True West's Submissions Guidelines
TRUE WEST relates our American West history back to the present day, to show readers the important role our heritage plays in keeping the spirit of the West alive during our everyday travels and adventures out West.
True West magazine is published 10 times per year with a bonus Annual Source Book. The magazine does not publish fiction or poetry. True West magazine's features and departments tie the history of the Old West (focusing mainly between 1800 to 1910) to the modern Western lifestyle through enticing narrative and intelligent analyses. We actively seek out creative writers, who can infuse their articles with personality and humor, to write True West features. Generally, the lead features in each issue relate to a specific topic, which is set by the magazine's editorial staff. True West publishes articles on Western travel, collectibles, artists, movies, apparel, firearms and Old West characters, and reviews Western genre movies and books (fiction, nonfiction and children's books).
We encourage you to keep your ear to the ground and inform us about revelations concerning Old West icons and historic events and places. Here are the general themes, should you have an article idea that seems perfect for such an issue.
2010 Editorial Calendar
Jan/Feb: Top 10 True Western Towns
March: Western Trains
April: Annual Travel Issue
May: Top 10 Western Museums
June: Extreme History Vacations
July: Best Photography of the American West
Aug: Western Entertainment
Sept: True West Style
Oct: Western Art
Nov/Dec: TBD
All writers should keep in mind the magazine's 6-month lead time. The magazine does accept unsolicited feature articles (query first; one idea per query) that are well researched and well written. Shorter articles—2,000 words or less–are preferred. Articles that are accompanied by historical photographs, drawings, paintings, etc. receive greater consideration than those without art. See below for more instruction on providing images for publication.
The magazine seeks to establish long-term relationships with writers who do excellent research, give a fresh look to an old subject, write well, hit deadlines and provide manuscripts at the assigned word length. Such writers tend to get repeat assignments.
Send your query to: Meghan Saar
Via e-mail: editor@twmag.com
Via mail (SASE):
Managing Editor
P.O. Box 8008
Cave Creek, AZ 85327
Please note: Any material sent to Executive Editor Bob Boze Bell, whether via e-mail or mail, will not receive a response. Material must be sent to the Managing Editor. Also, True West is not responsible for any photographs or documents sent to us without our request. Any materials we do request should be sent to us as hi-resolution scans, so the originals remain safe with you.
PAYMENT
Payment is upon publication only; features pay $150-$1,000. Standard pay rate is $0.25 a word, with $20 payment for each photo the author provides that is published with the article. For stories assigned to an author to write for a particular issue (not on spec) that are later withdrawn, we pay a kill fee of half of the agreed-upon original fee should the story have run in the publication. For work published in the print magazine, True West acquires first North American serial rights and archival rights.
Since this is a public document, available both on the Internet and upon written request (SASE) to True West magazine, all submissions sent to the publication are subject to these terms.
Query Response
Queries received via e-mail will be notified within one month whether the subject fits True West's upcoming editorial needs and is accepted or rejected. If further information is required to better evaluate your query, you may be asked to provide that information before a final determination is made. Paste all text in the body of the e-mail. Then please send a follow-up e-mail with the following attachments: your formatted word document and the art that is available to run with the article.
Queries received via mail may take up to three months; for a quick response, e-mail is recommended.
If you have not heard back from us, please send a follow-up e-mail one month after the work has been submitted, with the work included in that e-mail. If you still have not heard a response, please contact the Managing Editor via phone (888-687-1881) or via mail. The Internet does wonders, but e-mails do get lost in transit or deleted as "junk" mail by our Internet provider from time to time; snail mail can also get lost, should the address not be recorded correctly.
If you do phone, please be sure to leave a brief message, stating your name, phone # (please repeat twice), the name of the query you are concerned about and the date you sent the e-mail/mail.
We do not want to miss out on your wonderful story ideas!
Image Submissions
We strongly encourage you to include a list of imagery that is available for publication with the article. Sending the scans for us to review along with your query is even better (please only include images that you will be able to send to us later as hi-resolution files). Queries with publishable, quality art have a higher chance of becoming a feature in the magazine.
Images submitted to True West must meet the following publishing standards:
• Scans must be a minimum 300 PPI optimal resolution scan.
• We prefer all photos to be 8x11 at this size, but the starting point is 4x5.
In the case of historical photographs, please do not send in photographs of a photograph. The image must be the closest to the original photo as possible, either based off of the negative or the original photograph itself. We recognize that, in some cases, what you have may be all that is available. If that is the case, please indicate that in your query.
IMPORTANT: ALL USAGE PERMISSIONS FOR PUBLICATION IN TRUE WEST MUST BE SECURED BY THE AUTHOR.
Westward Home Guidelines
1. Must be an occupied place of residence.
2. Mainly will focus on historic buildings that are decorated with the Old West in mind. Our ultimate preference is to feature homes that the owners were extremely involved in reconstructing or those who played a major role in maintaining the home's era through their selection of home decor.
3. Coverage will also include contemporary homes; these homes would have to pay homage to our American West heritage in some way, and the structure should be unique and fit the ideals of Western enthusiasts. An example of a unique aspect would be a modern home that is built into the rocks to maintain the natural environment.
4. Homes of celebrities of interest to our audience may also be submitted if the homes exhibit some link to our American West heritage.
5. Our preference is funky ranches, cozy cabins, artistic homes that reflect the personalities of their owners. We do not want to feature extravagant McMansions.
Please note: Photography guidelines for this feature differ from those presented above. We require both artistic close-ups and full shots of each of the rooms, and would like at least five to six rooms to choose from for our coverage. The owners must be shown in the photos, preferably doing what they would naturally do in the room they are being photographed in (e.g. cooking in the kitchen).
If you have any further questions on Westward Home photography, please contact our Production Manager Robert Ray: proman@twmag.com or by calling him at 480-575-1881 ext. 212.
Book Reviews
If you would like to submit a book for review consideration, please send in books at least four months in advance of the publication month. Advance proofs are accepted, of course, but final copies of the book must be provided once they are printed.
Publishers may also send in requests for an advance look at a review for blurb consideration. Please send in those requests to Meghan Saar at editor@twmag.com
Please include with the book the following:
• Publisher's Statement
• Date of Publication
• Price
• Hardcover/Softcover
• Toll-Free Phone # and Website for Ordering Books
If you are sending an advance proof, please also include the contact for obtaining final cover art.
Please DO NOT send in announcements about the publication of your book. We will not respond to these announcements. The committee must have the book on hand in order to decide whether or not to review it.
We have a limited capacity to review books, so not every book submitted to us will make it into the pages of True West. We do promise you that the editors give each review copy our due consideration, and we appreciate your submissions.
We appreciate your interest in submitting work to True West!