Why Clients Reject Superb Articles [Article Edit]

Have you ever put your heart and soul into composing a spellbinding article, only to have the entire content flatly rejected by your client? Before you read malice in your client’s action, perhaps you should consider if you are actually the problem: probably, you were so engrossed in the narration that your overzealousness ruined it.

As usual, rather than tell you how this happens, I’ll show you with an article I edited recently.

Great Looking Article, But…

This is a well-written piece that’s also quite intriguing.

I must admit, the average, low-paying client would readily accept it. However, to please a more demanding, high-paying clientèle, you’ll have to do a bit better.

Freelance Writing: The Down and Dirty Some stumble upon it, some have acalling, others turn to it as a measure of last resort. The reasons that drove you to writing notwithstanding, you have to play by the not so subtle rules that govern the sector. Sure, it may have an element of freedom to it but do not let the glitterati fool you; it takes quite a bit of mastery to play the game profitably. Unstructured, unregulated and unpredictable, the deck is stacked against the starry-eyed newcomer, seeking a place at the table. Some people rush to join the sector, driven by half-truths, misconceptions, and the hopes to strike it rich without working as hard. Keep your own hours, preferably just a few hours a day Put in work whenever the mood strikes you No one looking over your shoulder, patronizing you or curtailing your freedoms So enticing, so appealing, it sounds much like a fairy tale scripted just for you. Or, is it? Many would be writers often realize too late that as much a freelancing holds a certain appeal, it is anything but a walk in the park. There doesn’t exist such a thing as a free ride to the riches, the glorified ride into the sunset that is the ending of many movie scripts. Speaking of movies, you might want to note that the hero digs deep into their bag of tricks to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds to emerge victorious. To defeat the supervillain hell-bent on ruining the world and save the day, you must have your best foot forward – unleash the James Bond in you. If you a fan of the 007 flicks (apologies if you are not), you would notice that the hero is ever cool, calm and collected – even when someone is out to get him. Okay, that might be in the movies, but you could borrow a few leaves (heck, even the whole branch) from the same: Be on Top of Your Game You may not be risking your life to save the world, but as a freelancer, you are up against the entire world. Take the time to hone your skills to art form and earn your place at the table. From polishing your grammar to researching skills, creative and critical thinking, do whatever it takes to set yourself apart. Apply Yourself Nothing comes easy, and as an adage goes, chance favors the prepared mind. Take calculated risks, anything to get you out of your comfort zone. Approach new clients, try out new platforms, new niches – just make sure to put the feedback to good use. Keep Learning Learn to write other types of content – landing pages, press releases, and product descriptions – anything to push your limits. For all you know, improving your typing speed makes all the difference as a writer. Train hard, fight easy is a common saying among the fighting forces and you would do best to customize it for your own grind. One more thing, enough with the borrowing, create your own stuff so others can learn from you.

What Turns Superb Articles into Reject Material?

Here are the problematic issues I identified (some of them are suggestions, based on personal preference):

