Notes for Contributors for the LGB Christians blog
Introduction
Thank you for considering writing for us. Below are some guidelines which we hope you will find useful. If you have any further questions, our editorial team will be glad to answer them.
Subject Matter
We welcome all contributions that help develop thought, and inspire action, especially those related to our Mission, Aims, Values, and Statement of Conviction. These provide wide scope to speculate, interpret and stimulate fresh and innovative theological concepts, as well as to all other aspects of life, science, arts, philosophy and belief.
We prefer to be the first publisher of any contributions. There are however circumstances where we will republish an an article after discussion with the contributor. If your piece has been published elsewhere before, please let us know.
We will consider replies to our original blog posts as well as replies to articles published elsewhere.
Length
Blog posts are typically 500-800 words, but can be of any length. It is better to keep them short and pithy than to pad them out, while other subjects may require a more in-depth discussion. Longer pieces may be serialised. Please discuss your plans for longer pieces, before submitting them, with the editorial team first.
Style
We may edit posts for clarity, style, spelling and grammar, but will consult you if any substantive alterations are made.
We standardise on UK English and spelling.
Format
Contributions may be sent in as the body of an email, or as a Word document attachment or Google document link.
There is no need to apply any layout or design to the document, change fonts or typefaces – in fact, we’d prefer it if you didn’t.
Please do not embed any graphics in the document – please supply these separately with an indication in [square brackets] in the text where they should be inserted, if necessary.
Headlines and Subheadings
These are typically written by the editorial team, but you may suggest one.
Graphics
When you supply images, please indicate if you own the copyright or otherwise have permission to use them along with any necessary photo/image credits (if applicable). If they are public domain images or ‘Creative Commons’, let us know along with any conditions of use set by the originators.
Ensure any images supplied are of sufficient quality. They should be, at a minimum, 640 x 480 pixels, though the bigger the better. A preferred size would be 1280 x 960 or larger.
Feature images typically would be in 16:9 ‘landscape’ (sideways) format (similar to a modern TV screen), whereas mugshots (head and shoulders) should be in a ‘portrait’ (upright) format.
Author Photo
A photo of the author is optional, but preferable, but should you wish to supply one, a passport-style photo or a ‘selfie’ will do, but getting someone else to take it usually looks better. Try to keep the background uncluttered and neutral.
Pen Names
We much prefer authors use their real names but you do not have to write under your own name. In this case please feel free to suggest a name. If you are a regular contributor, we’ll use this pen name consistently. Unfortunately, we cannot accept ‘anonymous’ contributions so, while you may publish if necessary under an assumed name – our editorial team will have to know your real identity and communicate with you, if necessary by WhatsApp/phone.
Author Autobiography
Please supply up to 200 words with some background, experience and affiliations for the reader’s benefit.
Please use the format of a Q & A. For example:
Q: Why did I want to write for LGB Christians? A:
Q: What experience do I bring? A:
Q: What change would I most like to see for LGB Christians and our friends? A:
Feel free to use your own questions
This will appear as a footnote at the end of your article. You may include a website if you wish.
Fees
Unfortunately, we are not in a position to offer a fee.
Copyright
The copyright rests with the author, however by submitting a piece for publication, you grant us non-exclusive rights to reproduce the piece, including extracts, in perpetuity across our media.
As the author retains copyright, you are free to republish the article elsewhere after we have published it, but we would appreciate a note stating it was first published here at lgbchristians.org.uk
Note
These guidelines may change from time to time.
All communications about writing for us to be sent in the first instance to [email protected] Contributors are requested to provide a telephone number.