"How to Get Published (and Paid!) Writing About Your Kids: The Ultimate Guide for Selling Your Stories to Parenting Magazines"

Get those articles and ideas out of your computer, out of your brain, and out of your paper files and into the email inboxes of editors! Result = get published, collect tearsheets, and watch the money hit your account and mailbox from reprint sales!

How to Get Published (and Paid!) Writing About Your Kids: The Ultimate Guide for Selling Your Stories to Parenting Magazines will change your writing life! The 7th edition of this invaluable resource that has already helped so many writers get published includes information on how to get started selling your original and reprint articles and essays. It goes on to cover everything related to writing for this market, including keeping good records, setting up a freelance writer website, invoicing, and so much more. Then comes the best part: the 384 paying markets. Writing success is waiting for you!

Check out what previous buyers had to say:

"Kerrie's book was my introduction to the world of writing for regional parenting publications. Her encouraging tone comes through to readers ... She is helpful to readers who ask questions, funny as can be on her blog, and doesn't hesitate to share her real-life experiences to help her readers succeed. Who doesn't want that?" — Rhonda Franz, writer, CaptainMom.net

"[How to Get Published (and Paid!)] is a phenomenal resource for both those just beginning to toy with the idea of trying to get published and experienced writers alike. Kerrie McLoughlin's advice launched my writing career to a whole new level." — Rachael Moshman, writer, ShrinkingMomster.com

"Kerrie makes it easy for aspiring writers to break into regional and national parenting magazines. Full of information, awesome tips, and positive energy, this book was a great source of inspiration and encouragement. I sold four articles quickly and easily as a result of her timely tips. And that's just for starters!" — Christine Shuck, author and blogger, TheDeadlyNightshade.com

"Are you a writer who wants to be published in regional parenting magazines? Then this book is for you. No question. The information in it is worth every penny and as soon as you make ONE sale, it pays for itself." — Jan Udlock, writer/virtual assistant, JanUdlock.com

This version is available only in PDF format, so you can print it, 3-hole punch it, pop it into a binder, and get working. Refer to the PDF on your computer for the helpful bonus content hyperlinked from the document. Links include: sample cover letter, sample query letter, freelance writer site info, how to generate ideas for articles, podcast interviews and posts with editors by Susan Maccarelli of Beyond Your Blog, and so much more!

It also includes:

225 regional parenting magazines, most of which take reprints and know that your work has been used somewhere else and they are fine with it.

159 national and online markets which can't wait to see your work, mostly original pieces, often you query them first.

FREE updates ... you just have to keep track of them in your printed version of the book in your Get Published binder :-)

Wait, Kerrie, tell me again why I can't get the 7th edition on Amazon?

1. It's less expensive for you this way.
2. It's in 8 1/2 x 11 format and a larger font so it's easier to read.
3. So you can print it out, 3-hole punch it and put it in a binder and it will lay flat!
4. Then you can add tabs or extra blank pages of notes to your binder :-)
5. One recent buyer said she loves being able to cut and paste editor email changes so easily!
6. You can search for specific niches you want to write for (e.g., Christian, literary), as well as amounts (e.g., $75, $100).
7. Links! I love being able to get more from a book by clicking on the links! The PDF version will take you to my blogs, the updates page, so many great podcast and other resources, writer's guidelines and more information on a publication written by bloggers, and of course links to the Parenting Magazine Writers Facebook group!

Are you ready to grab your copy? Simply click below and you'll be taken to PayPal to purchase the PDF for just $9.99!

How I Got My Start as a Paid Parenting and Family Magazine Writer

Everybody is different, so how we go about launching a writing career is going to be a different story for everyone. For some of you, a quick query to Working Mother might be the first you’ve ever written. You nervously hit the SEND button on your email program and go about your life. You check your email later that day and find an acceptance of your pitch at a pay rate of $1.00 per word! You create an article based on that piece that’s just different enough to send to the regional parenting magazines, and you sell nothing … for a week. Then the acceptances come pouring in.

Or maybe you always got As in college writing classes and everyone you know says you rock as a writer. But you are having trouble getting any of the RPMs to give you even so much as a nibble. Then you try an online literary magazine that pays and you have found your niche. You go on to sell many pieces to Chicken Soup for the Soul, then try the regionals again and find even more success.

