Here’s our latest research on publishers seeking essays and personal stories from freelance writers.

We’ve researched payment rates and found contact information for all of these publishers, but you may need to still negotiate rates.

If you’re new to freelance writing, I recommend watching this before contacting any of these publishers.

Thanks to Fatima Saif for her research.

– Jacob Jans

Emotional Baggage is a series by AirBnb Magazine that will explore how travel can help heal mental illness. The series will “explore the intersections of mental health, identity, and travel.” They are accepting essay pitches. Rates will start at $500 and up per essay. For details, refer to this Twitter thread and this pitch form.

Metro.co.uk covers news, lifestyle, fashion, health, food, sex, soaps, entertainment, travel, sports, property, weather, and more. Their commissioning producer is always looking for topical first person pieces- coronavirus or not. According to one payment report, they paid £100 per 1,000 words for an online article. Send pitches to james.besanvalle@metro.co.uk. To learn more, refer to this Tweet. To contact them, refer to this page.

My Little Quarantine is “a series from Greatist about the niche pockets of our current times.” They want writers to pitch “a Covid-19 adjacent story that gives all the feels and is even more important right now.” They pay $400 to $500 for features and reported stories, $300 to $400 for personal essays, and $150 to $200 for shorts and recipes. Send pitches to cyuen@healthline.com. To learn more, refer to their senior editor’s Twitter thread and this page.

Amendo offers creative, engaging, and thoughtful content on community, spirituality, living a meaningful life, relationships, and career for people in their 20s. They are always seeking new writers. They want 500-word essays, fun listicles, and longer magazine style features. They pay $75 for a 500 to 600 word piece. To learn more, refer to this Tweet and this page.

Prism is a nonprofit that is working in tandem with Daily Kos. They elevate “stories, ideas, and solutions from leaders, thinkers, and activists whose voices are critical to a reflective democracy.” They are seeking pitches for articles, essays, and op-eds. They pay 40 cents per word. They are also seeking comics, graphic stories, or other illustrated work, for which they pay $150 to $500. To learn more, refer to their call for pitches.

AnswersForMe, a Christian website that “offers support and encouragement for every-day life, ” is currently seeking essays that address human motivation, passion and discovery! Why do you get up in the morning? What excites you about life? What do you want to be, ‘when you grow up?'” They are offering $75 for short 300 to 500 words. Learn more here.

The Bold Italic is a blog covering the San Francisco Bay area. They cover the ways the bay area is rapidly changing, and how the city functions. They publish personal essays, reported pieces, humor, interviews, and profiles. They typically pay $50 per article. To learn more, read their submission guidelines.