WRITERS' AND CONTRIBUTORS' GUIDELINES
Craftsmanship Magazine is a not-for-profit editorial publication that welcomes ideas from seasoned journalists, as well as new voices and fresh perspectives. We publish a few new, long-form narrative features each year, along with 25 to 30 shorter articles, mini-documentaries, podcasts, and photo essays. We pay all of our contributors fair market rates for their work. Fees are negotiated per story as a flat fee, based on the length and scope of the work, the amount of reporting required, and the contributor's level of experience.
Because we are a small team that can only develop a modest percentage of the many wonderful story ideas we receive every year, we ask that you carefully read the guidelines below before submitting a well-thought-out pitch.
NOTE: Craftsmanship publishes real stories crafted by human writers, photographers, and other media professionals. We do not review or accept any form of AI-generated content. Messages or story pitches generated by AI will be deleted, and senders will be permanently blocked.
We generally steer clear of stories about fine art, and the artists behind it. While art and craftsmanship share many attributes, particularly their mutual attention to aesthetics, we are primarily interested in the additional standard that works of craftsmanship must meet, which is to be both functional and durable. So, unless your pitch has a strong news angle related to craftsmanship, sustainability, cultural traditions, or issues of social health, we leave stories about sculptors, painters, and other practitioners of the fine arts to the art critics. We also do not typically cover the DIY movement, as many other publications already serve that purpose.
OUR AUDIENCE
We are proud to be an international publication that incorporates a global viewpoint and attracts readers from all over the world. That said, the bulk of our readership comes from the United States (mostly the West Coast), and many of our stories are U.S.-based.
Demographically, our readers are well-educated and well-read, with most falling into the 55+ age group. Like us, our readers are interested in how simple items of craftsmanship, and the artisans who make them, raise deeper questions about quality, creativity, and the need to create a world built to last. Also like us, they expect to see a story explore aspects of a topic that cannot be found in other media accounts on the subject.
OPPORTUNITIES TO CONTRIBUTE
Short Articles
While we always welcome in-depth feature ideas from experienced journalists (more on this below), the best way for new-to-us writers to break in is with a short piece. These "Shorts" range from about 500 to 800 words, and are published first on our Substack channel along with 3 to 5 relevant images. For these, we look for commentaries and essays that argue a specific point focused on a particular tool, object, or endeavor related to the principles of craftsmanship.
Our mid-length features, which we call Field Notes, are 1,000 to 1,500-word stories about unique artisans, cultural traditions, and other topics relevant to our readership. For this section, we will also consider the occasional pitch on a fine art topic, if it also illuminates a fresh angle and/or larger theme related to our core mission and values.
As part of the package, writers of short articles are expected to provide or help source images, assist our editors with writing photo captions, and collect social media handles (for sources, subjects, and other interested parties) to help us promote the story. We like to run at least 7 to 10 images per piece, depending on the subject. Ideally, we prefer to have at least 15 to 20 good images to choose from.
Long-Form Features
Our longer feature articles are assigned and scheduled far in advance, due to the deeper level of reporting and the time investment required for both contributors and ourselves. We pride ourselves in working closely with writers to develop features to their highest narrative potential—with abundant consultation with the writer and unusually close editing—through several drafts, if necessary.
Proposals for a feature article need to contain most or all of the following ingredients to be accepted:
- a complex craft or innovation that has not already been widely written about, or that presents a significant new angle to an old subject;
- an intriguing main character;
- a strong, focused, and meaningful argument suitable to some in-depth reporting (rather than a general feature about someone who is skilled, or an interesting subject, but with no clear point);
- the building blocks for a layered narrative, with an arc that yields surprises, hopefully some drama, and by the end, a sense of discovery;
- links to strong examples of the contributor's published writing, ideally of a scope and style that is similar to the proposed article.
As part of the package, feature writers are expected to assist with writing photo captions and collecting social media handles to help us promote the story. Depending on the assignment, photography may be negotiated separately (see below).
LENGTH: Features typically run from 2,500 to 4,000 words, and command substantially higher fees than our shorter articles. Occasionally, we will assign an even longer piece when the story is complex and significant enough to call for deeper reporting; and the contributor's experience warrants it.
Images
Good, professional images are a critical part of all our stories, especially for our long features, which usually include 15 to 25 photos apiece. We have a modest photography budget with which to pay professional photographers, negotiated separately. Often, good images can be obtained from other sources. We encourage feature writers to include their plans for sourcing images in their pitch. (And if you plan to take your own photos, please provide a link to your photography portfolio.)
HOW TO PITCH US
First, if you haven’t done so already, please take a close look at our website for examples of our previous stories and style. We also encourage you to do a thorough keyword search to make sure your idea hasn’t already been covered in our extensive archives (or elsewhere). Then, please send a well-developed, 3 to 5-paragraph pitch and a few relevant links to your work to: publisher[at]craftsmanship.net. Please include the words “Field Notes Pitch” or “Feature Pitch” in your email subject line to ensure your message is routed correctly. (Again, we are only interested in hearing from humans. We do not accept AI-generated messages or story pitches. AI-generated messages will be deleted unread, and senders permanently blocked.)
Additional tips:
- Please DON’T send us the link to your entire portfolio or website as an example of your work; send relevant links only, or attach PDFs.
- Please DO be patient. We have a very small, hardworking team, and we do our best to get back to everyone within a few weeks, but the demands of publishing the current issue often take precedence. And sometimes email messages fall through the cracks. If you haven’t heard anything from us within 3 to 4 weeks’ time, feel free to send a brief, polite follow-up note.
Thank you very much for taking the time to read these guidelines and follow them closely. We look forward to hearing from you!
