Writing for Cracked: Q&A

A repository for intrinsically valuable information

Writing for Cracked: Q&A

Postby HumpbackWhale » Sun Jun 02, 2013 9:22 pm

Hello, folks. My name is Micah. I'm a big scary Workshop Moderator for Cracked, which means I help people get their pitches formatted, accepted and published up on the front page of Cracked. If you're interested, I can help you, too! In fact, I'd be glad to help you.

However, I will not be answering questions that are answered in the guidelines. If your Cracked account is Workshop-enabled (login to your account, go here, scroll to the bottom and click the blue button), you can find the guidelines here:

http://www.cracked.com/forums/forum/all ... wered-here

There are several threads to read in there. READ THEM. If you ask me questions that make it apparent that you have not read the guidelines, I'm going to answer by posting that link and nothing else. (I'm not actually a mean person, but I am not going to copy-paste the guidelines every time someone feels lazy. Deal with it.)

Same thing goes for pre-pitching ideas. I will not evaluate your idea to say whether it would be good enough or funny enough to go up on Cracked. The answer will always be "Pitch it and see." I am not an editor and do not kill or approve pitches. I simply make sure they're factual, they're properly formatted and so forth, and then I pass them on to the editors.

The editors themselves have said that they do not know what they'll like or dislike. The pitch format (six entry summaries, ~1,800 words) is literally the minimum amount of information the editors need to decide if they like it or not, therefore, pre-pitching your idea is entirely pointless. Pitching is a great learning experience. In fact, the only way to get better at pitching is to pitch.

We also have a couple other respected Cracked writers on this forum and I'm sure they'd be glad to weigh in and contribute their own copious knowledge when they're feeling like it. Please also understand that none of us represent the editors or the big decision-makers over at Cracked.

Q: I've posted my pitch in the Workshop, now what do I do?

Just be patient. The moderators work back to page 20 every week and it's very rare for something to slip through. You will get a response from someone, though it may not be me (I have a life, too, ya know). If you haven't had a response for a full week, then you may PM a mod.

Q: I've never really written things before; am I good enough to be a Cracked writer?

Cracked prides itself on the fact that anyone who is persistent and can follow directions is qualified to write for them. There are capable people to help you at each step. If you conduct yourself like an adult and don't give up be a little baby quitter, you can get yourself on the front page.

Good luck!
  • 16

User avatar
HumpbackWhale
Commenter
Commenter
 
Posts: 32
Joined: Sat Apr 27, 2013 10:03 pm
Show rep

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 4 guests