These are calls for themed non-fiction pitches and submissions from 25 outlets; a few have issued calls on more than one topic. A few also accept other genres, like fiction and poetry. Some of the themes are: your brain & the smart phone; tech & relationships; meetcute; climate change and environmental justice; Christmas, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, New Year’s; LGBTQ+ media watch; boomers’ retirement; and hard problems – food. – S. Kalekar
BrainFacts.Org: Four themes
They want pitches on stories around the brain and nervous system. They have extensive guidelines, including: BrainFacts.org “tells the story of scientific discoveries, the people behind them, and how it relates to our everyday lives. Knowing about the brain’s inner workings helps paint a better picture of the human experience that explores the universe between our ears. We’re looking for freelance science writers, journalists, and multimedia creators with a strong portfolio in science communication to pitch us story ideas about the brain and nervous system.” They have some themes they are interested in currently: Your Brain & The Smart Phone; Language; A.I. vs. The Brain; and Perception & Illusion.
They assign long (1,000-1,200 words), medium (700-900 words), and short-form (500-800 words) written and multimedia stories. They do consider profiles of experts in neuroscience if you weave the science throughout the story. Commentaries are accepted by invitation only. Pay depends on a number of factors, but is roughly $1/word. Details here (guidelines) and here (pitch form).
(And, Nova Media Fellowships are open for US-based healthcare journalists; the award “provides journalists an opportunity to deepen their understanding of the complex, intertwined network of factors that affect health and well-being and the inadequacy of a health framework that focuses primarily on disease.” The award is $100,000, and the deadline to apply is 28 May 2024. Details here.)
Mashable: Tech and relationships
Mashable has a pitch call for features about tech and its intersection with relationships (romantic and otherwise), dating, etc. Commissions are open on a rolling basis. Pay is typically $400-500 for 1,200-1,500 words. See the editor’s call here.
Business Insider: Boomers’ retirement
This is a call from the senior editor at Business Insider. “Are you a boomer about to retire? How are you feeling about it?
Here for essays about how people are planning, what they want to do, how they are feeling.” They pay $250. See the pitch call here.
Chicken Soup for the Soul: Christmas, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, New Year’s
They’re reading nonfiction prose and non-fiction poetry for various themed anthologies, and one of the deadlines is in May: for their ‘Christmas, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, New Year’s’ anthology. They have detailed guidelines, including, “How do you celebrate the holidays? Are your celebrations very traditional or are they very spontaneous and never the same? We want to hear how you celebrate your holidays. How do you gather with family and friends to share the special spirit of the season? How do you brighten those long winter days?”. Also see their FAQ. The submission deadline for this theme is 31 May 2024. They pay $250. They have other themes listed too, with later deadlines. Details here and here.
Nonsense Newsletter: LGBTQ+ Media Watch Project
Nonsense is an Australia-based newsletter and they have recently opened to pitches for their LGBTQ+ Media Watch Project. “We’re looking for feature articles on queer representation across the media from LGBTQIA+ writers and journalists.” They will prioritize Australia and NZ writers, but are also open to international pitches. Please note, they will only publish queer writers. Pay is a minimum of AUD400, and the pitch deadline is 30 April 2024. Details here and here.
Fansplaining: New pitch guide
Fansplaining is a fandom-related podcast. “Calling all fandom journalists, current and aspiring! We’ve put together a pitch doc as Fansplaining (temporarily) transitions to a written-only publication in a few weeks. If you have a story that fits our general approach & tone, please get in touch”. They have a detailed pitch guide, also links to previously published articles. And, “The audience for both the podcast and our articles has always been made up of folks who are pretty deep in fandom—especially transformative and/or critical media fandom—so we won’t publish the relatively fandom-101 stuff a lot of mainstream outlets run. (Alongside our articles, quickly perusing the episode topics and guests should give you a sense of what’s fandom 101 and what goes past that.) And since we’ve historically published only a few times a year—and, due to budget, will likely still publish just 1-2 times per month—we don’t run super timely or reactive stuff. These pieces are heavily researched and/or rigorously argued, not quick hits.” They pay $250. Details here and see the pitch guide here.
The Suburban Review: Meetcute
This Australian magazine is reading submissions of non-fiction (500-2,500 words), fiction, poetry, comics, art, and more on the ‘Meetcute’ theme – “Who’s that catching your eye at the check-out? It’s MEETCUTE, the latest submissions call-out from The Suburban Review! We’re now open for submissions across fiction, poetry, literary essays, comics and art.
