Dear Writers,
Here’s our latest roundup of calls for writers directly from editors and publishers.
All of these are paid opportunities. We’ve included payment rates and contact information for all of these publications.
Do not contact these publishers unless you know how to send a high quality pitch. That means carefully studying the publication. Watch this free lecture to learn how to send a pitch that wins over editors.
— Jacob Jans
Thanks to Fatima Saif for compiling this list
Outrider strives to be “an online source of hard-hitting commentary and journalism that calls for the end of nuclear weapons and action against the existential threat of climate change.” They are seeking new voices to produce climate and nuclear non-proliferation journalism. Their standard rate is $800/story. Their stories are usually 1,000-1,500 words. If interested, send your pitches to hello@outrider.org. You don’t need to be an expert to contribute. For details, read their Tweet and writer guidelines.
Lay It Out Magazine is looking for writers and artists: “Anything culturally and socially relevant worldwide. Focus on homelessness, grassroots activism, winter solstice/pagan winter this issue.” They pay 3p-5p/word or 4 cent-6 cent/word, with a max of 1,500 words. If interested, DM on Twitter or email layitoutmagazine@gmail.com. To learn more, refer to this Tweet.
Opportunity for BIPOC scholars: “We continue to solicit guest posts by BIPOC scholars about life in or choices to leave the academy. We pay $150 for accepted posts. 1,000 words ballpark; profanity welcome.” If interested, email a draft or query/pitch to gettenure@gmail.com. For details, refer to this Tweet.
The New Statesman is a UK news magazine and website. Their comment editor has tweeted, “Looking for some stellar writers with cheekiness, punchiness and interesting thoughts. Liberal voices, but also those who can challenge; Established writers, as well as talent that has been flying under the radar.” According to payment reports, they pay £100 to £600 per piece. They welcome pitches. If interested, email pravina.rudra@newstatesman.co.uk. To read their comment editor’s Twitter thread, click here. To contact them, click here.
The Fourth Estate is a public benefit cooperative that contributes to “a healthy society by fostering, supporting and incubating a sustainable and vibrant free press.” They are building a library of updated news and journalism training content and are seeking article pitches from news/journalism educators. Some suggested topics of immediate need are:
“- Writing a Straight News Leads
– How to Properly Create Straight News Bulletins
– English for Journalists (Parts I & II)
– Newswriting”
Rate is $300 to $1,200 per article. Send your pitches to pitches@fourthestate.org. To learn more, refer to this Twitter thread. To contact them, refer to this page.
TripSavvy is a travel website. They are seeking “experienced outdoor gear writers to test and review outdoor/adventure-focused gear.” They will pay $150 to $650 per assignment. If interested, email write@tripsavvy.com. To learn more, refer to their senior editorial director’s Tweet. To contact them, refer to this page.
Observer is a news, business, and entertainment website. Their arts editor is accepting arts pitches (features, interviews/profiles, reviews, and even essays if relevant). She covers “the arts, meaning fine arts, galleries, museums, artist profiles, arts labor, theater/dance/performance/opera, books (author interviews/ profiles are fun), the arts market/auctions, digital art/NFTs, and what’s hot / up and coming!” Rate is usually $200 to $300. Read their arts editor’s Twitter thread here and their pitch guide here.
The Inspired Source is a solutions-focused opinion piece series by EachOther (a UK-based human rights project). They are accepting pitches for opinion pieces (400-800 words) that “examine a human rights issue by which the writer or their community is affected.” They are especially interested in hearing from marginalized voices. They pay £100 per article. If interested, send your pitches to editorial@eachother.org.uk. To learn more, refer to this Twitter thread and this page.
It’s Freezing in LA! (IFLA!) is an independent magazine about climate change. They are looking for pitches for their 9th issue which is themed Climate & Health. They want features, interviews, and essays. They will pay £150/1,200 words. For more information, refer to their Twitter thread and pitching guidelines.
Deadline: December 31st, 2021
3Views is a new digital publication that offers multiple viewpoints on theater. They are looking for writers. They pay $300 for 600 to 800 words. Responses can be in any format i.e. audio, visual, written, etc. Read their co-editor’s Tweet here and contact them here.
