Content of this newsletter:
PUBLISHING NEWS & TIPS
WRITERS RESIDENCIES, FELLOWSHIPS, & GRANTS
PAID CONTENT
WRITING CONTESTS
Finally, Winter is behind us. April is packed with celebrations ranging from environmental awareness and cultural heritage to fun event days. Key highlights include Earth Day, Easter, and National Poetry Month.
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How to Get Into the Freelance Market
What else, beyond the quality of writing, convinces the editor to give that coveted “go-ahead”? “If you want to SELL, learn to give the editor what he wants.”
Writer’s Guidelines
Naturally, writers need to familiarize themselves with writers’ guidelines to learn which articles the editors welcome (and especially what articles they turn down!). Usually, this information is located on the webpages such as “Submission Guidelines,” “For Authors,” “Write for Us,” or “Contact Us.”
What if there are no writer’s guidelines on the publication’s site? Unfortunately, this is often the case with “glossies.” Roy Stevenson (author and travel writer) shares, “You have to fly blind and send a query that you think is appropriate for the magazine’s voice and article length, etc.” Reading several recent issues of your targeted publication is indispensable.
Read the whole article with more tips here:
https://wow-womenonwriting.com/98-FE-Align-Your-Queries.html
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FREELANCE WRITING OFFERS
Esses Magazine
Esses pays $0.50 — $1.25/word, a publication that publishes stories about the people and lifestyle of Grand Prix racing. Covers Formula 1 culture, motorsport, art, fashion, travel, and related topics through written articles, photography, illustrations, and quarterly magazine issues. Submit to joseph@essesmag.com or jbienkahn@gmail.com
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Refinery29
Refinery29’s mission is to help women see, feel, and claim their power. Shine a spotlight on the Canadian stories and issues that resonate with our Gen-Z and millennial audience. They publish personal essays to reported trend pieces to features on race, reproductive rights, and pop culture. Prefer a strong Canadian angle. Pays $150-$350.
https://www.refinery29.com/en-ca/how-to-pitch-refinery29-canada-writer-guidelines
Mental Floss
Features can be short (500 words) or longer (800–1500 words). Pays $150 for lists, $125-$200 for features. Looking for voices to write about the diverse verticals, whether that’s history, science, entertainment, language, pop culture, art, or beyond.
https://www.mentalfloss.com/about/how-to-pitch-mental-floss
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ELLE
Looking for freelance writers to contribute to the culture section’s main verticals: Movies & TV, Music, Books, and Theater & Arts. Submit information in the online form, and an editor will reach out should there be a fitting opportunity. Rates are $250 and up.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfIheBus6ULMfKHJ1ylRxpZL-z2kJWHyKh51R524udWeysTFQ/viewform
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Fractured Lit
Fractured Lit is open year-round and is available to all writers. We currently publish microfiction (up to 400 words) and flash fiction (401–1,000 words), with new writing featured on Mondays and Thursdays. We also offer contests throughout the year. We pay our authors $50 for original micro fiction and $75 for original flash fiction.
https://fracturedlit.submittable.com/submit
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DIEM
They are starting a new project: publishing essays from a diverse set of writers twice a month. Most of the work they publish is through a feminist lens. Think of [Diem](https://www.askdiem.com/) as a reimagined Reddit or Quora, inspired by the way women already communicate. The Things We Don’t Talk About. You’ll reach an audience of over 50,000+, who are generally interested in topics having to do with gender, power, and technology. Rates for Diem stories start at $200, and the majority of commissioned stories hit the 700-word mark unless otherwise specified.
https://askdiem.notion.site/Diem-Essays-Pitch-Guide-401ad127cd674855a8f34411ec7e098e
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Green European Journal
The Green European Journal is Europe’s leading political ecology magazine. We stand for an open, sustainable, just, and feminist Europe. A pitch is a short proposal that shouldn’t be longer than 400 words. The articles we publish are typically between 1800 and 2500 words. Rates are usually €300 to €400 per article.
https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/get-involved/
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FELLOWSHIPS — GRANTS — RESIDENCIES
Sports Writing Residency
Two-week residency encourages the exploration of new ideas in sports writing. This program is open to fiction and non-fiction writers, journalists, freelance critics or curators, artists, and academics, with an emphasis on those who can write for a lay audience with logic, vigour, and charm. Location Banff, Alberta, Canada. Deadline April 8.
https://www.banffcentre.ca/programs/literary-arts/sports-writing-2026
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Hanse-Wissenschaftskolleg (HWK) Fellowships
For those writing a work of fiction or creative non-fiction in which science and its practitioners play a major role, needs a considerable amount of background research. In this project, we award selected authors fellowships to work on science novels. Residency duration is three to ten months. Pay is a monthly stipend (up to €2,500/month) and travel expenses, plus free accommodation. Deadline May 15.
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Eugene C. Pulliam Fellowship for Editorial Writing.
