Readers Digest Submission Guidelines

I was looking at Readers Digest at the grocery store checkout yesterday and realized they publish all sorts of pieces. Maybe one of mine would fit in there! So I Googled submission guidelines for them and found this, which Im going to do soon, when the Weekly Writer Challenge asks me to do that!

Check it out!

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FamilyFun Submission Guidelines WritingMarkets FamilyFun

These guidelines are taken from my research in compiling my ebook full of parenting and family magazine markets. Im currently working on the 7th edition in ebook and print formats and still have over 200 regional, national and online parenting and family markets for you to submit to and make money! Enjoy! (P.S. Its free on Kindle Unlimited so you can check it out before you buy your print copy to mark up!)

FAMILYFUN

Founded in 1991, FamilyFun is the country’s number-one magazine for families with children ages 3 to 12. On every page, we give parents the information and inspiration they need to create unforgettable family moments. We’re the trusted experts on family cooking, vacations, parties, holidays, crafts, and learning—all the essentials that enrich the precious time families share. To our two million subscribers, FamilyFun is where they can find a community of parents and discover ways to build strong, healthy families.

SUBMISSIONS

Please familiarize yourself with the magazine before sending a query. (You can buy digital back issues at the App Store or subscribe at familyfunmag.com.) We are always looking for professional freelancers who are expert in the art of playful, creative parenting. Content must be fun, family-tested, affordable, and uncomplicated. We strive to entertain and inform with a writing style that is direct, upbeat, and personal. Note that our highly visual layouts dictate brevity, and our emphasis on activities means we do not publish child-development articles, fiction, or poetry.

Articles are scheduled and assigned at least five months before publication. Please e-mail queries to the addresses given below. We accept unsolicited manuscripts only for Idea of the Month and our Explore travel section. Queries should describe the content, structure, and tone of the proposed article. We receive many queries on the same topics, so please be as specific as possible about what makes your idea unique and why you are qualified to write about it. If appropriate, attach digital photographs or sketches of the finished project, food, or craft. Due to the large volume of submissions, allow six to eight weeks for a response.

FEATURES

Our features present activities that are entertaining for the whole family, relatively inexpensive, and easy to do. Specific topics include food, crafts, parties, holiday celebrations, games, creative solutions to common household problems, educational projects, and home organizing and decorating. Travel features focus on ideas and strategies for family outings and vacations. Destinations should be moderately priced, offer exceptional value, and cater to the needs of families. Food features present recipes that have a track record with families—dishes that are fun both to make and to eat.

Length: 850 to 3,000 words

Compensation: $1.25 per word upon acceptance

Send to: queries.familyfun@meredith.com

Subject line: Features

DEPARTMENTS

Idea of the Month showcases a practical, innovative solution to a problem common among families: a game that get kids excited about doing chores, for instance, or a fun way to encourage kids to write thank-yous. Written as a first-person narrative essay, it describes how an idea changed or inspired a family.

Length: 600 words

Compensation: $750 upon acceptance

Submissions: Queries accepted, manuscripts preferred

Send to: queries.familyfun@meredith.com

Subject line: Idea of the Month

  

More Great Ideas features simple, clever ways to solve common household problems or to have fun as a family.

Length: 50 to 200 words

Compensation: $100 upon publication

Send to: ideas.familyfun@meredith.com

Subject line: Great Ideas

How We Have Fun offers a visually interesting photograph and a short first-person description of a special family moment or tradition. This is a column open to reader submissions, so payment is our standard $100.

Length: 50 to 200 words

Compensation: $100 upon publication

Send to: queries.familyfun@meredith.com

Subject line: How We Have Fun

The Explore section rotates formats (Getaways, We Tried It, and more) and features family travel and vacation ideas and planning strategies. Pieces can be process-oriented or destination-specific; most are first-person. We rarely cover international travel or expensive American resorts or programs.

Length: 600 to 900 words

Compensation: $1.25 per word upon acceptance; $100 for the idea if we opt to use a staff writer

Submissions: Manuscript or query

Send to: queries.familyfun@meredith.com

Subject line: Explore

The Create section has several departments that include pieces by freelance contributors:

Make It: simple, fun, practical, and inexpensive projects and crafts.

Keepsakes: a craft that serves as a gift, reminder, or souvenir related to a significant family event, family tradition, or holiday, such as Mother’s Day.

Treat of the Month: a snack or dessert that uses food as art in an original and entertaining way.

