How to Sell your Story for Cash in the UK

How can I sell my stories for money? Where do I sell my stories? How much do magazines pay for stories in the UK?

Many people ask these questions and more when they have a hot or scandalous story to tell. Often, people don’t know that magazines and other press outlets pay for a story. Research shows that fees for stories in magazines average £300 to £500 for stories over one to two pages. If the story is scandalous, sensational or sought after, your fee could go up to £1000 to £10,000.

According to a recent survey, UK press outlets reach 37 million people daily, 47 million people weekly and 49 million people monthly. Another study revealed that fewer people are getting news from social media in the UK. The number of UK adults using social media for news dipped from 49% in 2019 to 45% in 2020.

In this guide, we take you through places you can sell your story for cash in the UK.

Where Can I Sell my Story for Cash in the UK?

Press Agencies…

The following are press outlets where you can sell your stories…

1. PA Media

PA Media is one of the leading providers of multimedia content in the UK. For more than 150 years, PA Media has been at the forefront of media innovation. The company has created over 1 million words of news and features every week, plus 3,000 pictures. They have streamed over 30 million hours of live video each year and captured 100K live data from more than 100,000 greyhound and horse races each year.

PA Media publishes stories on the following topics…

• Sports
• Finances
• Lifestyle
• News
• Sci-tech
• Entertainment
• Uplifting
• Real-life
• Motoring

To sell your story, visit PA Media website, fill out the form with a brief description of your experience. One of PA Media’s writers will get back to you to explain the process and how much they’ll pay you.

2. Cavendish Press

Do you have a story to tell? For over 40 years, Cavendish Press has helped people in the UK sell their stories to national newspapers. Whether it’s the latest on the lives of the rich and famous or gripping features, Cavendish Press award-winning team will deliver.

Cavendish Press is Britain’s most respected press agency. It syndicates big features, eye-catching photography and top news stories in the UK. The agency also sells news and features to regional and national newspapers.

To sell your story…

• Visit Cavendish Press website.
• Complete the free online form to the top right of the webpage.

If you’ve questions, check out Cavendish Press’s guide to selling your story.

3. Sell Your Story

Sellusyourstory.com is an online story selling site owned by SWNS. SWNS is an independent press agency in the UK with writers, offices and photographers. The agency produces up to 20% of all daily news content. As one of the oldest and most trusted press agency in the UK, SWNS provides the UK media with ground-breaking news stories and pictures.

The agency started in Bristol but now has offices all over the UK. For the past 40 years, SWNS established itself as a leading source for sought after stories. Sellusyourstory.com can help you sell your story to magazines, newspapers, and websites for the highest fee.

To sell your story, visit Sellusyourstory.com, complete the online form, send your story and get paid. For interesting stories, Sell Your Story will pay £200 and up to £10,000 for sensitive or rare stories.

4. Talk to the Press

Another independent agency that sells stories to newspapers and magazines is Talk to the press. The agency sells stories to The Sun, Sunday Mirror, Mirror, Mail on Sunday, Daily Mail and more. They have an experienced and friendly team that acts as your publicist and media agent.

This team can guide you through the entire process of selling and telling your story in a way you’d like it to be told. Of course, this is not free. To sell your story, visit Talk to the press.co.uk. Send a short summary of your story, and the team will get back to you.

If approved, the team will sell your story, and you’ll get paid.

5. Feature World

Feature World is the brainchild of Alison Smith-Squire, an award-winning journalist and writer. Launched in 2006, Alison started Feature World to help ordinary people sell a story safely.

After covering several stories herself, she felt it was her duty to prevent ordinary people from getting ripped off. Feature World has made it easy for ordinary people to make money selling stories. All one has to do is visit the Feature World site, fill the online form and wait for the go-ahead.

Payments are usually made within 72 hours after publication directly to your bank account.

6. Hot Spot Media

Hot Spot Media is a press agency that brings the hottest news, videos and pictures to publications in the UK and worldwide. The agency reports exclusive stories of emotional human interest tales, gripping crime and more to get people talking.

It has a team of experienced photographers and journalists who’ve worked for the national and international press. Thanks to their experience, they can guide you to sell your stories to all major newspapers, magazines, TV and radio stations.

To sell your story, get in touch with the Hot Spot Media support team.

