Editorial
Contributors Guidelines
How to pitch, what each section needs, and what happens after you press send.
Before you pitch
Read a recent issue. Most declined pitches are declined because they are for a different magazine. The second most common reason is that the pitch describes a subject rather than a piece.
“Something about microplastics” is a subject. “Why the standard extraction protocol undercounts fibres, and what three labs are doing instead” is a piece.
Send two paragraphs to the editorial address. The first says what the piece argues or reveals. The second says why now, and why you. Attach nothing — if we want to see more we will ask. Include the section you are aiming at, your proposed word count, and any conflict of interest.
The sections
What each one needs, and at what length
| Section | Length | Shape |
|---|---|---|
| Thematic Research Focus | 1,800–2,600 words | A commissioned argument a non-specialist researcher can follow end to end. Two to four figures. |
| Science Spotlight | 900–1,400 words | One result, one reason it matters, one honest limitation. |
| Research Lab Tour | 1,200–1,800 words | Reported, present tense, people named. Six to ten captioned photographs. |
| Scholars’ Column | 800–1,100 words | First person, specific, no advice you have not personally tested. |
| Opinions and Perspective | 900–1,500 words | A position in the first paragraph, defended in the rest, with the strongest counter-argument answered rather than ignored. |
Everything else
Figures, references, rights and generative tools
The full guidelines — figure specifications, reference format, what happens at each stage after you deliver, payment and the rights you keep — are in the Author Guidelines PDF. The manuscript template has the styles and the figure placeholders already set up, which removes a round of formatting corrections before it happens.