SUBMISSIONS

SENDING A QUERY TO THE EDITOR

Senior Living welcomes articles that are of interest to our readers. You may submit a finished article, but it is recommended that you send a brief written query outlining your story idea before investing your time in an article that may prove unacceptable. Tell the editor who your potential sources will be and the proposed angle you will be pursuing. Suggest an appropriate length. Indicate how the piece may be illustrated and whether you have any appropriate materials like photos, illustrations or graphics. If you have not written for Senior Living before, include a short bio of yourself and 2 or 3 clippings if you have already been published.

Email is preferred method of communication. Be sure to include your name, email, phone number in your contact info. Send queries to editor@seniorlivingmag.com

Due to a high volume of email queries, average response time is three months. If your query is time sensitive, please email it well in advance and make note of this in the subject line. Queries that are not a suitable fit for Senior Living magazine will not receive a response, so please research the magazine before emailing your query. If you are a local writer and have not received a response within three months, please email a brief reminder note to the editor.

EDITORIAL PREFERENCES

At this time, we are giving preference to articles about interesting local individuals between the ages of 60 - 70 ("pre-seniors"). We are looking particularly for articles that portray seniors and "pre-seniors" engaged in "active living" in British Columbia.

GENERAL SPECIFICATIONS

Articles are planned 3-4 months in advance, so it is a good idea to plan accordingly -- i.e. send your queries well in advance of when you might expect them to be published. Submit your article as an attachment to your email, not as part of the email itself. Articles should be typed using a wordprocessing program and saved as a "text only" file, extension .txt. Always include your name and contact info in your file as well as the word count and a suggested title for the article.

We cannot include the name of where you work or the business you own. Our readers depend upon us to provide them with accurate, objective information that isn't influenced by a financial motive. Therefore, Senior Living's editorial content is expected to be independent of any commercial venture and does not promote any particular company, product or service.

Length of article depends on topic, degree of complexity, or the section it will be placed within. The Editor will provide a word count when an article is assigned.

Although we edit and proof material submitted, please use the professional journalistic good manners of proofing and spell checking your material before submitting it. Please ensure you have double checked your facts and call any contact numbers given in the article to make sure you have not miss-typed them and that they are still in service. E.g. one digit out of sequence can cause huge ramifications, such as some unsuspecting private citizen being deluged by calls relating to an article of which they know nothing. Pay special attention to names and titles to ensure total accuracy.

Articles must be the work of the original author.

PAYMENT AND COPYRIGHT

At the present time, Senior Living has only a small budget for paying writers. We have a preset payment schedule established, based on length and complexity. Please ask the editor for this information when submitting your query. If you have been published before and can prove your expertise by submitting appropriately written and researched copy that requires little editing, it is likely you will be put on our paid list of writers.

We have worked with a number of volunteer writers, who have a small amount or no publishing background but a great willingness to learn. We can work with you to develop your writing skills as long as you are open to constructive criticism and willing to learn. Once you reach a certain level of expertise that requires little editing on our part, you will be considered for our paid list of writers.

To reprint any article in part or in whole requires the permission of the publisher.  Reprinted articles should credit Senior Living magazine in one of the following ways:  "Reprinted with permission - Senior Living magazine [issue date i.e. April 2009]; or " Published in Senior Living April 2009".

DEPARTMENTS

Cover stories and Feature articles are between 1,200 - 2,000 words and usually feature a number of people, some important issues, or some significant occurrence, event or organization. These articles must be of great interest to our readers, entertaining, extremely well executed. Humor, if appropriate, is always welcome. Photos are considered a big part of the mix, so it is important to work with the editor, either in providing the appropriate photos or providing the appropriate contact information so a photographer can be assigned to it.

Personal Profiles are about 800-1,000 words and usually feature one person with outstanding or interesting achievements. This person should be 50 years or older. We will consider and accept articles about anyone over the age of 50, but our preference at this time is profiles of people between the age of 50 – 65.

Articles of Interest are about 350-650 words and can be about any topic relating to seniors. Possibilities included clubs, volunteer work, senior-related industries or trends, etc.

Service Profiles: 350 words -- succinct but interesting profiles of local service groups or organizations.

News Briefs: 150-200 words -- something new that's just happened or is about to happen. E.g. the opening of a new facility, the bestowing of a special award, an awareness event, etc.

Travel Destinations: 800 - 1,200 words - It's more than a destination; it's about something very unique and special about a very small part of the overall destination. E.g. the Spitbanks off the coast of Portsmouth, England; An old-fashioned Christmas complete with horse-drawn sleighs in the Bavarian-style town of Leavenworth, Washington. Senior Living particularly welcomes travel articles relating to destinations within a day's drive from where the magazine is being distributed.

Hobbies: 450-650 words. Highlighting the uniqueness of peoples' pastimes; what they do, how they do it, why they do, what drew them to it and keeps them interested in it.

History: People, places, events, and things; 650 words. Must be located in the distribution territory of the magazine it is being submitted to, and should take readers back at least 50 years.

Arts Feature; 550 words. Profile of a senior artist or an event of interest to seniors that's coming up within the month.

Author Feature; 450 words. Profile of a senior who writes books that seniors would buy for themselves or as gifts

In Your Backyard: 500 words. Show readers through words, interview and photos the scenic and unique yard of some senior gardener who lives within the area the magazine is being distributed.

Health: 300-450 words. Any health topic relevant to seniors

Legal: 300-450 words. Any legal topic relevant to seniors

Tasty Traditions: Recipes and memories related to the recipe. Not too long, but should be light, emotional and nostalgic… tell us how this recipe brought out the best in the family, how it brought them together and made them feel close to each other.

PHOTOGRAPHY

We are always looking for good photographers to take on assignments or work with writers to illustrate their articles with appropriate pictures. If you have a 'camera-for-hire,' let us know. We prefer a digital format to avoid the cost of film and developing. We have a small budget to pay photographers who produce quality shots. Photos that require a lot of touchup and manipulation to overcome poor lighting, poor composition or poor focusing will not qualify for payment. Contact the editor for information about our payment schedule and other specs required for the type of photos you are interested in taking.

SENDING EMAILS

Due to file sizes and storage issues, please only attach text documents (no photographs, PDFs or Word documents with embedded photos).  Emails with large attachments will be deleted upon receipt. To avoid disappointment, please only email additional materials when they are requested.

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