Pitching stories is an art that many of us figure out through trial and error. Having never gone to journalism school, I had to teach myself how to pitch stories during reporting internships and jobs. Along the way, I learned what worked and what didn’t.
Now, as a journalism professor at the University of Texas at Austin, I make a concerted effort to teach my students the ins and outs of pitching — especially in my Longform Feature Writing class. I also like sharing pointers with professional writers, knowing that many people who pitch freelance stories to media outlets don’t have a journalism background.
As a freelancer myself, I want to impart some lessons learned from recent essays I’ve pitched (and published) with hopes that you can practically apply them to your own work. Keep in mind that the difference between a “yes” and a “no” from an editor often comes down to the strength of your pitch — and your ability to clearly articulate a focused idea.
Six questions to ask yourself before crafting a pitch
1.) Is my pitch based on a topic, or an actual idea? You want to make sure you’re not pitching a huge topic, but rather a focused idea.
When my students share pitches about broad topics (such as, “I want to write a story about homelessness,”) I remind them that they have to narrow their focus. I then help them figure out how they can tackle this huge issue through a smaller lens: a specific homeless shelter, for instance, or a local leader who is working to help the homeless population in meaningful ways. As my longtime mentor Roy Peter Clark taught me: It’s better to write a lot about a little topic than a little about a big topic.
(See this recent Write at the Edge post featuring 10 questions to spark personal essay ideas.)
2.) Can I write a headline for the piece I want to publish? If you can’t, this may be an indication that your story idea isn’t yet focused enough. (It could also mean that headline-writing isn’t one of your strengths, which is OK!) I’m not the best at writing headlines, but I always try to craft one before writing a pitch. Doing so clues me in to whether I have a focused enough idea.
In the past, I’ve worked with editors who responded to my pitches by asking me to send a few sample headlines. Their reasoning? Strong headlines can help determine a piece’s likelihood of getting read. In those cases, the editors said “yes” to my pitch after I sent them some compelling headlines.
3.) Has the publication I’m reaching out to already written about this topic? If so, you want to consider what else you can add to the conversation and how your piece will be different. If the story you want to tell is too similar to the one that was already published, you should consider pitching a different publication.
People have different philosophies on this, but unless a piece is super time-sensitive and I need to find a home for it quickly, I usually pitch one editor at a time instead of several all at once. This way, I can avoid the awkward situation of having two or more editors respond to say they want the piece only to have to tell them that I’ve found a home for it elsewhere. I set calendar reminders to send follow-up responses if I don’t hear back. There have been many instances when I’ve followed up twice and gotten a “yes” after sending that third email. The timing of these follow-ups depends on how time-sensitive the piece is.
4.) Is there a timely angle to my story? Media outlets are more likely to want to publish a piece if it’s timely and relevant. If the piece is tied to the news, great. If not, you might have to get creative about what makes it “timely.”
Once, for instance, I was looking for a timely angle for a personal essay about my complicated relationship with vegetarianism. I realized that National Vegetarianism Day was just one month away, so I included this detail in my pitch to the Tampa Bay Times. It appealed to the editor, who ran the story on that day. Similarly, I pitched another essay to the Los Angeles Times about small acts of self-love and suggested it could be a good fit for Valentine’s Day. The editor liked the idea and ran the piece on February 14.
5.) Do I know anyone at the publication? Having connections at the news outlet you want to write for is hugely helpful, but it’s not critical. There have been plenty of times when I’ve pitched pieces to publications that I don't have any connections to. In these cases, I do a little digging to find out which editor would be the best one to contact. (I much prefer pitching actual people instead of generic email addresses.) If the publication has a pitch form (like this one, which I used when pitching recent piece for Teen Vogue) use it as a helpful resource.
6.) Are you ready for possible rejections? Rejection is par for the course with pitching. Case in point: One of my recent personal essays was rejected by eight different editors at various publications, but the ninth one I reached out to said yes. That’s more rejections than I typically get for a piece, but I stuck with it until I got a positive response.
Sometimes this amount of rejections can signal that you may need to strengthen your pitch. Other times, it’s a matter of finding an editor who believes in a piece that others just don’t see the value in for whatever reason. Seeing the published piece was a reminder that the path to publication takes persistence.
Six components of a good pitch
Over the years, I’ve refined my approach to pitches and have landed on a strategy that works well. It includes six key components (in this order):
1.) A compelling hook. Rather than beginning with a bland line like “My name is Mallary, and I’d like to write about …” it’s much more powerful to start with a mini anecdote about the story you want to tell. This is a chance to show off your writing skills and captivate your audience (aka the editor you’re pitching). You don’t want this hook to be long and drawn out. The goal isn’t to write half your story in your pitch; it’s to succinctly show why your story is worth telling. A paragraph or two will suffice.
