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Congrats on pitching, Jess! That alone counts as the magic happening in my book. But please don’t get discouraged by initial silence: editors often have to walk ideas into placement meetings before they can commission and some of those may be quarterly or even annual events, depending on the title. Or the team may be hard at work “putting an issue to bed” (the printer). Just follow up in two weeks for ideas that aren’t urgently time-sensitive, and keep pitching elsewhere in the meantime!
Remember you can always differentiate the stories if two editors bite and don’t work for competing outlets. And the editors themselves may tweak your concept to fit a particular section or series, eliminating any worrisome overlap. So don’t hold back!
I feel you on the to-do list pressure. My solution has been to brute-force it — basically block time on my calendar just for writing or career development. Then I try to honor that commitment with the same determination I bring to my clients’ deadlines.
Those mental gymnastics can be hard, though. So I’ll often turn to the support of a writing buddy, even making small bets about who knocks out more of their to-do list. Accountability can be a great forcing function!
Week of 11/10: Write another 500 words on the spite garden story about the Homegrown National Park movement and people fighting to change rules to support native pollinators.
Why I’m stoked: My energy has risen to 40% of its usual level!
Concerns or challenges: My energy has only risen to 40% of its usual level! I’m still largely in rest mode, except for teaching and coaching. But I’m itching to write and plan to tackle this long-delayed project with an eye towards finishing it in 2025. (The editor said “whenever is fine,” which my ADHD interprets as “always lowest priority,” unfortunately. But I want this coverage out as folks start planting this spring!
Did the magic happen? N/A as I didn’t post last week. But declaring my intention helped me start this languishing assignment before. So hopefully Den accountability will help me knuckle down again.Here you go, Auburn! I leaned into the suggestions, since that’s what I’m here for (not just messing up Zoom links, haha!). But you have a fantastic idea and great pitch! So if Future Perfect doesn’t bite, I know some other outlet will!
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EPVAq-QVJfTE4kkvESTRKxpShLkVLXqaEa6sXDl0Tq4/edit?usp=sharing
One line-edit coming up, Auburn! (And remember you still have another 700 words of critiques available this month.)
Eeeek, I used “her,” assuming the interviewer had their ducks in a row… That’s a good reminder to factcheck, eh?
Also, thanks for clueing me in!
How cool that you were a beta-reader for them! I’ll check that excerpt out once I’ve finished catching up my 2024 taxes (wah! The extension has come due today!).
That’s shocking about Apple Pay! Gross. But as you point out, Substack is also nasty for a number of reasons, including plagiarism, hate speech, Nazis, censorship, doxxing, harassment, AI slush, etc.
Hi Rey,
I’m stoked to work with you again and watch your talent spread into writing about place, both in the travel writing sphere and in your memoir and newsletter work. And it sounds like you’re often touching on places with a lot of character, so this should be a fun journey!I noticed you’re a fan of River Selby. I know her work mainly from this insightful piece. Any next essays or journalistic pieces you’d recommend I check out? (Given my current energy level, I’m not up for tackling her book now.)
Thanks again for sharing your Substack expertise on the Friday call! I look forward to chatting more!
Cheers,
AxAuburn!!! I’m thrilled you’ve joined us here (and that you’re back in West Seattle. Let’s hang, once you’re through the jet lag!).
Travel writing ethics have been weighing more and more heavily on me too, as you know. And I also dream of a collective… a lot of non-profit newsrooms are flourishing and filling news deserts. It would be fab to see that model applied to thoughtful stories about travel!
In other news, I’m excited about your “pop-up rage” pitches. The world needs that messaging right now, both users struggling and UI/UX designers, many of whom seen to have abandoned functionality. This reminds me of the click/listicle fervor, which gradually gave way to engagement metrics (good ‘ole quality over quantity!)… Hopefully companies will start prioritizing ease over force-feeding us ads and prompts to use AI soon!
And in the meantime, you’ll be here to help us all cope! 😉
Jessica, welcome!
I’m so glad you could join us here! And not to get too fan-kid, but your essay How to Say Goodbye to Your Abusive Dying Father on a Lima Street Corner resonated deeply with me. I’ve been estranged from my abusive parents since 2017 and often worry how I’ll react when scary stuff happens.I read your piece hours before receiving an “FYI, I had a mild stroke” text from my mom, despite my “no contact” requests. She’s fine, thankfully. But your story made me feel better about not running to her side or even responding. Thank you!
