Hiiiiiiiii! Before you read through the contributor open call post and start filling out your application, please take the time to watch this video from Detroit Mom’s founder, Elizabeth Lewis. She will walk you through everything you need to know and share all the perks of becoming part of our contributor team!
Hey there, mama!
Are you a Detroit area mom who enjoys being creative and connecting with women in your community?
Have you been looking for the perfect opportunity to grow a supportive relationship with other moms while showing off your creative talents?
Detroit Mom Contributor Open Call
The Detroit Mom contributor team is growing and we’re SO excited! We are looking for local women with fresh and diverse voices who are passionate about motherhood and who want to share their experiences with other women in the city of Detroit and beyond.
These experiences cover just about everything–the good and the bad, the encouraging moments, the worrisome days, the light-hearted stories, and everything in between. We strive to shine a light on all aspects of motherhood and the journey along the way because we know that every journey is unique and it’s so much more than what we see on the surface.
Detroit Mom is committed to creating a community where ALL moms feel welcome at the table. We are expanding our team to give space to the voices we haven’t heard from yet.
So, is it your voice and experience that we’re missing? We want to hear from you!
Or, do you know someone who would be great in this role? We hope you’ll tell them about this opportunity!
*Note: You do not have to be a blogger or a professional writer to apply! We don’t want you to feel discouraged from applying because you do not consider yourself to be a “writer.” We ALL have stories to share. You just have to take the first step in sharing, by joining our team! Most of the women who apply don’t have blogs or any other outlet in which they share their writing. What they do have, though, is the hope that the writing they choose to share with our community will resonate with even ONE mom. And if it helps just one mom to feel seen, heard, and validated . . . then putting their writing out there for the world to read was totally worth it.
This is a volunteer role with some fun perks! Keep reading . . .
We’re incredibly excited that you would consider sharing your thoughts and experiences with our amazing Detroit Mom readers. Before you think more on the opportunity, please read the following guidelines and feel free to contact us with any questions. And, we welcome ALL questions. We want to make sure this is the best fit for YOU. Depending on what you love most about being part of a community, we have plenty of opportunities!
Who are we looking for?
The Detroit area is a vibrant community with so many amazing parenting styles and cultural, ethnic, and racial backgrounds represented. We would love to continue to build a team that echoes the diversity of our community. We want to make sure we are keeping that in mind, and the contributors we are looking for are:
- moms in and around the Detroit area who have a passion for motherhood, our city, and creating content of all types.
- women with a sense of humor and zest for life who don’t tend to take themselves too seriously.
- a diverse group of women who represent the demographics of our community.
- moms of children of all ages, from infants to college-age and beyond.
- women who aspire to be mothers.
- women who have a strong desire to support other women in their community.
Think LOCAL: We love to keep our content relevant to Detroit and the surrounding areas, or at least within driving distance for day trips and outings. Content can feature places to go and things to do while more general topics (potty training, DIY, being a working mom, etc.) can be given a local twist simply because they are written by a local mom–YOU!
Think MOMS: It may sound obvious, but Detroit Mom’s target audience is made up of moms or moms-to-be, so it only makes sense that our content remains under the broad category of parenting, within which you have a ton of subtopics to choose from: the experience of being a mom, phases of development, tips and tricks, home management strategies specific to moms, culture and community, work experience, and of course, all the locally-focused ideas mentioned above. If you have an idea that interests you and your friends, our readers would probably love to read about it, too!
Think CONNECTIONS: We encourage you to think critically about ways to engage your audience. Being a mom is far easier with a supportive community and creating those connections is our number one goal. You may think you’re the only one who has ever experienced something, but more likely than not, there’s another mom out there who is really hoping to connect with a similar story. And that story could be yours!
Most importantly: Create what you love, and love what you create!
Your application for our contributor open call includes submitting a piece of content–this is so important, as it helps our team to get a good grasp on who YOU are and what you’re passionate about! As you consider what content to submit as a sample with your application, please think on these important guidelines:
- Your sample submissions must be original to you, meaning, you are the author. Please keep copyright infringement laws in mind.
- The submission with your application should be a sampling of your content of choice. If you are interested in creating more than one type of content (for example, you’d like to write blogs AND microblogs), please submit one piece of content for each.
- Content should be free from the following: profanity, sexual language, political endorsement of a party or candidate, political commentary, op-ed commentary on controversial social and/or political issues, and derogatory or inflammatory language.
If you’re selected to join our team of writers, here’s what you can expect:
What you give . . .
Detroit Mom contributors are required to submit original content monthly that fits within the brand and mission of Detroit Mom. The minimum requirement per month is either one full-length blog post OR two microblog posts. Deadline day for your content is always on the 15th of the month. We work ahead with our content calendar, so you’ll submit your content ahead of time (for example, your content for the month of May would be submitted on April 15th). This allows plenty of time for revising and editing, as needed. Depending on the type of content, there are different requirements.
- For full blog posts or video blog posts: the requirement is one original post per month. Blog posts are usually 800-1,400 words; video blog posts can be shorter.
- For microblog posts: two separate microblog pieces are required per month. Microblogs are usually 300 words each.
Have you seen those pictures floating around Facebook with the lengthy captions? Those are microblogs. They’re prominent on Instagram as well. Personal, relatable stories about everyday life and relationships often connect with our readers. If this sounds interesting, microblogging might be for you!
Other Detroit Mom contributor requirements:
- A commitment to creating and submitting original content
- Must reside in or around Detroit
- A passion for moms, kids, and our community
- Interaction with our content on social media (IG and FB)
- Interest and availability to attend Detroit Mom events
- A desire to get to know and support the other contributors on our team, and the women who make up our community of readers
- A reliable, positive, and fun personality!
What you get . . .
- Your photo and bio on the Detroit Mom Contributor website
- Links to your personal blog and/or social media handles (if you choose to share them) in your author bio below every one of your articles
- Involvement in the DM Contributor Facebook group
- Opportunities to test out products and/or services, as available
- Professional editing provided by DM’s Managing Editor on every post you submit
- Access to pre-sale tickets to DM events, as available
- Workshops and personal development
- Monthly meet-ups throughout the community with the other women who create content for Detroit Mom. Think coffee chats, dinners, and virtual Zoom trivia nights!
- New friendships and an amazing experience. You’ll feel like you’ve known these women your whole life, even though you’ve just met!
We don’t want the writing process to hold you back. We know it can be, well, a little terrifying to share your thoughts with the world. If you have a story to share, and you’re open to learning the most effective ways to craft your piece, then you’re in the right place. Our Managing Editor will work with you one-on-one, providing specific feedback and editing support on each piece you submit. She will teach you to become the best writer you can be, and the entire team will be there for you every step of the way, cheering you on!
We all have to start somewhere; we’ve been in your shoes when it comes to the writing process. It can be scary at first, but it’s also so fulfilling knowing that your story is helping other women to feel seen and validated.
What you should do . . .
Fill out the contributor open call application below and submit your content sample(s). (If you have any trouble submitting your content sample, please e-mail our Managing Editor, Whitney, at [email protected]). Once we close submissions, we’ll let you know that we’re on our way to bury ourselves in all of your content. Ongoing updates will be sent by e-mail from the Detroit Mom team.
