Editorial Guidance - What You Should Write

This page gives basic guidance on the themes of what we want you to write (what you should type into our Self-Publishing Tool). We also offer a tutorial on How to Use Our Self-Publishing Tool.

It is important to us to offer tips that are highly useful to high school and college students and that allow them to learn what you know.

We like student-writers who can produce Tips that contain ample details, and which mention brand names and products, equipment and gear needed. We want your readers to leave our site, thinking "I learned a lot from CampusMen.com and will tell my friends to check out the site."

Expect Requests for Modifications

If you are a new to our site, only add one tip until one of our editors has a chance to give you feedback on your first tip. To explain, every Tip you add to our site will be reviewed by a human editor. If our editor thinks your Tip is missing details or is not clearly written he or she will send you an email with suggestions on how you can improve your Tip. Especially when you first sign up with us, you should expect to be asked you to log back into the site, navigate to your tip and make the edits he or she requested. This feedback should help you become a better writer!

Most students learn the intracacies and finesse of producing a high-quality tip after a few rounds. Their tips tend to not need edits as the relationship progresses.

Let's start with some basic guidance on how you should write and some Do's and Don'ts.

"Stuff The Reader Will Need" (gear/training aids)

For each and every tip, we ask that you suggest at least one gear or training aid that can help the reader.

Avoid telling the reader to go to a physical store.

Avoid telling the reader to make their own.

Giving suggestions on how to save money is good, as long as you also give an option for more pricey items. Remember, you get what you pay for. Meaning

Don't Tell The Reader to Ask Their Coach

Don't assume the reader is on a team. For equipment, gear and training aids, do not tell the reader to ask their coach what to buy. Yes, most teams have standard items for all athletes. In this case, you are acting as the coach or knowledge authority. In some cases, your reader may be a new coach or school board member who is looking for ideas on which items to buy for his or her team. The reader may not be on a team. Other readers may be parents who are seeking for their son or daughter to prepare in advance for team tryouts. In some cases, a player may seek an item that replaces a team-issued item the athlete feels is inferior.

Consider Gear Construction

Whenever a product is made with fabric or cloth, or anything that can rot, be sure to mention considerations on type of fabric (cotton/poly blends, mesh, etc.) Example

Otherwise, what is the gear constructed from?

Are there items that are made of metal or composite versus other items that are made from plastic?

Do some hold up better than others (weather, transporting, getting banged up during use).

Are some easy to collapse or put together? Easier to transport or store?

Gear Cost

Are there cheap ones vs. pricey versions?

If yes, why would I want to buy an expensive version?

Should I avoid cheap versions?

Does a costlier version help me on the field more?

Do costlier versions fit better?

Remember, the athlete gets what he pays for.

Cheap is not always better for an athlete who has one chance to try to get a college scholarship. Example: A cheap training aid may fall apart after rigorous use.

Avoid Promoting Other Sites

We are not paying you to promote other websites! Please do not tell the reader to go to other websites. However, you can tell the reader to go to Amazon. Exceptions can be made. Please contact us if you want an exception.

Topics That Do Not Require Any Gear

Even if a product is not absolutely crucial to performing the tip, we ask that you add one. Example: Let's say you choose the topic "How to build your abs." Gear or equipment may not be needed to work abs. If the tip doesn't normally require gear to do the topic, consider encouraging the reader to order a book, DVD or other training aid (available on Amazon) that someone searching for this topic might also benefit from or help them get deeper understanding.

Think of similarities or "You might also consider." Example: If the reader wants to know how to clean baseball bats, they might also be interested in a baseball swinging aid

Don't Try to Compete with a Book or DVD

Some topics are broad and would need extensive explaining. For example, "How to Learn basketball shooting fundamentals" is an extensive topic. Entire books have been written on that topic. It is not possible for you to try to exhaustively explain every detail in a single page.

When you choose a very broad topic, such as the one above, do not try to compete with 200-page books available on Amazon. Instead, summarize that basics of what you know and encountered when trying to learn the topic when you began. Then encourage the reader to order 1 or 2 specific books or DVDs on Amazon that you recommend. State the "basics" one must learn about your tip, challenges they may face and what they will generally learn in the book or DVD.

Sometimes Amazon previews chapters of its books on its product pages. You can look at the book or DVD chapter headings for ideas of what you should mention in your tip.

Mention the actual title of the recommended book/DVD and actual author.

Treat Topics Starting With "How to Buy" or "How to Choose" as a Buyer's Guide

Our site includes many topics on gear. These types of topics are our highest priority! Example

When a topic reads "how to buy a..." we are not looking for a simple step by step guide on how to check out from an online store.

Regardless of the title of the "how to buy" topic, write the tip like you would write a buying guide - how to "consider" different types/styles...

Price levels

Construction

Manufacturers