Pitches wanted (food, culture) | ~$1 per word

COMPANY/PUBLICATION: SMART MOUTH

Smart Mouth is edited by Katherine Spiers, host of the podcast Smart Mouth, a TableCakes Production. Want to contribute? Here are the submission guidelines:

I'm open to a wide variety of pitches, but here are two things I'm specifically looking for:

• 300 to 500-word posts, either essays or reported, about food/culture/food culture topics. Histories of restaurant chains and food items, consumer-facing farm issues, eating guides to various cities, school lunches. A mix of history, progressive food politics, and just fun frothy stuff. Think Texas Monthly, Civil Eats, Bitter Southerner, Sarah Taber, Soleil Ho. Absolutely no "wellness" stories; the phrase "clean eating" may only be used sarcastically. :) Pay: $400.
• 200 word-ish blurbs about a recommended restaurant or dish at a restaurant, with an excellent (excellent!) photo of its food to accompany the post. (This, of course, would be a good assignment for photographers.) I'll be looking for dispatches from around the world, but probably not Los Angeles, since that's where I'm based. You must send in the photograph with your pitch. I’ve found people aren’t honest about their photography skills, so I have to see the photo before I can approve this assignment. Pay: $200.

If possible, submit your piece as a Google doc, and grant me edit permission.

Include links within the article, not as a list at the end of the copy.

If it is a history piece, cite your sources. Compile them in endnotes.

Send only one pitch per email.

Keep all emails about a given story in one thread - do not start a new email thread about something we’re already discussing.

Please do not send me warning emails along the lines of “I’ll only follow up one more time.” It’s a waste of your energy.

Please feel free to send your pitch concurrently to other outlets. If I lose the opportunity to commission the story, I won’t be angry! These things happen.

And of course, please at least skim Smart Mouth before you pitch. Thank you!

CONTACT INFORMATION:

• Questions / submissions: katherine@tablecakes.com
• Website: https://smartmouth.substack.com/

TO HELP YOU CRAFT YOUR PITCH:

• Learn more about the publication: Smart Mouth: the Newsletter is a companion to Katherine Spiers' food history podcast, Smart Mouth. It commissions articles from food and culture writers from around the world. Articles are a mix of short “try this, you’ll love it” pieces and longer (but not longform) features. More information here.
• Read through a selection of recent articles/stories on its website.
• Review the submission guidelines here.
• Check out our collection of pitch excerpts on this page and find more sample pitches at The Open Notebook Database and at SuccessfulPitches.com.