7. The Story People

Share your real-life story with top UK magazines and get paid by The Story People. The agency can help you sell your story to magazines such as…

• Take a Break
• That’s Life

According to The Story People, stories that readers enjoy include true crime, stories of abuse and domestic violence. They also read love rat and relationship stories plus stories about inspirational children.

If you have such a story, visit The Story People website. Complete the 5-minute form to find out how much your story is worth it. If your story gets published, The Story People will send your payment 4 to 6 weeks after publication.

8. My Story Media

My Story Media is one of the leading media agencies specializing in documentaries and print journalism. The agency works with the best producers and editors to find captivating real-life stories and bring them to the audience. They can sell your stories to newspapers, magazines, documentaries, books and talk shows.

Selling your story to My Story Media is easy. Visit My Story Media site and fill out the form. My Story Media team will get back to you to conduct an interview, photo or video shoot. Once you’re in agreement, My Story Media team will contact press outlets to sell your story. After publication, you’ll receive your payment.

9. Front Page Story

Have you got a story to sell? Front Page Story will pay you up to £2,000 for a love rat story. As an independent agency, Front Page Story will sell your story to national newspapers and top UK women’s magazines. Examples include:

• Chat
• Bella
• Take a Break
• Pick Me Up
• Sunday Mirror
• The People and more

Front Page Story is looking for stories about romance, affairs, a story with a happy ending, divorces from hell and love rats. To sell your stories, visit the Front Page Story site. Fill the form on the right of the page and wait for the team to get back to you. Front Page Story will arrange to write the story for you, send the story to magazines and newspapers. After publication, you’ll receive your money.

10. National Story

National Story sells your stories to the UK media and press. Established in 1988, they sell high value and exclusive stories such as real life, news, crime, health, and showbiz stories. As your press agent, National Story will not pay you less than £200 if you sell your story through them.

To sell your story, contact the National Story support team. You can do so by visiting the National Story site and filling in the confidential form. They’ll get back to you to learn more details about your story, and if approved, they will sell to national newspapers and magazines. Payment is usually sent after publication.

11. Famous Features

Want to sell your story to the press? Famous Features is an independent press agency that offers a free and friendly service to sell your story. Like other press agencies, they sell real-life stories, news articles, videos and photos. They do not sell fiction stories.

If you want your story to appear in magazines and newspapers, fill out the form on the Famous Features site, and they’ll tell you what your story is worth. You’ll only give the team the main points of what happened. If you agree with the fee offered, give your go-ahead, and after publication, payment is usually sent to you.

Real-life Magazines…

Besides press agencies, you can sell your stories to Real-life magazines.

12. Bella

Tell your story to Bella magazine and earn up to £1,000. To make money, you only need to send a brief outline of your story to Bella. You can include more details if you wish, but it’s optional. Once the Bella features team has your outline, they’ll read through, and if they love it, they will give you a call for further details.

They will want to know who’s involved, how the story begins, what significant event happened, and how it ends. All stories need to be true and exclusive to Bella magazine. You also need to include your name and contact details so that the Bella features team can get back to you.

13. Real People

Real People is a magazine that publishes stories on life, crime and pets. As one of the leading magazines in the UK, it accepts stories from ordinary people. Before publishing your story, get in touch with the Real People support team.

One of the Real People writers will get in touch with you over the phone. During your conversation, you need to provide a brief outline of your story. If the story is suitable for the magazine, they will agree to a fee with you. The writer will invite you for a full interview over the phone or in-person. After publication, Real People will send you the payment.

14. The People’s Friend

As the magazine of choice for many readers, The People’s Friend publishes lots of stories. Topics include recipes, craft, gardening, health, travel, knitting patterns and much more. If you have a story to tell, you can sell it to The People’s Friend. After publication, they’ll send you payment via your preferred payment method.

To sell your story, contact The People’s Friend editorial team via email. You can also write to the team. Provide an outline of your story in the email, and if the editorial team loves it, they’ll get back to you for the full story.

Newspapers…

You can always sell your story to national newspapers. The following are popular newspapers looking for news and stories.

