Three Ways to Handle Radio Silence (and One Way Not To)
There's no definitive way to handle non-responsive editors, but there's definitely a worst way
This week’s question comes from my friend Marcello Di Cintio, a writer of enviable accomplishments. It’s a classic one, too, which goes to show that taming the dark arts of freelancing is a career-long pursuit. He asks:
What is the best way to handle non-responses on pitches?
Dear Marcello:
Though I don’t think there’s a “best” way to handle radio silence, I think it’s important we do handle them for our sanity.
There’s nothing worse than spending hours on a pitch, sometimes going as far as pre-interviewing a subject, only to transmit it into a black hole. How hard is it to reply with a simple “yes” or “no”? In my years of editing, I’ve never intentionally ignored a pitch; it’s frustrating, rude, and almost entirely inexcusable.
The exception is daily news editors piled under emails containing the day’s stories, replies to editor’s questions of the day’s stories, copy edits about the day’s stories, a bunch of stuff about tomorrow’s stories, plus infinite press releases. Since I’d suffer panic attacks under those circumstances, I’m willing to accept my pitch about the surprising history of kebabs might not be a priority.
The rest of them can eat crow.
However, once they’re done eating crow, I would still very much like them to publish my 3,000-word think-piece on the soft bigotry of dessert hummus. So here’s what I do in a few different scenarios:
Scenario #1: The Evergreen Pitch
Even the most considerate editor needs time to respond. If it’s not an urgent news story, give them two weeks to get through the slush pile. After that, check in with a simple follow up along the lines of this:
“I’m just checking in to see if my pitch interested you. No worries if it’s a hard pass, just let me know. I hope to find another opportunity to work with you in the future.”
That last line is important. It shows a degree of professionalism and conveys that you’re their counterpart, not subordinate. It often elicits a response out of grace (though usually in the negative).
Here’s one more trick: follow them on Twitter. That simple “new follower” notification might be enough to remind them that they owe you a response.
If you still don’t hear back after another week, move on—and move on right away. I have a highly organized spreadsheet system that plans my second, third, and sometimes sixth pick, along with the date that I sent each pitch to avoid losing track of them.
I wrote about my “pitch bank” here, which includes a downloadable template. I found that it helps stave off pessimism by turning rejection into optimism and opportunity. In fact, I just sold a feature that I’ve been shopping around since June 2019. Fifth time’s a charm.
Scenario #2: The Newsy Pitch
For time-sensitive stories, I keep the pitch as brief as possible so their first impression of me isn’t associated with eye strain. The more important thing is to be up-front about the story’s expiration date. Before getting to the pitch, include something in your introduction paragraph that says as much and give them a deadline. For example:
“I understand you’re busy and might not have the time to reply. If I don’t hear from you by Wednesday, I’ll consider it a pass and consider Your Magazine for the next pitch.”
Again, always leave with the impression that you are equals in this industry. Because you are. Their pages would be stale without freelancers bringing them original ideas.
Scenario #3: The Now-or-Never Pitch
Marcello, as you know, it’s almost never okay to send pitches to multiple outlets simultaneously. While it’s an expectation in the world of literary journals, many of which rely on submission management websites like Submittable.com, it’s akin to adultery in editorial journalism. And why would you ever want to put yourself in the situation of un-promising a story?
Well, there’s one exception: if your opportunity to write it will vanish quickly.
I’m sure that newsier writers have run into this rare scenario more than me. The only times I’ve played hanky-panky with a pitch is when there are imminent travel plans—and I always disclose it in the first paragraph.
To use an example from the world of travel journalism, I’m required to secure at least one publisher before I can accept a tourism board’s invitation to join a familiarization trip. If I’ve failed to sell the pitch in due course, or the confirmation timeline is tight from the get-go, then I just have to be up-front.
Here’s an example from my inbox:
“…I hope my pitch will interest The Tomato, but since the flight plans are imminent, I’ve also sent it to editors at the following publications: City Palate, Edmonton Journal, Calgary Herald, up!, Western Living, and Westworld. I apologize for this, but as an editor myself I know that there isn’t always time to respond to matters of no interest. But, if you are interested, please let me know immediately and I’ll hold it for you.”
Scenario #never: Holding a Grudge
It’s probably not anything personal. Some editors just aren’t organized enough to write a form rejection, let alone copy and paste one. Others are chronically forgetful. And many are former freelancers so accustomed to radio silence as an implicit “no” that, unfortunately, they’ve come to accept it as an industry standard they need not change.
It’s reasonable to feel offended, but it’s better to conserve your energy. Don’t send them a pissy follow-up. Don’t subtweet about them. But, also, maybe don’t rely on them as your first outlet?
They don’t deserve to hold such priority. And that’s their loss. They’ll just have to realize it when they see my story about the criminality of tabbouleh without parsley go viral.
Something for Your Toolbox
Here are some editors looking for pitches unrelated to COVID-19
I’ve never bookmarked anything faster than this Twitter thread started by Catapult managing editor Matt Ortile. It began in May, when pandemic fatigue was setting in. Eight months later, I’m hearing from editors that they’ve never been happier to read non-pandemic pitches. If nothing else, this thread is an incredible database of email addresses from a range of titles, including: Jezebel, Rachel Ray, Dazed, HuffPost Personal, and Al Jazeera’s long-form department. It’s 150 replies and nearly as many quote tweets chock-full of market research.
…And One Shameless Plug
The illustrated tale of how I tried, and failed, to be a great birthing partner
Speaking of non-pandemic stories, my wife and I had our second child this summer. Since you’ve probably never read a birthing story by a father, I wrote about it for Edify, Edmonton’s beautiful new city magazine. Definitely pick up the print issue if you can get your hands on it. It’s the best way to read any magazine, obviously, but even more because Rachel Beyer brilliantly illustrated the piece in graphic novel-style.
At Large is edited by Danielle Paradis. Find out about her and her work at danielleparadis.com.