Pitch a story

We are open for submissions, and we pay

Here at The Big Idea, we rely on freelancers for our editorial coverage. We always welcome pitches from new writers!

We publish long and short-form articles that cover news, events, people, places, and concerns in the arts sectors. Our focus is exclusively on the arts in Aotearoa or New Zealand artists. We cover performing arts, visual arts, music, dance, design, literature, craft, object, film and other forms for a niche audience who tend to be practicing artists or working in the sector in other capacities.

We accept story pitches from experienced and emerging writers. Before pitching, please have a look through our site to get an understanding of the kinds of things we publish. We are a fairly niche publication catering to a specialist arts audience. 

Pitches should be emailed to our editor Gabi Lardies: editor@thebigidea.co.nz

How to pitch

A pitch is a short outline of what you would like to write. It should be clear and not more than 300 words.

It is good to include the format you think your idea fits into. At the moment we are commissioning stories in the following columns:

• Pathfinders – profiles on artists and organisations taking the road less travelled by adopting new or innovative approaches to their practice/mahi. 
  For example: Season: Rewriting The Rulebook On Dealer Galleries
  800-1200 words
   
• Road Trip – explore arts initiatives outside the main centers that add to the cultural vibrancy of local creative communities. 
  For example: Kia Mau Festival: Expect the Unexpected
  800-1200 words
   
• Soapbox – an expert opinion on a timely issue.  
  For example: Art History has been cut as a school subject. What could be lost?
  800-1200 words
   
• Feature – a reported piece on a bigger issue or happening in the sector
  For example: Into The Ether: Mixing Public Art and Corporate Finance
  Up to 2,500 words
   
• News – got the scoop on something happening? We mostly cover news in the weekly Artswire, however some things do require stand-alone articles. 
  Up to 1,200 words.
   
• Arts Smarts – If you think you’ve got some wisdom, or a hack, to share with practicing artists this could be the column for you.
  For example: How To Make A Feature Film In 10 Days For $10K

In your pitch, include brief context of the subject, who you might interview, and why this is important and relevant now. You should also give an indication of how many words you expect the finished piece to be. 

Tell us a little about yourself – just two or three sentences will do. Link us to previous articles you have written if they are online.

Pitches can be submitted via email to editor@thebigidea.co.nz with the subject line being “PITCH: Your idea”.

Payment

We pay about 30-40 cents per word.

Response

The Big Idea is a tiny team mostly working part-time, so please don’t expect us to reply right away. We will make an effort to reply as soon as possible!

Do not take rejection personally. There are many reasons we do not commission pitches – we may have a similar story in the pipeline, in the recent past, or we may simply be full to the brim and have none of our small commissioning budget left. 

If you’d like to write for us but you’re not sure what to write about, get in touch with a little about yourself. We often have stories that we need to commission and can add you to our talent pool.