How To Make Cash With The Women's Weeklies

Magazines like Take a Break, Chat, Pick Me Up, Love It, etc, etc, rely very heavily on user generated content - tips, photos, letters, stories and so on.

And they're willing to pay for them. 

I had always known this, in that vague, never really given it much thought about it kind of way, but when our finances went belly up it occurred to me that this might be a way of bringing some money in. £25 is the standard price paid for publishing a photo which is a nice treat or a week's food shopping, depending on the situation you're in.

In the last year I've made over £200 by getting comments, letters and photographs published, as well as picking up a few prizes and mementos like fridge magnets.

Hello, Is It Me You're Looking For?

So, what kind of content are they looking for? Can you provide it? Read on and find out...

☆ Tightwad Tips

Money saving tips, or time saving 'life hacks', are always in high demand with the women's weeklies. If you can send in a photo of your tip in action, so much the better, as it will generally up the amount paid from around £25 to around £50. They don't have to be amazing - my favourite ever suggested 'if you're bored of apple crumble, why not try rhubarb instead?'

☆ Letters

All magazines love to receive letters - it proves that someone out there is actually reading them. Some magazines will reward all those whose letters are published, others will just give a prize or cash for the star letter. Colourful envelopes and drawings still have their place, but in this age of email just send your pics as attachments. The downside is that some will give your words a heavy handed edit - this is especially true of teen magazines and others looking for a particular 'tone'.

☆ Photos

Baby pics, cute animals, sleeping granddads, multiple generations together, funny dads, fancy dress hen nights - you know the type. Requests for photos will be put on the magazines' facebook pages, or you can submit via the website or email. Just take a look through your snaps and see if you have anything which fits the bill.

☆ Comments

One of the big ways the women's weeklies try and set themselves up as a kind of printed friend is by publishing reader opinions. They might be on something in the news (like the pros and cons of selfies), or it might be on a story in the magazine (which is better, dress A or dress B?; or should Sandra take her cheating scumbag of a boyfriend back?). Keep it short, keep it snappy, and, again, accompanying photos always boost your chances. The best way to keep up to date with comment opportunities is to check out the magazines' facebook pages - staff will post there with what they're looking for, and who to email it to. The downside is the endless promotion of ridiculous Daily Mail yarns, and the infuriating ignorance on display in most of the comment sections.

☆ Real Life Stories

Weight loss, weddings gone awry, surprise births, cheating partners, and, on the darker side, rape, child abuse and domestic violence make up the backbone of the women's weeklies stories. You can get anything between £50 and £2,000, depending on the story and how much space it will fill. I lead a fairly boring life, but if you have more going on you can check out current story requests on the magazines' facebook pages, or send your story via email or through the forms on the websites.

Where To Submit

There are hundreds, thousands even, of different publications in the UK alone. Just in the women's weekly genre there are dozens of different titles - the best place to start, in my opinion, is the real life weeklies as they need the most reader contributions. Once you've got the bug you can start looking for the more esoteric titles!

☆ Take a Break
The market leader, Take a Break magazine was ounded in 1990. They put out regular requests for photos and comments on their Facebook page, and you can submit your true life stories on their website. TAB also offers lots of spin-offs: summer specials, puzzle mags, Fate & Fortune, etc, so they need plenty of contributions. (The TAB group also includes TV Choice and Bella magazines.)

☆ That's Life!
Regular requests through their Facebook page, and an easy to use submit feature on their website for tightwad tips, letters, and stories.

☆ Pick Me Up
Launched in 2005, Pick Me Up puts out requests on Facebook, or you can email tips, stories, and suitable snaps to pickmeup@ipcmedia.com. IPC media is now Time Inc. UK, and the group also includes titles like Chat (chat_magazine@ipcmedia.com), What's On Tv (and related), Now, and Woman, Woman's Own, & Woman's Weekly.

☆ Love It!
Has been around since 2006, and has submit forms for letters, stories, 'you've got male' and 'you've been shamed' on its website. They have a Facebook page but tend to advertise competitions rather than content opportunities. (Sister title, Full House, closed down a couple of years ago.)

☆ Real People
You can submit your story HERE on the website, or check out Freebie Friday on their facebook page.







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