Thanks to the generosity and community-mindedness of dozens of science journalists, The Open Notebook has created a searchable database of successful query letters—a resource that we hope will be useful for science journalists at all experience levels. You can access the database here, or from the menu at the top of the site. Any questions?
“I’ve sold some pitches that might be handy resources for other writers. Is there any way that I can add them to the database?”
Yes! As a matter of fact, there is. If you would like to share any pitches that you have sold within the past 4–5 years, and if the corresponding story has already run, please email us the successful pitch in any format you like (we will apply formatting and will redact all contact information), along with a link to the published article. You’re welcome to submit several pitches for inclusion in the database.
Feel free to append any annotations that you like concerning your pitches (e.g., “The editor and I discussed this pitch and she asked me to refocus it in such-and-such way” or “What I later realized I should have emphasized more was…” or “I have written several times for this editor, so I kept this briefer than usual” or “I spent about X hours researching this pitch, which involved doing Y”). It’s not necessary to include annotations, but more the information you include, the more helpful your pitch is likely to be to others. Thanks for considering sharing your successful pitches.
“What kind of pitches do you want?”
The database contains pitches for features, news stories, opinion pieces, and other types of stories, written for a wide variety of consumer publications. If you’re uncertain whether your pitch would be suitable, just email us to ask.
“Can I do anything to help spread the word about this database?”
Sure! We’d love it if you would help get the word out via Twitter, Facebook, or whatever social media vehicles trip your trigger. Thanks a lot.
