Publication

I have been curious lately about the publishing process. Dr. Cauthen has mentioned on more than one occasion that it is valuable to publish our work in various publications. Having never considered this option, I am curious what this process looks like. Also, it leads me to think of the various articles we have read on audience. Do we revise our pieces based on the audience of the publication we are submitting to? Should we be encouraging our own students to make publication a goal? What is the payoff of publication from a student perspective?