Thread by @FarahColette

HOW TO #PITCH (me) - A THREAD: Back at it editing for @Narratively! I love all the fresh voices I'm seeing. After reading pitches for a while, I find I see the same mistakes (which I also made a LOT myself) or hesitation from writers asking how to go about this pitching stuff

Here's a thread for all of you who are on the fence about pitching (hop off and pitch!), been wondering if we'll think your story is dumb (we won't), and/or haven't had the benefit of a network to teach you how to pitch (hello hi, consider me a link in your network.)

HERE IT GOES:

The basics: you can pitch me by email (address in bio) or via submittable. Neither is better or worse. All stories get seen. Pay is $1000 per piece on publication. Here is the link to our submittable: narratively.submittable.com/submit

IF YOU EMAIL: Please put 'Pitch' in the subject line, & briefly say what your story is about. It helps if you say which section you see it going in.

E.g. if you want your story to be in the Deep Dives section, and it's about Dolls Who Come Alive at Night, your subject line might be: "Pitch: A Deep Dive into the Mystery of Dolls Who Come Alive At Night"

If you have a full draft written that you think is perfect for us, by all means, send it in! But otherwise, a pitch is just fine. (Just be sure to give us a robust idea/outline of your story.) If it doesn't work out, we hate rejecting your 3K word piece as much as you do.

Include good links to your portfolio/past work. You DO NOT have to have a byline in a glossy magazine or international newspaper to pitch. You DO need a good story. A shiny resume and a boring story will not trump an unpublished writer with a great story.

Show me you read the stories on our site and know what we're looking for! This is important! When editors say it is obvious a writer hasn't looked at what a site is about before pitching, they mean it, and it isn't a good look.

As a rough guide (there's more on the submittable link!), Narratively stories are character driven and action driven. Generally, the stories that work for us have very active scenes, and are the kind of stories you'd mention to a friend later.

ALMOST NEAR THE END PEEPS HANG IN THERE

The follow-up process can take a while. We wish we could get back to you faster, but it takes us time b/c we're genuinely reading over and considering you and everyone else's work with care, as well as working with our amazing writers. Please be patient with us.

FINALLY AND MOST CRUCIALLY: Writers from marginalized communities, international writers, writers of color, disabled writers: pitch me. Pitch me pitch me pitch me. Please pitch me.

I'll wrap up this thread by saying writers and editors are on the same team and we both have the same passion: great writing, great stories, and getting people excited about them.

Even if your story isn't a Narratively story, keep writing, keep pitching. Here for advice and encouragement with an open inbox! (It sometimes takes me a while to reply...but I do get there eventually!)

@WritersofColor @DisabledWriters @FreelanceWJ #WritingCommunity #freelancing #callforpitches #pitchme #freelance #journojobs