Monday: Keeping busy on this first Monday of fall -- lots to work on!

Good morning, friends <3

I hope everything is having a beautiful and crisp first Monday of fall, wherever you happen to be, and whatever fall means where you are. Here in NYC, it’s exactly the perfect level of sunny and breezy.

I’m back in NYC and have very sad news to report (though those of you who I am connected with on Instagram already know and have been absolutely incredible about reaching out):

alywalansky

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My beautiful perfect Lily - my first furbaby and by all accounts, the thus far love of my life - passed away this weekend at the incredible age of 18.

If you click through to my Instagram, I chatted a bit about her and some of the many things that made her so, so special and will make her so, so missed.

In obvious news…I’m devastated. This has been a really rough year for so many of us in so many ways, and this was a really tough blow. But - Lily hadn’t really been Lily in a while and I know she’s at peace now and I’m grateful for that…

And I’m also grateful that we have a ton of work to get done this week, because keeping busy is the key to sanity!

Lots of new content to share since my most recent email.

For Apartment Therapy: We Asked 5 Pro Travelers How They Keep Their Luggage Clean, and Here’s What They Said, for YourTango: 10 Most Unique Wedding Locations Around The World.

Here’s a fun one: for Food Network: The Rumors Are True: Peanut Butter & Jelly M&M’s Are (Sort Of) Making a Comeback, and my deep dive for Yahoo: Get a handle on your sleep health with the best sleep trackers for 2024, tested and reviewed. Finally, for Forbes: 30 Dishes And Cocktails To Enjoy On National Lobster Day.

Oh, and for those of you who receive my Industry Insights emails, a big one this week: Taking some time to update those contact lists (and why it matters).

Newly published or freshly updated

Since people are often asking about the status of stories from a while ago, and I only share stories in this newsletter that were published or updated in the current week, I have created a list of my author pages at various publications to which I contribute. Bookmark it and make your life a bit easier.

This list will live on my Substack URL and be updated as necessary. That way, you can see what I’m doing at any publication, at any time, from types of stories to general structure of stories to even volume and frequency of my content at that outlet.

This can also help you to target pitching a bit better. That makes your job easier, and mine too!

• Apartment Therapy: We Asked 5 Pro Travelers How They Keep Their Luggage Clean, and Here’s What They Said

• YourTango: 10 Most Unique Wedding Locations Around The World

• Food Network: The Rumors Are True: Peanut Butter & Jelly M&M’s Are (Sort Of) Making a Comeback

• Yahoo: Get a handle on your sleep health with the best sleep trackers for 2024, tested and reviewed

• Forbes: 30 Dishes And Cocktails To Enjoy On National Lobster Day

• Forbes: TikTok Sensation Cucumber Bowls Are Now Available In Real Life

• Saatva: How to Improve Sleep Hygiene: 12 Best Sleep Hygiene Tips.

• Apartment Therapy: I Sent a Pro Organizer Photos of My Tangled Mess of Cord Clutter — Here’s How She Fixed It

• Travel & Leisure: This Flight Attendant-approved Jumpsuit Is My Go-to Comfy Airplane Outfit — and It’s Only $27 Right Now

• Today.com: 11 healthiest fast food breakfasts, according to dietitians

• Apartment Therapy: The One Thing You Always Travel with That’s Actually Disgusting (And How to Keep It Clean)

• Travel & Leisure: I Tried Amazon’s ‘Magical’ Sleep Mask on a Long-haul Flight — and Now It’s the Most Important Item in My Bag.

• Travel & Leisure: I Travel Solo Frequently, and This $18 Gadget Makes Me Feel Safer in Hotel Rooms

• Today.com: The best drugstore eye creams to tackle wrinkles, dark circles and dryness, according to experts

• Apartment Therapy: I Sent a Pro Organizer a Photo of My Messy Kitchen Junk Drawer — Here’s How She Fixed It

• Yahoo Life: The best cooling fans of 2024, tested and reviewed

• Travel & Leisure: These Arch Support Sandals Are the Only Shoes I Wear in the Summer — and They’re Only $47

• Apartment Therapy: I Sent a Pro Organizer a Photo of My Cluttered Medicine Cabinet, and Here’s How She Fixed It

• Travel & Leisure: You Don't Want to Step Foot in a Waterpark Without These 18 Essentials From Just $9

If you or your client are featured in any of these stories, I super appreciate any social media shares! Please remember to tag @alywalansky and the outlet.

