Eligibility

Associate membership is offered to mid-level freelance writers, who would like to become professional members. Writers currently working on staff at a media company can join ASJA at this membership level.

Professional membership is for writers with established freelance writing careers that include at least one published book and/or national clips. Professional ASJA members can access Client Connections, Virtual Pitch Slam or Virtual Client Connections. Note: newly independent former staff writers and editors from established media companies are eligible for professional membership with no waiting period.

Membership dues are $235 per calendar year for both Associate and Professional Members. We will also collect a one-time application fee of $25 and an initiation fee of $50 when you complete your application.

If you are not sure for which membership level you qualify, apply for professional membership. If you meet associate membership requirements but not those for professional membership, you will be awarded an associate membership. In that case, we encourage you to reapply for professional membership with no additional application fee, as soon as you have the needed clips.

Associate Member Qualifications

Please gather all supporting documents (urls and/or pdfs) before you begin your application. You cannot save your application to finish it later.

To apply for associate membership, you must have:

• Three published articles from regional or national publications or for regional or national brands or organizations.

Articles may be from either national or regional publications. Unpaid articles and clips written while on staff will also be considered for associate membership. Articles or posts on a personal blog cannot be submitted for membership consideration.

The following types of writing do not qualify you for ASJA associate membership:

• Fiction or poetry
• Work from markets that direct writers to use their advertisers as sources
• Most self-published or subsidy-published books and materials (see caveat above)
• PR, advertising, or other writings paid for, in whole or in part, by the subject(s) of the piece(s).

Professional Membership Qualifications

Please gather all supporting documents (urls and/or pdfs) before you begin your application. You cannot save your application to finish it later.

To apply for professional membership, submit either:

• Four articles written on a freelance basis published in national publications or for national brands or organizations.

Regional publications do not qualify for professional membership. If you submit short articles (fewer than 700 words or so), submit more articles. Submissions should be from at least two markets. Note: Staff-written clips from a job at an established media company can be considered for the qualifying credentials of applicants for professional membership who are establishing a full-time freelance career.

• One or more nonfiction books published by either a traditional or hybrid publisher. Ghostwritten nonfiction books may be considered but must be traditionally published. Ghostwritten nonfiction books will require proof in the form of a contract signature page.

The applicant’s own self-published books will not be considered unless you can demonstrate the notable quality of the book via extraordinary sales or reviews.

A word about custom content

Custom, non-bylined content may be considered qualifying under these conditions:

• You can submit verifiable evidence of authorship (e.g., a contract, with letter(s) of assignment if the topic(s) are not specified in the contract)
• The work is for an organization of sufficient stature. These include, but are not limited to:
  – Content marketing agencies (e.g. MXM, Time Inc., Pace, Skyword)
  – Corporations (e.g. Walgreens, Ford, WalMart)
  – Nonprofits of significant size (e.g. ASPCA, YMCA of America, large hospitals).

The following types of writing do not qualify you for ASJA professional membership:

• Fiction or poetry
• Non-paying markets, including self-published blogs
• Work compensated strictly on a “pay-per-click” basis
• Work performed for companies and organizations that pay minimal freelance rates (e.g. $0.01/per word or $30 for a blog post of 1000 words)
• Markets that direct writers to use their advertisers as sources
• Small regional publications or local websites
• Small special-interest publications
• Most self-published or subsidy-published books and materials (see caveat above)
• PR, advertising, or other writings paid for, in whole or in part, by the subject(s) of the piece(s).