29 UK Publishers that Work with Freelance Writers

Writers! Today for you, I have a list of 29 UK based publications that work with freelance writers. These publishers cover a very wide variety of topics, including art, sports, film, fashion, and news. Even if you’re not in the UK, many of these are still open to writers from around the world.

We’ve researched payment rates and contact information for these publishers, so you can easily contact the right editor.

Also, if you’re a paid subscriber, and want early access to the upcoming database of publishers, please let me know, and I’ll add you to the list for when it’s ready. (It includes over 2,000 listings, just like the ones below, across a huge variety of categories.) I’m hoping to soft launch it to paid subscribers next week!

If you’re new to pitching, I encourage you to spend time carefully studying the publications you would like to write for. Learn their style, how they’re organized, the types of writing they publish, and even the general lengths of the articles they publish. Also, pay special attention to the way they write article titles, as this is often vital to the pitch writing process.

Once you’re familiar with the publication, you can brainstorm ideas, and then carefully craft a short pitch to the appropriate editor at the publication. For paid subscribers, feel free to send me a draft pitch, and I’ll give you my feedback.

1. The Lead is a micro-mag about politics and culture. They cover “the sharp angles that define our life in the UK today: poverty, racism, climate change, corporate and government malfeasance, the breakdown of our healthcare system and the fracturing of the state.” Op-eds start at £200 for 800-1200 words. Features are paid from £400 for around 1500 words. Fees for investigations and long reads are negotiated individually. To learn more, refer to this page.

2. Prospect is a UK magazine and website covering politics, economics, finance, culture, philosophy, world affairs, and more. They work mainly with their pool of regular contributors but also accept unsolicited pitches in some cases. They pay for the pitches that they accept, which is negotiated with their editors. According to one payment report, they pay $0.11 for 800 words. For details, read their submission guidelines.

3. Cinema For All is the national organization for the development and support of the United Kingdom’s volunteer-led cinema. They’re accepting pitches for their blog. They want to “hear from community cinemas around the UK about the issues that are important to them, the films they’re watching, or events they have been to.” They will pay a flat fee of £50. To learn more, refer to their post and this page.

4. Time Out UK is a guide to the best restaurants, bars, events, exhibitions, and more in the UK. Their features editor is always seeking feature pitches – “cultural/lifestyle/food/housing trends, underground scenes, etc.” As per a previous post by this editor, they generally pay 25p per word. If interested, send your pitches to chiara.wilkinson@timeout.com. To read their features editor’s post, click here. To visit their website, click here.

5. Dazed is a London based style magazine and an online platform that covers music, film, TV, fashion, art, culture, photography, politics, science, and technology. Payment reports indicate that they pay an average of $0.11 per word.  According to an old tweet by one of their editors, rates start at £150 for features. To contact them, refer to this page.

6. Backstory is a bookshop and bar in south London. They publish a biannual magazine which is also called Backstory. The magazine is about books and bookshops. Rate is £150 for columns (usually 450 to 500 words) and £500 for features (usually 1,000 to 1,500 words). For more information, read their contributor guidelines.

7. Little White Lies is a London-based bi-monthly film magazine. They cover mainstream as well as independent cinema from all over the world with high quality journalism and illustration. Their digital editor is always commissioning. They pay £150 to £370 for features. If interested, email your pitches to hannah@tcolondon.com. To learn more, refer to their digital editor’s post and their pitch sheet.

8. When Saturday Comes is the UK's leading football magazine. Their readers can be generalized as “football fans who, on the whole, like to attend matches and have an interest in the game at any level.” They welcome pitches for articles. Most of their articles are around 750 words but there are some exceptions, for example, Match of the Month articles are around 1,500 to 1,800 words. They pay a standard fee of £75 for 750-word articles. They pay £50 for book reviews and up to £125 for longer articles e.g. Match of the Month. Pitches should be sent to editorial@wsc.co.uk. For more information, refer to this page.

9. The Stage is a British website and weekly newspaper that offers theatre news, interviews, reviews, and jobs. One payment report indicates payment of £150 for 1,200 words. To contact them, refer to this page.

10. In Practice is a new editorial space by Healing Justice London. Their editorial steward is seeking “both on spec and pitches on the themes of disability justice, grief work, survivor work, politicised somatics, community-led research, abolition, community-building, and themes in and around these.” Starting rates are £100 to £400 depending on the piece. They’re currently only able to make payments to UK bank accounts. For more information, refer to this post and their pitching and submission guidelines.