ARTICES

Write like you talk. If you would not say it in casual conversation to a friend, find simpler wording.

Check your facts. We take pride citing our sources and this encourages others to discover the truth.

Write in active voice. Say, “I checked the facts,” not, “The facts were checked by me.” 

Always edit. Never submit something unless you have read through it yourself.

Avoid contractions. Eg. “Couldn’t”, “it’s”, “won’t.”

Avoid adverbs. Those are words that modify other words, like “very,” “super,” “basically,” etc. Use strong words.

Eliminate jargon. Avoid using industry-specific words and if you must use these, please explain each term.

Check your homonyms and homophones. These are words that are pronounced the same but spelled differently. E.g. “they’re” and “their.”

When in doubt, delete “that.” “That” tends to get overused. If you can delete it and a sentence reads the same, please do.

Double-check all pronouns. If it is not clear what your “it” or “that” is referring to, bring the noun up again.

Be specific. Is it a river or is it the Mississippi? Is it a truck or is it an eighteen-wheeler? Specificity paints the picture.

Hyphenate modifiers. Radio was invented in the 19th century; your grandfather collects 19th-century radio sets.

Limit exclamation points. One per article is plenty. 

Check adjectives. Are they all necessary? Would a more specific noun choice be better? Is it a big house or a mansion? A brimmed hat or a fedora?

Trim your lists. If you have listed three things that are synonyms, pick the best and delete the rest.

Kill your darlings. Do not keep something because you like it; keep it because it works.

VOICE

All articles submitted will go through a review process. Our editors reserve the right to make small changes via the honor system, including basic spelling mistakes and general voice issues mentioned in the section above such as using contractions or unnecessary filler words. Any content or structure changes will always be suggested by our editors via email. We will not make major changes to your article before publishing without notice.

Articles must be at least one page (500 words single-spaced) and no longer than ten pages (5,000 words single-spaced). Articles less than 500 words may be rejected without notice.

Please include a short description of the type of photos you would like to be attached to your article.

For example: If you have written an article about hiking, you might note in your email that you would like pictures with the theme of hiking in a forest. If you have written an article about how hunting has impacted your view of animal conservation, you might note in your email that you would like pictures with the theme of bow hunting, hunting deer, etc.

If you do not specifiy what type of graphics you would like paired with your article, selections deemed appropriate by our editors will be attached.

Any citation used in an article should be listed numerically in order of appearance at the end of the article.

For example: As evidenced in Howl’s article [1], we can see the impact environmentalism has had on our culture…

[1] The Cultural Impact of Environmentalism by Perkins Howl

We welcome all nature photography for submission to our magazine. This includes all flora and fauna, landscapes, people enjoying nature, etc. All photographs, unless you are submitting your photography along with an article that you wrote and note that you would like your photograph(s) included - will be published in the photography section of our magazine.

Disclaimer: By submitting your photographs to The Arcadian you are acknowledging that all photographs submitted were taken by you and any individuals present in the photographs have consented to your choice to publish these photographs in our publication. The Arcadian reserves the right to use your photographs in our publication, and use them for promotional material for the magazine on all social media and beyond. Note: Credit will always be given when we publish any of your work.

Please ensure that any photographs submitted are at least 400 DPI (1024x78 pixels). Images smaller than this may be rejected.

For our editors to give the proper credit to photographers, please include the following information with a photography submission:

Your name. The name you would like to use, please keep this name professional if not using your real name.

Location. We realize that some individuals submitting may want to remain anonymous. If you are not comfortable giving the location of the photo, even a general location, eg. “Yellowstone National Park” or “the coast of California”, then please note that you would like your photo published with the name “Anonymous” and we would be happy to publish your photograph. Please include your name with your submission, but simply note that you do not want this name published.

Subject matter or title. If you do not have a title for your photograph, you may simply title it the subject matter, e.g. “Whitetail Deer” or “Hydrangeas”

If any of these requirements are not met, please be aware that your photograph may be rejected without notice.

If you have any questions regarding submitting articles or photographs to The Arcadian, please contact us at magazine@the-arcadian.com