Regarding your comment that “I can’t decide between science, travel, or investigative journalism” — here’s the good news: You don’t have to. A lot of advice focuses on freelancers “niching down” and that certainly can be an effective strategy in quickly building momentum, especially at the start. But I bounce between beats often to keep my ADHD brain happy and haven’t found it problematic. If anything, it has helped. When a revenue stream slows, like travel writing during lockdown, I lean in to covering science, health and conservation instead. Versatility — with topics and skills too — can be a huge asset!
Cheers,
AxAnsley, I feel your pain as a (kinda sorta sometimes) recovering perfectionist! But I also want to encourage you not to exhaust yourself, even if this piece will be part of your portfolio.
Your plan to free up energy for the fellowship is a wise one!
(I know you know this. But sometimes it helps to have a gentle reminder to release an article into the world!)
Week of 10/13: I hope to work on my Brax3 smartphone pitch and maybe the Covid-conscious haircut idea too. (The experience was fab, from the safety/sensory accommodations to the fluffy pupper and free oral birth control in the bathroom. And I love my cut so far!)
Why I’m stoked: The antibiotics worked, so I have some energy now. Only like 25% of my usual wattage, but I’ll still take the win!
Concerns or challenges: I want to throw myself into pitching, since I just wrapped up a handful of articles originated by editors (read: less interesting than I might have proposed, broadly speaking). But my doc is pretty adamant about me taking time off — or at least working reduced hours. I’m crap at resting, but trying my darndest.
Did the magic happen? N/A as I didn’t post last weekJ’nai, that sounds like a good conservation-of-energy strategy. I wish you weren’t dealing with any of this, though!
Here are some thoughts about your cornucopia of great ideas!
Yay! I’m so glad everything resolved smoothly. And happy we could help!
The solitude of freelancing makes it easy to spiral. But we proved the power of community there. It’s a good thing to bear in mind for drama that unfolds off-camera… Stop, flop and roll some calls, emails or social posts for support and perspective!
And don’t forget to treat your inner child like you’d treat an outer child! Be gentle with your wonderful selves! 😉
What a fantastic article! Generally speaking and also in terms of parsing the upside of the “application” process. Thanks for posting, Ansley.
A few more insights into the transformative travel industry:
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Written by the publisher of Travel Weekly, a trade mag. He knows his stuff! https://www.travelweekly.com/Arnie-Weissmann/Can-transformational-travel-be-more-than-a-buzzword
The New York Times raises some good issues here (involves the company that threatened me, also gift link): https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/23/travel/transformational-travel-Portugal.html?unlocked_article_code=1.mE8.YjxZ.hEAZH2JVXpFe&smid=url-share
Skift (industry title): https://skift.com/insights/skift-trends-report-the-rise-of-transformative-travel/
And here’s an example of a roundup touching on the trend’s ideas lightly: https://www.travelandleisure.com/trips-to-help-reboot-your-life-7555442I’m really torn about all this. I believe in travel’s ability to inspire lasting change. But can that experience be manufactured or will it always feel “more like a random jumble of transformational travel imagery, like being trapped inside a constantly updating Instagram feed,” as Charly Wilder described in the NYT?
And even if epiphanies can be orchestrated, should they be monetized and commoditized like this?
It all leaves me very uncomfortable, even if I set aside Explorer X’s slander and threats to sue and blacklist me professionally (spoiler: didn’t happen). It feels like turning something deeply intimate —- and sacred in some traditions — into a sanctimonious gimmick to sell trips and training packages.
Week of 9/8: Pitch Wired a story on my new Brax3 privacy-minded smartphone, which doesn’t share info with Google, advertisers, data traders and governments. It’s also a third the cost of a new Pixel with similar specs! (My strongest motivation was to stop tripping over crap AI suggestions while typing or photo-editing. But the privacy aspect is certainly appealing in this climate…)
Why I’m stoked: The magazine has been crushing it, reporting-wise. And mainstream journalism has only noted the launch, most recently in March. I’d like to fill that gap!
Concerns or challenges: I haven’t written for the title in… 20 years? So I feel a little rusty, even though I’ve done plenty of tech coverage in the interim!
Did the magic happen? N/A as I didn’t post goals last week
