Ashley Broadwater is a lot of things: a writer, a friend, a girlfriend, a passionate woman. She is a mental health advocate, and, a body positivity enthusiast.
Guidelines, rates, my experiences, and more.
s a recent college graduate in a pandemic, I’ve struggled to find a traditional job. However, I’ve always had an interest in freelance writing. I love a lot of publications and working for myself, making the option ideal in those ways. Throughout my pitching and freelance endeavors — the failures and the successes — I’ve been thankful that Medium’s Partner Program has helped keep me afloat.
However, after several months of freelance writing, I’m ready to dive into other publications. I’ve learned you truly have to try, be brave, and put yourself out there, even when it’s hard. Anthony Moore’s article about how you can’t possibly do something poorly 52 times in a row also encouraged me and has stayed on my mind. Plus, I know pitching helps you build relationships with editors and gets your name out into the world.
If you’re hunting for publications that pay like I am, the following information may help.
1. POPSUGAR Voices
What They Look For
POPSUGAR aims to celebrate diverse stories with an encouraging, upbeat tone. The editors love stories pertaining to body image, parenting, fitness, shopping guides, pop culture theories, relationships, and more. You can find additional information and examples of those stories on the website.
Guidelines
Submission guidelines and more information are on the website as well.
Next Steps
You can submit a story through this website. You should hear back with an acceptance or rejection within 30 days. If they accept your story, they’ll likely also add you to a dashboard where you can pitch additional stories and accept prompts from editors.
Rate
$50–100 per article (after your first article is published) within 30 days after publication.
My Experience
I’ve been a part of POPSUGAR’s Voices program since June, and I’m so thankful for that. The editors are kind and helpful, and often it’s an easy and fun way to make $50 here and there.
2. Bitch Media
What They Look For
Currently, Bitch is looking for pitches about timely pop culture and political pieces. For example, see this Twitter thread from the senior editor.
Guidelines
Bitch has a thorough set of guidelines for various kinds of submissions.
Next Steps
You can email your pitch to the senior editor, Rachel, at rachel@b-word.org. If you don’t hear back in a week, feel free to check-in via email. You can also pitch through Submittable.
Rate
$150–175 for digital stories, usually within 2–3 days of publication.
My Experience
While my pitches haven’t been accepted by Bitch yet, the editors always reply in a kind and timely manner.
3. SELF Magazine
What They Look For
SELF’s categories are health, fitness, food, beauty, love, and lifestyle. The editors are looking for stories pertaining to personal or public health and wellness. Currently, they’re focusing mostly on service journalism, which is actionable, but they also take product roundups, cultural criticisms, the occasional feature, and service stories based on personal experience (but not personal essays). For more information and examples, see the article on pitching.
Guidelines
For guidelines and more information, see that same article.
Next Steps
The pitching article contains the editors’ emails, what kinds of pitches they each take, and what to include in your pitch. Make sure your pitch entails each element listed!
Rate
$300 an article is the current base rate for stories with minimal to no reporting, but reported stories start at $400 and features start at $800.
My Experience
I just started pitching SELF editors, and I’m feeling excited. The one-week turnaround and great pay encourage me, and I love the work they produce.
4. BuzzFeed READER
What They Look For
BuzzFeed READER takes personal essays on almost any topic (family, food, religion, sex, disability, hormones, body image, drugs, travel, race, and more) and timely cultural criticisms. If your article doesn’t fit one of these categories, they may still take it — see examples of what they’ve taken on the submission article.
Guidelines
Guidelines, word count details, and more information are also in that article.
Next Steps
Pitch your idea to reader.pitches@buzzfeed.com. If you’re pitching a personal essay, they suggest sending your first draft instead of a pitch. If they’re interested, they’ll get back to you within two weeks.
Rate
The website says they pay competitive rates. Who Pays Writers says the average for BuzzFeed is $0.22 a word.
5. VOX
What They Look For
For their First Person section, VOX is looking for diverse writers, even those who may need support with writing. They’re looking for personal pieces and have had the most success with ones focused on parenting, relationships, money, identity, mental health, and workplace issues.
Vox is looking for other content as well, such as The Goods (a money series), The Highlight (features), Future Perfect (meat coverage), Science (as well as its intersection with politics and the economy), and more.
Guidelines
You can find guidelines, examples of accepted stories, and more on the website.
Next Steps
Send your pitch or draft to the email listed along with the section you’re pitching, listed on the website. If you send a pitch, include what you want to write about, personal experience or qualifiers, and the basic points you want to make.
Rate
The website says they’ll discuss payment specifics upon the acceptance of your draft or pitch. One writer on Who Pays Writers reported getting paid $0.33 a word.
Pitching takes practice, and I’ll be the first to comfort you in saying I too have been rejected and ignored many times. Even freelance writers who make $10,000 a month have been.
I’m choosing to remember that even rejections teach us something. They help us learn how to better market ourselves and our work. They remind us we still and always have more to learn. And they make the acceptances even more exciting.
I encourage you to push yourself to pitch these publications or others and to try to not get too down if they reject or ignore your pitch. It happens to everyone, and your time is coming!
source: https://bettermarketing.pub/