Tuesday: Are you ready for holiday gift guide time? You better be...it's here!

Plus: A great new job lead!

Good morning!

Some exciting news: My holiday gift guide assignments are coming any day (any hour, even), and stay tuned because I’ll be sharing the details right here as soon as they come (they’ll be predominately food/kitchen/spirit centric, as per the usual) - but you’ll want to read every newsletter from top to bottom in the coming days so you don’t miss out on the info!

A few days ago, I was interviewed by the Muck Rack blog on the topic of getting started as a freelancer. Read it here: Getting started as a freelance journalist: Expert advice from 3 experienced pros.

Related: This weekend’s Industry Insights newsletter was on a big topic — Going back to basics, being over-prepared, and other ways to create pitches that are more effective -- faster.

This is one I encourage you all to take a look at as gift guide season is here!

Also be sure to check out the complete recording of our Holiday Gift Guide Q&A with Jill, Aly and Alice (sign up for access to this recording from August 2024) — you’ll need to be subscribers of all three of our newsletters to grab this particular recording but you’ll get tons of value!

And also, in case you missed it, I appeared on Bonnie Taub-Dix’s Media Savvy podcast last week!

In new content news, some new pieces to share, including for Clean Plates: 8 Delicious Trader Joe’s Fall Foods That Dietitians Love and Should You Try the Viral "Fridgescaping" Trend? and a fun one for RetailMeNot: The Best Free Beauty Gifts With Purchase Deals to Shop.

A special deal on a must-have for holiday hosting!

My friends at RPZL are teaming up with Forbes Functions (a fab boutique event company) to launch their Home Collection.

These velvet bow napkin rings are the such a fun way to elevate a tablescape this holiday season. (I have the pearl velvet option for my own holiday plans!) — and they agreed to give a special discount to my Substack subscribers of 20% with code RPZLHOME20. What a chic way to begin preparing for the holiday season!

Job Leads

Here’s a really great lead and the opp to work with an amazing team — Four Seasons Las Vegas is looking for a Marketing Coordinator to join their team!

Be sure to tell them Aly sent you :)

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!

• Newsweek Readers Choice: Best U.S. Wellness Resort (I was on the panel that created the list of nominees! as well as those for Best Gourmet Subscription Box, Best Mattress, and Best Outdoor Grill - more categories coming very soon!

• Clean Plates: 8 Delicious Trader Joe’s Fall Foods That Dietitians Love

• Clean Plates: Should You Try the Viral "Fridgescaping" Trend?

• RetailMeNot: The Best Free Beauty Gifts With Purchase Deals to Shop

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

• Parade: Clueless About How To Use an Air Fryer? Consider This Your 101 Guide

• Forbes: Fine Dining At 36,000 Feet? Inflight Menus Have Gotten An Upgrade

• Forbes: 20 Great Cocktails To Try In Honor Of National Vodka Day

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

• RetailMeNot: 50+ Government Employee Discounts Worth Knowing in 2024

• Clean Plates: 20 Quick and Healthy Air Fryer Snacks You Can Make in a Snap

• Southern Living: Can You Eat Sprouted Potatoes? An Expert Explains

• YourTango: 10 Most Unique Wedding Locations Around The World

• YourTango: 10 Most Magical Wedding Venues In The USA

• YourTango: 18 Charming Places In America That Feel Just Like Europe

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

• 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.

Apartment Therapy

I’m looking to chat with Pro Travelers What's the Most Unexpected Item They Always Have in Their Carry-On. If you have a good one, email me, and lets chat (and perhaps share a giggle - I’ll tell you mine as well!)

Forbes

National Gumbo Day is coming up and (spoiler alert) - gumbo is my favorite comfort food, but it’s also so hard to find a truly great one outside of NOLA. So, if you are a restaurant doing a really fun, unique, or just special (there’s nothing JUST about special, you guys) variation on gumbo, anywhere - please email me and tell me more about it. It will need to appear on a bar or restaurant menu, and I’ll need a description, chef quote, image, and photo credit.

Also: Do you know of an airport lounge that has an especially interesting F&B offering/feature? I want to hear about it!

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!

Looking to up your affiliate marketing game?

Affiliate marketing is complicated, and it seems that the landscape keeps changing. If you are looking to be prepared for gift guide season and all other shopping-related content, you may want to try the Ultimate Masterclass and Introduction to Affiliate Marketing for Publicists. It's a brilliant course and it'll answer all your questions (including some you didn't know you had!)

<3

aly