Dear Writers,
Here’s our latest roundup of calls for pitches directly from editors.
Please carefully study each publication before sending a pitch.
If you’re new to pitching, here are a few resources to help you get started:
- How to Write a Pitch that Gets You Paid (Based on Real-World Examples)
- How to Pitch a Listicle About Pop Culture
- Case Study: How I Broke into the Smart Mouth Newsletter and Earned $1 per Word
— Jacob Jans
Thanks to Fatima Saif for compiling this list.
Esquire is a men’s magazine that covers news, politics, food, entertainment, and style. Their assistant editor is looking for pitches from AAPI identifying writers. They’re looking for your “burning ideas, cultural critiques, film/tv reviews, takes on representation, politics, food.” According to one payment report, they paid $2/word for a 3,500-word feature. If interested, send your pitches to their assistant editor via DM on Twitter or email (sirena.he@hearst.com). Read their assistant editor’s Twitter thread here. Contact them here.
The Seattle Times is a daily newspaper that covers local news, politics, business, entertainment, travel, sports, and restaurants in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest. Their features team is seeking freelancers to help them with coverage throughout the Pride month. They pay $200 to $450 for most of their freelance stories. If interested, email aknauf@seattletimes.com. To learn more, refer to their assistant features editor’s tweet. To contact them, refer to this page.
Wired is a magazine and website that covers the current and future trends in technology. Their Ideas editor is accepting pitches for two new series: one is software criticism and the other one is about the future of morality. Pay starts at $500. Send your pitches to ideas@wired.com. Read their Ideas editor’s Twitter thread here and their pitch guide here.
Long Now is a non-profit organization that fosters long-term thinking. They have tweeted, “We’re looking for pieces that take a long-term perspective on a wide range of topics, including but not limited to:
– Climate change & the environment
– The preservation of knowledge & institutions
– Biotechnology & artificial intelligence
– Maintenance & infrastructure”
Rates start at $600 for features and range between $300 and $600 for essays, interviews, reviews of books, science journalism, and news articles. Read their Twitter thread here. Learn how to pitch them here.
Bon Appétit is a magazine that features recipes, cooking tips, reviews, and more. Their restaurant editor has tweeted, “Are you a restaurant industry worker/insider with strong opinions? Do you think that, say, tipping is a bullshit system? I want to hear from you! You don’t have to be a writer, we’ll work to shape your story.” “Writers are free to pitch, but prioritizing folks who are close to the restaurant industry, and can speak to issues with a strong and clear POV. If you happen to be both, great.” Their standard rates for 400-word stories begin at $250 and go up based on word count, experience, etc. If interested, send your pitches to restaurants@bonappetit.com. To learn more, refer to their restaurant editor’s Twitter thread and their pitch guide.
DCReport is a news organization that reports on how government actions affect our everyday lives. They’re actively looking for contributors. They can pay an honorarium of $50-$150. For more information, read their tweet and submission guidelines.
Going (formerly Scott’s Cheap Flights) offers cheap flight deals. They’re taking pitches for a new newsletter which will highlight “one single once-in-a-lifetime experience (a one-of-a-kind natural wonder, incredible hotel, tour, activity, wildlife encounter) around the world.” Rates begin at $250 for around 500 to 700 words. To learn more, refer to their content marketing director’s Twitter thread and this form.
LOOKOUT is a queer-centered newsletter and magazine for the greater Phoenix area. They’re still looking for pitches. They pay 30 cents per word for feature stories. Email your pitches to jake@lookoutphx.org. To learn more, refer to this tweet and this page.
Vittles is a food newsletter for novel times. They’re accepting pitches for Season 7 which is based around Food and Policy. The season will look at “how policy affects the way we all eat.” Their base rate is £800 per newsletter (2,000-2,500 words) or 40p per word. Send your pitches to vittlespitches@gmail.com. To learn more, refer to their Twitter thread and this page.