Length: N/A; please send ideas only (no finished manuscripts)

Compensation: $200 per idea

Send to: queries.familyfun@meredith.com

Subject lines: Make It, Keepsakes, or Treat of the Month

Kids in the Kitchen features easy-to-make dishes that parents and kids can prepare together. Each recipe encourages families to have fun in the kitchen and introduces basic cooking techniques and food knowledge.

Length: 250 to 500 words

Compensation: $1.25 per word upon acceptance

Send to: queries.familyfun@meredith.com

Subject line: Kids in the Kitchen

Let’s Party offers affordable ways to celebrate holidays and birthdays or just make an ordinary day special. It includes four to six foods, decorations, treats, games, or party crafts related to the article’s theme, e.g., “spa party.”

Length: N/A; please send ideas only (no finished manuscripts)

Compensation: $100 to $200 per idea

Send to: queries.familyfun@meredith.com

Subject line: Let’s Party

Healthy Family provides creative, practical information—strategies, tips—on how to be active, eat well, and feel great.

Length: 100 to 300 words

Compensation: $1.25 per word upon acceptance; $100 to $200 for the idea if we opt to use a staff writer

Send to: queries.familyfun@meredith.com

Subject line: Healthy Family

Happy Home features creative, useful ideas for the home, yard, and garden. We look for practical approaches to getting organized, fun ways to decorate, and new products. The ideas must be easy, affordable, and realistic. The column is rarely assigned, but we do buy submitted ideas.

Length: 700 words

Compensation: $100 to $200 per idea; $875 for entire column

Send to: queries.familyfun@meredith.com

Subject line: Happy Home

Favorite Things highlights parent-recommended family entertainment products and gear, such as toys, books, DVDs, video games, music, and more.

Length: 50 to 200 words

Compensation: $1.25 per word

Send email to: queries.familyfun@meredith.com

Subject line: Favorite Things

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Womans Day Submission Guidelines UPDATED

Originally published 1/5/12 and updated when a reader told me her email came back. Heres what I wrote to her after doing some sleuthing:

"Hmmm, it looks like they may have changed to an @hearst.com system. Here is what I would personally do: find the editor you need (check masthead) for the section you are submitting for.  Then first try sending your query like this:

kerrie.mcloughlin@hearst.com

If that comes back I would try:

kmcloughlin@hearst.com

LET ME KNOW! Its a crapshoot but they get so many subs they are counting on people to give up! We will not!

I will keep you updated, my lovely readers! Below are the original guidelines:

Thank you so very much for your interest in writing for Womans Day. Unfortunately, you are not alone. In fact, you have so much company, and we have such a small cadre of editors, that we have had to develop what you will no doubt find a rather tough policy on unsolicited manuscripts.

This is what you need to know: Our editors work almost exclusively with experienced writers who have clips from major national magazines. As a result, we accept unsolicited manuscripts only from writers with such credentials. There are no exceptions.

If you do have significant national writing experience, and you have an idea or manuscript that you think might interest us, e-mail us at womansday@hfmus.com, and please include some of your most recent clips. For website inquries/pitches, please email dailywd@hfmus.com.

Please note that we cannot guarantee that your submission will be read or commented on; it is by far most likely that we will get in touch with you only if we are interested in pursuing the idea you propose. Please note as well that we said e-mail; hard-copy submissions will not be considered. If you do not yet have the national experience we outlined above, we look forward to hearing from you when you do. We also extend our regret that, should you nevertheless decide to send us a manuscript, we will not have the time to read, comment on or return it.

From 2004 guidelines Kerrie printed out: Essays run about 650 words and they pay $2,000 on acceptance.

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Pregnancy and Newborn Magazine Submission Guidelines

Below is information for submissions to Pregnancy and Newborn Magazine. Im sending a query today!  And if youd like to get my great resource (that I use myself to get published in over 120 magazines!) for only $19.95, just click the book cover to the right! Tell your writer friends ... and this makes a great gift (for yourself or someone else!).

Freelance Writers
We’re glad you’re interested in the prospect of working with Pregnancy & Newborn magazine—we’re always looking to add to our pool of writers and are currently accepting freelance submissions! Please read and follow the guidelines below so you can query us effectively and we can respond efficiently.

