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Mission

  • The Women’s National Book Association publishes the Bookwoman Blog and the Bookwoman Newsletter which both continue the mission of the WNBA to connect, educate, advocate, and lead in the literary community. 

Bookwoman Blog (Open to Submissions)

  • The Bookwoman Blog lives on the WNBA’s website. 
  • Content is published weekly.

Bookwoman Newsletter (Not Open to Submissions)

  • The Bookwoman Newsletter is published monthly from September through June. 
  • Members are automatically signed-up to receive the emailed newsletter.
  • Anyone who wants to subscribe to the newsletter can either fill in the opt-in form found on the website or may email newsletter@wnba-books.org and request to be added to our email list.

General Guidelines

  • The WNBA only publishes original content.
  • Anyone who may volunteer to write for the Bookwoman Blog, but priority will be given to members of the WNBA in good standing (dues are paid).
  • We are an all-volunteer organization, so we do not pay writers, but writing for us promotes the WNBA, you, your business, your industry, and our shared interest in books.
  • We are an inclusive association and welcome writing from people of all races, colors, religions, sexes, genders, gender identities, gender expressions, ages, sexual orientations, marital statuses, and abilities.
  • We accept work from published and unpublished writers. We welcome any clips or writing samples you have to share with us, but do not require them.
  • While we welcome submissions and pitches, sending in a piece does not mean that it has been accepted for publication, even if it has been commissioned by a Bookwoman editor. The piece needs to be accepted for publication by the Editor in Chief or Managing Editor.
  • Each piece will be edited. The edit may be a copyedit or a content edit. You may be asked to do a revision(s), to add more information or to provide clarification.
  • Before accepting content for publication, the Editor in Chief or Managing Editor will decide if the content fits the WNBA’s mission, if the content is appropriate for the Bookwoman, and if the content is written to the Bookwoman writing standards. If the editors decide that the content is not suitable for publication, the content will not be published in the Bookwoman, and the author may do with it what they will.
  • Check our website to get a feel for the content we publish. Feel free to email us [newsletter@wnba-books.org] any questions you may have.

Audience

  • The WNBA’s audience is made up of booklovers. Our membership is comprised of a variety of professions such as writers, publishers, editors, librarians, booksellers, designers, publicists, and teachers, as well as bookish people in general.
  • Our membership spans all sorts of book enthusiasts, which gives us flexibility with our content as we want to appeal to such a variety of people and professions. We publish a mix of literary and WNBA-supportive content, including content about books, writing, publishing, editing, libraries, bookstores, professional development, chapter management, and other similar topics.

Content

  • The WNBA only publishes original content related to books, publishing, writing, editing, libraries, bookselling, and the like.
  • We publish content specifically geared towards our membership as well as content that has universal appeal in the literary community.
  • Our goal is to provide content that is engaging, thoughtful, educational, and entertaining.
  • We publish items that enhance our audience’s understanding and enjoyment of all things related to books. This can extend into personal growth and professional development if there is a clear benefit to our membership.
  • We also publish content that supports our organization, our membership, and our chapters.
  • Providing a mix of thought-provoking content and entertaining content, we endeavor to publish creative, inclusive, and intelligent content to support the Bookwoman community.
  • We don’t accept content that:
    • has been previously published.
    • is not up to our editorial standards.
    • is offensive or inaccurate.
    • is overly critical of individuals, groups, or companies.
    • expresses an opinion that the WNBA does not support.
    • is plagiarized or thought to be plagiarized.
    • is deemed inappropriate.

Tone

  • Our tone is casual (“you” and contractions are acceptable), positive, helpful, and friendly.

Word Count and Format

  • Pieces, except for poetry, must be a minimum of 750 words and a maximum of 3,000 words. The typical length is 750–1500.
  • The Bookwoman Blog publishes a variety of content types including feature articles, how-to articles, lists, essays, short fiction, poetry, interviews, and literary criticism.

Bio

  • Please include a bio (does not count towards word count).
  • Give a 2–6 sentence blurb about you. You may include education, professional credits, any published work, hobbies, links to your website or published work, and links to any social media you would like to include.
  • Please include a clear headshot.
    • A photo that is at least 300 pixels x 300 pixels is preferable as is an uncropped picture.
  • Please don’t send a selfie unless you have no other option. It is helpful if someone could take the picture for you.

Copyright 

  • The author retains the copyright of the content, but the WNBA retains the right for first publication. 
  • The WNBA also retains the option to use your piece after its initial publication. That includes sharing on social media, using as evergreen content, taking down from our website, using in presentations within the organization, publishing on chapter blogs, using excerpts, or reusing as needed. The author will always be given credit.
  • After the content has been published by the WNBA, the author may use the content,  with a link to the WNBA, on their own website, in presentations, courses, social media, and so forth, but we ask that it not be published on other websites without talking to us first.

Fact-Checking & Permissions/Credit

  • You must own the copyright to the content.
  • Double and triple check:
    • quotes for attribution and for exact wording.
    • spellings of proper nouns, websites, email addresses, and links.
    • numbers, dates, times, addresses.
  • Credit all sources and include links when possible. If credit is not given, the piece will not be published.
  • Get permissions for anything not fair use or royalty free.

Images

  • Include any other images that would enhance your post, such as photos, graphics, infographics, charts, etc.
  • Images should be at least 300 pixels x 300 pixels.
  • If you mention a book title and would like it featured, send a photo of the book cover or capture it from IndieBound.
  • Please make sure that you own the copyright to the images or that you have permission to use the images.
  • Sites such as Unsplash, Pixels, and Pixabay provide images that are free to use.
  • Include the appropriate credits and identify people in photos from left to right and back to front, and make sure the names match the people in the photos.

Links

  • Please include the URL in parenthesis after the anchor text.
  • When referencing books, include the link from Indiebound if possible. If not, try to link to another independent bookstore before linking to BAM, B&N, or Amazon.

SEO

  • For those familiar with search engine optimization (SEO), go ahead and optimize your content. Please provide keyword(s) or keyword phrase(s).
  • If you are not familiar with SEO, don’t worry about it.

Questions

 

Updated 9/19/2019