This is my Writing Story because I think it’s important to remember how you started doing something you are very passionate about.

I always thought of myself as a writer growing up, but I didn’t think I was that great at it … nothing special. I got good grades in English and Creative Writing classes in school and even wrote some decent papers during my community college years. I was always observing, journaling, venting on paper. Interesting things happened to me, but I didn’t know how to craft them into something people would want to read.

I had three kids when I started writing for money and was a 35-year-old stay-at-home mom with a husband who traveled frequently for long periods of time. I loved being a mom more than anything in the world, and I also loved recording every thought in my head while I held my nursing baby during her naptime and her big brothers watched TV nearby. Trying to not let Caillou suck out all my brain cells with his whining was a top priority back then.

We had a little paper in my city called Mother and Child Reunion that was like a regional parenting magazine only smaller and more like a little newspaper. I always found helpful parenting articles in there and wondering if I could offer them something of value. In 2006, I submitted a series on how to make money with your kid on your hip. They were only used online, and I was too chicken to ask for money. I was just happy to have a writing credit.

Next I went after my local RPM, Kansas City Parent. I had whipped up a piece about stocking up on meals (kind of a passive aggressive vent, unfortunately!) and sent it off. It ran in the January 2007 issue, I received a $25 check, and I was on top of the world.

Next up was New Beginnings (La Leche League’s magazine), and I sent off an essay on how much I love having my kids nap on me. It ran in the March/April 2007 issue, I got 2 free copies, and I was ecstatic again.

Then I stumbled upon an article online about selling reprints and started trying to send out my Stock-up-Mentality article. I made many submission mistakes, receive one kind rejection, and didn’t hear from anyone else.

After that, I got fired up about kids and fundraising, pounded out a piece, submitted it to my local newspaper, and saw it in print 6 months later, in January 2008. The pay was the satisfaction of my family knowing I could write and hearing my name on a local radio station when the host agreed with my stance.

Time to head back to the regionals, I told myself, because I loved writing articles and decided I should be writing for an income. I enjoyed some success with various magazines and kept collecting information for new markets.

Then I got pregnant with this guy, my fifth child (below) in 2009 and thought it might help other writers to learn from my mistakes and to have the list of markets, guidelines, and pay information I had compiled.

I headed into the land of ebooks while also submitting magazine articles and doing some other things on the side, like writing for Contently.com and Scripted.com and proofreading on Fiverr.com and Scripted.com.

Honestly, some of my most successful paid parenting articles came about because of annoyance at other people. I channeled my frustration into my writing, as I had done since I was a little girl, and I found that sometimes venting pays. Some examples:

·         I thought my friend was nuts for grocery shopping daily with her small children in tow, so I wrote called Stock-up Mentality, sharing tips for meal planning and stocking up on groceries and meals to save time and money.

·         I was getting frazzled about expectations put on my family to be several places at once on Christmas morning, so I wrote 8 Tips for Holiday Sanity. I have since earned $954 from this one article, selling it as a reprint all over the United States. And it still sells every year. Talk about residual income!

·         Even though my kids were not in school, I was still affected by fundraisers through activities they were in. Instead of giving up on the whole process, I wrote Rock the Next Fundraiser and also Fundraising Life Lessons Learned. These were to put a more positive spin on that newspaper op ed.

From there, I headed in a more positive direction and started penning informational pieces: conquer the kid clutter, how to get started homeschooling, traditions (birthdays, seasonal, holidays), and so much more. Now I’ll write just about anything, including humorous listicles (Parenting by the Numbers is an article I wrote that’s humor + list + article = listicle), essays, and informational pieces on things that have zero relevance in my life (Co-Parenting Best Practices, Kindergarten Separation Anxiety, etc.).

My love for words remains all these years later. I love writing ebooks and want them to be as helpful as possible. I love writing regional parenting magazine articles and working with amazing editors. I also love connecting with other writers J

What’s your Writing Story?

*This was an excerpt from the PDF and ebook versions of my book, but it had to be omitted from the print edition due to space!

