Happy Tuesday, all. I’ve got leads for DC freelance writers, writers who telecommute, food writers, and more this week.

The big news last week was that the LA Times killed its Metro section. I wish this was a joke. WTF, LA Times?

This could theoretically cause a trickle-down effect of fewer gigs in the D.C. area, because when the Times’ metro section is folded into the A section, they’ll have a smaller news hole for national news, prompting possible job losses at their Washington bureau. Those reporters could then look for new jobs here, begin freelancing here, or do what unemployed journos typically do: go into PR.

Page 6 Magazine is going from weekly to monthly, and everyone but the editor-in-chief is being laid off. This is dire: when the American people don’t want to read about CELEBRITIES, you know we’re in trouble. According to the Mediabistro article, everyone involved with the mag will probably be asked to freelance..thank goodness.

This is less of a lead as it affects staffers only, but David Plotz is doing something awesome over at Slate: asking his writers to take (paid) time off and come up with something interesting. “They won’t be allowed to think about the horse race of daily Internet publishing. Editors won’t edit. Bloggers won’t blog…They can sleep till noon, close the blinds (or the neighborhood bar) and read all afternoon long, as long as they’ve got something to show for it at the end.”

But while all this stuff is going on in Scarytown, there’s still room for optimism; yes, yes, it’s true! Some magazines are still paying for writing.

I just submitted a query today to Virginia Wine Lover. It is published out of Richmond, and covers the whole state. There are very few staffers on the masthead, and the current (Spring 2009) issue is littered with the editor’s byline. Methinks that maybe he’s a bit sick of writing the entire magazine and could be up for farming out some of the work. Queries to Patrick Evans-Hylton, [email protected] or [email protected].

Tea Magazine claims to be the “first consumer magazine all about tea” and I wouldn’t be surprised if that were the case. Nevertheless, tea-drinking is steeped in ritual in these parts (no pun intended) and it makes sense that this niche would want to read about themselves. Masthead information is here.

Liquor Canada may just be the greatest name ever for a magazine. According to this article, it’s a brand-new, service-oriented trade magazine for bars, restaurants, and liquor store owners. No official word on whether they accept freelance submissions but your contact is associate editor Christine Otsuka.