First, familiarize yourself with Pregnancy & Newborn both in print and online. Our targeted audience is comprised of women who are expecting or have a child under the age of 1. We strive to provide insightful, informative articles that discuss all things pregnancy- and baby-related in a casual, conversational, girlfriend-to-girlfriend manner. As a national magazine, we cover topics that are relevant to pregnant and new moms across the country.

Each month, we print articles that fit into the following categories: prenatal health, prenatal nutrition, emotional well-being, labor & delivery, infant care and parenting. Examples of topics that might be of interest include, but are not limited to, baby’s development month by month, alternative pain relief during labor, choosing a name for baby, healthy snacks for hungry moms-to-be, postpartum depression, maternity leave, finding childcare, vaccinations, raising a bilingual baby and more. We’re always looking for new and creative story ideas—please send yours our way!

We prefer to receive queries via email; you may direct them to editor@pnmag.com. Please send a detailed description of your proposed article, including topics you’ll discuss, experts you’ll interview, and sidebars you’ll provide. Department articles are typically 750 to 1,000 words plus 2 sidebars; feature articles are usually 1,750 to 2,000 plus 4 to 5 sidebars. Keep in mind that we generally work under a 4 to 6 month lead-time.

We appreciate when you include clips of your previously published articles. It’s always nice to see the work you’ve done in the past.

Please be patient as you wait for our response. Oftentimes we may not have a spot for your story immediately, but will file it away to have on hand when an opportunity arises—and rest assured that when one does, well be in touch!

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Chesapeake Family Submission Guidelines

Writers’ Guidelines: Updated 2011 

Are you a local writer whos interested in topics that relate to family life in the Chesapeake region? Send an introductory e-mail to our editor. Please include a specific story idea, a list of previously published work and one writing clip. Send e-mail to: editor@chesapeakefamily.com

Who We Are

Chesapeake Family is a free, monthly parenting publication serving Anne Arundel, Calvert, Bowie and Upper Marlboro areas of Prince George’s and Kent Island area in Queen Anne’s counties of Maryland.

Who Our Readers Are
We have a circulation of about 40,000 with an estimated 90,000 readers. They get the magazine at schools, libraries, doctors’ offices, grocery stores and toy stores. Our readers are parents (mostly moms) of children from the cradle to college age. They’re well educated and strive to do the best for their children even as they juggle busy lives and try to watch their budgets. They tend to pick up Chesapeake Family initially for the calendar of monthly activities and the sections on health and education. We also have an increasing web presence that now exceeds our print audience. Many print stories are used online, though fresh content is added to the website daily.

What We’re About
Our goal is to make our readers’ everyday lives easier by anticipating the sort of information they will need, identifying and sifting through available resources and gathering it for them so they can just read it and go. We strive to present unique stories that readers won’t find in any other local publication.

Our Writing Approach
Our readers may have only 5 minutes over a slice of toast to glance at the magazine so we want to use an easy-to-read, accessible tone but also pack plenty of punch into the few words we use. Through our pages, we want our readers to feel understood, supported and empowered to make healthy parenting and life choices.

What We’re Looking For

• We are looking for professional writers who are conscientious and fact check their work.
• Our articles are short (about 1,000 words for a feature and 750 for a column) so pick your main theme and develop it well. Know the main point you want the reader to take away and present it clearly.
• Talk to three local sources considered authorities on the topic at hand.
• Perform all the legwork for the reader and list local resources, answering the obvious questions: Where? When? How much? Whom can I call? What’s the number?
• Our magazine serves readers outside of Annapolis (see Who We Are above) so be sure to talk to authorities and include resources in other areas as well.
• Where appropriate, use local, real-life situations and people to illustrate your topic.
• We generally do not run first person or personal essays unless they are unusually compelling.
• We are also particularly in the market for local travel stories, “local” being everywhere in Virginia, Maryland, D.C., Delaware and Pennsylvania. While features on other locations are a possibility, we try to stay as local as possible. We will pay extra for good-quality high resolution photos.

What We Pay
For assigned articles, our pay range is $75-200, with articles that require more research at the higher rate. We pay around $35 for reprints but note that we try not to overlap coverage with other parenting publications in the region- however, authors willing to localize their reprints with interviews with local parents and experts can expect more. We do not, as a rule, pay for travel expenses or for mileage; however, we will do our best to assist you in getting press tickets or rates for events/locations/etc. Articles are subject to editing for space and clarity. We pay a kill fee of $25 for stories cut due to space requirements; stories cut because they do not meet CF’s standards will receive no compensation. Should a story not meet the editor’s satisfaction, though, she will do her best to work with you to make the story acceptable for inclusion. Stories moved to online-only status due to space will receive their full payment. Chesapeake Family buys one-time print rights and exclusive online rights for three months.

