Fast Facts:
- Features run 1200-2500 words
- Upcoming due dates: Feb 1, 2021; May 17, 2021; July 19, 2021.
- Questions? Email martink@friendsjournal.org.
Many issues of Friends Journal are set aside for specific themes. Every 18 months or so we poll readers and dream up ideas for future issues (you can see the current list on our submissions page).
We also keep five issues a year open: no theme and no expectations. Most of our unsolicited articles go into a âGeneral Submissionsâ list that we hold for these issues. Sometimes a choice is easy: weâll get a blockbuster article that we know we just have to print. But just as often weâll run some quiet piece of Quaker life that is offered to us without regard to our schedules.
The first bit of advice is to give our editorial submission guidelines a good once-over. The introduction to what we’re looking for is instructive.
We prefer articles written in a fresh, nonâacademic style. Friends value an experiential approach to life and religious thought. Our readers particularly value articles on: exploring Friendsâ testimonies and beliefs; integrating faith, work, and home lives; historical and contemporary Friends; social concerns and actions; and the variety of beliefs across the branches of Friends.
You should also study our tips for writing for Friends Journal. This is our list of the most-common pitfalls for incoming submissionsâproblems like length, structure, and tone.
The next thing to ask when writing or pitching an article to us is “why Friends Journal?” There are very few places where someone can write on the Quaker experience and see their work published. This scarcity weighs on us as we select an open issueâs mix. Authors donât need to be Quaker, but the piece should have a strong Quaker hook. We’re not above doing a control-F on a submission to see how many times âQuakerâ or âFriendsâ is mentioned. If itâs just a tacked-on reference because youâre shopping a piece written for another publication, it probably wonât work for us.
When youâre ready to send us something, please use the Submittable service so that we will have all of your information on file. âGeneral Submissionsâ is the category for material that we consider for non-themed issues.