A whopping 90 percent of Whole Life Times is freelance-written, and editors are very welcoming to pitches. “We love getting queries, because often writers bring us stories about things we would have completely missed,” said editor-in-chief Abigail Lewis.

And there’s even better news for newbie writers. “We work with a mix of seasoned pros and newer writers and also particularly value emerging writers who respond to rewrite requests, take note of our edits and bring those elements to bear in subsequent stories,” she said.

Got a great story idea?

Read How To Pitch: Whole Life Times. [Mediabistro AvantGuild subscription required]

After talking with at least 60 editors for our four-part series on pitching personal essays, we’ve learned a lot about what they expect in a publishable story.

Paula Derrow from Self wants fresh and relatable while Whole Life Times’ Abigail Lewis puts extra emphasis on humor and a tie into their L.A. home. And for Shape, editor A.J. Hanley says it’s all about tone, tone, tone.

Our latest installment adds 15 more magazines that are gunning for a first-person narrative. Find out what these editors and others crave in the pitch in Personal Essay Markets, Part  III. [sub req'd]