Pitches wanted (feminism, theme: monster) | $250-$1,000 per piece

COMPANY/PUBLICATION: BITCH 

Deadline: 24 August 2020

We all know about the things that go bump in the night: ghosts, werewolves, vampires, boogeyman, Bigfoot, and the other nasties that keep children up at night and make us hold our breath as we drive down dark streets and highways. We’re so aware, in fact, that every October, we pull scores of stories from our archives about the literal monsters that have long dominated the pop culture we consume—from Frankenstein and Dracula to serial killers and aliens. What do we make, though, of the everyday monsters that terrorize our waking lives with impunity? Monsters like capitalism and voter suppression, monsters like white supremacy and the alt-right, monsters like climate change, toxic masculinity, and platitude-spouting “girlbosses.” These monsters seem immortal, impacting generation after generation and requiring much more than holy water and a cross to ward off.

In this issue, we aim to examine the monsters we all know but are often too terrified to speak of, like healing spaces—houses of worship, for instance—that perpetuate violence; abusive family dynamics that isolate us in cycles of trauma; systems—like foster care—that are meant to protect but are too often used to torment; and anti-union efforts that encourage us to oppose the very organizing that will deliver us from pay inequity and poor working conditions. We are seeking interviews, cultural analysis and criticism, and reported features that take an expansive, incisive look at the monsters that live among us (and, in some cases, inside us) and what it means to slay them, once and for all.

How can we reimagine the lives of women demonized for defying sexist and racist norms? Who benefits from the media’s continued unwillingness to condemn white supremacy? How—and what—does media and popular culture teach us to fear, and can we unlearn it? What does aging look like in a world where technology is determined to keep us young and productive? How do conspiracy theories shape our understanding of media, politics, and identity?

There’s more to our understanding of monsters than the stories we’ve been told for centuries. Give us real-life scary stories that can help us better interrogate the monsters that have emerged from under our beds and into our lives, relationships, and beliefs.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

• Submissions: Via Submittable
• Website: https://www.bitchmedia.org

TO HELP YOU CRAFT YOUR PITCH:

• Learn more about the publication: Bitch Media’s mission is to provide and encourage an engaged, thoughtful feminist response to mainstream media and popular culture. Bitch seeks to be a fresh, revitalizing voice in contemporary feminism, one that welcomes complex arguments and refuses to ignore the contradictory and often uncomfortable realities of life in an unequivocally gendered world. More information here.
• Browse through its selection of recent articles/stories, categorized into: Culture, Health, Life, Politics, Science
• Review the submission guidelines here.
• Check out our collection of pitch excerpts here and find more sample pitches at The Open Notebook Database.