Spiritual and Religious Publishing Opportunities
In the realm of journalism, there are numerous publications that cater to the spiritual and religious communities, offering a wide range of topics and themes for writers to explore. Here are some paying religious and spiritual publications that accept freelance contributions for essays, reported features, and inspirational content.
Sojourners Magazine is a platform that covers faith, politics, social justice, war, peace, community, and art from a biblical perspective. They pay for reported pieces and strongly researched analysis, with past reports indicating payment around $0.14 per word. They also pay $50 per poem [1].
Ruminate Magazine, although primarily a poetry publisher, has accepted spiritual/faith-based poetry and paid $15 per poem before it shut down [4]. This suggests that some spiritual-focused literary publications pay for content, especially poetry. Other literary and faith-related magazines like Rattle, Ploughshares, and Orion Magazine pay for poetry with spiritual or nature themes, ranging from $45 up to $200 per poem for print [4].
For those seeking higher pay on reported or well-researched spiritual essays or features, consider pitching larger magazines that cover cultural, political, or social justice topics from a faith perspective, even if they are not exclusively religious publications. For instance, Mother Jones pays $0.75 to $1.75 per word for reported stories but is less explicitly religious [1][3].
Hinduism Today, an international quarterly magazine, pays $.10 per word and $20-100 per photo published for articles on spiritual, humanistic, and cultural elements of Hinduism [5].
Other publications like Jewish Currents, a print (quarterly) and digital publication that covers politics, culture, and ideas through the perspective of the Jewish left, pays in-depth web features at least $1000, news reports start at $500, analysis and reviews start at $400, and print features are paid $1.00 / word [2]. Notre Dame Magazine, a quarterly publication of the University of Notre Dame, accepts features, departments, essays, and pays fees comparable to some national publications [6].
Guide Magazine, a "Christian story magazine for young people" between the ages of 10 and 14, pays $.07 - $.10 per word for stories and $25 - $35 for puzzles [3]. Clubhouse Jr., a magazine from Focus on the Family for children between the ages of 3 and 7, accepts articles that inspire, entertain, and teach Christian values. Fiction, nonfiction, and bible stories pay $.15-.25 / word [4].
Spirituality & Health covers a mix of health and spiritual topics and pays for articles on various subjects, including mind-body-spirit topics, first-person stories, spiritual tools and practices, interfaith beliefs and practices, and more [7].
U.S. Catholic accepts freelance submissions across a wide variety of magazine sections [8]. Touchstone, "A Journal of Mere Christianity," accepts features, "views," and communiqués that would appeal to a "broad audience of traditional Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox believers," paying $.20 per published word [9].
Guide for Spiritual Living: Science of Mind magazine is looking for articles for Religious Science followers and New Thought adherents about spiritual growth, personal development, community, sustainable living, and sacred activism. They buy first rights for both print and online versions and pay on publication [10].
The Christian Science Monitor, a daily newspaper covering US and international news, accepts freelance news submissions [11].
To report a broken market or changed writers' guidelines, writers can click the "report market" link below a market in the list. Writers can also submit their religious or spiritual publication to the writers' market database for potential inclusion in lists like this one.
Writers can bookmark this page and check back periodically for new markets. The publication, More About These Markets, updates automatically with new and updated religious and spiritual writers' markets.
In conclusion, there are numerous paying opportunities for religious and spiritual writers across a variety of publications. Each publication has its own submission guidelines, so it's essential to check them carefully before pitching.
[1] https://sojo.net/submissions/ [2] https://jewishcurrents.org/submissions/ [3] https://guide-magazine.org/submissions/ [4] https://www.clubhousejr.com/submit-articles [5] https://www.hinduismtoday.com/submission-guidelines/ [6] No report link provided. [7] https://www.spiritualityhealth.com/write-for-us [8] https://www.uscatholic.org/submissions [9] https://touchstonemag.com/submissions/ [10] https://www.scienceofmind.org/submissions/ [11] https://www.csmonitor.com/About/Contacts/Submissions
- The writer should consider exploring topics related to faith, politics, social justice, war, peace, community, and art from a biblical perspective for Sojourners Magazine, which pays for well-researched reports at around $0.14 per word.
- Ruminate Magazine, although primarily a poetry publisher, has paid $15 per poem for spiritual/faith-based poetry in the past, indicating that literary publications in spiritual niches may pay for content, particularly poetry.
- For writers seeking higher pay, pitching larger magazines that cover cultural, political, or social justice topics from a faith perspective could be an option, as Mother Jones pays $0.75 to $1.75 per word for reported stories, though it is less explicitly religious.
- Hinduism Today magazine pays $.10 per word and $20-100 per photo published for articles on spiritual, humanistic, and cultural elements of Hinduism.
- Some publications, like Jewish Currents, pay substantial fees for in-depth web features, with starting rates of $1000, while news reports start at $500, analysis and reviews start at $400, and print features are paid $1.00 / word.
- Guide Magazine, a publication for young people between the ages of 10 and 14, pays $.07 - $.10 per word for stories and $25 - $35 for puzzles.
- For children between the ages of 3 and 7, Clubhouse Jr. accepts articles that inspire, entertain, and teach Christian values, paying $.15-.25 / word.
- Spirituality & Health covers a mix of health and spiritual topics and pays for articles on various subjects, making it a potential market for writers seeking to write about mind-body-spirit topics, first-person stories, spiritual tools and practices, interfaith beliefs and practices, and more.
