Dear Writers,

Here are eighteen calls for pitches/articles directly from editors and writers.

We’ve found payment rates, contact information, and submission guidelines (when available) for all of these publishers.

Thanks to Fatima Saif for her research on this article.

— Jacob Jans

California Magazine is Cal Alumni Association’s editorially independent general-interest magazine that covers ideas and innovations from the University of California, Berkeley. They are looking for story pitches from both new and established writers. They want writers to query them “with stories, not topics—ones that have a strong UC Berkeley connection but that would interest readers no matter where they went to school.” Broadly speaking, their stories generally fall into these categories: profiles/human interest; science and scholarship; history; arts; and news and events. They accept pitches year-round and pay up to $1.25 per word. If interested, send your query letters to californiamag@alumni.berkeley.edu. For more information, read their Tweet and submission guidelines.

C Magazine is a Canada-based contemporary art and criticism periodical. They are accepting pitches for features (1,200-3,500 words), columns, and reviews (800-1,000 words) for their issue 149 “Community” (Summer 2021). They pay at least 35 cents per word. Pitches should be sent to editor@cmagazine.com. For details, refer to their Tweet and call for pitches.

Deadline: January 31st, 2021

Current is “the nonprofit news service for and about public media in the U.S.” Their primary audience consists of people who work at public radio and TV stations, networks and production companies. They “aim to provide public media professionals with valuable insights and information that helps them and their institutions reach new levels of success.” They are accepting story pitches from freelance journalists. They pay $0.75 per word. Send pitches to pitch@current.org. For details, refer to their digital editor’s Tweet and their writing guidelines.

The Fence is a London-based independent quarterly magazine. They ship internationally but focus around life in the capital. They are accepting pitches for Issue 7 and beyond. They are committed to promoting the work of young writers. They publish 4 kinds of pieces, which correspond to the 4 sections of their magazine: ‘facts’, ‘features’, ‘fiction’, and ‘etc’. According to one payment report, they paid £100 for a 1,200-word feature. Send pitches to info@the-fence.com. To learn more, read their Tweet and pitch guide.

Authors Publish publishes articles about various aspects of writing and publishing. They pay between $35 and $50 per article. To learn more, read their submission guidelines.

Reader’s Digest UK’s editor has tweeted, “Hey, bookworms! I’m looking for timely and engaging pitches about authors, books, and all things literary for the Reader’s Digest UK website.” She is especially looking for op-eds, listicles, guides, and interviews. They don’t mention their payment rates, but according to one payment report, they paid £450 for a feature. Email your pitches to eva.mackevic@readersdigest.co.uk. Read their editor’s Tweet here and find more contact information here.

Midwesterner is a newsletter that features “short stories about food and agriculture in the American Midwest.” They are seeking pitches. They are accepting fewer pitches these days but are always interested in pitches from BIPOC Midwesterners. They buy stories, tips, recipes, and how-tos. They pay $200 for the content of their weekly newsletter (200 to 400 words) and an additional $50 for a photo that accompanies your writing. Send your pitches to edit@midwesterner.org. You don’t have to be a professional writer to send them a pitch. For details, refer to their Twitter thread and pitch guide.

Xtra is a Toronto-based digital magazine and community platform that covers LGBTQ2 news, politics, culture, sex, love, and health. Their senior editor is accepting pitches on politics, identities, and queer stuff. Their rates generally start at $300 to $350 CAD for no reporting/little research. If interested, email your pitches to erica.lenti@xtramagazine.com. For more information, refer to their senior editor’s Tweet and this page.

Abstract automates work with high-quality / high availability APIs. They accept guest posts (guides or articles) for their blog. Pay: $100 per accepted guest post. To contribute, refer to this page.

Wired UK is a magazine that covers future science, culture, and technology news. Their senior editor has tweeted, “biannual reminder that I am commissioning culture stories for the Wired UK website – film, TV, gaming, internet culture, food, love, death, and more.” According to two payment reports, they paid £1,400 for a longread feature of 4,000 words. Email your pitches to amit@wired.co.uk. To learn more, read their editor’s Twitter thread and their contributor’s guidelines.

Art & About is an art blog and resource for Portland. Their submissions for 2021 are open. They are looking for reviews, articles, interviews, and critical writing. They “encourage all writers to explore questions, subjects, and artists that they feel are vital to understanding Portland, Oregon, and the greater Pacific Northwest contemporary art ecology.” They highly encourage submissions from BIPOC and/or LGBTQIA+ writers. For interviews, they pay $50 for about 2,000 words. For reviews and critical writing, they pay $50 for 500 to 750 words and $75 for 750 to 1,500 words. For submissions less than 500 words, they pay about $0.10 per word. For details, refer to this page.

How to Love Comics is a website that helps new comic book readers through reading recommendations, tips, lists, and other content. They are looking for pitches from comics critics about “Wonder Woman, Archie, Captain America, and Fantastic Four.” They will pay $50 AUD per piece. If interested, DM them on Twitter or send an email to contact@howtolovecomics.com. To learn more, refer to their Twitter thread. To contact them, refer to this page.

Anime Herald is a website that offers news, reviews, interviews, opinions, critiques, and commentary on anime and anime fandom. Their submission form is open. They will begin reviewing pitches starting February 8, 2021. They will pay $50 per article. To learn more, read their Tweet and contributor guidelines. To submit your pitch, visit this page.

Tribune is a UK-based democratic socialist political magazine. They are accepting pitches at editor@tribunemag.co.uk. According to one payment report, they paid £150 for a feature of 800 words. To learn more, refer to their online editor’s Twitter thread. To contact them, refer to this page.

The Breakdown is an online mental health magazine. Their newly appointed entertainment editor has tweeted, “Any celeb interviews, releases, TV/film launches, send them all my way! Also will be looking for pitches in the new year!” They pay £80 for 700 to 900 words and £100 for columns. Read their editor’s Tweet here and their pitching guidelines here.

Rungh is a Canadian magazine, artist space, archive, and more. They feature work by Indigenous, Black, and People of Color artists. They are looking for IBPOC writers for 2 separate profiles of 2 IBPOC CDN arts groups. They will pay $400 per piece (about 2,000 words). To learn more, refer to their Tweet. To contact them, refer to this page.

Knucklebone Magazine is a quarterly publication about analog roleplaying games. They are accepting pitches for their next issue themed Form. They are looking for pieces (at least 800 words) that “think critically about rpgs (including larps and board games with rp elements).” They will pay $60 per piece. Send your pitches to knucklebonemag@gmail.com. For details, refer to this Twitter thread and this page.

Deadline: January 17th, 2021