Have files of article reprints that you own but have no clue where to start reselling them? Have ideas for some fantastic new pieces but no idea who might want them? Check out my 386-page PDF of tips, tricks, and insider information, as well as 384 paying parenting and family markets for only $9.99! Just head to this page to download How to Get Published (and Paid!) Writing About Your Kids and get started immediately! (I am working on getting this into print on Amazon and would love to hear from you about this!)

Sign up for an email subscription to The Published Parent and get two amazing freebies: 10 Parenting Markets That Pay $100+ and 10 Markets That Pay Writers to Write About Writing! And join my Facebook group called Parenting Magazine Writers ... it's FREE and full of tips and tricks and markets and like-minded writer friends!

Keep Writing Despite Rejection

I'm watching my 10-year-old daughter draw in front of me at the dining room table while I'm writing on the laptop across from her. She is being critical of her flowers, but to me they are beautiful. They are nothing like anything I could ever do. I am no artist for sure. But she has talent and is so hard on herself. And I tell her, "I could never do that. You are so amazing. Don't stop because you will only get better and better with practice."

Sometimes in my Facebook writing group there will be someone who just isn't getting articles accepted. And I ask some questions like, "Are you sending to just a few at a time or doing a BLAST to like all 200 regional parenting magazines on the list? (it's a numbers game) Are you following the general submission guidelines? Don't stop because you will get better and you will get a piece accepted and then the snowball will start."

And I wondered ... how do you get someone to stop being self-critical? How do you convince them to keep going?

Then I realized that the same things I say to my kids and to my writing group members to be encouraging, I should also be saying to myself.

I have 175 publishing credits to my name over the last 12 years. I have clearly not given up, but I feel like I should have MORE publishing credits, and some of them should be national magazines. Then I attempt to go easy on myself. "Kerrie, you homeschool 5 kids and make that your priority. You are married. You have other family and friends you love spending time with. You have to keep up with This Is Us and blow through The Haunting of Hill House. Oh, and you proofread for income to help your family. Go easy on yourself. Slow and steady."

It's easy to get caught up in the things we ARE NOT DOING. I am not publishing a book a month. I am not writing an article a week. I am not writing features for Parents Magazine at $1,000 a pop.

Ah, but I am still making a small income from reprints that are 10 years old. I am enjoying life and writing when I can and putting love and spirit into it.

What one small thing can you do each day to keep your writing career moving forward? Can you write 100 words today? Then again tomorrow? You could have an article written by the end of the week and ready to submit. Then you can take a week off and do NOTHING. Or you can do another 100 words and keep up the momentum.

If magazines aren't picking up your work or paying what you think you are worth ... keep going anyway. You know in your heart that this is what you are supposed to be doing, so keep doing it no matter what.

Have files of article reprints that you own but have no clue where to start reselling them? Have ideas for some fantastic new pieces but no idea who might want them? Check out my 386-page PDF of tips, tricks, and insider information, as well as 384 paying parenting and family markets for only $9.99! Just head to this page to download How to Get Published (and Paid!) Writing About Your Kids and get started immediately! (I am working on getting this into print on Amazon and would love to hear from you about this!)

Sign up for an email subscription to The Published Parent and get two amazing freebies: 10 Parenting Markets That Pay $100+ and 10 Markets That Pay Writers to Write About Writing! And join my Facebook group called Parenting Magazine Writers ... it's FREE and full of tips and tricks and markets and like-minded writer friends!

UPDATES to the 7th Edition of Get Published (and Paid!) Writing About Your Kids

Updated as of October 30, 2018

Check out my 386-page PDF of tips, tricks, and insider information, as well as 384 paying markets for only $9.99! Just head to this page :-) I wish you success!

UPDATES:

Charlotte Parent email mhuggins@charlotteparent.com (9/10/18)

Cincinnati Family, North Cincy Family, Northern Kentucky Family (Daycom Media) editor is Amanda Hayward (Sherry is gone), and her email is amandahayward@daycommedia.com (9/10/18)

Curious Parents: 7/16/17 seems to no longer be publishing.

