If you are reading this post, it means you’d like to turn your passion for writing into a significant source of income. The good news is that it is completely possible. Making money writing is a real opportunity and there are thousands of people doing it nowadays.
Want to get paid for your essays? Before you freak out, let me tell you something, you don’t need to be a Mark Twain or a George Orwell to make money writing essays. The only thing you need is to have a unique perspective and make it relevant to other people’s lifes.
According to Ashley C. Ford, a well-known American essayist “writing nonfiction is not about telling your story, but telling interesting and worthy stories about the human condition using examples from your life.” So, write through yourself and not about yourself.
Now you know there is a chance of getting paid for what you feel passionate about. But where to start? How to get your first gig? How to pitch editors?
Spoiler alert: this ain’t easy-peasy! But don’t back down just because these publications have pretty high standards. Fear might be holding you from putting your name out there. Be brave my young padawan! Your writing skills might be up for it!
Tips before getting started…
Paying markets are more competitive than publishing in free sites. Before you submit to any of these magazines make sure you read their guidelines carefully and study the essays they publish. Don’t submit if it doesn’t fit, or if they are not accepting submissions, avoid autorejections.
Take the time to do some research. Read, read, and read. If you want to write for others, reading matters. This is particularly important if you are hoping for your work to be published in one of these prints. Maybe as you read you realize you don’t have a real interest in writing for them after all. It happens sometimes! Also you can get a sense of their style and make sure your works conveys it.
Ask yourself if there’s something new you can write about the topic. Don’t try to pitch a version of something they have already published. It doesn’t work. Make sure you check the archives and see if they haven’t written about that. They will really appreciate it, and it’ll show that you are familiarized with their print.
Now, let’s check out these prestigious magazines, literary journals, and websites that pay for your essays:
Utne Reader
Utne Reader is addressed to agents of social change, enthusiastic people wanting to make the world a better place. This digital digest is devoted to new perspectives and fresh ideas concerning culture, spirituality, arts, and even politics. Its mission is to break barriers and transcend traditional labels, forget about stereotypes and show that there’s still plenty to see, and therefore, to learn.
They accept essay submissions (between 1,000 and 3,750 words) on the topic they are spotting in their periodical library. You can even submit one of your previously published works as long as you follow their guidelines.
Writer’s Digest
If you want to make money writing essays, then this is a great place. Their mission is “to make readers walk away from every issue inspired and ready to write.” This magazine for writers is published eight times per year and has around 60,000 subscribers, a good reason to get your name on one of its pages. You can only submit your work ‘on spec’. They welcome works from buzzworthy newcomers and experienced authors with a confident and authoritative style, yet conversational.
Their response time is up to four months. They pay from 30 to 50 cents per word for one time print use and perpetual electronic use.
What to pitch? 600-word essay reflections on the writing life. I’m sure there’s something juicy and interest to tell about our lives as writers. You can also check their editorial calendar for upcoming topics. Make sure you include “5-Minute Memoir” in the subject of your submission.
Tip: The editors want to see a strong narrative element and a narrow focus. Be sure to explain in your e-mail why you consider yourself the best person to write about that topic.
The magazine also runs several competitions with prizes up to $2,500 in cash and paid trips to writing events. So, if you feel you have what it takes, you can give it a go.
Boulevard
They publish writers with previous credits, but they are also interest in publishing the work of less experienced writers with exceptional potential. They are open for original, unpublished essay submissions from November, 1st to May 1st. There is a $3 fee for online submissions, but it’s free if you do it via postal mail. They look for works up to 8,000 words. And as for the pay the minimum is $100 and the maximum is $300. The response time once you’ve sent your work is approximately 4 months. Click here for the guidelines.
Postal submissions address: Boulevard Magazine,4125 Juniata St. B, Saint Louis, MO 62116.
Check this article to know how to make money writing poems.
Iowa Review
This magazine is published by the University of Iowa and its editors look for the best nonfiction being written today. Only submit unsolicited essays through September, October and November. They don’t accept e-mail submissions. However, they do accept submissions via online paying a $4 fee. You can submit for free if you are a subscriber of their publication using the “for subscribers only” category in the submittable page. They also accept paper submissions at the following address:
The Iowa Review, 308 EPB, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242
Your work mustn’t be previously published. The page limit is 25 pages, and the pay is $0.08 per word ($100 being the minimum). The magazine also runs contests with prizes up to $1,500.
BuzzFeed
BuzzFeed’s online magazine, called “Reader” features between other things cultural criticisms and personal essays. They get an estimated of 168 million visitors per month. They are currently taking pitches from independent writers to publish on their website. Although they don’t specify the exact payment, they do claim to pay competitive rates. In the case of essays, they are interested in works between 1,500 and 2,500 words.