Editorial writing. Established to enable a mid-career editorial writer or columnist to have time away from daily responsibilities for study and research. Freelancers may also apply. Up to $100,000. Deadline: April 20
https://www.spj.org/a-pulliamfellow.asp
Mass MoCA Fellowships
Anyone who wishes to can apply for one of these fellowships, regardless of discipline or location. The fellowship funds all residency fees for up to four weeks in residence. To apply, select the appropriate box on the fellowships question of the general Studios residency application. There is no separate application for this opportunity. All applicants must first be accepted through the regular jurying process to receive this fellowship. Location Boston.
https://massmoca.org/studios/applying-financial-aid/
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Rewire News
Rewire News Group is an independent nonprofit newsroom and the only national publication exclusively dedicated to expert reporting on the full spectrum of reproductive and sexual health, rights, and justice. All pitches must go through the pitch portal on the website, even for writers with an established relationship with RNG. Pays $350–500.
https://rewirenewsgroup.com/about-us/write-for-us/submit-a-pitch/
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Offrange
Offrange exists first for farmers, ranchers, and other food producers. We take their concerns and experiences as our starting point, but we also hope to tell their stories to anyone who cares where their food comes from. Farming and ranching are our primary focus, but Offrange also publishes stories about fisheries, meat production, natural resources, and public lands. Rates will vary depending on writer experience and the complexity of a particular story, but generally fall between $0.50 and $1.00 a word.
https://ambrook.com/offrange/writing-for-us
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The Black Light
The Blacklight, the NY Amsterdam News’ investigative unit, is looking for experienced freelance journalists. They primarily work with journalists based in the NYC area, but are also open to pitches from journalists based outside the region. Fact Checks — $250+, 500–1000 words, 1–2 interviews, 1–2 days of research. Medium-length articles — $1 a word, 800–1500 words, 2–4 interviews, research 2–5 days. Long form Articles — $2 a word or flat commission fee, 1500+words, 4+ interviews, 5+ days of research. Data Visualizations $250-$500+ per piece, 1–3 days of work, may or may not require data cleaning.
https://amsterdamnews.com/work-with-us/
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Epic Magazine
Epic writers travel the world searching for encounters with the unknown. Wartime romance, unlikely savants, deranged detectives, gentlemen thieves, and love-struck killers: stories that tap into the thrill of being alive. Epic publishes extraordinary true stories that get noticed. More than 50 of our articles have been optioned by Hollywood, including Argo, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture, and the 2023 Sundance winner Radical. Pays $1–2/word. Word count 5,000 to 6,000 words.
https://epicmagazine.com/#about
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Miami Book Fair Emerging Writer Fellowships
Designed as a 12-month, career-launching experience, the program provides exceptional emerging writers with a $50,000 stipend, professional development opportunities, including teaching creative writing, and sustained engagement within a vibrant literary ecosystem. The Emerging Writer Fellowship for Prose, open to fiction and nonfiction writers, and the Mindich Fellowship for Jewish Fiction. Must have a book-length project to complete during the fellowship year. Deadline April 30.
https://www.miamibookfair.com/fellowships/
WRITING CONTESTS
Florida Review Editor’s Prize
Editor’s Prizes in Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, and Poetry. Each winner receives publication in The Florida Review and $1,000 upon publication. Entry fee includes subscription to The Florida Review. Prose limited to 9,000 words. Poetry limited to five poems. $25 ENTRY FEE. Deadline April 15.
https://cah.ucf.edu/floridareview/2026/02/05/2026-editors-prizes-open-for-submission/
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The Desperate Literature Prize for Short Fiction
First Prize €2,000, a week’s residency at the Civitella Ranieri Foundation, a consultation with Literary Agent Charlotte Seymour from Johnson & Alcock, and a manuscript assessment with The Literary Consultancy. Runner-up Prizes €1,000 (two prizes available). Shortlisted will be published in a limited edition book and launched at the Desperate Literature Short Fiction Prize Salon, Madrid. Limit 2000 words of fiction. €20 Entry Fee. Deadline April 19.
https://degrootfoundation.org/competitions/desperate-literature-short-fiction-prize/
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Q3 2026 Creative Nonfiction Essay Contest
Submit your best creative nonfiction, 1,000 words or fewer, for a chance to win $1,175 in prizes. You can write about any topic, as long as it’s nonfiction. Deadline April 30.
https://wow-womenonwriting.com/contest.php#EssayContest
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Writer’s Online Action Prize
Win a whopping £1,000 for short fiction in any style and on any theme, up to 2,000 words. £17.50 Entry Fee. Deadline June 30
https://www.writers-online.co.uk/writing-competitions/writing-grand-prize-2026-win-1-000-cash
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Mark Your Calendar
Did you know Saturday, April 26th, is Indie Bookstore Day?
This national one-day party held on the last Saturday in April celebrates independent bookstores across the country, online and in-store. Through exclusive books and literary items, contests, cupcakes, and everything in between, it’s a party you don’t want to miss!
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