what's happened to us?
Oh, look! It's Friday! Something something 12th edition of Missed Pitches.
Hey! It’s true, our community is growing.
And we couldn’t be more thankful to be given the opportunity to spotlight the great rejected ideas published on this newsletter. That being said, the newsletter is going through some changes.
First thing you’ll notice is that the “Writing Contests” section is gone. As we move forward with this newsletter, we would like to make some space for additional resources for freelancers. Some of the feedback you’ve given in this survey is helping inform how to shape this newsletter so it better serves you.
And if you haven’t filled out the survey yet, please help us get to 100 responses so we can get a more accurate picture of the state of freelance writing.
As always, submit your rejected story ideas using this Google Form. Give us a follow on Twitter at @MissedPitches for updates and shout-outs. Read the previous edition here. // rungomez
Contents:
What I learned by losing my eyebrows (by Lindsay Martell)
A skeptic's take on insomnia tech (by Lindsey Danis)
How art gave me a way to live with chronic illness (by Willow Naomi Curry)
Northern Ireland is exporting abortion and importing COVID (by Elizabeth Nelson)
What does the rise of the lesbian period drama mean for contemporary queer stories? (by Sohel Sarkar)
Freelance opportunities
Writing jobs
NOTE: The following rejected story pitches have been lightly edited for space and clarity.
What I learned by losing my eyebrows (by Lindsay Martell, lindsay@lindsaymartell.net)
I have written a 1,200-word essay on the years-long journey to come to terms with my hair loss. There was a time when my eyebrows could have rivaled a Kardashian’s—ample, robust, and divinely dark. Then, in 2009, something struck down those hairs like a foreign invader, leaving my face wan and expressionless. A rare form of alopecia forced me to re-think my identity; and embrace all that makes us beautifully unique.
A skeptic's take on insomnia tech (by Lindsey Danis, lindsey.danis@gmail.com)
My wife's chronic insomnia means we've spent thousands of dollars on everything from a new mattress to pillows to white noise apps and insomnia therapy in search of a better night’s sleep. I'll review the latest sleep tech trends–sleep podcasts, apps and gadgets like weighted blankets–from the perspective of a skeptic to separate effective slumber aid from hype.
How art gave me a way to live with chronic illness (by Willow Naomi Curry, willowncurry@gmail.com)
I’m interested in writing an essay about living the bohemian artist’s life that we’re all warned against as a disabled person, and the freedom/validity it has given me.
I’m not a formally trained writer—because of my chronic illness I don’t have a Bachelor’s degree, let alone a Master’s in fine arts in hand, and therefore don’t have access to the traditional route of supporting my writing with teaching at any institution. The same impediments prevent me from having a traditional job. But making my meager-but-mostly-sufficient living on artistic endeavors has given me what is so often denied to people with disabilities: a way to support myself that provides freedom, time, and acknowledgment of my value as opposed to criticism of my “deficits.”
There’s a growing understanding of the perils of America’s “religion of work,” increasing criticism of the gig economy and side hustle culture, more pressing critique of the persistent under-funding of the arts, and pushback against the “supercrip” tropes that pervade the popular imagination as well as ostensibly safe disabled spaces. Writing about how I manage to support myself in a very nontraditional professional life as a disabled person (and how this life could be made easier with changes in policy and funding priorities) is not only relevant, but a necessary contribution to all of the aforementioned conversations.
Northern Ireland is exporting abortion and importing COVID (by Elizabeth Nelson, ebienelson@gmail.com)
The current lockdown travel ban doesn’t affect people traveling for abortions, or returning home to Ireland after accessing an abortion in Great Britain. They shouldn’t have to travel for an abortion because abortion up to 12 weeks was made legal in Northern Ireland last year, with regulations in place from spring this year.