2.) A description of the piece you want to write. In this paragraph, you want to show how your hook connects to the idea you’re pitching (“I’d like to write a related piece about this for X because Y.”) In most cases, journalists pitch stories before writing them, so you want to explain how you’ll go about pursuing your reporting/writing.
Will you, for instance, include research? If so, show this by sprinkling in a finding from a study or two. Will you interview people? If so, show that you’ve given some thought to who your sources will be. (If pitching to a local publication, identifying local sources can be a nice way of making your idea more relevant.)
3.) A brief argument for why this idea matters at this moment in time. Whenever writing stories, I always consider what my friend Kim Cross refers to as “the little a” (what a story is literally about) and “the Big A” (what a story is really about, in a bigger-picture sense).
Thinking about the Big A can help you figure out who your audience is and why they might be interested in the story. It also helps you pinpoint the universal themes that lie beneath the surface — e.g. love, betrayal, resilience, hope, lineage, inheritance, etc. If you can speak to how your piece might advance the public discourse, spark new ideas, or shed light on untold narratives, all the better.
4.) A quick “by way of background” line or two. Your inclination may be to start off with your bio, but I recommend saving it for later on. Your pitch isn’t meant to be an introduction to you; it’s an introduction to your story.
In the “by way of background” part, you don’t need to say “My name is….” The editor you’re pitching to can easily find your name in your signature line. Instead, focus on what your role is and whether your work has been published elsewhere. You don’t need to have been published elsewhere in order to get pitches accepted, but it certainly helps if you have.
5.) The case for why this publication is a good fit. As you wrap up your pitch, you want to leave editors with a good impression. I do this by briefly explaining why the piece I’ve just pitched would be a good fit for their particular publication. This is important because it shows you’ve done your homework, and it also makes your pitch feel more personal.
Be as genuine as possible when describing why the publication is a good fit, and consider the overlap between the audience you want to reach and the one that the publication you’re pitching serves.
6.) Closing line. As a formality, include a brief closing line indicating that you’re happy to answer any questions the editor might have and that you look forward to hearing back soon. If the piece is time-sensitive, mention that you can turn it around quickly (and make sure you can deliver on this promise).
Putting it into practice with a real-life pitch
The following example is a pitch for one of my recent personal essays (with a few tiny edits added). The pitch led to a published piece in TIME Magazine last month.
Dear X,
The summer before I started college, I worried about making friends, succeeding academically, and being away from home. But the fear that trumped them all was “the Freshman 15” — the cliché term describing the supposed number of pounds students gain during their first year of college. I had spent most of my years in treatment for anorexia, and though I was in a much better place by the time I started college, I was still petrified by the prospect of gaining 15 pounds. This fear was one of the factors that ultimately led me to relapse during the spring semester of my freshman year. (THE HOOK)
I’d like to explain this in a personal essay for Time Magazine, in timing with back-to-school season. (TIMELINESS) In the piece, I will draw upon several studies showing that the Freshman 15 is actually a myth. The average weight gain for first-year students is only two to three pounds. Far more concerning is the fact that the median age of onset for eating disorders in the United States coincides with the typical age of college enrollment. I’m especially aware of this as a woman in recovery from anorexia and as a college professor who bears witness to students struggling with body image and eating disorders. I’ll address this in the piece and will also interview at least two eating disorder clinicians who can lend their expertise to the discussion. (A DESCRIPTION OF THE PIECE, INCLUDING RESEARCH AND SOURCES)
At a time when “thin” appears to be back “in” — partly due to the rise of #SkinnyTok and GLP1s — we need to debunk myths that instill unnecessary fears about body weight and size. College is difficult enough; we don’t need to perpetuate harmful myths that make it even harder. (WHY THE PIECE MATTERS AT THIS MOMENT IN TIME)
By way of background, I’m the author of the new book SLIP: Life in the Middle of Eating Disorder Recovery. I’m also a journalist by trade, and my articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, Teen Vogue, and more. (BY WAY OF BACKGROUND) I would love for this piece to have a home in TIME’S Ideas section and think it would make a meaningful contribution to the magazine’s robust mental health coverage. (WHY THIS PUBLICATION IS A GOOD FIT)
I’m happy to answer any questions you might have and look forward to hearing back from you!
~Mallary
You can read the published TIME piece here.
I hope all of this advice helps you craft your next (or first) pitch — and that it leads to a published piece. If you have related questions, please feel free to share them in the comments section. Also, check out The Pitch Club newsletter, which my friend Brendan O’Meara recently launched. It’s a great resource.
wish me luck!
Thanks for these great tips, Mallary!