Atlas Obscura publishes “secret histories, dispatches from odd gatherings, on-the-ground coverage of overlooked locales, profiles of fascinating characters, and anything with an element of surprise and a sense of place.”

They pay professional rates for their Stories section. While they don’t publish the rate the pay, recent reports have shown rates of $200 to $500 per story, though it does seem to vary significantly.

According to their submission guidelines:

“For the Stories section, we are seeking original journalism. Stories that will surprise us and article ideas that would never have occurred to us but that we won’t be able to stop thinking and talking about. We pay for stories, at rates competitive with other online-only publications.

 

Our stories generally have at least two of the following three components:

 

• A sense of place

• An element of the hidden

• A sense of wonder”

They are a quite established publisher, with a successful website, as well as succesfull print books.

To learn more, read their submission guidelines.