Seasonal Stories and PR

As I write this, it’s somewhere around 4 degrees Fahrenheit. We got another several inches of snow yesterday, more predicted in the future. Usually we have either bitter cold or snow; this month, we’ve had both plus biting winds.

But if I were a print magazine editor, I’d be thinking about summer stories right now. And if I wrote beach-reading books rather than marketing and PR how-tos, I’d be looking for fresh angles to pitch.

But it’s really challenging to think two whole seasons out. In daily journalism, there’s no time disconnect like that. In winter, you pitch winter stories, and in summer, summer stories.

I often wonder what it’s like to be in that headspace–to be doing photo shoots of people in swimsuits, splashing on the beach, when you know that when yo get back to your car, there’ll be an inch of ice to scrape off the windows. Deadlines and lead times are such funny things! for Internet media, or radio, it can be instant; I’ve certainly done my share of live on-air phoners, or seen the impact of an announcement picked up by a well-read Internet discussion group or newsletter.

Of course, the best part is that if you remember to go back into your files, all the pitches you sent out to monthlies half a year in advance can be quickly tweaked to pitch a whole other round of media, with shorter lead times. Never a dull moment!

The other thing it means, though, is sometimes you don’t know ahead of time what the story will be…and that closes you out of some media for the time being. Oh well, come back to them with something else, that you *can* plan in advance.