Magazine Guide #6: Women's Health

Publication: Australian Women's Health
How Often Does It Come Out: Monthly
Distribution: National

Contributors vs Staff Writers:
In favour of freelancers. Hoorah!

Target Audience:
Age: 25 onwards
Gender: Female
Interests: Primarily fitness, health, beauty, food and drink, sex, weight loss and wellbeing.

Topics and Themes:
Cost-friendly workouts, reducing stress, creating energy for and squeezing workouts into a busy lifestyle, how to bolster relationships and have better sex, latest fitness technology, feeling and looking good, eating to maintain health and anti-ageing.

Length of Features:
1,000-1,500 words is typical.

Tone and Style of Writing:
Authoritive, but friendly.

Experts include: dieticians, authors, wine gurus, doctors and heads of medical institutes.

Case studies: ordinary women who've taken up an interesting activity or role models, eg the head of ModelCo cosmetics or a professional cyclist.

Breakout boxes and statistics (such as studies by universities worldwide) often used.

About How Many Features:
Twelve.

Magazine Guide #5: Cleo

Publication: Cleo
How Often Does It Come Out: Monthly
Distribution: National

Contributors vs Staff Writers:
There is a team of regular writers, but a couple of freelancer opportunities.

Target Audience:
Age: I'd say 16-25, although it's 18-35 in The Australian Writer's Marketplace.
Gender: Female
Interests: Women's issues such as health, beauty, relationships, lifestyle and fashion.

Topics and Themes:
I think Cleo is endeavouring to avoid publishing cliched relationship articles. It appears much more concerned with helping readers become upwardly mobile, cultured, cool, well-adjusted chicks ("Do-ahead Dishes" for a dinner party, "Future Cool. Trends Waiting to Happen", "Pretty in Ink" about illustrators and "Behind the Lens" about photographers, "Lady Love: What You Can Learn From Your Girl Crush").

Length of Features:
Usually 800-1500 words.

Tone and Style of Writing:
Case studies, intros, breakout boxes and lists are the order of the day. Experts quoted include authors of relevant books and (apparently essential in women's magazines) psychologists.

About How Many Features:
Around twelve.

Magazine Guide #4: Cosmopolitan

Publication: Cosmo
How Often Does It Come Out: Monthly
Distribution: National

Contributors vs Staff Writers:
A healthy mix.

Target Audience:
Age: 16-25
Gender: Female
Interests: Sex, relationships, fashion, celebrities, beauty, careers, health.

Topics and Themes:
Improving your sex life and relationship, sexual health information, understanding men (eg "What Goes Through the Mind of a Serial Cheater?" and "Where Do You Stand On His Relationship Timeline?"), lifestyles of the rich and famous (eg models, Australian celebrities who've moved to the States, movie stars), road-testing fun activities ("Living by the Stars for 5 Days"), making decisions about where you want your life to head.

Length of Features:
1200-1500 words.

Tone and Style of Writing:
Friendly, informal language is used. Cosmo frequently features lists and breakout boxes, or breaks up articles with headings, so there aren't huge blocks of text. It also loves a good case study and quotes from experts such as psychologists.

About How Many Features:
20+, although I was reading a bumper issue.

Magazine Guide #3: Dolly

Publication: Dolly
How Often Does It Come Out: Monthly
Distribution: National

Contributors vs Staff Writers:
It's not looking terribly hopeful. I'm not seeing bylines telling me what's created by staff writers, but The Australian Writer's Marketplace listing says Dolly rarely accepts freelance submissions.

Target Audience:
Age: 8 - 15 years (according to TAWM)
Gender: Female
Interests: Celebrities, beauty, fashion, relationships, careers and health.

Topics and Themes:
Female role models, maintaining happy relationships, issues effecting teenage girls (eg bullying, puberty, body image, and feeling accepted).

Length of Features:
About 800-1200 words.

Tone and Style of Writing:
The tone is actually very matter-of-fact and less conversational than I'd expected. The focus is on letting real-life people speak for themselves (hellooooooooooo profiles), rather than flashy writing. Case studies, short lists and breakout boxes (especially providing celebrity examples) are popular devices. Experts such as doctors and psychologists are quoted in appropriate stories. Statistics are kept to a minimum.

About How Many Features:
Seven or so feature length articles, plus several real-life stories, quizzes and shorter snippets.

Tiffany & Co Challenge: Update #3

Happy Easter everyone! I'm one happy bunny, as the mystery magazine has accepted my article!!


Both my editor and her boss have given my article the okay, with some minor revisions. I've cobbled together an invoice and signed a tax declaration form. This is all new to me and slightly scary. That is, until my tax-savvy friend pointed out I will be able to claim buying my beloved magazines as a deduction. Happy days indeed!

So, I've won the Tiffany & Co Challenge, with an article I wrote soon to be published in a ridgy-didge magazine. My payment for the article ($500) will cover my Tiffany shopping expenses with a tidy amount left over (handbag?). It's now the time we've (at least, I've) been waiting for: choosing the prize...

Your votes please!

Heart earrings $165 (Aus)

Cupcake charm $250 (Aus)

Heart key pendant $250 (Aus)