Here’s what I’m working on:

Be sure to read the below list carefully. Many are stories I posted about yesterday, but some of yesterday's stories are no longer listed and a few new ones have been added since yesterday. This (below) is everything that is still a currently open opportunity as of today.

Please remember when pitching me: Email me at alywalansky@gmail.com - do NOT just hit reply on this newsletter, or there’s a good shot your email will be lost in the heap. Give your email a subject line that makes it clear which story you are pitching me for — it’ll help you in the long run.

Please consult my industry insights guides on submitting expert commentary, sending emails that will catch a journalist’s attention, how to craft pitches journalists will say ‘yes’ to, and the right and wrong way to submit photos, if you need any extra guidance before sending your pitches.

Yahoo

I’m working on a roundup where I test the best black teas. I’ll be doing various “best” categories, such as it may include best tea bags, best loose leaf, best chai, best bottled, best decaf, best organic, etc. I’d also love to talk to experts (RDs most likely, but tea-specific experts and others as well) who can speak to the health benefits of tea, and specifically the health benefits of black tea. And of course, I’ll be testing the teas for flavor.

Apartment Therapy

I Asked a Chef How to Best Organize My Fridge, and Here's What They Recommended - I would love to email with a chef and ask how to best organize my fridge (like a chef does and store food better/smarter to last). I’ll send a before photo/video so you have an idea of what I’m working with!

Forbes

National Vodka Day is coming up! As a vodka martini girl…ya know I’m celebrating. I did a roundup of great vodka cocktails last year for Forbes and now I’m doing another one — when pitching, please avoid sending me a cocktail that appeared in last year’s roundup - I want to keep this one fresh and new. Please send me the name of the cocktail, where it’s on the menu, a description, bartender’s quote about it and an image with photo credits — would love to receive by early next week!

I’m putting out feelers for a potential piece with advice for how college students can cook/prepare food in their college dorms, and save money in the process? I’m going to have to figure in some restrictions that may exist, what is generally allowed/not allowed, and how to make the most of your resources to stay healthy/save money, and not rely on takeout/junk food/expensive meal plans to stay well fed. This may include how to get a dorm room prepped to cook/prep healthy well-balanced meals, as well as how to stock dorm fridge/freezer-- keeping in mind the common appliances you'll find in a dorm kitchen (and those you probably wouldn't). I'm looking for value, so think products that you can get at a good price and easily ship vs. fancy stuff a kid wouldn't need (so, no wagyu or caviar or lobster for this one), but also, commentary/ideas for what they will need, and what they will actually use.  So, think, foods that will fill them up and keep them healthy and happy and will be easy to pull together to make meals they'll actually enjoy (tall order, I know!) Also, looking for dorm-friendly small appliances — with the understanding that dorms and dorm communal kitchens usually have certain restrictions in place.

You may have recently seen my pieces about celebrity chef airline menu partnerships and everything from high tea to caviar service inflight. To that end, I’m also researching for a Fine Dining At 30,000 Feet roundup with the most luxurious dining options on different airlines. Please email me if you represent an airline and have something that may be a fit!

Plate Magazine

I’m putting out bites/drinks of the week feelers, which is sort of a drink/dish spotlight piece. (Some examples are this Peruvian-inspired sweet potato in Savannah and a molecular banana daiquiri in Chicago.) Basically if you are pitching me something for this, think along the lines of: Is this dish/bite something new? What interesting techniques are used to make it come together? If the technique is simple, what’s the hook? An interesting ingredient? Something being made in house or in an interesting way? What’s the story behind the dish? What inspired it? Is there a cultural/family story behind the dish? An ingredient the chef got their hands on? Love to hear what you might have for me!

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<3

aly