Pitches That Work
Your all-in-one tool kit for pitching media
"To think in January I hadn't written anything, and now I have 3 published articles in 3 months. Alex gave me multiple entry points to get moving."
– Ainsley Maloney, Associate Director of Industry Relations, Thomas Jefferson University & freelance writer
A Behind-The-Scenes Look at Pitching Media
Ever wonder what it's like to get your stories picked up by mainstream media outlets? Curious what editors are thinking when they get emails from writers? Not sure what to put in your pitch to begin with?
I've been there. I'm Alex Webb (National Geographic, the Financial Times Press). I'm a full-time writer, journalist, and author who has been writing and working in media for over a decade. I co-created this course with my friend and fellow writer, Kristin Wong.
When I first started sending story ideas to editors and publications, it was like taking a shot in the dark. I wasn't sure my pitch emails were formatted correctly. I wasn't even sure anyone was reading them! I was making some really basic pitching mistakes, like:
👎 Writing long, meandering emails
👎 Pitching vague topics instead of specific stories
👎 Pitching ideas that publications already published
👎 Sending hundreds of random, mediocre pitches because "it's a numbers game"
I see other writers making these exact same mistakes.
It's not that these writers are bad writers. It's just tough to package a great story into a few short paragraphs. It's tough get an editor's attention. Really tough. Even the most seasoned writers don't get every single pitch accepted. So, in some ways, pitching can be a numbers game. But if you're too focused on quantity to worry about quality, your numbers will never have a fighting chance.
Instead, I encourage writers to take the time to give their pitches the attention they deserve. You'll be able to:
✅ Write concise, well-written pitches that editors will actually read
✅ Pitch compelling story ideas
✅ Find unique angles for those stories
✅ Learn what editors are actually looking for
I've taken everything we know about pitching — EVERYTHING we've learned over the years — and created an all-in-one Pitch Kit for you to learn all of the above.
This means you'll get a start-to-finish guide on how to pitch, beyond the basics. You'll also get a behind-the-scenes look at pitches I and other writers have published at places like the New York Times, Glamour magazine, Allure, and New York magazine's The Cut. Your Pitch Kit will give you everything you need to get started — and pitch with strategy.
Here's What You'll Get...
The Pitches That Work Workbook: A start-to-finish guide with the fundamentals of pitching, along with assignments.
From Pitch To Publication: Actual pitches and emails writers have sent editors. You'll also get a breakdown of the process of pitching to writing the story.
Worksheets and assignments: You'll get templates and worksheets to help map out your story ideas.
Get Your Kit
The fact is, many editors reject something like 95% of the pitches they receive. I'll show you what the 5% of pitches that get accepted look like. I'm not saying what worked for me and other writers I know will work for everyone, but we've done this, and we can share what HAS worked.
This pitch kit is for you if...
✔️ You want to break into writing for media, but you're not sure where to start.
✔️ You have big ideas for stories you'd like to write, but you're not sure how to package them.
✔️ You've been pitching editors and publications nonstop without ever getting a response.