We’re looking for stories and essays that explode with sparks of connection, and poems that explore beyond the boundaries of tradition. We want art that we obsess over while lying awake at night, and comics that delight us out of the blue. We want it to be 1998 again. We want a MEETCUTE!” Their guidelines also say, “TSR is now publishing in a digital-first format straight onto our website, so you can send us your digital, animated, experimental or audio work to consider for this issue!” Pay is AUD150-275 for prose, and AUD125-275 for poetry. The submission deadline is 11:59 p.m. (AEST) 5 May 2024. There are two submission categories, for Australian residents and for overseas contributors. Details here.
Insider: Lifestyle, travel, food, and more
This is a pitch call for Insider. They want pitches about general lifestyle, travel, food, effective workouts, or home/relocation (figuring out where to move, especially with a family). Rates start at $200. See the pitch call/thread here.
The Fuller Project: Issues that impact women
They want pitches on issues that impact women in the US, and globally. They have detailed guidelines, including, “The Fuller Project pursues stories around issues that impact women. We don’t approach gender and women as beats per se—they are lenses through which we view politics and policy; the economy and labor; racial, social, and criminal justice; climate and environment; health and science; education and learning; violence and exploitation; and more.
We are primarily interested in stories that will raise awareness, have impact, and/or could spur accountability.
It’s not enough for a story source or character to be a woman. What is the clear women- or gender-oriented angle of your story? You should be prepared to make that clear in your pitch and in your story.” They do not want profiles, essays, or op-eds. Please follow their pitch template. “The Fuller Project pays competitive rates for freelance work. The rate depends on the length and scope of the story, either based on a per word or project rate.” Details here.
Bad Form: Love
Bad Form is book magazine for writers of color; you can read about them here. Currently, they are open to pitches on the ‘Love’ theme by Black, Asian, and racialized communities in the UK only. They have one annual print issue. They want pitches for literature essays, book reviews, as well as features/personal essays about books/reading/publishing; pay is £50, and the pitch deadline is 5th May 2024. They are also accepting themed short story submissions. Details here.
Inkcap Journal: Environment in Britain
This journal publishes reported features, interviews and essays, on the environment in Britain: England, Wales and Scotland, and they accept pitches on these topics. “We particularly like pieces that engage with thorny issues at the heart of nature conservation, tackle issues of social justice, or tell an unexpected story. We like articles on humans, habitats, plants and animals. And we welcome diverse voices and perspectives.” They pay £100-300. See their pitch guide here.
The Guardian: Food and drink
UK-based content and marketing agency APL has issued a pitch call for journalists; they are “Looking for food and drink pitches with a summer angle for a supplement in the Guardian by APL. Think cocktail recipes and roundups, best alfresco places to eat etc.” They pay £120 for 600 words. See the pitch call here.
Shooter Literary Magazine: Nightlife
They want submissions – non-fiction (2,000-6,000 words), fiction, poetry, and art – on the ‘Nightlife’ theme. “We’re looking for stories, essays, memoir and poetry on anything that relates to nocturnal happenings: dating, working the night shift, crime, clubbing, dinner, sex, partying, witchcraft, ghosts, childbirth, insomnia, even nocturnal wildlife.” Pay is £25 for short prose, and £5 for flash prose and poetry. The deadline is 12 May 2024. Details here.
Spin: Music lore in your hometown
Spin is a platform for music and culture that surrounds it. They are “doing a new series where writers explore the music lore of their hometowns: the legends and tall tales, the songs/albums based on wild things that actually happened, the obscure bands that never broke out but should have.” And, “Also, hopefully this is obvious, but we’re looking for stories from writers who actually live/lived in these towns—not, like, “There’s a great indie-rock band in Toledo. Never been there. Anyway, here’s their Bandcamp.”” See the pitch call/thread here.
(The Spin editor also says, “Also, … just to be clear, you can still pitch all the other stuff you normally would have: profiles, lists, reviews, The Record Store, irreverent things, etc.” See here.)
Type Investigations: Right-wing extremism and threats to democracy, and more
Their website says, “Type Investigations is a nonprofit newsroom dedicated to transforming the field of independent investigative journalism.” They are open for pitches for 2024. “We’re particularly interested in pitches on the following topics:
– Right-wing extremism and threats to democracy
– Reproductive rights and gender-affirming health care
– Technology and its harms
– Climate change and environmental justice” Also, “We welcome pitches from reporters outside of the United States, but your pitch must have a clear and direct U.S. tie-in.” See the pitch call here and their general guidelines here.
IJNet: Journalism tool, app or resource
International Journalists’ Network (IJNet) has issued a call for pitches: “Do you know of a journalism tool, app or resource that we haven’t covered? We’re accepting pitches! We pay our freelancers US$200 per article.” See the call here.
