Journalists/pitches wanted (California, science/nature) | 75+ cents per word

COMPANY/PUBLICATION: CALIFORNIA NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY

Deadline: 31 August 2025

Stu VanAirsdale, Publications Editor at California Native Plant Society, is looking for journalists

Are you a California-based freelance journalist, photographer, or illustrator—particularly with experience in science/nature writing? Work with me at Flora!

I'm looking to build a stable of qualified freelancers to help me round out Flora, the quarterly member magazine of the California Native Plant Society. You can browse our most recent print issue and website below. At this time I primarily seek...

• Writers with nature/science-writing clips (either print or web) and facility with reporting, interviews, and tight print deadlines. Bonus points if you are confident with a camera and have experience delivering your own photos.

• Versatile photographers who can capture the dazzling locations, landscapes, and biodiversity of our amazing state—just as readily as captivating shots of the people and pollinators that inhabit them

• Illustrators with a knack for plants and trees, and whose styles strike a unique balance of verisimilitude and attitude

Pay varies by piece but generally starts at $.75/word for writers and a flat fee (plus expenses) for photographers/illustrators based on the assignment. Story lengths vary from 250-word FOB news items to 3,000-word features. We also publish a photo essay in each issue featuring location-based or themed coverage from around California. (Standardized contributor guidelines to follow soon at CNPS.org.)

I'm currently assigning out a few things for our Fall 2025 issue (publishing in September), so please email me at svanairsdale@cnps.org with your portfolios and any questions.

Again, I seek ONLY CALIFORNIA-BASED CONTRIBUTORS at this time.

I also welcome pitches for Winter 2026 (publishing in early January) and beyond as well, but please read the magazine for an idea of our departments and coverage before pitching. Hope to hear from you!

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CONTACT INFORMATION (please do not share the email address publicly):

Questions/applications: svanairsdale@cnps.org

Website: https://www.cnps.org/publications/flora

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