Freelance Writing: The Down and Dirty	Make it bold and maybe increase font size.
Some stumble upon it, some have a calling, while others turn to it as a measure of last resort. The reasons that drove you to writing notwithstanding, you have to play by the not-so-subtle rules that govern the sector.
Sure, it may have an element of freedom, to it but don’t not let the glitterati fool you; it takes quite a bit of mastery to play the game profitably. Unstructured, unregulated and unpredictable, the deck is stacked against the starry-eyed newcomer, seeking a place at the table.	These part seems misplaced. I think it would be best placed in the section about the harsh reality of the freelance writing world. It’s also best to keep introductions brief, especially with short, 500-word articles.
The Allure of Freelance Writing	A subtitle would be great right here.
Some people rush to join the freelance writing sector, driven by half-truths, misconceptions, and the hope to of strike striking it rich without working as hard:, Keep your own hours;, preferably, just a few hours a day. Put in work only when whenever the mood strikes you. No one looking over your shoulder, patronizing you or curtailing your freedoms. So enticing, so appealing…, it sounds much like a fairy tale scripted just for you. Or, is it?
The Harsh Reality and How to Overcome It	A subtitle would be great right here.
Many would–be writers often realize too late that as much as freelancing holds a certain appeal, it is anything but a walk in the park.There doesn’t exist such a thing as a free ride to the riches, you never really have the glorified ride into the sunset that’s is the ending of many movie scripts.	These three phrases are all stating the same thing: “a walk in the park”, “a free ride to riches” and “a ride into the sunset”.
Sure, it may have an element of freedom, to it but don’t not let the glitterati fool you; it takes quite a bit of mastery to play the game profitably. Unstructured, unregulated and unpredictable, the deck is stacked against the starry-eyed newcomers, seeking a place at the table.	Fits better here, doesn’t it? Also, the second sentence seems to have a dangling modifier, but I’ll let it pass.
Speaking of movies, you might want to note that the heroes digs deep into their bag of tricks to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds and to emerge victorious.
To defeat the supervillain hell-bent on ruining the world and save the day, you must have your best foot forward – unleash the James Bond in you.	This hero thing is really getting into your head, man. Cool down on the metaphor and first explain how the previous one applies to writing. If you wish to retain this metaphor, explain it too.
If you a fan of the 007 flicks (apologies if you are not), you would notice that the hero is ever cool, calm and collected – even when someone is out to get him.	This paragraph doesn’t seem to serves a clear purpose here.
Okay, that might be in the movies, but you could borrow a few leaves (heck, even the whole branch) from the same:
Be on Top of Your Game If you’re a fan of the 007 flicks (apologies if you aren’tnot), you would notice that the hero is ever cool, calm and collected – even when someone is out to get him.	Fits better here, doesn’t it?
You may not be risking your life to save the world, but as a freelancer, you’d be competing against countless others from across the globe. are up against the entire world.	What do you mean by being “up against the entire world”?
Take the time to hone your skills to art form and earn your place at the table. From polishing your grammar, to working on your researching skills, being more creative to enhancing your and critical thinking, do whatever it takes to set yourself apart.
2. Apply Yourself Nothing comes easy, but, and as an adage goes, chance favors the prepared mind. Take calculated risks, — anything to get you out of your comfort zone. Approach new clients, try out new platforms, and venture into new niches – just make sure to put the feedback to good use.	This doesn’t make sense: …just make sure to put the feedback to good use…
3. Keep Learning Learn to write different other types of content: landing pages, press releases, product descriptions… Anything to push your limits. For all you know, a simple thing as improving your typing speed could makes all the difference as a writer.
Train hard, fight easy is a common saying among the fighting forces, and which you should adopt in you would do best to customize it for your own grind.
One more thing, enough with the borrowing, create your own stuff so others can learn from you.	Not clear what this means.

The Finished Product

Once all those issues are sorted, here’s what you get…

Freelance Writing: The Down and Dirty Some stumble upon it, some have a calling, while others turn to it as a measure of last resort. The reasons that drove you to writing notwithstanding, you have to play by the not-so-subtle rules that govern the sector. The Allure of Freelance Writing Some people rush to join the freelance writing sector driven by half-truths, misconceptions and the hope of striking it rich without working as hard: Keep your own hours; preferably, just a few hours a day. Put in work only when the mood strikes you. No one looking over your shoulder, patronizing you or curtailing your freedoms. So enticing, so appealing… it sounds much like a fairy tale scripted just for you. Or, is it? The Harsh Reality and How to Overcome It Many would-be writers often realize too late that as much as freelancing holds a certain appeal, you never really have the glorified ride into the sunset that’s the ending of many movie scripts. Sure, it may have an element of freedom, but don’t let the glitterati fool you; it takes quite a bit of mastery to play the game profitably. Unstructured, unregulated and unpredictable, the deck is stacked against starry-eyed newcomers, seeking a place at the table. Speaking of movies, note that the heroes dig deep into their bag of tricks to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds and emerge victorious. Okay, that might be in the movies, but you could borrow a few leaves (heck, even the whole branch) from the same: Be on Top of Your Game If you’re a fan of the 007 flicks (apologies if you aren’t), you would notice that the hero is ever cool, calm and collected – even when someone is out to get him. You may not be risking your life to save the world, but as a freelancer, you’d be competing against countless others from across the globe. Take the time to hone your skills and earn your place at the table. From polishing your grammar, working on your researching skills, being more creative to enhancing your critical thinking, do whatever it takes to set yourself apart. Apply Yourself Nothing comes easy, but, as an adage goes, chance favors the prepared mind. Take calculated risks – anything to get out of your comfort zone. Approach new clients, try out new platforms and venture into new niches. Keep Learning Learn to write different types of content: landing pages, press releases, product descriptions… Anything to push your limits. For all you know, a simple thing as improving your typing speed could make all the difference. Train hard, fight easy is a common saying among the fighting forces, which you should adopt in your own grind.

Looks great, right?

Feel free to offer your own suggestions in the comments.