Ah, pitching. It’s one of the many skills that a writer needs to learn if they plan to get published. First, let’s take a step back and talk about what a pitch actually is. A pitch is an email you write to an editor explaining a story idea that you feel is perfect for their publication, in hopes that they’ll agree and commission you to write the article. It’s not just any email, though — you’ll want to craft a concise description and explain why you’re the best person to write the piece and in about 500 words or less. You’re not sending them the entire written story — called writing on spec. Instead, you’re writing a shorthand version of your story that allows an editor to understand what the story is about, what will go in it and why they should commission you to write it. I’ve been a freelance writer and editor for almost 10 years now, so I’ve seen and sent a lot of pitches. Here are some of the best tips and practices on how to pitch that I’ve picked up along the way.
Before you pitch
Don’t even think about pitching an idea to a publication until you’ve done your research. If you’re thinking about pitching to a site or magazine, chances are you’re at least familiar with their genre. From there, read through some articles and get a better sense of these things:
- Who is their audience: Millennials? Baby boomers? Families? Adventure-seekers?
- What kind of language do they use: Industry speak? Slang? Conversational?
- What content types are they publishing: quick-hit listicles? Long-form? A variety?
- Has your topic already been covered? If so, is there another angle you could approach it from?
- To whom should you send your pitches? Scroll down to the footer and look for a link to a contributor page or check the contacts to see if there’s more information there.
How to pitch and what to include
The days of mailing in pitches are (mostly) gone. As with everything else, email will be your primary way to contact editors. You’ll need to do some testing and see what works best for you, but there are some things that every pitch should have. The example that I’ll use throughout this article is a real pitch that was accepted for Earth Island Journal. Attention-grabbing subject line The first thing the editor sees is the subject line. I typically put “PITCH: [proposed title]” in my subject lines or if the title isn’t quite worked out yet, something interesting. I add “PITCH” so that it stands out among the other emails that editors get throughout their day and so they can clearly see that it’s a story idea for them to review. We also know that subject lines get cut off if they’re too long, so you have to keep it within 65 characters or so. In my pitch to the Earth Island Journal, my subject line was “PITCH: Endangered foods because of climate change.” It immediately conveys the story. It’s a timely topic, and because I had done my research ahead of time, I knew this was something that they hadn’t covered already and since they have an environmental focus, I knew this story would be a good fit. Note: If your pitch is related to a timely event, put “TIME-SENSITIVE PITCH” in your subject line. If you’re feeling the urge to get creative, go for it. Editors get tons of pitches every single day — you’ve got to make yours stand out, so if it’s appropriate (based on the magazine’s tone) to get silly, funny, or even a bit obscene, that can help your pitch stand out among the rest. Attention-grabbing opening sentence Just as there are several ways to start a story, you have different options for starting your pitch and none of them are necessarily wrong, but make sure you start with something interesting. Give them a taste of what they can expect if they assign you the story. There are several different ways you could open your pitch. In the case of the endangered foods pitch, I started with the thesis of my entire article: Certain foods are going to become more and more difficult to grow as climate change gets worse because they can only be grown in certain regions. I could’ve also started that pitch with a question, such as: Did you know that some of the most popular foods in the world may disappear due to climate change? Depending on the topic, you might want to jump into the action or set the scene. For example, if you were pitching a piece to a wellness magazine about the benefits of lavender, you might start your pitch: “I was walking among lavender plants at the largest plantation in the world when I realized the calming power of the scent.” When it comes to starting your pitch, the only hard-and-fast rule it to capture the editor’s interest while giving a clear idea of your story idea and what you will cover. If you ramble on for several paragraphs but don’t get to the point quick enough, I won’t keep reading. Share on X Reel them in As an editor, I’ve seen pitches ranging from a couple of sentences to several paragraphs. Pitches are supposed to be short, but if you don’t give your editor a clear enough idea of what you’d like to write about (or why you’re qualified to write it), they will just delete your email. If you ramble on for several paragraphs but don’t get to the point quickly enough, I won’t keep reading. That’s why it’s so important to have a solid opening sentence and then get to the point. You’ll hear different opinions about how long your pitch should be, but most editors agree that around 500 words or less is ideal. My pitches are rarely more than 1-2 paragraphs. Once you get that opening sentence, be sure to answer the big question: Why should they publish this story now and what’s important or timely about it? Sometimes you need to come out and state your reasons and sometimes it’s obvious already in your pitch. You need to make sure it’s clear. Climate change is something that has been a hot topic for a few years now, so talking about foods that could be impacted by it is fairly obvious. Here’s my complete pitch: Certain foods are going to become more and more difficult to grow as climate change gets worse because they can only be grown in certain regions. And I’m not talking about obscure foods, I’m talking about things like avocados, chocolate, and potatoes. I’d love to write a piece about foods that could disappear because of climate change, which would list the foods as well as what makes them “endangered”. More than just a listicle, I envision this as an in-depth piece about the foods and what might be going on in the specific regions of the world where they are found. I could also include some of the indigenous crops that we might want to re-develop as climate change affects our food supply, such as amaranth, enset, and the Hinkelhatz pepper. Here, I got their attention in the first two sentences, specifically told them what I’d like to write the story about and what it would look like, and then gave them some examples so they knew I’d done my research. Tell them why you’re the perfect person to write the story After you set-up your story, tell them why you’re the one who should write it. What are your credentials? Do you have any links to other stories in a similar genre? Again, you don’t need more than a few sentences here, because if they like your pitch, they’re going to assign you the story. Your credentials aren’t as important unless you’re already well-known in the industry. My credential paragraph changes based on who I’m pitching to because I write about a variety of different topics. If I’m pitching a soccer idea, I’m not going to talk about my health and wellness clips. In this case, I said: A little about me: I’ve been a writer/editor since 2009, covering topics from adventure travel to human/environmental issues to education. I have been published in Washington Magazine, Upworthy, Rodale’s Organic Life, Women’s Health, and Outside Online. You can find clips on my website here. And make sure to link directly to your clips. No attachments. Always say thank you I end my pitch with: “thank you for your time and consideration and I hope to hear from you soon.” It’s important to acknowledge that your value an editor’s time and effort, even if they reject your pitch.
Track your pitches and follow-up
As you get more practice pitching, you’ll find your own way of keeping track of everything. If you’re just getting started, it doesn’t have to be anything complicated. It can be a simple spreadsheet with:
- The publication/editor you pitched
- When you sent the pitch
- When you should follow up
- If they accepted/rejected your idea
Some publications will tell you to wait x number of weeks before following up in the contributor guidelines. If you can’t find anything, two weeks is a good general rule to wait before sending another email to ask if they are interested in your idea. If your pitch is timely, follow-up in a couple of days. If you haven’t heard back, that doesn’t necessarily mean your pitch wasn’t accepted. A huge number of writers don’t want to bother editors, so they don’t write to make sure the editor received their pitch or to follow up. It’s good you don’t want to be a bother, but if you’re even thinking that way, it’s likely you can be more aggressive in your follow up.. Follow up if you’re not sure. It never hurts as long as you’re respectful. At the end of the day, the most important thing is to keep pitching. Set a goal and send out a certain number of pitches per week. Your pitches will never be perfect, but just like your writing, you’ll learn how to pitch more effectively and get better with practice.