Parents Magazine (Parents.com) helps parents raise happy, healthy kids. They are launching a new subbrand which will focus on Black families. They are looking for pitches for it. They want “pitches on Black history and the power of Black families that resist the white gaze.” Their rates start at $250. If interested, contact kelly.glass@meredith.com. To learn more, refer to this Twitter thread. To read Parents Magazine’s writer’s guidelines, refer to this page.
Wide Open Country is a website that covers country music, fashion, culture, food and drink, and lifestyle. They are looking for freelancers. Their rates start at $0.10/word. They pay more for long-form articles and interviews. To learn more, refer to their editor’s Tweet. To contact them, refer to this page.
Cosmopolitan UK is a women’s magazine for dating tips, sex advice, beauty tutorials, fashion trends, and celebrity news. Their acting features director is looking for pitches for their career/money section: “I’m looking for anything helpful for new year vibes. Maybe you sorted your finances out? Changed career? Spotted a TikTok work trend? Or maybe you worked with a career coach or manifested a new path in your worklife? I want fun/inspiring/original content.” They pay £150 to £200 for features. For details, read their acting features director’s Twitter thread and their pitch guide.
Business Insider is a website that covers business, financial, and technology news. Their editor has tweeted, “I’m back and looking as ever for your pitches – particularly interested, still, in festive content. Do you have a great story to tell about the business/logistics/money side of Christmas? Or access to an interviewee who does?” Rates start at £200 for the quickest stories. Pitches should be sent to jsommers@insider.com. Read their editor’s Tweet here and learn how to write for them here.
Reader’s Digest UK is a general interest family magazine. They are seeking fresh ideas from health writers for “the new year around topics like mental health, weight loss/fitness & specific health conditions.” They welcome listicles and how-to guides. They pay £70-£100 for web and £300-£400 for print. If interested, send your pitches before Christmas to eva.mackevic@readersdigest.co.uk. To learn more, refer to this Tweet. To contact them, refer to this page.
Game Developer is a website that focuses on video game development and industry. They are accepting pitches for feature-length articles from freelancers. Their rates start at $200 for about 800 words. Send your pitches to features@gamedeveloper.com. To learn more, refer to their senior editor’s Twitter thread. To contact them, refer to this page.
Perspectives on History is the news magazine of the American Historical Association (AHA)-an organization that serves historians in all fields and professions. They publish 9 times a year in print and online. Their editor is accepting pitches for articles of around 1,500 words. The pitches can be about “all aspects of the practice of history—from the public square to the private study.” They will pay authors an honorarium of $100. For details, refer to their editor’s Twitter thread and their submissions page.
Stanford Social Innovation Review (SSIR) is a quarterly print magazine and website that covers “cross-sector solutions to global problems.” They are based at Stanford University’s Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society. They aim to inform leaders of social change. They are seeking journalists who have “experience reporting on nonprofits and the social sector more broadly.” They pay $600 for 800-word articles and $1,500 for 1,700-word articles. They are also seeking book reviewers who are knowledgeable of the social sector. They pay $600 for 1,700-word book reviews. For details, refer to this Tweet and their submission guidelines.
The i Paper is a British national newspaper. Their assistant opinion editor is always seeking opinion pitches (time-sensitive or evergreen). They pay 25 per word. Pitches should be emailed to kuba.shand-baptiste@inews.co.uk. To learn more, refer to their assistant opinion editor’s Tweet and their opinion section’s pitch guide.
BBC Future covers science, technology, food, health, climate change, and more. Their editor has tweeted, “I’m looking for pitches on early warning systems for Future Planet.” “I’m interested in solutions stories on the systems that warn us about impending disasters, from earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis to floods, disease, drought and famine.” “Stories should centre around one or two specific systems in a specific place, and should be evidence-based. We’re looking for a good spread of global stories, and prioritise local (within-country) reporting.” According to payment reports, they pay £800 for 2,000-word features. Send your pitches to jocelyn.timperley@bbc.com. To read their editor’s Twitter thread, click here. To read Future Planet’s articles, click here.
