How Tos

Maxim has aged gracefully throughout the years, growing slightly more sophisticated while remaining tethered to its initial man-minded mission. And they are in search of freelancers who can channel the plain-spoken, witty best friend guiding you through the guy universe.

Although the easiest section of the magazine to break into is the front of the book, ambitious writers can pitch intriguing features, as well. But editor-in-chief Dan Bova cautions that successful long-form pitches frequently hinge on a writer being able to get special access to a source or bring a completely new angle to an issue.

“Whatever the subject is — poker, Mardi Gras, etc. — we’ve done it a million times before,” he said. “We’re looking for clever twists on the topic.”

Get more information on online opportunities and pay rates in How To Pitch: Maxim.

This article is one of several mediabistro.com features exclusively available to AvantGuild subscribers. If you’re not a member yet, you can register for as little as $55 a year and get access to these articles, discounts on seminars and workshops, and more.

Author and journalist Susan Orlean (left) has written two nonfiction pieces that have been turned into films. She’ll discuss her new book, Rin Tin Tin, in Mediabistro’s first online Literary Festival & Workshops starting July 16. Other speakers include Rebecca Skloot, Jason Boog, and Jason Allen Ashlock. Register now.

If you’ve been tasked with making a podcast for your news organization, you know how daunting the experience can be. From picking the right equipment to interviewing guests, every little piece can be the difference between thousands of subscribers or none at all.

But one of the easiest ways to get people tuning in is to let your personality shine and express an opinion.

“The Internet is a medium that rewards people who provoke a little bit,” said Matt Binder, producer of “The Majority Report with Sam Seder.” ”There’s several ways to get at the truth. One is to just give information in a slightly dry and informative, just-the-facts way. Another is to have people debating a topic, and I think that is always much more dynamic.”

For eight more ways to grab listeners’ ears, read How to Make a Podcast People Want to Subscribe To.

Writing a book is hard enough, but why does writing about the book you’ve written feel impossible? In mediabistro.com’s 7 Steps to a Winning Book Proposal, published authors, editors and agents spell out the necessary steps to crafting a viable and compelling query letter.

Step one, assemble the basics. Your query letter must include an overview, marketing plan, competitive book analysis, and author bio and platform, along with a table of contents, chapter summaries and a writing sample.

Bring these pieces together in an intuitive order, but don’t dwell too much on what’s the perfect arrangement. “If you’ve got the ingredients — a really fresh idea or a fresh spin on an old idea, good writing, and a platform and a promotion plan — it doesn’t make any difference what order they are in,” said Michael Larsen with Larsen-Pomada Literary Agents. “Editors can skip around, and will and do.”

Read the full article here. [subscription required]

You’re not the only one intimidated by the Bloomberg Businessweek name. In mediabistro.com’s latest How To Pitch article, editors admit that, despite the brand’s cachet, they aren’t inundated with freelance pitches — good news if you’re looking to land a byline there.

“Ultimately we want someone to spin a really great yarn that happens to be of interest to business readers,” explained features editor Sheelah Kolhatkar.

To find out which sections of Bloomberg Businessweek are the most freelancer-friendly and for a list of all editors accepting pitches, check out How To Pitch: Bloomberg Businessweek.

Sometimes pitching feels like auditioning for a seat in the high school cafeteria. Only the popular kids get the good bylines, right?

Not true at Filter. These  editors say all you have to do to break in is love good music and introduce yourself through email. Yep, that’s it.

“Be creative and show us who you are,” said  Pat McGuire, the editor-in-chief. “You have to understand that there are so many people seeking similar positions that you have to make yourself stand out a little bit.”

McGuire added one piece of advice on getting your foot in Filter‘s door. “I have a sense of humor; everybody at Filter does. So entertain us. Make us remember you — without being unprofessional.”

To find out what to do once you have McGuire’s attention, check out How To Pitch: Filter.