One of the most significant barriers that stands in the way of researchers writing for the public is the time investment required, coupled with the uncertainty of the process. It can take several hours to write a draft, and it can be unclear what to do with that draft once it’s written, or once it gets rejected by an outlet.

The goal of the pitching approach is to make the process easier and more efficient. Instead of writing a complete draft, authors only need to spend a few minutes up front writing a short pitch (5-6 sentences getting across the key ideas; more on that below). Psychgeist will then “pitch” the article to media outlets we’ve agreed to target, and you only have to write a draft once we’ve found an outlet that’s interested. Not only can you then tailor your article to that specific outlet and any guidance they might provide, but your chances of success become significantly higher (usually, accepted pitches are taken “on spec,” which means that although there’s no guarantee, editors generally try to make things work when possible). In cases where drafts do end up getting rejected, whenever possible, we continue the pitching process until we find the article a home, to avoid wasted drafts being buried in file drawers.

If you already have a draft (either one that you’ve tried to pitch on your own, or one you’ve written just because you prefer to start with a draft to clarify your thinking, as some people do) we can absolutely work with that as well — but you’ll still need a pitch. For editors, most of whom have overflowing inboxes, a good pitch is essential for helping them decide which articles to pursue.

Because of those overflowing inboxes, it’s critical to keep in mind that the most important part of any pitch is for it to be read. That’s why pitches need to be short and concise and to quickly capture an editor’s interest. We aim for 5-6 sentences (though it’s occasionally fine to include additional materials after the pitch itself). 

So what needs to go into those 5-6 sentences?

The essence of your idea
Don’t forget to explain why it’s interesting — it may seem obvious to you, but that doesn’t mean it will be obvious to an editor.

Why the finding is non-obvious
Science isn’t always hugely surprising, nor should it be, but consider how you frame your finding — for example, what alternative outcome might have been plausible — to help your reader recognize that your result was not a foregone conclusion.

Why now?
Some pitches have a specific “news hook,” which means that the article is connected to a current event that the author will be commenting on, or which provides a concrete example of the research or phenomenon in question.

But newshooks are not required — it’s also very common to link research to ideas that are being widely discussed, or in the zeitgeist :). Many articles also coincide with specific times of the year, such as holidays, upcoming legislation, the Superbowl, etc. Because these events can be anticipated, it can be worthwhile to plan in advance and get a pitch in early.

Some articles are “evergreen,” meaning that they’re not tied to a particular moment in time. For evergreen articles, it’s still important to explain why readers would be interested, but it’s not necessarily critical to explain the article’s timeliness.

Why you?
Usually, this is fairly self-evident because you are the person responsible for, or are an expert in, the research covered in the article. This can also be an opportunity to state any relevant credentials (e.g., an assistant professor at the University X, author of book Y). 

Focus on the big picture
The goal of the pitch is not to get into the details, but to provide the big picture: What are readers going to learn from the article that they didn’t already know and why is that important? If you can provide an answer to that question, you’ve written a good pitch.

Here are some other points to keep in mind:

Your pitch doesn’t have to be perfect
The goal is to make the process efficient for you. The idea is not to struggle for hours over a perfectly worded pitch.

Set a timer
Take 10-15 minutes to draft your pitch. You know the content, so it shouldn’t take any longer than this. If it does, that’s a sign that you may not be ready to write the article yet, or you might want some help from us.

We’re here to help
Once you’ve drafted the pitch, send it to us in your proposal and we’ll work on polishing it with you. We’ve done hundreds of pitches, so we’ll give you some feedback that will help you clean up any rough edges before we finalize things. Also, keep in mind that while we include your pitch in our emails or calls to editors, we usually give our own summary of the pitch and why it’s interesting, so not everything is riding on the shoulders of your 6-sentence summary.

Once we’ve finalized the pitch and decided on which outlets to target (and in what order; generally, you can’t pitch to multiple outlets at once, you have to do it serially) your job is done for the time being.

This process can sometimes move very quickly, but it can often be slow, especially when things don’t work out at the first few outlets we target. We’ll keep you posted, and you can always check in with us.

Once we get the green light from an editor, we connect you with them. We still remain involved in the process, but we no longer act as an intermediary, instead allowing you to communicate with the editor directly.