There are calls for 22 themed non-fiction/article pitches/submissions from the 16 markets listed here. Some of the themes are: electricity; emerge; overlooked &/or whitewashed historical events; coffee/tea; farce; celebrate adoption; holiday wishes; and inspiration. Some of them list pitch or submission deadlines but many do not, so it is best to get pitches in early. – S. Kalekar
Poets & Writers: Inspiration
This is a magazine for writers of poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction. Their editorial content is divided into four sections: News & Trends:brief articles about pertinent information in the writing and publishing industries; 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: profiles of and interviews with contemporary writers in current American literature. Other features include articles and essays that look at subjects of interest to creative writers, such as writers’ conferences and residencies, small presses, regional writing, and the distinctions of genre. They accept both, proposals and articles on spec. For January/February 2021, the theme is Inspiration. Details here (submission guidelines) and here (theme).
Taproot Magazine: Roots; Emerge
This is a magazine of food, farm, family and craft. The magazine is divided into three sections: Head – essays about living a more connected life; Hands – recipes, crafts and projects to make yourself; and Heart – the personal experience of more connected living. The deadline for their Roots theme is 1 October; and for Emerge, it is 1 December 2020. There are other themes listed, as well. Payment varies depending on the type and length of submission. Details here.
Cobblestone Magazine: Three themes
This is an American history magazine for children ages 9-14 from Cricket Media. They are currently accepting queries on Revolutionary War in the South (deadline 1 October 2020); Santa Fe Trail (deadline 1 November 2020); and Electricity (deadline 1 December 2020). Articles should have historical accuracy and lively, original approaches to the subject at hand – they publish features (in-depth non-fiction, plays, first-person accounts, and biographies), and supplemental non-fiction (subjects directly and indirectly related to the theme — editors like little-known information but encourage writers not to overlook the obvious). They also publish fiction (authentic historical and biographical fiction, adventure, and retold legends relating to the theme), activities (crafts, recipes, woodworking, or any other interesting projects that can be done either by children alone or with adult supervision), theme-related poetry, as well as puzzles and games. The deadlines are given above. Details here.
Repeller: Indigenous perspectives on CA wildfires, and more
Repeller is a magazine of style (beauty & wellness, fashion, home & design), life (career & money, culture, relationships), and shopping (fashion, beauty & wellness, home & design). The editor recently Tweeted about what they want pitches on: “Cardi B entering her power and leaving whats his name behind, Kim K’s shapewear line, Indigenous perspectives on CA wildfires, apocalyptic visions, etc” (Contact details in profile). Pay is up to $300 for reported pieces. See the magazine home page here to get a feel for the kind of stories they publish, and their general contact page is here.
Antiracismdaily: Overlooked &/or whitewashed historical events
The editor of antiracismdaily.com has called for pitches; “especially looking for articles that blend personal experience+research to explain overlooked &/or whitewashed historical events” and pitches from Indigenous writers. They also ask writers to look at their archive or Instagram to get a sense of their style and see what they have covered before. Pay is $300 for 800-1,000 words. See the Tweet here, and general contact page here.
Family Story: Blog series on anti-Black racism
Family Story is a think tank “to recognize, validate, and protect the many ways individuals form and re-form families”, and works to address and dismantle family privilege in America. They are running a blog series that examines the ways anti-Black racism affects individuals and families and perpetuates the cycle of anti-Black violence. They want essays that discuss your firsthand account of racism in various ways: towards children, using coded language in personal and professional settings, police violence – see guidelines for details and suggested topics. Submissions should be 600-1,000 words. Pay is $100. Details here (submission call) and here (‘About’ page).
Calibration Notes: Coffee/tea
gofundbean (their tagline is “coffee people helping coffee people”) announced on Twitter that they want pitches for coffee/tea articles for their Patreon newsletter, Calibration Notes. They want 3-5 sentence pitches on “Any coffee/tea story that you care about, esp. ones you don’t see talked about much elsewhere.” The finished articles will be 700-1,000 words. Pay is $200. Details here.
Pulitzer Center: Connected Coastlines Grants
This is an opportunity for US-based journalists. The Pulitzer Center is seeking applications from journalists who want to report stories as part of Connected Coastlines, a nationwide climate reporting initiative in U.S. coastal states. Their guidelines say, “We are eager to receive proposals from staff journalists and freelancers who wish to report on coastal stories, underpinned by recent climate science, data, or research, for publication or broadcast by small and regional news outlets in U.S. coastal states. The ideal reporting window for these projects from grant approval to publication is three months. We will look favorably on proposals with timelines for publication prior to November 2020.” The ideal range for most awards will be between $2,000 to $8,000. Grants are open now and approved on a rolling basis. Details here.
