Are you a one-hit wonder? Or a one, two, or three-hit wonder. Do you write a piece or two for an outlet you admire and then just… don’t pitch them anymore?
I’ve been there. In 2017, I wrote two pieces for USA Today’s now-shuttered Eat, Sip, Trip vertical. It went really well. They followed up to share the kind of stories they were looking for in the coming season, and I… I just didn’t pitch them again.
In all honesty, I’m not sure why. It was probably because I didn’t have any story ideas that precisely matched what they were looking for, and I didn’t have the confidence to extrapolate from their list and generate more ideas. But really, who can say? By the time I came back around to them on my writing list, the editor had moved on, and the vertical was absorbed into another department. And even then, I should have pushed forward, but I didn’t.
I know I’m not alone in this. So how can you turn things around and capitalize on the foothold you once had?
- Search for your old editor online. LinkedIn is an excellent place to start. Send them a pitch, even if they’re at a new publication. Gotta start somewhere!
- Be prepared to re-introduce yourself, but don’t make a big deal about it. A simple “We previously collaborated on ____ piece in the fall of 2018 for ____ magazine. It would be wonderful to work with you again and I have a new story for your consideration”. Include fresh clips at the end of your pitch so they can see how much fabulous progress you’ve made since you last talked.
- Don’t be afraid to name-drop. If your old editor has moved on and you still want to pitch the original publication, don’t hesitate to say who you previously collaborated for and what the piece was, and include a link.
- Branch out to other departments. So your favourite editor is no longer at the publication, and the new guy hasn’t bothered to reply to your emails. It happens! Send fresh pitches to other editors at the publication. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.
- It never hurts to scoop out editors' public social media profiles (whether it’s someone you worked with before or someone new in the role). You’d be surprised how much you can learn that will help your pitch. I broke into Canadian Geographic after I saw an editor tweet about wanting more stories from New Brunswick!
- Show them that your pitches (just like your writing!) have evolved. My 2017 pitch to USA Today was 357 words. Now, I’m more direct and confident and my pitches (200-250 words) reflect that.
- Stop beating yourself up. This industry has a horrible scarcity mentality that editorial contacts are so precious that if you don’t exploit that relationship in every possible way, you’ve somehow squandered it. There’s revitalzing a past working relationship and then there’s chasing ghosts of the past. You should always be moving onward and upwards!