Deadlines and Submissions
Articles are due on the 15th of the month, two months before the publication issue (so articles for the July issue are due on May 15, for example). Please submit your article with a creative title/headline suggestion and 1-2 sentence tagline to run at the end. Articles may be submitted as a Word attachment and/or embedded in an e-mail. Attach a separate invoice that includes your name, address, phone number, e-mail address, social security number, the date, title of article and agreed-upon rate.

Unsolicited Articles
We will consider unsolicited articles, but we have very limited space. We encourage writers, especially local ones, who feel strongly that they have a story for Chesapeake Family to send a query/outline.

Contacting Us
Preferred method of contact is via e-mail at editor@chesapeakefamily.com.

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American Baby Magazine Submission Writers Guidelines Fit Pregnancy and Baby

SUPER FRESH INFO AND BIG NEWS ABOUT AMERICAN BABY! 

I just got this info from over here at Writers Digest!!! And heres more updated info from Publishers Daily! Basically with this February 2016 issue, American Baby is no more and has merged with Fit Pregnancy to form ...

FIT PREGNANCY AND BABY!

Here are the submission guidelines from their website! You will also find these in the 7th edition of my book, Make Money to Write About Your Kids: Get Published in Regional, National & Online Parenting & Family Magazines. You can find the 6th edition here on Kindle (huge sale!) and in print version. You can download it FREE if you have Kindle Unlimited! You can also wait for the 7th edition to come out in a month or two and keep on writing and pitching queries in the meantime!

FIT PREGNANCY  is a website covering health, nutrition, exercise, psychology, food, fashion and beauty issues related to pregnancy. It also includes editorial for parents of babies up to 2 years of age.

Queries should be specific. Read our website and be clear whether you are presenting an idea for a feature or a specific column.

Features (1,000 - 1,800 words) cover broad, timely topics. Features for which we accept freelance writing include:

Prenatal Fitness:
Pregnancy-safe workout programs

You and Your Baby:
• A feature story about postpartum issues.
• A postpartum exercise story (often includes weight loss).
• A story pertaining to breastfeeding issues.
• Baby Pages (baby-care issues, with emphasis on the first six weeks)

Nutrition and Food:
Prenatal nutrition stories, often with a meal plan and recipes

Psychology/Health:
Topics relating to prenatal or postpartum issues

Columns  (550 - 1,000 words) for which we accept freelance writing include the following:

Your Family:
Parenting issues as they relate to the new family, sex and relationships, family and financial issues

Health:
Health issues for the pregnant woman

Healthy Baby:
Health issues for the new baby

Insight:
Psychological issues relating to pregnancy or parenting

Labor & Delivery:
Emphasis on hard news, scientific breakthroughs and practical tips

Nutrition:
Prenatal-nutrition issues

Small Packages:
A section of short, newsy items on all topics covered in the magazine

Bumpalicious (550 words):
A funny or poignant personal essay

Queries should be no more than one page in length. Tell us why your idea is new or particularly important to our readership. Please include experts you might interview, any expertise you may have in this area, other magazines youve written for and recent clips.

Please send your queries to:
Editorial Team, Fit Pregnancy, 805 Third Avenue, 24th Floor, New York, NY 10022

 Due to the number of submissions we receive, we respectfully ask that you not follow up on your idea more than once. If interested, an editor will contact you. We keep letters on file for 6 months.

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Ladies Home Journal Writer Submission Guidelines LHJ WriterGuidelines

So sad to see Ladies Home Journal changing after 131 years! Back in 2014 it went to a quarterly print edition with an online digital presence. You can read the USA Today article here. There is still opportunity for you, though, writers! Check out the guidelines below and get writing ... or repurposing your already-written article or blog post!

LADIES HOME JOURNAL targets towards 30-55 year-old women who recognize the importance of taking time for themselves. Tone is always optimistic.

1. Finance features (1,800 words)
2. Essays about motherhood (1,200-1,800)
3. “This Mom’s Life,” first-person experience about being a mom (1,200-1,800)
4. “Strong,” the health section 
5. “Pet Project,” first-person essays about pets (1,200-1,800)
6. Feature well (1,800-2,400) 
7. Health section/BOB (1,800)
8. Psychology features for the FOB (1,800 words)

Personal essays are very welcome, even for health and psychology stories. Freelancers can write these from their own experience or tell a source’s story. Personal essays are also the best bet for new writers. Pays up to $2/word, but essays and first person editorials normally pay less.

