Hi #writers! I got a LOT of pitches from my mental health callout, and I probably won't be able to respond to them all, but I do want to give some pitching advice for those new to pitching & those new to pitching Well+Good (though I'd say these are general pitch guidelines…)

First, unless I have a working relationship with you (and even then...) please do not pitch me one-liners: "5 tasty meals," "6 sustainable brands," etc. with no other info. It doesn't tell me what the story is, nor does it differentiate it from articles that we've already done.

This is a good pitch template:
Proposed working hed
What the story will look at
Timeliness? (is it a timely hook? Not everything has to be, but you need to spell out why it's right for us at this time)
Examples of things you'll include
Experts & source materials you'll use

Tell me about yourself in a couple lines and send relevant clips (links, not attachments) or mention stories you’ve done and send your portfolio. Give me some idea of what you have done in the past.

If you’re brand new to the game DON’T TALK YOURSELF OUT OF PITCHING. But do tell me why you’re the one to write the story, or relevant courses or work you’ve done, or anything else that would tell me “yeah, she/he/they can do this.”

If you are emailing me to tell me of your existence but not sending pitches, just don’t. I just don’t have the bandwidth to keep your stuff on file—pitch, pitch, pitch.

If I do come into an assignment ideated in-house, I will always go for the writer who is the best fit. So if you pitched me a story that’s similar in the past, know that I will do everything in my power to find you when time comes for that story.

Do not email me follow-ups (unless I emailed you!) less than ONE WEEK after your first email. It’s just standard writer/ed protocol. If it’s SUPER timely, you can put that in your subject line, but honestly, if it’s *that* timely, we’re probably already on it in-house.

Don’t pitch me the same story in multiple emails. Do feel free to pitch me with your working hed in a subject line with WRITER PITCH: HED.

Anything I missed? Feel free to ask; I’ll try and answer as best I can for today. (That being said, I won’t answer everything after a certain time period, because, life…)

Other people to check out for great tips: @austentosone has an entire e-book on how to pitch correctly; @maria_delrusso does freelancer tips every Friday on her IG.