How to contribute to the F-Word
Got something to say? Something to review? News to discuss? Well we want to hear from you!
The F-Word relies upon contributions from readers. It would make us very, very happy indeed if you want to contribute anything to the site. The F-Word is a site on contemporary UK feminism so we are concentrating on contributions relating to this.
Contributions from young British women and new writers are particularly encouraged.
Please note we cannot pay for submissions.
Guidelines for contributors to The F-Word
Who?
- Contributions are encouraged from UK feminists, people living in the UK, or UK feminists currently living elsewhere. If you are unsure about this please check with the editor.
- We encourage contributions from feminists of all ages, and we are particularly keen to encourage and showcase new voices. To this end, contributions from new writers and young women and girls are particularly welcomed and encouraged.
What?
- You can contribute to the features or the reviews section, or both. All the points below relate to both sections.
- The F-Word does not prescribe a certain type of feminism and accepts all types of feminist viewpoints. We like to encourage debate and the sharing of ideas. We accept that feminists have different views and we relish this. Dont be afraid of being controversial.
- Contributions MUST be relevant to the UK. This site is aimed at a UK audience.
- Humorous articles are particulary encouraged. We love wit and sarcasm.
- Articles can be on any topic relating to UK feminism (check first), but we particularly like articles which relate to popular culture.
- The F-Word is an online magazine. Please try to write your piece as if you were writing for a magazine NOT an academic thesis. Please try to make your article as non-academic as possible. Footnotes and references are fine, but try to make them readable to your average person and if you are using jargon please explain it.
- Try not to libel anyone!
- Word length: as we are an online publication we can afford to be flexible. An article for the features section should be between 1000 words at the very least and 5000 at the very very most. A good length would be between 1500-4000. A review should be between 500 and 3000, but a good length would be 1000-2000. Don't bother too much about fitting closely with these figures, they are a guideline.
- Please check your idea with the editor by emailing us using the contact form before sending me your article just to make sure it is ok for the site. I wouldn't want you to waste your time on something to find out that it's not appropriate for The F-Word.
- Want to use pictures? Email the editor using the contact form and we'll discuss it.
- If you mention statistics, quotes or facts, please provide a reference!
How?
- After confirmation, email the article to the Editor EITHER in the text of an email OR in an attachment. It helps if you let me know what format the attachment is in (e.g. .doc, .txt, .rtf, Word, etc). Remember that the text of an email will not include italics or bold, so if you are sending it this way and you want to emphasize a word put asterisks round it like *this*.
- You must include a short description about yourself at the bottom of the article. See the site for examples, they usually start with "Sarah Smith is..." This can be serious or silly; it's just nice to know about who's writing, and if you can get a chuckle or a wry comment out of it, mores the better. You can include any web links or projects you might want to promote.
- You can use a pseudonym or nickname if you prefer but please let me know what name you wish the article to be published under.
When?
- There is no standard deadline for submitting pieces, but the Editor may discuss this with you.
Misc
- The bad news: we cannot pay you. This is done purely out of love; everyone who contributes for this site is a volunteer. But you will get kudos for having your name up there, and you'll have furthered the cause of UK feminism - what more could you want?!
- We reserve the right to edit your submission before publishing.
- There may be a delay of weeks or months between your article being submitted, accepted and published on the site.
The blog
In addition to the 'main' part of The F-Word, the site runs a collaborative blog, updated daily by a collective of regular bloggers, as well as guest bloggers, who usually contribute regularly for at least a month. Sometimes guest bloggers are invited to stay on as regular bloggers.
The blogging team is keen to host guest bloggers. If you would like to put yourself forward to become a guest blogger, or recommend someone else for a slot, please use the feedback form. Because we can't promise to provide a platform for everyone, we generally encourage new writers to begin by submitting a feature or review.