However, the Health Minister, Robin Swann, has refused to commission abortion services in Northern Ireland, and refused to allow pregnant people to access abortion via telemedicine, despite its wide availability in the rest of the United Kingdom due to the coronavirus pandemic. Instead, in the midst of a global pandemic, the man tasked with protecting us is risking the lives of vulnerable people by forcing them to travel—and now to come into potential contact with a super-contagious strain of coronavirus—to satisfy the ultra-conservative and increasingly outdated politics of this part of the world who would rather see Northern Ireland’s vulnerable exported, regardless of how many subsequent cases of COVID-19 we import, because they cannot bear women to have agency over their bodies, health and lives.
The politics of Northern Ireland will kill people here in great numbers because our politicians are too busy clinging to outdated politics of the past. COVID should not be used as cover to continue to violate human rights. Pregnant people and their families in Northern Ireland deserve to access abortion at home, supported by their healthcare provider, not be put at further risk of catching and transmitting COVID-19 to satisfy an out-of-touch minority.
What does the rise of the lesbian period drama mean for contemporary queer stories? (by Sohel Sarkar, sarkar.sohel10@gmail.com)
Ammonite, starring Kate Winslet and Saoirse Ronan released late last year, was the latest addition to the lesbian period piece canon which has been getting quite crowded over the last few years. The first wave, so to speak, started in 2018 with Colette, The Favourite, and Lizzie. This was followed in 2019 by Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Vita and Virginia, Tell It to the Bees, Wild Nights with Emily, Netflix’s Elisa & Marcela and the HBO/BBC One series Gentleman Jack.
These films have undoubtedly done a great to create a much-needed archive of queer and lesbian histories, highlight how the risks embedded in expressions of queer sexuality change but also remain the same. But what does the proliferation of lesbian period pieces — which are also overwhelmingly populated by white ciswomen — mean for contemporary queer stories?
In this essay, I will look at broader themes and specific scenes from the films mentioned above, to examine our fascination with past lesbian romances. In particular, I want to examine how these period pieces engage with homophobia, what kind of transgressions they allow their central characters, and what the obsession with a certain representation of the lesbian — the delicate feminine white lesbian — mean for queer stories that do not fit within this framework. Finally, related to the last point, I will conclude by posing the question: by restricting queer/lesbian love firmly within the corsets of period dramas, do period pieces leave contemporary queer struggles at the risk of further erasure?
Freelance Opportunities
via @left_voice (Feb 1): This #BlackHistoryMonth, we are highlighting Black struggle --- from that of enslaved people to Black workers who went on strike in Ford factories to those struggling today against police violence, the pandemic, and capitalist exploitation. Pitch to us at contact@leftvoice.org
via @alookinto_ (Jan 31): We explore current affairs and politics through a Gen Z lensSpeaking head in silhouetteOur sections include: photography, poetry, news and feature articles and films. Pitch to us and check out our website for more: https://www.alookinto.co.uk/contact #journorequest #pitch
via @heathergreen21 (Jan 28): Call For Contributions for a new @NiCHE_Canada series exploring ideas of borders and boundaries in the North. Check it out and consider submitting a pitch to us! Lots of possible topics and approaches.
via @JonDoyleDesign (Jan 26): *** CONTENT CREATORS *** We are taking pitches for an upcoming project. We are seeking passionate writers to share thought-provoking, unique content about the video games industry. Indie. AAA. Retro. Current affairs.
DM @reviewsbyhughes for pitches.
via @AmyNordrum (Feb 2): Do you want to write about the future of cities for @techreview? Cityscape Where are we headed, and what role will technology play? Send pitches to amy.nordrum@technologyreview.com (or DMs are open), I’d love to hear your ideas!
Writing Jobs
BestReviews is hiring Freelance Writers and Editors - San Francisco
Lifeology is hiring a Science Writer & Communication Specialist - Remote
Paste Magazine is hiring an Assistant Music Editor - Remote
The Denver Gazette is hiring a Colorado Rockies Sports Writer - Colorado
Reviewed/USA Today is hiring a Senior Staff Writer - Massachusets/Virtual