Reckoning 5: Environmental Justice
They want creative writing (creative non-fiction, fiction, poetry) about environmental justice. For prose their guidelines say, “For Reckoning 5, I want stories that elicit a sense of wonder about the environment. We all know that biodiversity is endangered, but our hyper-urban lifestyles are making us so out of touch with the natural world that it’s sometimes easier to imagine complete environmental destruction than to look at the environment we still do have. … I will consider exceptional stories that fall somewhat outside of that theme, as long as they address the topic of environmental justice.” Their general guidelines say, “Fiction preferably at least a tiny bit speculative, nonfiction preferably more creative than journalistic, poetry tending towards the narrative and preferably with some thematic heft, art leaning away from the pulpy heavily towards the political. But the heart of what we want is your searingly personal, visceral, idiosyncratic understanding of the world and the people in it as it has been, as it is, as it will be, as it could be, as a consequence of humanity’s relationship with the earth.” They actively seek work from Indigenous writers and artists, writers and artists of color, queer and transgender writers and artists, and anyone who has suffered the consequences, intended or otherwise, of dominant society’s systemic disconnect with and mistreatment of the natural world. They also welcome writing in Spanish, French or Swedish for potential translation, and work already translated into English, for which they pay the same rate to both author and translator. Pay is 8c/word, up to 20,000 words for prose. The deadline is 22 September 2020. Details here (general guidelines) and here (submission portal).
Bright Wall/Dark Room: Farce
They publish essays on movies and TV series, and they’re reading now on the ‘Farce’ theme. Their guidelines say, ““Farce” may sound like a specific subgenre, but think of it as any story about characters tripping over themselves as they try to keep a ludicrous plan in the air. There’s the prototypical European farce (La Cage aux Folles; The Importance of Being Earnest), but the term can apply to everything from classic slapstick (the Marx brothers) to uncomfortably current satire (In the Loop). Farce can be pure escapist mayhem (What’s Up Doc?l It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World) or something far more pointed (The Producers; Dr. Strangelove, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb). … Beneath all the wordplay and mayhem, though, farce points out the absurdity of the world around us, and asks: it’s funny, right? The answer is usually yes—but then there’s the harder question that follows: why? And what does our laughter say about our tastes, our perspectives, and our needs?” They publish critical essays between 2,000-4,000 words, though they also publish in other, longer formats. Pay is $100, and the deadline for this theme is 3 October 2020. They are also accepting unthemed submissions. Details here (pitching guide) and here (Submittable).
Audubon: Overlooked figures in North American birding, environmental, and conservation history
Their editor announced a called for themed pitches on Twitter: “This fall, Audubon will launch an ongoing series of profiles about overlooked figures who helped shape North American birding, environmental, and conservation history. Our goal is to supplement the record with stories of those who were excluded from historical narratives because of marginalized identities or backgrounds. We want to hear about unrecognized leaders or witnesses to history, innovators, and unsung heroes who made a difference. We’re looking for short pitches that describe the person’s contributions and how they were overlooked, and point to your sources or how you plan to report/research the piece.” Pitches are due 1 October, and pay is $0.50/word for 800-word profiles. Details here.
C Magazine: Winter/Spring 2021
This magazine is interested in writing that addresses Canadian art. It looks at art and its various contexts, and at trends and emerging perspectives through a mix of editorials, columns, in-depth essays, interviews, artist projects and reviews. They accept pitches for features (1,200-3,500 words), artist projects, reviews (800-1,000 words), and columns. They are reading pitches for features and reviews for their open Winter/Spring 2021 issue, and they suggest these themes (see guidelines for extensive details): “How does uncertainty (re)model our priorities? How do new demands for plasticity in all our activities fundamentally challenge the idea of planning, of working, of art-making? How has the widespread slackening of the capitalist clock transformed our understandings of what we’re doing and what’s being done to us? How has this enforced chapter of pause allowed us to see the trouble, wealth, and wonder that stirs behind frantic facades? How have recent events forced us to reconsider the ages-old tension between art and politics?” Feature, artist project, and column pitches are due 30 September; review pitches are due 10 October 2020. Details here.
DeSoto Magazine: Holiday Wishes & More
This monthly upscale lifestyles magazine is focused on stories about life in Mississippi, Memphis and the Mid-South. They accept pitches for articles about people, cuisine, history, southern culture, human interest, travel, gardening, health and the arts. Rates are $50 for On the Road, $100 for essays and In Good Spirits, $175 for most departments, and to $240 for features. The deadline for their December issue, on the Holiday Wishes & More theme, is 15 October 2020. Details here.
Telegraph Travel: Australia
The editor recently announced a call for pitches on Twitter for expert, timeless pieces on Australia, for Telegraph Travel UK; ideally fresh angles on areas they haven’t covered before. Pay is 25p/word. Details here (Twitter call) and here (home page).
Adoptive families: Celebrate adoption + Foster adoption; Rituals & Celebrations + Annual gift guide
This digital magazine is an information resource for parents before, during, and after adoption. They provide adoption parenting advice and real families’ stories. They accept both personal essays and reported articles; for reported articles, they prefer queries. According to their Media Kit, for November 2020, the themes are Celebrate adoption + Foster adoption; for December, they are Rituals & Celebrations + Annual gift guide. Details here (writers’ guidelines) and here (themes – scroll down).
The New York Times: Modern Love
Submissions for Modern Love column are open again; the current submission period is September through December. They announced on Twitter recently that they especially encourage BIPOC to submit, as well as those outside of the United States and people who identify as members of L.G.B.T.Q.I.A.+ communities. Modern Love publishes honest personal essays about contemporary relationships, of 1,500-1,700 words – see guidelines for further details and examples of past published essays; pay is $500. Submissions are also open for Tiny Love Stories (of 100 words), though these are unpaid. Details here (Tweet) and here (submission guidelines – you need to create a free account or log in to access these).
Author Bio: S. Kalekar is the pseudonym of a regular contributor to this magazine. She is the author of 182 Short Fiction Publishers. She can be reached here.
