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Submissions wanted (secret lives) | ~$500 to $1,000 per piece
🕑 Added 2025-11-20 01:02:07 +0000 UTCCOMPANY/PUBLICATION: NARRATIVELY
"Secret Lives" is one of Narratively’s most popular ongoing series, and one for which we’re always looking for new stories.
The series includes both reported profiles and first-person essays, and is defined by stories that bring readers into a slice of life they normally wouldn’t have access to.
Like all Narratively pieces, “Secret Lives” stories are narrative-driven, not topic-based. This means they go beyond “this is what it’s like to have this job” and take the reader through a story about the job or experience at hand. There needs to be a narrative arc with a clear beginning, middle and end. The writer or subject needs to be transformed in some meaningful way over the course of the story, and that transformation needs to be communicated through active, engaging, vivid scenes.
There has to be something at stake, something universal and human that’s being unraveled and examined. The most successful “Secret Lives” stories draw the reader in thinking that they have nothing in common with the writer or subject, and by the end leaves them feeling connected to their experience in a way they never imagined possible.
Word count for Secret Lives stories is usually between 2,500 and 5,000 words, but we can be a bit flexible there. Note: We are only accepting submissions for these at this time.
Some favorites:
Meet Ladybeard, the Crown Prince of Japan’s Strangest Music Scene
Porno Power: The Next Generation
The First Family of Human Cannonballing
The Deep South’s Dames of Dildos
CONFIDENTIAL NOTE: Reports indicate that Narratively pays $500 to $1,000 for this type of pieces. It is recommended that you discuss the rate(s) with the editor upon the acceptance of your pitch.
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CONTACT INFORMATION:
Submissions: Via Submittable
Website: https://www.narratively.com/
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