METROKIDS - Pays $50 flat fee

[angelahoy]

MetroKids Pennsylvania, MetroKids South Jersey, and MetroKids Delaware
1412-1414 Pine St.
Philadelphia, PA 19102
P(215)291-5560.
F(215)291-5563
Email editor@metrokids.com
Website http://www.metrokids.com
Tom Livingston, Exec. Editor.

WRITER'S GUIDELINES

Dear Writer:

Thank you for your interest in MetroKids. Our magazines include monthly editions in Pennsylvania, South Jersey, and Delaware (formerly Family Times). We also publish two annual directories —What!s Happening (area attractions and resources) and SpecialKids (special needs services) — and a semi-annual guide, Educator’s Edition (field trips, assemblies and school services).

Our primary mission is to provide resources for parents. Our departments and features tend to be practical and information-laden. We seldom use first person material. We prefer articles that quote experts rather than stating their advice in the writer's voice. We favor local sources.

Following are guidelines for MetroKids articles. Thank you for your interest.

Tom Livingston, Executive Editor
MetroKids
1412-1414 Pine St.
Philadelphia, PA 19102
215-291-5560, ext. 102
FAX: 215-291-5563
editor@metrokids.com

MetroKids Writer Guidelines 2009


· Because MetroKids is a regional magazine, we prefer articles with local angles. We will consider general topics, especially if they can be localized with sidebars. We cover the following counties:
Delaware: All
New Jersey: Burlington, Camden, Gloucester
Pennsylvania: Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, Philadelphia

· When possible, we prefer one source from each of the three states we cover (from any of the counties where we circulate).

· Feature articles usually run 700-1000 words. Articles for one of our departments are usually 500-550 words.

· Please use e-mail for queries. We prefer correspondence before an article is written specifically for us, but reprints and completed articles may be submitted with a brief note. We plan issues several months in advance. Because we receive many unsolicited submissions and ideas, we don’t generally reply unless we’re interested. We always correspond with the writer before using a submission.

· Articles that appear in MetroKids may not be sold to other parenting publications that primarily circulate in southeastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey or Delaware. Please let us know if you also write for another parenting publication that is local to us. In that case, we might ask you to write for us under a different name.

· Compensation will be negotiated when we accept or assign an article. We send payment and a copy of the issue within one month of publication. MetroKids buys one-time rights and the right to post the story on www.metrokids.com
(continued)


MetroKids Writers’ Guidelines, page 2

In your submission:

· Provide a suggested headline and subheads. Be fun or cute if the spirit moves you. We want your ideas, but often rewrite the headline.

· Include your byline and, at the end of your article, a one or two sentence bio.

· Quote sources in the present tense. (“Blah blah,” says Livingston.) Like most publications, we prefer the active voice.

· Use only one space to separate words and sentences. Please spell check and fact check your article, especially all phone numbers and websites. Let us know that you have done so at the top of the article.

· Use italics for books, CDs and other composition titles.

· Don’t use [brackets] or ellipsis marks… in quotes to indicate omitted words. Instead, quote indirectly or limit the quote to your source’s actual words. Also avoid quote fragments of one or two words.

· Include sidebars with specific information when appropriate. They can list websites or local resources, or break out an interesting facet of your article. Include phone numbers (style: 215-291-5560) and URLs (style: www.metrokids.com) whenever possible and logical.

Please submit your article as e-mail attachment, formatted as a plain text or Word document, rather than including it in the body of an e-mail message.
E-mail editor@metrokids.com or call (215-291-5560, ext. 102) with questions.