GENERAL
We're always looking for new and exciting ideas and contributors, whether you're a writer with a knack for finding fresh angles and destinations, a photographer with an idiosyncratic eye, or an illustrator who can bring long-form stories to life.
While we'd love to respond to every pitch, due to the high number of submissions we receive we can only get back to those we wish to move forward with.
You can pitch to our editorial team at submissions@suitcasemag.com - but beforehand, please read our submission guidelines before emailing.
Please do NOT send follow-up emails - we will get back to you if we're interested in hearing more about your pitch.
What we're looking for
- Stories with a narrow focus. Even if you're pitching a city guide, please make sure you are offering a specific angle.
- Smart ideas that respect our audience's intelligence. We're not afraid to engage with serious issues or make a serious point, and welcome pitches that are more expansive, creative and challenging than you might normally associate with a travel magazine.
- Stories that explain how travel intersects with another field, such as art, design, literature, food, politics, environment/conservation, technology, community, activism, etc.
- Stories that involve subcultures and interesting characters, or provide a new lens with which to view an unfamiliar (or perhaps familiar) destination.
- Think pieces that tackle topics such as sustainability, politics and the zeitgeist with a travel slant.
- Trend-led pieces that showcase the new wave of travel in a destination – think, a handful of cool bar concepts popping up in a city, or a group of individuals or a community changing the conversation in a destination.
What we're NOT looking for
- London content
- Fiction - we don't publish short stories, poetry or otherwise
- Pre-written spec articles - we want to know you've pitched with us in mind
- Clichéd travel angles e.g. "the new Berlin", life-changing experiences (unless they genuinely were), gap-year travel diaries
- Fashion shoots - while we used to shoot fashion photography for print, we've since moved exclusively to travel photography (except for special projects)
- Stories about the Maldives, Dubai or any other flash/chain resort-y destinations, unless you have a more meaningful or interesting angle
How to pitch
Before sending us a pitch email, please consider the below:
- Don't just suggest destinations you want to cover or pitch a broad guide - tell us the core of the story and why it matters
- Explain why you are pitching the story to SUITCASE rather than another publication - why are we the right home for it? How does it fit with our other content and tone?
- Explain why you are the right person to write the piece - are you an expert in the subject matter? Have you lived in a particular place? Do you have some other reason for wanting to cover it?
- Write the pitch in the same language and tone as you plan to write the article
- Include when you can deliver a first draft and an estimated word count
- How photography could be covered for the story (are you travelling with a photographer? Is there a pre-existing bank of great images? Do we need to commission someone? If so, do you already have someone in mind?). As our stories are so visual, we will rarely be able to commission a piece without this information
- If you already have commissions for the story elsewhere, explain where and how your piece for us will be different
- Include examples of similar articles you've done, either linked in the main body of the email or attached as a PDF. You don't need to include your CV.