Balls & Strikes is “a site for critical, progressive, and bullshit-free commentary about courts, judges, and the legal system they uphold.” Their editor-in-chief is accepting pitches. Their coverage focuses on “the real-world consequences of what judges do, and not on parsing the precise jurisprudential philosophy they did or did not apply in order to arrive at a given result.” They typically pay $500 for essays of approximately 1,000 words. For more information, refer to their editor-in-chief’s post and this page.

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 always seeking pitches from film writers. Their digital editor would love to “publish more op-eds on new films, spirited rediscoveries, unusual interviews etc from the new year.” They pay 20ppw for online commissions and a flat rate of £85 for reviews. For details, refer to their digital editor’s post and this page.

The New Republic (TNR) is a journal of opinion that is dedicated to solving today's most critical issues. Their editor is seeking climate/environment/ag/public health pitches: “Reportage, analysis, opinion, essay pitches all welcome. We publish in a range of registers, from the more technical/academic (as long as there's a clear tie-in for our readership), to diatribes (if interesting), to narrative, to lyrical reflections on life in a changing world.” Rates for shorter pieces (around 1,000 to 1,800 words) is $400, with adjustments upward for pieces that are longer or require more work in other ways. To learn more, refer to their editor’s post and their general submission guidelines.

Fodor’s Travel is a source for expert travel advice. They’re seeking some hot takes for their recurrent series, Hot Takes, in which they invite writers to “share a take that will stir up conversation and debate.” They pay around $300. If you have a hot take, send your pitch to pitches@fodors.com. To learn more, refer to their senior digital editor’s post and their ‘about’ page.

Slate is an online general-interest magazine that offers analysis and commentary on news, politics, business, culture, and technology. Their editor is looking to assign a couple of features before the end of the year. The editor hasn’t mentioned the rates, but according to this post, they start at $1,500 for reported features of 2,500+ words. To learn more, refer to their editor’s post and their general pitch guide.

The BREAK—DOWN explores “the political economy of climate and ecological crisis.” They’re open for pitches for their third print issue, Airborne, on “the importance of air in the climate crises, its role in environmental history + activism, and its future on a transformed planet.” They’re interested in “diverse interpretations of the theme, from carbon removal and mobility to struggles over urban pollution and the fate of the world’s forests.” They’re seeking “argumentative essays, memoir, original translations, photojournalism, reportage and dispatches from around the world.” Rate is £650 for pieces of around 3,000 words. For more details refer to their editor’s post and this page.

Planetizen is “a fiercely independent platform that creates, curates, and amplifies stories and resources to inform planning and people passionate about planning.” They’re always looking for feature article pitches that offer an expert lens to the key planning issues of today. They offer professional writers a flat rate of $500 for a feature or career-related article. If interested, email your pitches to editor@planetizen.com. For details, refer to their post and this page.

The Oval Update is an Estonia-based independent sports media company. They’re seeking track and field article pitches for their opinion, interview, and coaching sections. Most of their op-eds are between 600 and 1,000 words, with 700 to 800 words being the ideal length. Interviews are around 1,000 words and coaches corner articles are also around 1,000 words. Pay is $0.10 per word. To learn more, refer to their post and this page.

Oregon Humanities Magazine is a triannual publication that “connects Oregonians to ideas that change lives and transform communities.” They’re open for submissions for their spring issue. The theme is “Labor.” They’re seeking stories about work, effort, and toil. They hope to address work of all kinds: “physical, mental, and emotional, done for money, for pleasure, or for the benefit of our families and communities.” They’re interested in “labor as a collective effort, as in the labor force or the labor movement, as well as individual exertions.” They welcome “all forms of nonfiction writing from Oregon residents, including essays, journalism, criticism, and excerpts from forthcoming or recently published books.” Their features generally range from 1,500 to 4,000 words. They pay all contributors $750 to $1,500 per piece. To learn more, refer to their post and call for submissions.

Rock, Paper, Shotgun is a website that offers PC gaming news, reviews, previews, and opinion. They are open for pitches and are looking for in-depth and expert coverage on big games, interview-led features, and hardware features. Their standard rate is £200 for an article of 1,000 to 1,500 words. To learn more, refer to this page.

Campfire Stories is “a collection of books and card decks brought to you by Ilyssa and Dave Kyu to inspire deeper connections and storytelling in the outdoors.” They’re looking for nature and place-based stories for their new Oregon Coast collection. The stories should “capture the essence of the region, highlighting the distinctive natural features, flora, fauna, community, history, and experiences of the Oregon Coast.” They accept diverse forms of writing, for example, essays, prose, poetry, ballads, and short stories. Pieces should not exceed 2,000 words.

They’re looking to commission new pieces as well as consider existing stories. Payment is $150 for existing stories and $300 for commissioned stories. To learn more, refer to their call for submissions.

Transitions (TOL) is “a nonprofit organization established to strengthen the professionalism, independence and impact of the news media in the post-communist countries of Europe and the former Soviet Union.” They’re looking for pitches from freelance journalists, photographers, and multimedia creators covering the Balkans:

“We’re looking for original, in-depth reporting that sheds light on key issues shaping the region today. We welcome a range of formats – from written features and video to multimedia and data-driven pieces.

We welcome pitches for:

- Reported features (1,000–1,500 words)

- Photo essays with captions or short accompanying text

- Video or multimedia pieces

- Explainers or visual stories that combine reporting with graphics, data, or maps”

They pay $250 for accepted stories or multimedia pieces. If interested, direct your pitches to editorial@tol.org. To learn more, refer to their post and this page.

Open Secrets is an online magazine that publishes memorable and revealing personal essays on the topics we are taught to keep “secret.” They’re seeking original, unpublished personal essays (1,000 to 2,500 words) that “explore transformative, powerful human experiences, especially those that are often kept secret or hidden.” Rate is $50 per essay. For details, refer to their post and call for submissions.