Anime Herald is a website that offers news, reviews, interviews, and commentary on anime and anime fandom. They’re always on the hunt for new articles, particularly those that fit their Interest category. They pay $50 for an article (1,000 to 2,000 words). To learn more, refer to their tweet and contributor guidelines. To submit your pitch, refer to this page.
ApartmentAdvisor is an online rental platform. They’re always accepting pitches for their blog. At the moment, they’re especially seeking Boston-based writers and Boston-related pitches. They pay $125 to $300 per piece. Pitches can be sent to lilly.milman@apartmentadvisor.com. For details, read this tweet and their pitch guide.
Prism is a BIPOC-led news outlet that covers voting rights, electoral justice, criminal justice, racial justice, workers’ rights, immigration, the environment, gender and LGBTQIA+ issues, and more. They’re always seeking strong, reliable social justice writers. They accept “reported news stories, features, and profiles (up to 1,200 words), as well as op-eds, commentaries, and short personal essays (700 to 900 words).” They pay $0.50 per word. If interested, email carolyn@prismreports.org. To learn more, refer to their news editor’s Twitter thread and their call for pitches.
Food & Wine is a monthly magazine by Meredith Corporation. They cover food, drink, and travel. The editor of their commerce news & deals team is seeking pitches. First-person sale roundups / first-person reviews are preferred. Pay is $300 per article. Pitches can be sent to dmodlin@dotdashmdp.com. For details, refer to their editor’s tweet and their news & deals commerce guide for freelancers.
Going (formerly Scott’s Cheap Flights) offers cheap flight deals. Their content marketing director is looking for writers for their weekly Going Places destination newsletter. They want writers who are “deeply familiar (lived there, visited multiple times) with Tanzania, Mozambique, Madagascar, Botswana, or Zimbabwe.” Rates start at $300. Read their content marketing director’s Twitter thread here. Submit your pitch here.
Peripeteia Theatre Company is a Manchester-based independent theatre company. They’re seeking 5 LGBTQIA+ writers to “write extended speeches/monologues/letters about their experiences about and within the community as well as their identity in general.” The timing can be 10-15 minutes long and they recommend you to aim for 5 or more pages. Commission fee is £100. If interested, get in touch with them at peripeteiatheatre@outlook.com. To learn more, refer to their tweet. To contact them, refer to this page.
Deadline: May 10th, 2023
Hakai Magazine is an online magazine that explores “science, society, and the environment from a coastal perspective.” They’re accepting pitches for the following sections: news & views, features, and videos & visuals. For news & views (300 to 800 words), they pay CAN $1.00 to $1.25 per word. For features (1,000 to 5,000 words), they pay CAN $1.55 per word and up. For details, refer to this tweet and their submission guidelines.
Little White Lies is a London-based bi-monthly film magazine. They cover mainstream as well as independent cinema from all over the world with high quality journalism and illustration. They’re accepting pitches. They pay 15p to 20p a word. For more information, refer to their digital editor’s Twitter thread and this page.
Polygon is Vox Media’s gaming website. Their film/streaming editor is looking for analysis that would make her see a film in a new light. The editor hasn’t mentioned the rates in her tweet, but according to a recent tweet by their deputy games editor, they pay $300+ per piece. If interested, email your pitches to entertainment@polygon.com. To learn more, refer to their film/streaming editor’s tweet and their general pitching guidelines.
IGN is an internet media company that covers video games, TV, movies, tech, and comics. Their senior features editor is seeking all kinds of features (1,600 words) for Tears of the Kingdom. They usually pay $300 per feature. Send your pitches to mkim@ign.com. To read their editor’s tweet, click here. To visit their website, click here.
Time Out UK is a guide to the best restaurants, bars, events, exhibitions, and more in the UK. They’re seeking feature pitches about interesting UK cultural scenes and stories (especially outside LDN). They usually pay 25p a word. Send your pitches to chiara.wilkinson@timeout.com or huw.oliver@timeout.com. To learn more, refer to their chief features writer’s Twitter thread and their website.
cinéSPEAK is a community-rooted justice-centered cinema and film journal. They’re looking for “pitches that contextualize the WGA strike for a Philly audience—e.g. reporting about the facts of the strike with local interviews or an op-ed from a striking Philly writer.” Pay is $300+. Read their tweet here. Submit your pitch here.
