5280 is the premiere monthly guide to the arts, entertainment, dining, and lifestyle issues in Denver. First published in 1993, the magazine has a circulation of 90,000 and is consistently among the top-selling magazines on metro newsstands. Many of our stories are written by 5280 staffers and a group of established freelance writers, but we welcome ideas from journalists we haven’t worked with in the past.
Story pitches should convey that the writer understands the editorial thrust of the magazine, be well researched, and concise, and offer a creative and original argument.
We accept pitches for our front-of-the-book sections, Compass, Culture, Adventure, and Eat & Drink; for our departments/columns; and for our feature well. Front-of-the-book stories, which are short, lively takes on life in Denver, run anywhere from 50 to 400 words. Departments are generally 800 to 1,500 words and cover everything from travel to sports to politics. Features can run up to 6,000 words.
Please submit queries, along with two or three published writing samples, via email to one of our staff editors.