Guide for Freelancers

The vast majority of the news section of New Scientist magazine is written by staffers but we do publish the occasional freelance piece. This document is intended to outline what the news editors are looking for, how to go about pitching and writing stories and what our conditions are. Most of it should be obvious to experienced journalists, but these guidelines should help ensure that pitches or articles provided by you, a freelancer, meet our editorial standards.

Read the magazine

Before sending in your idea, make sure it is the kind of story we are after.

In general, we are looking for science and technology stories from around the world that will intrigue, entertain and inform the widest possible audience, be they physicists, biologists or people with no science background at all. We cover fascinating bits of pure science with no possible application as well as high-impact stories such as the anthrax attacks. Besides reporting the latest research, we also try to find interesting scientific or technological angles on major news events.

We do not cover developments of interest only to specialists, such as new animal models of a disease or the opening of new science research centres. Nor do we cover policy issues affecting only scientists, such as funding policies or the appointment of institute heads.

New Scientist publishes new research - in the news section that means either exclusive research or that presented in the public domain within the past week. We do not publish articles about research presented one month ago, unless there is a justifiable news hook. Features may publish less time sensitive material, but only if it is a critical step in an as yet untold story detailing a new idea.

Find exclusive stories

New Scientist has a team of around forty editorial staff. We get press releases from the major journals and institutions, attend many conferences and scour the obvious sources of science stories.

That means there's little point in pitching stories from major journals such as Nature and Science, or from press sites such as Newswise or EurekAlert! We will have seen them already, and generally ask staffers to write them. Only pitch from these sources if you have an exclusive angle on the research, its context or implications that others will not.

Try to find stories that none of our editors or reporters are likely to have spotted, and that haven't been covered by the mainstream media in Britain, the US or Australia.

Pitching stories

When suggesting a story, send us a paragraph or two describing exactly what the story is and why it's significant. If it's not obvious, spell out how it is different to what's been done before.

Send in focused pitches relating to one or two story ideas, rather than pitching many less well-informed ideas at once. Make sure it is a good story and explain why it is a good story - remember, your story is competing for coverage against tens or hundreds of others each week.

Do include details such as the names of the researchers and organisations involved, where you came across it, what - if any - media coverage the story has had and, in the case of journals, the title and date. This makes it easier for us to check our archive to see if we've done the story already and to decide whether it's worth covering.

If you haven't written for New Scientist before, it's helpful to tell us a bit about your background and writing experience as well. And don't forget to include your phone number and email address.

Who to send ideas to

There are four news editors at New Scientist, who cover different areas such as physics, technology, medicine and the environment. Unless you're sure who to send ideas to, just email the newsdesk. Your email will be forwarded to the relevant editor

Writing stories

New Scientist is constantly striving to improve the quality of our content and writing. Reporters are expected to interview primary sources, to ask critical questions, to check for any related research or studies where relevant, and to seek the views of independent experts. Reworking secondary sources such as press releases is not acceptable.

Our readers are a smart bunch, and expect stories to be intelligently written, and to include the context needed to understand their significance. Stories should provide enough detail for readers to understand how things work, but also be accessible to as wide an audience as possible and free of jargon. The should also be well structured, internally consistent, and engaging.

Payment

We pay per words published, which will normally be about the same as the number of words commissioned. The editor handling a story can tell you the going rate. There is no need to invoice us. Payment will be sent to the address you give us within a month or so.

Tip-off fees

Let us know about potential exclusives even if you are unable to write them yourself. We will usually pay a tip-off fee if we use the idea.

Copyright

Before we can publish any article, the writer must sign a copyright agreement giving our publisher all rights to the article. This covers "the form of words used", which means you can't sell the same article to other publications. You can, however, still write a different article on the same subject for them.

Soundbites

New Scientist usually runs a weekly column of quotes. We pay £30 or the local equivalent for the ones we use. They can come from any source, including websites, newspapers or the broadcast media, and range from the serious to the whimsical or amusing. But they must be: science or technology-related; as self explanatory as possible; up to date; no more than 50 words altogether; and include names, original source and date.

For example:

"Our security is threatened by a problem at least as dangerous as chemical, nuclear or biological weapons, or indeed terrorism: human-induced climate change."

John Houghton, former head of the UK's Met Office (The Guardian, London, 28 July)

Suggestions should be sent to the newsdesk.