Pitches wanted (UK/Ireland) | ~10p per word
Added 2024-12-02 17:56:20 +0000 UTCCOMPANY/PUBLICATION: THE FENCE
Seamas O Reilly, Features Editor at The Fence, is looking for pitches:
Everyone at The Fence has painful experience of the freelance pitching grind, so we've always sought to make our pitching process as open and encouraging as possible. We also pay everyone promptly. If you feel like you might be our next First Byline, hit the mail below. We don't bite.
I'll also say - without naming names because that's their story to tell - a LOT of our First Time/Nearly New Writers have gone on to do great work at other places, often immediately. We occasionally tease other mags/papers for poaching our red hot talent, but it's actually something we're proud of.
We love personal essays, insider scoops, under-explored subcultures and unexamined worlds. We are 99% non-topical. This does make us harder to pitch to - we probably accept 1% of submissions - but we've long since realised that it also means our pieces, and their writers, stand out. So, pitch!
A good rule of thumb is to avoid anything tied to this week's news. If a word has entered the lexicon from social media, or everyone is talking about THIS ONE THING it won't be a good fit for our pages. We're a quarterly mag, we want pieces that will be memorable (and comprehensible) years from now.
Obviously familiarise yourself with our tone and style below, and don't be disheartened if you don't hit gold straight away. We love repeat pitchers. Many of our best pieces were second, third, eighth ideas from great writers who just took a wee while to hit on something that fit.
Lastly, and very importantly: I put these calls out semi-regularly, and in the above terms, in the hope that they reach people who might not have thought of pitching to us before, whether they didn't go through the "usual" media route, or hail from marginalised or undderrepresented communities.
We could do a lot better in reporting a more diverse range of experiences and it's something we're pro-active about doing. If you're a writer who feels like you've never seen yourself in our pages then you are exactly the sort of person we'd love to pitch to us today.
Some other very basic things not to pitch.
No photo-reliant stories, our mag is fully illustrated and features zero photography.
No reviews (books, film, tv etc.) of any kind.
No celebrity profiles/interviews.
No war-on-woke culture war shite.
Email: editorial@the-fence.com
CONFIDENTIAL NOTE: Reports indicate that The Fence pays around 10 cents per word. It is recommended that you discuss the rate(s) with the editor upon the acceptance of your pitch.
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CONTACT INFORMATION (please do not share the email address publicly):
Questions/submissions: editorial@the-fence.com
Website: https://www.the-fence.com/
TO HELP YOU CRAFT YOUR PITCH:
Learn more about the publication: The Fence is a quarterly print magazine based in London that explores life in the UK and Ireland. It features investigative articles, cultural essays, and short stories, often delivered with a touch of humor. The magazine aims to provide insightful and engaging content that reflects contemporary regional experiences. More information here.
Read through a selection of recent articles/stories on its website.
Review the submission guidelines here. Note that these are the publication's general guidelines to help you refine your pitch. You must still follow the editor's specific instructions above.
Check out our collection of pitch excerpts on this page and find more sample pitches at The Open Notebook and at SuccessfulPitches.com.
Do not forget to end your pitch with (1) a short introduction about yourself; (2) a few lines highlighting your writing experience, relevant credentials and publication credits; and (3) links to your strongest work or portfolio, and online profile.
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