Despite the increasing administration of vaccines and the loosening of pandemic restrictions, COVID-19 has left a lasting mark on our lives — at least for some of us. In 2020, Autostraddle committed to supporting people and communities in crisis. We covered mutual aid and harm reduction. We shared queer joy in quarantine alongside heart-wrenching personal essays about COVID’s long-term physical effects. We asked our readers to support Black communities that were disproportionately affected by the pandemic, study up on abolition, and keep small businesses afloat. And thanks to you, we kept our publication alive despite widespread lay-offs in our industry and in countless others.

This year I’m feeling hopeful, but I’m suspicious of the notion that the pandemic will soon be “over.” For some people and communities, the wrath of COVID-19 is far from over, and I want Autostraddle to continue shining a light where hope and support are needed most. “How To Survive A Post(?)-Covid World” will build on last year’s commitments by offering real, practical knowledge to readers who are living through the  physical, emotional, and material devastation of the pandemic’s aftershock.

Some of the topics I hope to cover include grief, financial loss, mental and physical health crises, losing early-pandemic accommodations like virtual appointments and events, anti-Asian violence, vaccine accessibility, returning to in-person work or school, and more. If you’re not an established writer but you are a community organizer or union organizer, I still want to work with you!

Some examples of pieces I’m looking for may include:

• a service piece about how to fight an eviction
• a service piece about how to unionize your workplace
• a “know your rights” piece for QTPOC folks who are handling encounters with police
• a personal essay or service piece about getting back into IRL sex work after relying on OnlyFans/ camming/ other remote work for the past year (Are you taking new safety precautions? Are you asking clients if they’ve been vaccinated? etc.)
• a personal essay or reported piece about how the pandemic’s work-from-home culture has benefited disabled workers
• a personal essay about managing addiction recovery in post(?)-COVID world
• a personal essay about managing mental health as a healthcare worker
• a personal essay or reported piece about anti-Asian violence in a post(?)-COVID world

If you’re inspired to write a piece that is not on this list, I’d love to read your pitch!

Payment:

We are an independent publication currently hanging on for dear life! We can offer $150 per piece.

As always, I’m especially interested in submissions from trans women and people of color. I’ll also accept multiple submissions from the same author.

Pitch:

This series will run in June. The deadline for submissions is May 7, but I will be accepting submissions on a rolling basis. I will respond either way by May 14.

Please submit your pitch using this form.

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