Newspapers and online daily publications usually work on stories 24 to 48 hours in advance, although feature stories may take weeks to complete. Monthly publications usually work at least a couple of months in advance. Make it easy. Some people even include a photograph or a list of possible questions they want to be asked to make the reporter's job as easy as possible. You could be missing a valuable publicity opportunity by not making yourself immediately available when a reporter is on deadline.
Most media outlets prefer to receive press releases in the following format.
Include as much contact information as you can. Skip a line or two after the release statement and put your name, title, telephone, fax, and e-mail address here. Skip two lines after your contact information and use a bold font type to write your catchy headline. This should provide the city you issue your press release from, and the date you're sending your release out. Make sure the first 10 words grab your reader, and that the first paragraph provides enough information about who, what, where, when, and why, to keep him reading.