Midwest Living defines "midwest" as: Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska and Kansas. They occasionally do stories in bordering states such as Kentucky, Arkansas and Tennessee.
Some of their pitch tips include:
~ Focus on our 12-state region.
~ Look for little-known story subjects or truly innovative angles on familiar topics. Our articles must go beyond what readers could learn from a destination’s web site or brochure.
~ Sum up your idea in 2-3 well-crafted sentences. If you can’t sell it that quickly, your idea isn’t fully developed yet. We don’t just want a general story subject idea; we want your plan for covering the subject.
~ Read several recent issues for a sense of Midwest Living’s tone and content. Make sure your story could fit into that mix.
~ Explain the unique qualifications that make you the best person for this assignment.
~ We tend to develop new writers on small items first. New writers rarely receive a full feature assignment. Your best opportunity comes from pitching a smaller item such as a short news item on a new or notable hotel or restaurant.
~ What we are not interested in: personal essays, stories about your vacation, humor pieces, nostalgia/reminiscent pieces, celebrity profiles (with rare exceptions), routine pieces on familiar destinations such as the Dells, the Black Hills or Navy Pier, completed manuscripts, previously published works.
Main feature sections include: Food, Travel, House & Home, Garden. Check out the Travel section to see specific columns and articles.
Pay rate ranges, but sticks around .80- $1.00/word. Here are their Submission Guidelines.