now and then is not such a bad idea. Perhaps writing about a circuit that you have already done the design work for. Then all you need is the article and some photos, (assuming the schematic and parts list is pretty much done).

I had my article about Watchdog Timers in the October 2004 Nuts & Volts, and it resulted in at least a little bit of exposure. They used the picture of the watchdog circuit explained in the article connected to our RC51 relay controller.

But I don't consider myself a consultant. My company's product sales might get a boost, but I don't suppose I'll ever get much custom design work from it. But who knows.

The frustrating part of writing for magazines is wondering if and when they will use it. The first one I wrote for N&V was published 4 months after submitting it, so I submitted the watchdog article. I had forgotten about it, and then, _one year later_ it appeared.

Gary Peek Industrologic, Inc.

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Gary Peek

with a maximum of

Most academic journals charge the author who is publishing... after getting through the refereeing process.

Admittedly, Nuts&Volts isn't an academic journal.

All that said, most folks writing in either medium aren't doing it for that money. You will note that "Radio-Electronics" and "Popular Electronics" construction articles of the 70's, 80's, and 90's (while the magazines existed) were largely promotional vehicles for selling kits.

Tim.

Reply to
Tim Shoppa

Since you are getting nothing for your published work, now, I would think that ANYthing would be a "bonus".

I wouldn't want to do it for a "living", though.

Tom Pounds

BTW: I really appreciate your contributions to Discover circuits, and Electronic Design (I don't get EDN).

Reply to
tlbs

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