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This one was years in the making. Picture it: March 2021. I’m preparing to make a fateful decision to leave my beloved job at the library to freelance like a lunatic and I’m trying to make as many editorial connections as I can. Somewhere along the way I see a tweet from an editor at School Library Journal looking to expand her roster of feature writers on all things library. Bingo! I shoot her an email with my introduction and with three ideas for feature stories in mind. It goes something like this: Hi ____, I am a freelance writer and children's librarian in Nashville, TN. I currently work for ____ but will be leaving my job on April 30 to pursue full-time freelancing. You can see some of my featured clips on my website. I have several ideas that might fit at School Library Journal. Would any of these be of interest to you? [PITCH IDEA #1] [PITCH IDEA #2] [PITCH IDEA #3] I would love to write about this experience and help other educators and librarians learn how they can recreate in their own neighborhoods! Thanks in advance! Lisa
One week later, she still had not responded, so I nudged. Hey ___, Just checking up here -- any interest in any of these pieces for School Library Journal? Thanks! Lisa
This got a response twenty minutes later. Dear Lisa, Thank you for pitching these ideas and for following up. we've covered these types of initiatives a fair amount, so I'm not sure any is exactly right for us. However, we'd be open to more ideas, or could keep you in mind for articles we are looking to assign. Have you done reported work as well as first-person pieces?
I responded: Hi ___, Thanks for letting me know! Yes, I have done reported work in the past, though no reported library pieces yet (I will be leaving my current position on April 30 and will be freer to do this work.) I have a few reported pieces forthcoming from Real Simple and Parents magazine (online), and another library centric piece from Romper also forthcoming soon. As mentioned, much of my work is still forthcoming at the moment since I'm gearing up for a full-time jump into freelance but haven't yet left the library. You can see a published example of my reported work at SheKnows. I am certainly open to assignments. You can learn more about me on my website and see my resume as well. Thank you! Lisa Bubert
Oh, what a sweet baby angel I was. By that point, I hadn’t done any long-form reporting, hadn’t negotiated much with editors, and really had yet to establish myself outside of literary work. Reading this now, I can see what the editor saw — this person is green but give them time and let’s see what they do. What I did was quit my job, dive head first into long-form reporting, make some good money for a while, but ultimately decide that I’m too much of a people person to work alone and I’m way too much of a career librarian not to work in libraries. Live and learn. But damn did I grab some good bylines in the meantime. Time passes. I get this email two and a half years later: Hello Lisa, It's ___ from SLJ; hope all's well. Are you still looking for freelance reporting/writing assignments? I am looking to assign a reported piece on public library yoga programs for kids and toddlers and how these have evolved since the pandemic/a greater awareness of mindfulness and stress reduction. Let me know if this idea interests you!
After some initial wonder at the timeline of the universe, I responded an hour later: Hey ___, Thanks for reaching out! Yes, I'm interested in this. What's the desired word count, deadline, and proposed pay? Thanks again and hope all is well where you are too. Best, Lisa Bubert
So professional. An hour later: Hi Lisa, Great - so glad you're still interested! We're looking at an article of between 1500-1900 words with a filing date of 12/1, and we can offer you $400 for this article. We've actually covered this topic before some years ago, but there are a lot of these programs now, it seemed like a good idea to revisit, and we want to focus on public libraries. As mentioned, it would be good to know how these programs evolved/started with more awareness of stress and mindfulness. Also.. what are some tips/best practices for teaching yoga to toddlers??? I imagine you might speak to 4-5 people involved in these programs. Let me know what you think. Many thanks!
I said I was happy to get started and was excited to work with SLJ. Hooray! The editor and I go back and forth a bit more — she wants to know who I plan to talk to about the story, wants to ensure that they’re diverse in geography and type of library setting. I reach out to a few people, get my sources, do my interviews. I draft it up and send back. She responds with edits; I went a little too theoretical and not enough practical so she asks me to go back and get more practical tips, maybe for a sidebar. I agree to do the sidebar and she agrees to toss me an extra $50 since it’ll go over the original word count/proposal. I do my edits, do my sidebar, send it in, and done. Months later, the print magazine lands in my mailbox with my article in a beautiful spread and my name in big, bold letters. Et voila. Here’s the timeline: Original pitch sent: March 16, 2021
Nudged: March 24, 2021
Response received: March 24, 2021 with a thanks but no thanks and we’ll keep your name on file.
Editor reaches out with commission request: October 6, 2023
Draft of piece delivered: November 21, 2023
Edits requested: January 2, 2024
Edits returned: January 9, 2024
Published: February 22, 2024 (Online and in the spring issue of the print magazine)
Pay: $450
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