Family Fun is no longer publishing :-(


Giggle is now natalie@irvingpublications.com (9/10/18)

Jersey Shore Family is not accepting articles at this time ... updated February 2017

Palmetto Parent is now estevenson@indexx.com

Parenting OC is now jessica@parentingoc.com 8/7/18

Piedmont Parent editor email bounced back. Try the publisher at katie.reeves@morris.com (9/10/18)

Playground ... delete hyphen in email address from book. (9/10/18)

Red River Family publisher@redriverfamily.com (9/10/18)

The Village Family Magazine is currently on hiatus and thus, will not be accepting reprint materials at this time

Volusia/Flagler/St. John's can be found at https://www.parentmagazineflorida.com/

Wiregrass Parents is another publication affiliated with DeAnne Watson of Montgomery Parents (10/30/18)

Wisconsin Family email aschwabe@gannett.com (9/10/18)

Davler Media acquires Staten Island Parent so delete SI Parent email from your contacts since Davler will be taking over all of that and will handle your submissions :-)

NEW:

Growing Up Roseville (sister to Growing Up Chico) ... pays $35 reprints for each publication. Writers are reporting $35 per reprint per publication.

DELETED FROM BOOK FOR NONPAYMENT

Utah Family: They used my pieces without permission and then did not pay. I have heard from several writers about this as well. I’m not going to recommend a magazine that does business this way.

Valley Parent Oregon: They have used my pieces without permission and then did not pay.

Have files of article reprints that you own but have no clue where to start reselling them? Have ideas for some fantastic new pieces but no idea who might want them? Check out my 386-page PDF of tips, tricks, and insider information, as well as 384 paying parenting and family markets for only $9.99! Just head to this page to download How to Get Published (and Paid!) Writing About Your Kids and get started immediately! (I am working on getting this into print on Amazon and would love to hear from you about this!)

Sign up for an email subscription to The Published Parent and get two amazing freebies: 10 Parenting Markets That Pay $100+ and 10 Markets That Pay Writers to Write About Writing! And join my Facebook group called Parenting Magazine Writers ... it's FREE and full of tips and tricks and markets and like-minded writer friends!

How to Make Over $500 for Each Regional Parenting Magazine Article Reprint

Let me start by saying not EVERY article I write makes this much money. I've written and submitted over 100 in the last 10+ years since I started doing this (that's only 10 per year, people, so consistency counts), and a handful of them did very poorly. By poorly I mean sold to one or two magazines then went into oblivion.

Some have sold a total of a few hundred dollars. But today I want to share with you the 

ARTICLE ROCK STARS

I'm sharing this not to say, "Woo hoo, I am awesome and check out how much money I make doing this." Instead, I'm sharing to say, "Wow, I didn't realize that it all added up like this! I mean, I knew my Christmas Peace piece did pretty great, but it might hit $1,000 in sales in 2017 if I tweak it a bit! This can happen for other writers as well, and there seems to be plenty of room for all of us!"

You might also say, "I could do better than that!" and then I would reply, "Be my guest! Write on, friend, and I wish you success!" Please feel free to share with me in the comment section about your successes! I'd love to visit your links and author pages! I love to follow and like all over social media!

Here are the article titles and links and I'll update them as I improve my record-keeping from days of old and sell more:

Benefits of Sending Teens to Camp, written in 2016, $620 with 19 sales

Homeschooling 101, (link goes to BC Parent), $602

Birthday Party Etiquette, written in 2013 (link goes to Westchester Family), $515

Pregnancy Sleep Disruption Solutions, written in 2009 when I was pregnant with my 5th child (link goes to Palm Beach Parenting), $533

10 Meaningful Birthday Traditions, written in 2011 (link goes to Black Hills Parent), $638

8 Tips for Holiday Sanity, written in 2009 (link goes to Playground), $954

Conquer Kid Clutter, written in 2010 (link goes to Hudson Valley Parent), $530

Forming Friendships from Toddler to Teen, written in 2010 (link goes to Kansas City Parent), $564

I've written over 100 articles and continue to write more. Some have made over $500 in reprint sales and are still selling. I still get checks from articles I wrote 10 years ago!

So how do I do I this thing where I make money by recycling articles?

