newWitch Contributors' Guidelines
September 20, 2006, Kenaz Filan, Managing Editor

NEWWITCH CONTRIBUTOR'S GUIDELINES
Last Updated September 20, 2006
Kenaz Filan, Managing Editor
newWitch is dedicated to Witches, Wiccans, Neo-Pagans, and various other earth-based, ethnic, pre-Christian, shamanic, and magical practitioners. We hope to reach not only those already involved in what we cover, but the curious and completely new as well.
newWitch accepts essays, factual articles, fiction, poetry, column ideas, artwork, photographs, personal experiences, and ranting feedback relevant to our subject matter, goals, and readership.

General Info:
We do not accept simultaneous submissions, and require first worldwide periodical rights and non-exclusive web rights from all authors.

We reserve the right to edit for length, clarity, and grammar – sometimes at the last minute before publication. While we will do our best to preserve your unique voice, we cannot guarantee that your article will appear precisely as you submitted it. Please inform us of deliberate uses of non-traditional spelling so the tone of your work does not get accidentally altered.

If you have previously contacted any newWitch staffer, please reference that prior contact in your cover letter. Be sure to include your personal information (check-cashing name, pen name, postal address, email address, phone number, and brief bio) along with your submission.

We welcome queries to determine our interest but only accept finished manuscripts.

Compensation:
We offer a standard pay of $.02 per word for all written works, excepting letters to the editor and pieces in The Rant. We have a $15 minimum payment per item, so short pieces such as poems and reviews typically get a flat fee of $15.
Payment for artwork, photography, and other visual works is negotiated individually. (The Editor-in-Chief makes all layout and design decisions and should be your point of contact for questions regarding visual works). Other exchanges, such as subscriptions or ad space, may be discussed with <a href ="mailto: editor@newwitch.com">the Editor-in-Chief</a> and may be more generous than cash payments.

Length:
Features (articles, essays, and interviews) should be between 500 and 3000 words. We most often publish items between 1000 and 2300 words; over 2500 words will generally indicate a featured or commissioned article.
Fiction can be anywhere between 100 and 5000 words. Topics should relate to Pagan spirituality or magical practice. Fictionalized retellings of real events ("faction") is NOT accepted.
For poetry, we suggest a maximum count of 50 lines per poem.

Format:
Attachments in Microsoft Word or Rich Text Format may be emailed directly to the Managing Editor at meditor@newwitch.com. You may also paste the text of your manuscript directly into an e-mail message. While email submissions are greatly preferred, clearly printed double-spaced manuscripts may be sent to the newWitch post office box.

Deadlines:
Deadlines for nW run on a quarterly format, about three and a half months ahead of the issue publication date.

Diversity:
newWitch welcomes positive people of all types and from all walks of life. We don't discriminate and we don't publish articles which espouse intolerance, racism or "bashing" (and that includes Christian-bashing).

Style:
Read our magazine; that's the best way to find out what we're looking for. Once you've perused an issue or two, here are some pointers from your Managing Editor.

Topics:
Wicca. Witchcraft. Paganism. Magic. Lifestyles. College. Jobs. Careers. Apartments. Housing. Love. Sex. Marriage. Kids. Not having kids. TV. Music. Movies. Shamanism. Herbalism. Activism. Politics. Personal development. Meditation. Recipes. Mythology. Ritual. Practice. Arts and crafts. Humor. Profiles. Interviews. Ethics. Morals. Fiction. Poetry. Research. History. Anything about, of interest to, or concerning Pagans and magical folks. Remember, the 'new' in newWitch is first and foremost about new ideas, which come to people of any level of experience.
Finally, newWitch as a magazine espouses reasonable, responsible ethics in a world too often devoid of them. Please be sure your spellwork and hints-n-tips follow some sort of ethically accountable system, whether it be the Rede, Nine Noble Virtues, or what have you. Articles espousing hexes or other non-consensual magick usage will be refused. All targets of spellwork should be willing.

Fiction and Poetry:
Exercise your imagination. Give us utopia, dystopia or any point in between. Things can take place in normal reality, or you can get really really weird. (Please play in your own universe, not someone else's copyrighted one). We're always looking for upbeat, well-written work that shows people using their magical or spiritual practices or beliefs to effect change in the world and in themselves.

Things to avoid: Gratuitous sentimentality. Gratuitous erotic content (soft, well-written sexually themed work is welcome). Intolerance of other beliefs or ideals. Poor grammar and spelling.

We accept poetry in a wide range of styles. If you use forms, meter or rhymes use them right: there's a fine line between heroic verse and doggerel. Submit no more than 4- 5 poems at one time. More specific information can be found in Poet's Pointers.

Reviews:
newWitch reviews books, music, movies, videos, and other relevant products. We accept unsolicited reviews and a copy of our reviewing policies is available upon request. However, almost all of our reviews come from a group of regular reviewers. If you would like to join this group, please send an email message to meditor@newwitch.com outlining your interests.

If you are a writer, musician, artist, producer, publisher, etc. and would like us to review your product(s), then you may also contact the Managing Editor for arrangements. All materials submitted become the property of newWitch, and will not be returned.

Art/Photography:
We seek portfolios from artists/photographers who wish to appear in newWitch. We commission most of the visual art featured in our pages. Please send a hardcopy portfolio that we can keep on file for you. It does not need to be of reproduction quality but should give a substantial indication of the subject matter and style in which you work; it should also be on white paper. Images should be large enough to see clearly (preferably at least snapshot size instead of thumbnails) but not so large as to cause storage problems (8" x 10" is a good upper limit).

You may submit material in color, black-and-white, or a combination but we only use color work on the cover. It is much easier to get published with B/W work in the interior. Do not send originals! Indicate availability of works in your portfolio. if we decide to use anything we will contact you for a better copy/original. If we ask you to send us an electronic image, the preferred format is .JPG but .TIF or .PDF are also acceptable.

Aim to instill a sense of reverence, or whimsy, or joy -you want to pull viewers into the world you depict. Certain types of written material (interviews, event reports, travelogues, how-to articles, etc.) have a better chance of acceptance if you can provide high-quality photographs or artwork to match the text. We pay extra for such visual aids if the writer can provide them. Questions regarding artwork or photographs should be directed to the Editor-in-Chief, who also handles design/layout work for our magazine.

CONTACT INFO
BBI Media • P O Box 687 • Forest Grove, OR 97116 • USA
phone 888-724-3966
• email: info@newwitch.com