15. The Daily Mail

The Daily Mail is a middle-market British newspaper published in London. Founded in 1896, it’s one of the UK’s highest circulated newspapers. In 2012, The Daily Mail circulated more than 1.9 million copies. The newspaper generally publishes stories on the following topics:

• News
• Sport
• TV & Showbiz
• Health
• Science
• Money
• Travel and much more

If you’ve a story to tell or a tip-off, The Daily Mail will pay cash. All you need to do is send an email to The Daily Mail. Besides stories, the newspaper also pays cash for videos and photos.

16. Daily Express

The Daily Express is another newspaper that will pay for your stories. As one of Britain’s most trusted news brands, Daily Express has been at the forefront of the news. The newspaper has been crusading for truth and informing millions of readers on important world events, online and print.

Since 1900, the Daily Express has been reporting the news fairly, accurately and vigorously. They have also campaigned for causes close to UK readers’ hearts. The newspaper publishes stories on the following topics:

• News
• Showbiz & TV
• Sport
• Finance
• Travel
• Lifestyle
• Entertainment

To sell your story, contact the Daily Express editorial team. The team will get in touch within 24 hours.

17. Daily Star

Do you have the latest stories and hot topics? Earn up to £1,000 by selling your story to the Daily Star. The Daily Star is usually published by Express Newspapers, a part of Reach PLC. Reach PLC is one of the largest magazine, digital and newspaper publishers in the UK.

Every month, the company’s publications reach more than 38.6 million people from England to Wales and Scotland. The publications form part of everyday life for thousands of people in the UK. If you’ve a story to tell, contact the Daily Star editorial team. They will pay for showbiz, TV, life and style, tech, and travel stories.

18. The Mirror

Founded in 1903, The Mirror is a national newspaper that engages in tabloid-style journalism. Owned by Reach PLC, the newspaper’s first publication was in 1903. Today, it has a circulation of more than 570,000.

Like the Daily Express and Daily Star, The Mirror has been campaigning for several causes. A century ago, they campaigned for more lifeboats on ships. This is after the deaths of passengers on board the Titanic. They have also campaigned against seal clubbing and ivory trade.

If you’ve a story that can inform, inspire or change lives, share it with The Mirror. They’ll pay you for sharing news and stories on celebs, politics, tech, money, football, motoring and much more. To tell your story, contact the Mirror editorial team.

19. The Sun

As one of the leading newspapers in the UK, The Sun is always looking for stories of every kind. Be it heart-warming, scandalous, celeb based or shocking; The Sun readers want to read about it. If you have such a story, then you’re in for a big payday.

To sell your story, get in touch with The Sun. The editorial team will request you to pitch your story. If they like it, they’ll publish your story and pay you. If you’ve concerns such as remaining anonymous, you can agree in advance before publication.

You can also make extra cash by selling videos and photos to The Sun.

How Much Money Can You Make?

The amount of money you can make selling a story to a press agency, newspaper or magazine depends on the type of story and publisher. For example, most newspapers, magazines and press agencies will pay you £200 for an exciting story.

If the story is rare and related to the current news agenda, you’ll receive £500. For extreme, rare, and sensitive stories involving a public figure or celebrity, publishers will pay up to £1,000, £3,000 and £10,000. Payment is always made after publication. Some publishers will send payment after 24 hours or 72 hours. Others will pay after 4 to 6 weeks.

Tips for Selling Your Story…

Think about what sorts of publications you’d like to sell your story to, for example, magazines and newspapers. Visit their websites and contact their editorial team. If interested, they’ll get in touch with you.

You can opt to sell your story to a press agency rather than directly to the newspaper or magazine. If you choose a press agency, make sure it’s reputable.

Have proof to accompany the story you’re selling. If you want to sell a story about celebrities or a public figure, have pictures and videos to prove your story is true. Photographs and video evidence pay more than just a simple story. Make sure your story has no legal limitations.

Not every story you sell is successful. Also, not every story is worth thousands of pounds. If the publisher declines to buy your story, do not take it personally. Try to sell your story to another publisher or press agency.

Final Thoughts…

Press agencies, newspapers and magazines in the UK are continually looking for stories. Whether they’re scandalous, funny, or shocking, publishers are ready to pay thousands of pounds to publish the story. If you’ve a rare or exclusive story that will impact lives or inspire, sell it to magazines, newspapers, press agencies and earn some cash along the way.