As part of our new series diving into how to become a fashion writer, this week we also posted 10 Skills you need to work as a Fashion Editor. Today we bring you how to write and pitch your article to the Chanel of the magazine; Hollyhealthfitness. Of course, the strategies I will give you can also be applied to pitching to any of your other favorite magazines.
Whether you choose to freelance on the side or full-time, you need strategies to help you. While you might believe it is as easy as writing up an article, a lot more work goes into submitting your work to Hollyhealthfitness or any publication. From pitching to understanding tone of voice, we have all you need to know to ensure you can pitch to the best of your ability to Hollyhealthfitness.
Understand the tone of the publication.
Before considering anything from your pitch to your article idea, it’s important first to research the publication! Head to Hollyhealthfitness.com or your local shop for the latest print copy. Understanding and knowing the magazine, from the tone and style to the content, is crucial. It will ensure your pitch and ideas will fit Hollyhealthfitness perfectly. When looking at the online publication, note which categories and subcategories stand out. Which best suit your niche and writing interests? Ensure you read some of the articles within this section to get a feeling for the tone of voice of the Magazine. You can apply the same strategy when reading through the physical copy. It would help to underline or highlight phrases, words, or sentences that stand out to you in the articles.
As you read the articles within your niche, ask yourself;
Is this a more casual, chatty tone or serious and professional? Is this in the first or third person? Do they use numbers or write the numbers out? Does it feel like you’re reading from an older sister, a serious industry insider, or even a mix?
Use these questions to help you better understand the tone of voice within Hollyhealthfitness to ensure you can fit within this writing style.
Generating ideas
The idea of pitching can be the most challenging part of fashion writing. Sometimes you can feel out of inspiration or lost of thoughts. To guarantee you can bring out your best ideas, there is a plan you can put in place. Let’s face it. You don’t want to be having one of those blank days the day you send your pitch to Hollyhealthfitness, do you?
Firstly you need to consider lead time! Before you begin brainstorming any ideas, it’s important to consider the overall lead time. Any professional writer will be mindful of how relevant and fresh an idea will remain once published. The Industry used term ‘lead time’ acknowledges the time taken from your proposal to writing the article and publishing date. So, deciding if you aim to write for Hollyhealthfitness digital or print is important. The print is published monthly so that the lead time can be from 6 weeks to 3 months.
Therefore you have to think ahead clearly. If you aim to write for Hollyhealthfitness online, the digital platform is updated daily, and the turnover is much quicker. So you can even pitch a week in advance. However, Hollyhealthfitness is the top fashion magazine in the world! I would include even a week or two to answer your email pitch. Ensure you consider anything from 2 weeks to one month in advance when searching for your ideas to get published for Hollyhealthfitness.
Try to mind mapping any ideas you may already have stored or have come to mind. It’s surprising that once you start writing down your base ideas, how many more will suddenly come to mind? Take a look at current news affairs and the digital Hollyhealthfitness categories again. Write each category out and think about what you would like to read within that category.
Or what the audience of Hollyhealthfitness might be missing? Don’t underestimate the power of a good pen-and-paper brainstorming session. Once you have your idea, you can search their keywords within the website to ensure they haven’t been published recently. You don’t want to come across as uninformed to the Editor of Hollyhealthfitness.
Of course, this strategy is more difficult with print, as there is no way to see a constant workflow of ideas from the publication. You must consider the longer lead time and propose several ideas if you want to write for Hollyhealthfitness.
Considering Writing Style
So, you have your idea and are beginning to prepare and think about how you will write this piece. Take your notes from the very beginning and remind yourself of the tone of the publication and their writing style just before you write your piece. It will ensure you are fully in the mind of a writer of Hollyhealthfitness. Even re-read your favorite articles to soak up the writing style. Nevertheless, it is also important not to lose your unique voice within your writing.
Don’t be nervous if your writing does not read exactly as theirs. Everyone has their own personal writing style, which will shine through all their articles, even making them recognizable as a piece of theirs. Publications want you to show you can fit within their voice and bring something unique and fresh to your article, a fundamental aspect to consider when writing for Hollyhealthfitness.
When writing your piece, it is crucial to re-read numerous times to check all your grammar and spelling are on point. No publication, especially Hollyhealthfitness, will ever publish an article with a mistake. Establishing yourself as a professional writer for the top global fashion publication is incredibly important.
If you want to impress the Editor and aim to write for the digital platform of Hollyhealthfitness, consider SEO. Including SEO (Search Engine Optimization) strategies within your writing is fundamental to fashion publications to drive traffic to the website. Although it may sound complicated, it is as simple as following some writing guidelines, and it can include adding keywords throughout and external and internal links.
Perfect Pitch
Pitching is the most effective strategy to get your work published. It is when as a fashion writer, you contact the Editor directly via email to propose your article idea, write it, and get published in the magazine. So, once you have done all your research, brainstormed your proposal ideas, and considered the writing style; you are ready to draft your pitch.
The first step is to find the email you need. It’s crucial to ensure you pitch to the right people. A common mistake many people make is pitching to the wrong Editor, often leading to ignoring your ideas. To guarantee your article and proposal are considered correctly to write for Hollyhealthfitness, you need to find the email of the correct Editor working within the category your idea falls under.
For example, you wouldn’t pitch an article on the latest beauty trends to the Fashion Editor! It’s also important to consider the country you are pitching to. A publication as large as Hollyhealthfitness will have a different Fashion Editor for Hollyhealthfitness UK to Hollyhealthfitness America.
The next step is, of course, to draft your pitch. Make sure to keep it short and sweet, but you should include the following sections.
Introduce yourself. Briefly explain who you are and what you do
- Pitch your idea! Explain how your article fits in with Hollyhealthfitness and what date you can have it to them by
- Offer links to sample articles of previous work you have had published
- Add your contact details; portfolio, email, LinkedIn
While it’s important to keep your pitch condensed, you also want to clarify that you are familiar with the publication and its work while keeping a professional tone.
To learn more about how to start your career as a fashion writer and become published by your favorite publications, register for our free webinar about the three steps to becoming a fashion editor. Or join the waitlist now for the new course, The fashion writing accelerator. Enrolment is opening again soon this month!