300-400 words for festival previews (everything below 200 and above 500 words will be sent back)

Try and use fun, interesting and punchy language. Don’t repeat yourself or say the same thing in two different ways. Use short, snappy sentences. If a sentence has more than two clauses, break it down into two shorter ones. Read over your work with an objective view as if you were one of the readers. Write in such a way that the reader would understand why the gig might be good, and persuade them that they’d like to go.

Disclose the flavour of the event/music not just its ingredients; remember it’s about conveying experiences and a sense of anticipation not a step-by-step account of what is going to happen and we’re not writing a press release.

Always include basic info about the artist/gig you are covering in the first paragraphs of your feature. Remember to include artist’s origin, music played and few words about the venue.

In fact, you’ll have to write an introductory paragraph to your feature that will be posted to Facebook with a link back to the full preview. Make sure that it’s enticing and includes the basic info mentioned earlier (artists name, country of origin, style of music and venue name). Put this in bold at the bottom of your preview when you submit to the website. This text can be the same as your first paragraph.

Rhythm Passport is not an academic journal, so keep it accessible and try to use a lively language.

Feel free to use metaphors and be creative with your writing; we also encourage you to try to invoke imagery with your own words. But keep in mind that, at the end of the day, you’ve got to sound clear and understandable.

Don’t ever copy and paste from other sources (for artist or genre info), if you are using information from other places re-write it and make it your own.

Don’t just rewrite from one source. Look around for other references to make sure that what you are writing is true and not another writer’s mistake. Don’t just trust Wikipedia, but use more reliable sources like artists’ official websites, billboard.com, allmusic.com, artistdirect.com, …

Keep the number of superlatives to a bare minimum, e.g: “it was amazing/awesome/the best thing ever…” This tells the reader nothing other than the fact you thought it was good. If you think something is going to be or is amazing, then explain why. Your words should communicate that in such a way that the reader thinks “that sounds amazing”.

Pay attention to spelling (UK English please) and grammar and make sure your sentences read fluidly. Read and re-read through your work before sending it and use a vocabulary, thesaurus and grammar/spelling check website if you’re not confident. Double check spelling for artist names, countries, genres and instruments.

Even if you really like her/his music, try not to sound like a fan of the artist/band. Don’t use the first person. Try to remember that even if we’re promoting their gig we’re not an artist fan-page.