Editorial Guidelines for Submissions The Writer's Chronicle strives to accomplish the following
In general, the editors look for articles that demonstrate an excellent working knowledge of literary issues and a generosity of spirit that esteems the arguments of other writers on similar topics. In writing essays on craft, writers are often tempted to use their own work as an example. This is a bad idea, and such articles are not welcomed by the editors. Please keep in mind that 11,000 of our 21,000 readers are students or just-emerging writers. They must become good readers before they can become good writers, and we therefore expect essays on craft to show exemplary close readings of a variety of contemporary and older works. Essays must embody generosity, curiosity, and discernment rather than self-promotion. Writers may refer to their own travails and successes if they do so modestly, in small proportion to the other examples. Again, we look for a generosity of spirit-a general love and command of literature as well as an expert, writerly viewpoint-in the essays we publish. We buy first serial rights and electronic rights for all manuscripts accepted for publication. We pay $9 per 100 words for accepted manuscripts. Regretfully, we do not pay kill fees. Authors are paid upon publication. AWP reserves the right to publish excerpts of pieces published in the Writer's Chronicle on the World Wide Web. General Manuscript Guidelines Manuscripts must be double-spaced, laser- or ink-jet printed, on 8 1/2" x 11" white paper. Please, on the first page of your manuscript, include the word count of the article, your name, address, and phone number. All manuscripts must include an SASE for reply and a short author's biographical note of no more than three sentences. Essays longer than 7,000 words are generally not accepted. Simultaneous submissions are not encouraged and must be noted as such on the cover letter. If we do not respond to your submission within three months, you are free to send your work elsewhere. Electronic queries are okay, but no electronic submissions will be considered. Unsolicited works must be submitted only as a hard copy via U.S.P.S. mail. Please do not follow the MLA style, which is well-designed for professional readers, but annoying to general readers, in whom we still have great faith. Acknowledge your sources by using endnotes and follow The Chicago Manual of Style. If you quote a poem, song, or short-short story in its entirety, it is your responsibility to secure permission and pay for that permission. We recommend that you limit quotes to fair use and avoid quoting whole works, as many trade publishers charge absurdly high fees for permissions; they would rather see their authors fade from public view than have their work reprinted often for a reasonable fee. Submissions to the Writer's Chronicle may fall into one of the following categories: Interviews The Writer's Chronicle features interviews with well-published or up-and-coming authors of note in the genres of fiction, short fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, and other forms of creative writing. In the past, we have published interviews with such authors as Jane Smiley, Donald Hall, Lynn Emanuel, Ron Carlson, Sonia Sanchez, Ernest Gaines, Marilyn Chin, and many others. We especially appreciate interviews that include discussions of writing craft, the evolution of the author's own work, and literary influences and inspirations. Please query before submitting an interview. We publish interviews between 4,000 and 7,000 words. Interviews should include a two paragraph introduction to the author, including all pertinent biographical information. This introduction should be mainly factual. We are not interested in how friendly you are with the subject, or what the subject was wearing that day, or when and where the interview was conducted, etc. We prefer interviews that have been revised heavily in the interest of accuracy, concision, and style. We are not interested in an interviews that is faithful to an actual spoken event. We are interested in an interview that represent a writer as well as possible in a somewhat personable and discursive manner. We do not publish interviews unless the subject has had an opportunity to revise his or her comments, and we encourage the interviewers and their subjects to revise their transcripts of the interviews extensively. We only publish interviews that have been approved in proofs by their subjects. Lectures, Talks, & Panel Discussions Lectures, Talks, & Panel Discussions do not appear in our pages, but we do often publish essays that are adapted from lectures and discussions. Many panel discussions, though engaging in person, are disappointing in the cool medium of print. As with interviews, we are not interested in transcripts of actual spoken events; we prefer articles that acknowledge sources and the other writers who have pondered the same topic (which one may sometimes overlook when one speaks informally); we prefer articles that are more elegantly organized and concisely written than the somewhat improvisatory ruminations of a panel discussion. We seldom publish all the presentations of any given panel discussion, so you should adapt your discussion to read well as a free-standing essay. Essays on Pedagogy Often, the Writer's Chronicle will publish essays concerning creative writing pedagogy. The most successful pedagogy pieces combine research, interviews, and teaching experience. Pedagogy pieces are not diatribes about the quality of a writer's own education or an argument against a specific teacher's methodology. The pedagogy essay is an opportunity to inform and educate your peers about different methodologies of teaching, and should always be directed towards the writing community-at-large. Pedagogy pieces are generally between 2,500 and 6,000 words. Appreciations A writerly appreciation is our favorite kind of article. The Writer's Chronicle publishes appreciations of contemporary writers whose work came into prominence after 1965. Appreciations are not profiles or memoirs; instead, we seek close readings of an important author's work and an analysis of the author's contributions to our culture and mastery of craft. You may include some personal anecdotes to portray the author more vividly, but mostly self-referential or sentimental appreciations, of course, are not acceptable. The appreciation should answer the questions: What can I as a writer learn from this writer? What has this writer contributed to our culture? Appreciations are generally between 2,000 and 5,000 words. Craft Essays All craft essays must analyze an element of creative writing. Articles should not overlap with topics covered in recent issues of the Chronicle. Craft essays should contain concrete examples to illustrate the writerly advice they offer. Many of our published essays combine appreciations (as described above) with a study of elements of craft. A query on a specific topic is always welcome. Craft essays run between 2,000 and 6,000 words, depending on the topic. News/Features The Writer's Chronicle often runs stories of interest for creative writing teachers and students. These include hard news, such as coverage of public funding for the arts and education, unions for adjunct faculty, First Amendment issues, and developments in publishing or in other literary organizations. News articles and features should not run longer than 3,000 words. Essays on Academic Careers & Non-Academic Careers for Writers Essays on Academic Careers & Nonacademic Careers for Writers no longer appear in the Writer's Chronicle, as AWP now features these essays in AWP Job List online. AWP Job List publishes articles about academia and job opportunities for MFA graduates. We are always seeking well-researched articles regarding opportunities for our members to succeed in the corporate or nonprofit sectors. Payment rates are the same as those of the Writer's Chronicle. These articles should not run longer than 3,000 words, and they should include the elements of good investigative reporting. They should not rely on personal anecdotes alone. Book Reviews Periodically, the Writer's Chronicle will run reviews of important books for creative writing teachers, students, or literary professionals. Generally, AWP solicits reviews. Please query before considering AWP for any book reviews; these books must be current nonfiction and of interest to our readers. Books selected for review are limited to nonfiction or critical works: biographies on writers and publishers, books on craft, essays on the writing life, etc. We do not review contemporary poetry or fiction. Reviews may run no longer than 1,200 words, and most reviews are brief, 250 words or less. Thank you for your interest in the Writer's Chronicle.
|
|
|