1. Come up with an idea.
2. Do some research, get some links, get some personal quotes if the piece needs them.
3. Write the rough draft of the piece.
4. Sit on the piece for a while then come back to it for editing.
5. Send the piece to all the markets in my book and do so with prayers and good vibes. You may go another route and send your piece first to the national magazines that pay extremely well (also in my book), and then revamp them later for the regionals. You could make double what I make!
6. ****Send out your reprint list every couple of months, and season-specific pieces when needed. If it's a holiday piece, for instance, resend it again in a year around back-to-school time. If you have a bunch of birthday pieces, send them all in one email to all the editors on my list and say, "Hey, here are my birthday pieces for you to check out. Hope you can use one or all of them ;-) Please let me know if you would like to use one of them because I want to make sure I maintain market exclusivity where needed." 
7. Check out other markets that take reprints other than the regional parenting magazines. I have so many markets in the book ... so many to try and your piece has to fit in with at least one of them! Some of the nationals and onlines take reprints and I specify that in the book.

Have files of article reprints that you own but have no clue where to start reselling them? Have ideas for some fantastic new pieces but no idea who might want them? Check out my 386-page PDF of tips, tricks, and insider information, as well as 384 paying parenting and family markets for only $9.99! Just head to this page to download How to Get Published (and Paid!) Writing About Your Kids and get started immediately! (I am working on getting this into print on Amazon and would love to hear from you about this!)

Sign up for an email subscription to The Published Parent and get two amazing freebies: 10 Parenting Markets That Pay $100+ and 10 Markets That Pay Writers to Write About Writing! And join my Facebook group called Parenting Magazine Writers ... it's FREE and full of tips and tricks and markets and like-minded writer friends!

The Published Parent 3rd Quarter 2018 Income Report

We are rockin' and rollin' over here at the McLoughlin household, writer friends. I am blessed to be able to make my income with WORDS and to be able to do it in my sweatpants or swimsuit, out on the deck or at the dining room table, at my house or traveling with my kids and husband for his work to places like Wyoming, Arizona, Texas, Chicago, Florida and more.

I like to share my income with you to show you that I am a real person with real challenges and successes. No, it is not a full-time income, but I am not aiming for that. I am thankful and grateful that my husband has a good job, and my main job is homeschooling. Words are my part-time job for now. When the kids are grown I foresee working more hours with my word career and helping to pay for travel and retirement. But that's at least 10 years away :-)

YES, I got the book out July 22, and writers are already submitting their work and getting it accepted! Check it out here for just $9.99.

A few notes:
Article income is down this month, but I am still owed some. I have several assignments in the works currently.

While I do enjoy proofreading, I hope to someday replace that income with book and magazine article income, because writing books and magazine articles are my true passions.

I'm going to start doing QUARTERLY income reports instead of monthly to give some bigger picture totals to go with some bigger picture goals.

Have files of article reprints that you own but have no clue where to start reselling them? Have ideas for some fantastic new pieces but no idea who might want them? Check out my 386-page PDF of tips, tricks, and insider information, as well as 384 paying parenting and family markets for only $9.99! Just head to this page to download How to Get Published (and Paid!) Writing About Your Kids and get started immediately!

Sign up for an email subscription to The Published Parent and get two amazing freebies: 10 Parenting Markets That Pay $100+ and 10 Markets That Pay Writers to Write About Writing! And join my Facebook group called Parenting Magazine Writers ... it's FREE and full of tips and tricks and markets and like-minded writer friends!

Highlights for Children Magazine Submission Writers Guidelines

*Update 6/16/18: Highlights magazine is closed for a reading period from June 16 through September 16, 2018. Any submissions received during this time period will be declined. Highlights magazine submissions that are currently in process will receive a decision by August 31, 2018. When we reopen for submissions on Monday, September 17, we will invite submissions on specific current needs only, which will be listed here.

Please note: Highlights magazine is not holding a fiction contest in 2018. Any manuscripts we receive for that purpose will be reviewed as regular submissions to Highlights. Thanks for your interest in writing for us!

We do not accept work through Submittable (or through e-mail) from writers younger than 16. Young writers and artists may send their work to: Highlights for Children, 803 Church Street, Honesdale, PA 18431. 

