How to Pitch: Suede

Circulation: 250,000
Frequency: Nine times a year in 2005
Special issues: None yet

Background: Published jointly by Essence Publications and Time Inc. and founded earlier this year, Suede is trying to reach an audience of urban, trend-setting women who have been dissatisfied with traditional (read: stodgy) fashion coverage. The mag places a serious emphasis on luxury and designer goods, with a dash of hip-hop for good measure; it's an aesthetic executive editor Serena French describes as "street meets chic." "Our reader had a weave before Donatella," French says. "She was rocking a velour track suit before Juicy." It should be noted that though much of the coverage focuses on black celebrities and black issues, "we're not looking to exclude anybody," French says.

Without actually holding Suede in your hands, it's hard to convey how new it looks. "We're trying to bring a fresh visual language to it," says French, and while every executive editor is probably contractually obligated to say such things, Suede actually does pop off the page with near-dangerous velocity. A beauty and travel story showcases products floating in faux snow-globes; the calendar section is a photo of brightly colored pencils with events printed on them; the letters page is a bright green bulletin board mock-up with reader missives tacked to it; and Suzanne Boyd's editor's letter pops out of typewriter that looks like the design lovechild of Emilio Pucci and Jackson Pollack.

What to pitch: As a rule of thumb, keep Suede's bright, poppy aesthetic in mind when pitching—story ideas should be "lively and compelling." French says that about half of the magazine is written by freelancers. Culture, beauty, hair, features, and the back section are all fair game.

When aiming for the well, try to hit on features that discuss social issues in a compelling way, like the magazine's recent essay about whether young black people go to church to feel God or to network. Other features revolve around celebrities and role models, and thus require some sort of access. "We recently did a profile on a very successful agent to black Hollywood," French says. Likewise, the Living section takes a looks inside the cribs of famous people (recently done: fashion designer Tracy Reed).

The back section, which is called "Blah, Blah," has a more tabloid feel to it, with gossip items, horoscope, party reports, and other short pieces. "The back pages are kind of calling all humor writers," says French. These pieces are short—the lowdown on a Foxy Brown smackdown, a three-day diary of the Miami VMAs—and therefore quite accessible to the first-time pitcher.

Beauty pitches are always welcome. "Beauty and hair are huge to this reader—they make up about a third of the magazine," says French. A lot of the beauty coverage boils down to product round-ups that might be hard for outsiders to pitch in a fresh way, but Suede's winter issue also featured a longer study-based piece on how ethnicity affects the way we age and a look at which hair products are best in different global climates. The culture section functions in a similar way: Writing to say you'd love to review Gwen Stefani's solo debut probably won't fly, but there's room for thoughtful pieces in the winter issue on Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti and one that examines who's hot in the young, black actor demographic.

What not to pitch: All of the fashion, style, and shopping coverage is done in-house. Also stay away from health, "mind/body/soul stuff," exercise pieces, and anything that's servicey and women's magazine-y in the "10 Ways to Simplify Your Life" vein. "We're servicey, but only when it comes to beautifying," says French.

Recent stories pitched and published: A profile of Paige Johnson, the daughter of BET's founder Robert Johnson and "a modern-day hip-hop princess," who also happens to be an accomplished equestrienne. "That was good because she hadn't had a profile in a major magazine before," says French. A story by dream hampton about "women who chase athletes for material gain." (Obviously, it helps to be dream hampton when pitching, but French says the story idea was also appealing.)

Etiquette: Email is best—"that way we can forward it around, and it's easier to remember to reply," says French. As for reply time, it depends: "If we like the idea, it could be instantaneous." For those not blessed with such a felicitous outcome, wait three weeks before following up. "We could be on deadline, you never know," says French.

Lead time Four months
Pay rate: $1.50 a word; "if we use you regularly, it could go up to two," says French.
Payment schedule: On acceptance
Kill fee: 25 percent
Rights purchased: All

Contact info:
Suede
1500 Broadway
New York, New York 10036
firstinitiallastname@suedemag.com
www.suedemag.com

For beauty, beauty director Ying Chu: ychu@suedemag.com
For Culture and Blah, Blah: A&E editor Margeaux Watson: mwatson@suedemag.com
For features, Living, or Blah, Blah, deputy editor for lifestyle and features Marcia Cole: mcole@suedemag.com

Have you freelanced for Suede? Tell us about your experience below.

Rebecca Onion, a freelance writer living in Brooklyn, is a contributing writer to mediabistro.com.