Oregon Humanities

Writing for Oregon Humanities magazine

Oregon Humanities magazine is an award-winning triannual publication (spring, summer, and fall). As a publication of ideas and perspectives, Oregon Humanities magazine offers a forum through which Oregon writers, scholars, and readers can use the humanities to deeply explore themes of both timeless and timely significance.

We accept submissions of nonfiction writing and artwork twice yearly when we announce each issue’s theme. Except for interviews, reviews, and Field Work articles, we cannot consider work that doesn’t meet the specifications of each issue’s theme. We distribute our call for submissions through literary and academic organizations, as well as through our mailing list. Please sign up for the Oregon Humanities electronic newsletter using the form at left to guarantee that you receive calls for submissions for Oregon Humanities.

Writers’ Guidelines

• Please acquaint yourself with Oregon Humanities magazine before submitting your work. We receive many more submissions than we can use, so you will dramatically improve your chances of being published in the magazine if you’re familiar with the types of material we tend to buy. You can read the current issue’s contents online or request a sample copy by calling the Oregon Humanities office at (503) 241-0543.

• We prefer to consider completed drafts but we also accept queries and proposals that concisely articulate the focus, argument, and content of your proposed article, as well as the resources you will use and any particular experience you have with the subject matter. Please include any relevant supporting material (e.g., resume or curriculum vita, professional affiliation or publication background, and/or clips of recently published work) with your query or proposal.

• We will only accept completed drafts of Posts and personal essays.

• We pay on acceptance, after the satisfactory completion of required revisions. Payment ranges from $50 for reviews to $1,000 for features and varies depending on the length and complexity of the piece. We will consider previously published work and excerpts, but do not offer payment for these submissions. We also do not pay for Posts. Please see below for specific requirements for each magazine section.

• We prefer to receive submissions and queries electronically. If your query is longer than one page, please attach it as a Word document and make sure that your name and contact information are included on the attachment. We will also consider submissions by postal mail.

• At this time, we almost exclusively publish work by Oregon artists and writers.

• Please note that at this time, we do not accept unsolicited submissions of poetry and fiction.

OH Departments and Features

Posts is the“readers write” section of the magazine that encourages OH readers to reflect on each issue’s theme. Writers who don’t have clips or prior publishing experience will have the best chance of being published in this section of OH. Posts submissions should be no longer than 500 words. We offer no payment for Posts.

Personal essays should not be merely anecdotal or narrative, but should also offer an argument, reflection, and revelation that illuminate each issue’s theme. Personal essays are usually no longer than 2,000 words.

Features tend to be either scholarly essays that are written for a general audience or articles that use the various techniques of magazine journalism (i.e., reportage, interviewing, character development, narrative). Features in OH differ from those in other publications because they employ the methodologies of the humanities, including critical inquiry, analysis, and reflection. All features, no matter how subtly, should make an argument, take a stance, and offer a theory and supporting evidence that help our readers consider the theme in new and surprising ways. Features are generally between 2,500 and 4,000 words long.

Interviews generally focus on humanists whose work relates to each issue’s theme, but may also be conducted with Oregon humanists whose work is significant in one of the many disciplines of the humanities. Interviews are generally between 1,500 and 3,000 words long.

Field Work articles look at humanities work in the state of Oregon. These need not be related to an issue’s theme but should both report on and offer insights about people, activities, and events in Oregon’s humanities community. We publish no more than four Field Work pieces per issue. Field Work articles are between 500 and 1,000 words long.

Reviews may focus on an issue’s theme or may look at a work by an Oregon author or about an Oregon theme. Although we usually publish reviews about new books, we will also consider reviews about other creative work, including movies, TV shows, art, theater, architecture, and music. Reviews are between 500 and 1,000 words long.