The Appeal: US Criminal legal system
The Appeal wants pitches on the US criminal legal system. They are “Looking for 800-word reported pieces or personal essays about the criminal legal system (cops, prisons, parole, alternatives to incarceration, etc). We pay $1 per word.” See the editor’s call here and their pitch guide here.
Marie Claire
Marie Claire’s Digital Director has issued a call for pitches: “For an upcoming @marieclaire issue about female and nonbinary athletes, we’re looking for pitches that tackle (pun intended) the intersection of money and sports.” See the pitch call here.
Poets & Writers: Writing Education
They publish articles of interest to emerging and established literary writers. They publish News & Trends, The Literary Life Essays (on the more contemplative aspects of writing, ranging from creative process to the art of reading), The Practical Writer (advice and how-to articles that offer nuts and bolts information about the business of creative writing), and features – articles, essays, profiles, and interviews regarding American literature. According to their section for advertisers, for September/October 2024, the issue theme is ‘Writing Education’ (see ‘Upcoming Issues and Deadlines’ here). They do not publish fiction or poetry, or reviews. They take both, story proposals, and articles on spec, and take 4-6 weeks to respond to queries or manuscripts. Details here (themes) and here (writers’ guidelines).
The Victorian Writer: Bite
Writers Victoria is an Australian not-for-profit charity that supports and advocates for writers, illustrators, editors and literary-sector workers to be paid for the work that they do. They are accepting pitches of their in-house magazine, The Victorian Writer. For their next issue, the theme is ‘Bite’. “We publish poems ($70), and articles of 600 words ($100) and 1200 words ($200) in the print edition with particular interest in the craft of writing and the writing life.” Pay is in Australian dollars. For articles, they accept pitches as well as submissions. The submission deadline is 31 May 2024. Details here and here.
Contingent Magazine: Mailbag Column
Contingent is a non-profit history magazine. “Our writers are adjuncts, museum workers, independent scholars—all people who work outside the tenure-track professoriate.” They are accepting pitches for the Mailbag column, which is “roughly 400 to 500 words. Is there a question you’re often asked about the work of doing history? Do you wish there were a short, accessible answer to that question you could just point them to? Write it for us. The base pay is $100.” Other sections that are open now are Field Trips – “pieces that demystify the work that historians do. These can include interviews, object studies, stories about chasing footnotes, behind-the-scenes videos”, reviews “of books (especially books by non-tenure-track historians), films, museum exhibits, television shows really anything reviewable”; Shorts (and mini essays); Postcards; and How I do History columns. Pay for columns is $50 to $250. Other sections are closed. Details are in their pitch guide here.
Stylist: Processing series
UK-based Stylist is looking for essays on mental health by women writers. “Any women writers have a first-person story around mental health they’d like to share as part of @StylistMagazine’s Processing series?” You can read previously published work in this series here. See the pitch call here.
Parabola: Grief & Gratitude
Parabola is a quarterly journal that explores the quest for meaning as it is expressed in the world’s myths, symbols, and religious traditions, with particular emphasis on the relationship between this store of wisdom and our modern life. “We look for lively, penetrating material unencumbered by jargon or academic argument. We prefer well-researched, objective, and unsentimental pieces that are grounded in one or more religious or cultural tradition; articles that focus on dreams, visions, or other very personal experiences are unlikely to be accepted.” They publish articles and translations (1,000-3,000 words), book reviews (500 words), retellings of traditional stories (500-1,500 words), forum contributions (up to 500 words), and poetry (up to 5 poems). The theme for their Fall 2024 issue is ‘Grief & Gratitude’, and the deadline is 1 June 2024. They have another theme listed too, with a later deadline. Details here.
Unbias the News: Democracy Playbook
Unbias the News is launching the Democracy Playbook. They have detailed guidelines on the kind of pitches they want, including, “The Democracy Playbook is a global cross-border collaborative project highlighting the successful strategies movements and communities have employed to fight for democracy.” A recent callout says, “we are still accepting pitches for the Democracy Playbook project! Help uncover the tactics and strategies of ppl fighting for their democracies and against elite capture + authoritarianism.” Collaborations are allowed; pay is €500/person. The pitch deadline is 1 May 2024. See the call here and the pitch guide here.
MIT Technology Review: Hard Problems – Food
MIT Technology Review is looking for pitches on the ‘Hard Problems – Food’ theme for its November/December print issue. They publish narrative features, investigations, profiles, essays, and more. Their general pitch guide also says, “Rates range from $1 to $2 per word, depending on the experience level of the writer, the story, and the publication route. Deeply reported features pay more than shorter news pieces.” Pitches due mid to late May 2024. See the editor’s call here and their general pitch guide here.
Bio: S. Kalekar is the pseudonym of a regular contributor to this magazine. She can be reached here.