Voices of Disability Economic Justice Project is a commentary series by The Century Foundation’s Disability Economic Justice Team. The series discusses the economic disparities experienced by disabled people. They’re accepting story pitches on a rolling basis. They pay $500 for published pieces. For more information, refer to this Twitter thread and this page.
Rungh is a multidisciplinary space for creative explorations. They feature work by IBPOC artists in Canada. They’re currently looking for IBPOC theatre reviewers. Pay is $250-$350. To learn more, refer to their tweet and general submissions page.
Still Alive is “a magazine about people who are still alive.” They’re accepting pitches for issue 2 which is an all music issue. They’re looking for anything music adjacent. You can send your cocktail party anecdotes, weird obsession, and more. Rate is $600 for essays of up to 1,200 words. If interested, send your pitches by the end of June to stillalivemag@gmail.com. To learn more, refer to this Twitter thread and their website.
Sole Retriever finds “sneaker raffles and sneaker releases from around the globe.” Their editor is seeking a contributor to write 1 or 2 streetwear-focused blogs for them a day. They’re also seeking in-depth feature pitches on sneakers. They love pieces that are super weird and fascinating. Rate is $300 to $500 per piece. If interested, email your pitches to ian@soleretriever.com. To read their editor’s Twitter thread, click here. To visit their website, click here.
Insider Business covers business, financial, and technology news. Their associate editor (freelance desk) is actively commissioning pieces related to business or work. As per their pitch guide, their rates usually start at £250/$320 for personal essays and £270/$350 for single interviews. Pitches can be sent to kfields@insider.com. To read their associate editor’s tweet, click here.
Health in Her HUE is a digital platform connecting Black women and women of color to culturally sensitive healthcare providers and resources. They’re seeking pitches from US-based writers on Black women’s health and wellness. Priority topics are mental health, LGBTQIA+ health, and breast cancer. Pay is $200/article. Read their tweet here. Submit your pitch here.
Viator, a Tripadvisor company, is a marketplace for travel experiences. They’re seeking personal essays (that have a travel hook) on the meaning and importance of Juneteenth. Rates begin at $250. Pitches can be sent to lcocking@tripadvisor.com. To learn more, refer to this tweet and their ‘about’ page.
Observer is a website about business, arts, and entertainment. Their arts and culture editor is always looking to hear from arts reporters. They pay $200 to $300 per piece. You can send your pitches to artnews@observer.com. To read their arts and culture editor’s tweet, click here. To learn more about them, click here.
Narrative Initiative catalyzes “durable narrative change in order to make equity and social justice common sense.” They’re looking for pitches. They aim to “lift up stories about organizers, cultural producers, activists, and other changemakers whose work is shifting harmful, dominant narratives in powerful, creative, and unexpected ways.” They’re seeking pieces of 700 to 1,000 words. Rate: $1 per word. Read their tweet here. Pitch them here.
Deadline: May 15th, 2023
MIT Technology Review is a media company that explains the commercial, political, and social impact of the newest technologies. They’re offering editorial fellowship in their newsroom. They’re looking for people who are self-starters and keen to learn. Fellows can work remotely or from their office in Cambridge, MA. Pay is $20 per hour. To learn more, refer to their executive editor’s tweet and this page.
Deadline: May 15th, 2023
Studio Magazine is a national publication about contemporary craft and design in Canada. They publish twice a year and have an ongoing web presence. They’re looking for submissions for their Spring/Summer 2024 issue: DEFINITION. The issue will re-visit “the question of what it is that defines craft.” While they’re interested in the shifts brought about by tech, they’re “also looking to explore themes including, but not limited to, authenticity, classification, heritage, history, and cultural shifts.” Pay is .30 cents/word. To learn more, refer to their tweet and this page.
Deadline: September 30th, 2023