For finance, personal essays, mom essays and features,Lorraine.Glennon@meredith.com For personal essays and mom essays,Louise.Sloan@meredith.com For personal essays,Jessica.Brown@meredith.com For health, Julie.Bain@meredith.com For cover stories on celebrities, Susan.Pocharski@meredith.com For “Pet Project,”Amanda.Wolfe@meredith.com

How to Write for Ladies’ Home Journal

We think your stories are just as good as those you’d find in a magazine, and we want to share them with the world. So jump in, show us your stuff, and if we choose yours for the magazine, you’ll get paid!

We’re looking for stories about happiness. What makes you smile and keeps you sane? Or, tell us stories about being a mom. Just let us know what’s on your mind.

Before you get started, check out these writers’ guidelines to help you on your way.

Have your story all written up and ready to send? Submit your story (a Word document is best) using our easy form. Your submission will go straight to our editors — we read every essay we get!

Submission Address

Meredith Corp.
125 Park Ave.
20th Floor
New York NY 10017-5516

Phone: (212)557-6600 and Fax: (212)455-1313

Or you can email us at yourstories@lhj.com. We can’t wait to read it!

Have a favorite recipe with a great story behind it? Maybe it’s your grandmother’s famous cake, or the salad you make with your foodie teenage son. We’re also looking for recipes (and the story behind them), so send us yours at recipestory@lhj.com and you could be featured in the magazine! Yes, we’ll pay you for it.

And if you are ready to be published in regional parenting magazines where you can sell the same article multiple times, check out my ebook! I have national, regional and online markets so you have lots of options for getting published ... about 285 of them so far and I keep finding more!

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Babble com PAY and Submission Guidelines

Welcome to another edition of Markets for Parenting Writers brought to you by ... me! If youd like to check out dozens upon dozens more such markets, all paying, check out my reasonably priced book here!

Freelancers are welcome in all sections of Babble.

If you’re interested in writing for us, please follow these guidelines:

Use Babble search to see if your topic has been covered already.

If not, indicate in the subject line of your email what section of Babble your piece would run: pregnancy, baby, toddler, kid, mom, celebrity,prodcuts, or food. Mom is the general category subsuming mom/parent identity, health, and relationship issues.

Example subject line: Article for Mom: I Hate Going to the Park, Am I the Only One?
As concisely as possible, indicate if you’ve written for Babble before (include links to articles) and include 2-3 links to other things you’ve written. If you’ve never been published, that’s ok. Just let us know.

Tell us the topic of your piece in 1-2 lines maximum. If you can’t explain it easily, it’s not ready to pitch. Then explain your angle — your new contribution to the topic, what’s insightful/entertaining/counter-intuitive/poignant about your approach. For this, again, 1-2 lines maximum. Give us the first paragraph of the piece and then an outline of the rest. If it’s a list, include a few sample entries.

If the piece is already written, include it as an attachment. We are unable to accept articles that have been published elsewhere, including on personal blogs.

Only submit a piece once and please don’t follow up. Because of the volume of submissions, we can’t respond to everyone who writes us. If you don’t hear back, assume we decided not to accept it. Sorry about that.

Please direct all submissions to submissions@babble.com.

Kerrie says: Found out from a source that they pay around $150 for a 800-1,200 word piece, and I dont know if they accept reprints.

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UPDATE and CHEAT Family Fun Submission Guidelines

Looks like Family Fun has been bought by Parents Magazine Group. Ive been getting comments about  not being able to find submission guidelines and not being able to get email to go through. Heres what I commented on the original submission guidelines post (worth the time to read the post since it has the guidelines for submitting to all sorts of departments, what they pay, etc. ... probably all that has been updated a bit but you can tell just by reading the magazine what they are looking for also).

Heres the comment I made on how to submit:

Okay, if Meredith bought them, I would go with the Parents format (found in the ebook) ... something like first initial, period, last name @ meredith.com ... You can find the editors of each department in the front of the mag or online. If that doesnt work, try first initial last name @ meredith.com. Like this:

k.mcloughlin@meredith.com

or

kerrie.mcloughlin@meredith.com

or

kmcloughlin@meredith.com

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