If you are thinking about submitting your work to their editor, Rachel Sanders, I would totally recommend you to read this article written by her. There, she explains how to correctly pitch personal essays and she even provides examples of the kind of writing they are looking for.
Although it varies, their response time is approximately two weeks and they accept e-mail submissions to the following e-mail address: readers.pitches@buzzfeed.com,
Ploughshares
Ploughsahers is a literary journal published four times a year. They also publish a Ploughshares Solo series of digital stories and essaysmore often. They welcome unsolicited nonfiction (essays) submissions from June 1st to January 15th. Though no e-mail submissions are accepted, you can pitch through the submittable page of the websiteorbypost to the following address:
Ploughshares, Emerson College, 120 Boylston St, Boston, MA 02116-4624
They prefer digital submissions over mail submissions, but there’s a $3 fee in case you are not subscribed to the publication. You can also send a cover letter, and actually, they encourage it.
They want essays up to 6,000 words, and pay $45 per printed page, two contributor copies of the issue and one year subscription. The minimum pay is $90 and the maximum $450.
Subtropic
This magazine is published twice per year by the University of Florida Press and the Department of English at the University of Florida. They look for great essays regardless of the experience of their authors, which is a great opportunity for newcommers.
They accept online submissions charging a $3 fee. Subtropic has limited reading periods, so check the schedule online before you submit. The editors are not interested in multiple submissions. They also recommend writers who want to pitch, to read one of the issues of the magazine first to get the feel for the kind of writing they publish.
They pay a flat fee of $1,000 for essays, and there’s no word limit.
The Writer
The Writer is seeking personal essays on a particular aspect of writing or the writing life. They also have special issues throughout the year that cover a specific topic.
They ask for works between 1,000 and 1,400 words. Due to the volume of pitches they receive, they are not able to reply in all the cases, so they recommend sending your work to another publication if you haven’t heard from them in 2 weeks.
I totally recommend reading their guidelines and at least one of the essays they’ve published.
Their submission guidelines confirm that contributors are paid, but don’t specify how much they pay.
The Sun Magazine
The Sun is a monthly literary magazine. They publish personal essays up to 7,000 words, there is no minimum length. They don’t accept e-mail queries and they have temporarily suspended the review of mail submissions. That means that you can only pitch through their submittable page. The purchase one-time rights, and the pay depends on the length, being $300 the minimum and $2,000 the maximum.
Poets and Writers
This bimonthly publication reaches an audience of 100,000 readers. Their editorial content is divided in four sections. One of them, ‘The Literary Life’, is devoted to personal essays on writing, including the creative process and the art of reading. They look for essays from 1,500 to 2,500 words. You can pitch via e-mail to editor@pw.org.Though they say the pay when the publication of your work is scheduled; there is no information about the rates.
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Curbed
Curbed’s focus is home, its architecture, design, real estate and urban planning. They look for stories that dig deep on these topics. They are interested in essays between 3,000 and 6,000 words.
Although there is no exact information about their payment rates, they claim to pay competitively. According to Who Pays Writers’ report, the pay is from 20 to 54 cents per word, which means you can at least make $600. Sounds good, right?
You can pitch Curbed sending an e-mail to Curbed’s deputy editor Sara Polsky at sara@curbed.com. They also encourage you to include links to your previously published works if you have any.
Dame
This magazine for women describes itself as ‘smart, quick-witted, opinionated and unapologetic’. They are always on the lookout for moving essays. The magazine covers politics, reproductive rights, race, sex, gender, cultural trends, LGBTQ, and much more. They typically pay $200 for essays offering a new perspective. You can pitch to editorial@damemagazine.com.
VQR
Despite the fact they have a long list of accomplished and award-winning authors, they also seek to support emerging writers.
VQR is interested in travel essays from 3,500 words to 9,000 words. They look for something that would ‘lookout on the world rather than within the self.’
They only accept online submissions via Submittable. Their response time is approximately 6 months. They receive more than 10,000 unsolicited works per year, which means they are not able of writing personal responses in all the cases.
The payment is $1,000 and above for essays, which stand for approximately 25 cents per word depending on the length.
Summing up…
It is possible to make some money writing essays! If you want to take advantage of your nerdy side, this is your chance. These websites are always looking for talented people like you. Their editors seek writers who want to share their original points of view with their subscribers. Take your time to act out as a professional yet amateur reporter while you offer a new fresh perspective on any of the topics they prefer.
There is a lot of competition, and you will have to work extra hard if you want to outstand. Finding quality and paying work as an independent essayist is difficult but far from impossible. Thought there is no secret formula to succeed, we have already paved the way for you by making this list. Hope you found it useful.
Do you know any other paying essay markets? Have you worked before with any of these magazines? Let us know in the comments below.
If you want other ideas on how to make money writing online, then check this post!!
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