Highlights is a general-interest magazine for children ages 6-12. By publishing stories, puzzles, articles, and activities that are fun and engaging (and secretly purposeful!), we aim to inspire kids to be their best selves - creative, curious, caring, and confident. Highlights was founded in 1946 by Dr. Garry Cleveland Myers and Caroline Clark Myers, and is still owned and run by their family. The magazine accepts no outside advertising and has no religious or organizational affiliation.
Highlights has a circulation of about 1.2 million and is published monthly.

Please upload only one manuscript per submission. We welcome multiple submissions, but we prefer that each be submitted separately. Please include your name as you would like it to appear in your byline.

• We encourage writers to read several recent copies of Highlights before submitting work. Writers can also visit HighlightsKids.com to see examples of previously published content.
• We pay on acceptance, and we buy all rights, including copyright. We do not consider previously published material.
• We accept material at any time of the year, including seasonal material.
• For submissions that require research, please include references and correspondence with experts.
• Please submit each manuscript only once, to the most appropriate Highlights magazine, keeping in mind the different age ranges. The editors work together closely and will share a manuscript if they feel it's better suited to a different magazine. 
• Please note that after declining a submission, we delete your manuscript file. In this way, you can be assured that we are not keeping or storing creative work that we have not purchased.

Fiction should have an engaging plot, strong characterization, a specific setting, and lively language.

• Stories for beginning readers should have fewer than 475 words and should not seem babyish to older readers. 
• Stories for independent readers should have fewer than 750 words and should be appealing to younger readers if read aloud.
• We accept all genres appropriate for young readers (no romance, crime, or violence).
• Payment: $175 and up.

Verse is purchased sparingly at the moment. However, if you'd like to submit poetry, it should be appealing to kids and no longer than about 16 lines. We look for poetry of all genres and types, but we are currently most in need of non-rhyming verse, humorous poems, and holiday-themed poems. We are buying very little nature-themed poetry at this time. Payment: $40 and up.

Nonfiction can include science, arts, sports, how-to's, world cultures, history, What a Pro Knows articles, and Gallant Kids articles.

• Articles for beginning readers should have fewer than 400 words. 
• Articles for independent readers should have fewer than 750 words.
• Articles with a tight focus are most successful. We prefer research based on firsthand experience, consultation with experts, or primary sources.
• Articles about cultural traditions and ways of life should reflect a deep understanding of the subject.
• We prefer biographies that are rich in quotes and anecdotes and that place the subject in a historical or cultural context.
• Digital images should be no less than 300 dpi.
• Payment: $175 and up.

Crafts can include gifts, toys, games, and decorations. They should appeal to boys and girls.

• Crafts should have concise, numbered directions, up to 5 steps.
• Please submit step-by-step photos of a well-made sample of the craft.
• Craft materials should be inexpensive and easy to obtain.
• Crafts that celebrate holidays, cultures, or religious traditions are welcome.
• Payment: $40 and up.

Puzzles should not require readers to write in the magazine (no crosswords or word searches). Our current needs include math puzzles, code activities, and visual puzzles. Word puzzles and logic puzzles are purchased more sparingly at the moment. Puzzle instructions should be concise, but playful themes and language are welcome. For visual puzzles, please include puzzle instructions and art suggestions. Payment: $40 and up.

Cartoons should be fresh, original, and geared to kids. They can be single-panel or multiple-panel, black-and-white or full-color, with or without a caption, and with either human or animal characters.
Payment: $40 and up for black-and-white, $50 and up for full-color.

For more tips and information of interest to writers, visit www.HighlightsFoundation.org.

Have files of article reprints that you own but have no clue where to start reselling them? Have ideas for some fantastic new pieces but no idea who might want them? Check out my 386-page PDF of tips, tricks, and insider information, as well as 384 paying parenting and family markets for only $9.99! Just head to this page to download How to Get Published (and Paid!) Writing About Your Kids and get started immediately!

Sign up for an email subscription to The Published Parent and get two amazing freebies: 10 Parenting Markets That Pay $100+ and 10 Markets That Pay Writers to Write About Writing! And join my Facebook group called Parenting Magazine Writers ... it's FREE and full of tips and tricks and markets and like-minded writer friends!