Deadline: December 10th, 2021
Refinery29 UK is a media and entertainment company that focuses on young women. Their entertainment editor has tweeted, “Looking for all pitches around the new upcoming Tracy Beaker series – The Beaker Girls – feel strongly about any aspect of it/disappointed/review/nostalgia pieces? Please send my way maybelle.morgan@vice.com.” They generally pay £180-£220. Read their entertainment editor’s Tweet here. View their website here.
Fabulous Magazine by The Sun is a women’s magazine that covers fashion, beauty, health, fitness, diet, travel, real life stories, and more. Their beauty and lifestyle writer has tweeted, “Please pitch me beauty real-lives stories! Anything xmas related, cosmetic treatments/botox, money spent on beauty etc, for paid, non-anon features.” According to their deputy features editor, they pay £350 for 1,000 words. Send your pitches to rosie.gizauskas@fabulousmag.co.uk. To learn more, refer to this Tweet and their website.
Mpora is a UK-based website and print magazine about adventure, action sports, nature, the outdoors, fitness, and gear. They are seeking pitches for Issue 2 and Issue 3. One of the magazines will be spring/summer focused and the other one will be more autumn/winter focused. Rate is 20p per word. Pitches should be sent to jack.clayton@anydaymedia.com. To learn more, refer to their editor’s Twitter thread. To contact them, refer to this page.
Insider Life is the lifestyle section of Insider. Their daily features editor is seeking pitches for longform, reported features (1,000-2,000 words). The beats that they cover are: entertainment, digital culture, health, food and drink, fashion and beauty, home and design, travel, and the royals. According to payment reports, they pay up to $1/word for deeply reported features. If interested, email your pitches to apape@insider.com. To learn more, refer to their features editor’s Tweet and their pitch guide.
NYT Magazine’s editor is looking for short, fun features: “Pitch me all the playful yarns, the wild romps, the delicious, the sexy, the sweet, the bright.” Rate is about $1-$2 per word. To read their editor’s Twitter thread, click here. To visit their website, click here.
The Progress Network is “a movement that speaks to a better future in a world dominated by voices that suggest a worse one.” They are accepting pitches. They would love to receive substantive good news, solutions journalism stories, constructive opinions on current affairs, and “progress-oriented takes on historical, psychological, philosophical, and cultural themes.” They are seeking reported articles, opinion essays and think pieces, interviews, reviews, and listicles. For something like a listicle, their rates start at $100. While for a long reported feature, their rates top out at about $1,000. For more information, refer to their Tweet and pitch and submission guidelines.
What’s Next Magazine is an online magazine and newsletter that publishes solutions journalism stories regarding alternatives to policing. They are looking to commission some solutions stories regarding alternatives to policing before this year is up. They are paying $0.15 per word. Email your pitches to editor.whatsnext@gmail.com. For more information, refer to their Tweet and this page.
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 are looking for a freelance Contributing Writer, Caregiving who will regularly contribute to their coverage of caregiving. The selected applicant will write 1-2 reported news stories (1,200 words/piece) per month. This is a 6 month contract position. Pay is $1,000/month. For details, refer to their Tweet and this page.
Deadline: December 13th, 2021
Reader’s Digest UK is a general interest family magazine. Their editor is accepting pitches for quirky, funny or uplifting Christmas listicles for their website. According to one payment report, they paid £450 for a feature. Send your pitches to anna.walker@readersdigest.co.uk. To learn more, refer to their editor’s Tweet. To contact them, refer to this page.
Hashnode is a free developer blogging platform. They are seeking writers to help them document the path to decentralization on their new Web3 blog. They will pay $150 to $400. If you are passionate about Web3 and are a good storyteller, then refer to this Tweet and this form for more information.
Haymarket Business Media is a media, data, and information company that provides “remarkable content to specialist audiences across the world.” They are looking for B2B freelancers or versatile freelancers. They are mostly looking for UK-based freelancers as they want them to cover live events often. Rates will start from 35p per word. If interested, contact edward.craig@haymarket.com. To learn more, refer to this Tweet. To contact them, refer to this page.
