• Main Submission Guidelines Page
• 2008 Editorial Calendar
• Photo Specs

Feature Article Guidelines

SOLAR TODAY’s Editorial Calendar lists general topics selected for editorial coverage in each magazine issue. Additional topics are featured, as well.

Tips For Contributors
Examine What’s on the Reader’s Mind. Start with a question, not a conclusion. Readers like articles that explore a strategic question with two or more sides. Look at all sides of a question.

Let the Reader Decide. Win-win solutions are rare; no solution works for every situation. Readers want to see real-life experiences, hear about the pros and cons, and draw their own conclusions.

Details, Details, Details! Real-life experiences make for compelling reading, but details are what bring the story to life and make it useful for readers. Name names when it comes to advisors, companies and products. Include hard numbers on performance and cost. And don’t forget to include the problems along the way and lessons learned.

Make it Visual. Good photography makes all the difference when it comes to engaging readers. Please include high-resolution photos to entice readers.

Simple English is Best. We aim for concise, readable articles. Please avoid jargon and make your points as directly as possible. We edit all articles for length, clarity and readability.
Length: 1,200 to 2,000 words

Artwork: Please include photographs to illustrate your article, including their sources and caption information. Features usually include between four and six photos. We prefer clean photographs, slides and transparencies, but accept digital images having resolution of at least 300 dpi at 4 inches by 6 inches. For the magazine cover, SOLAR TODAY will consider original, vertically oriented images shot on transparency film (35 mm slides or large-format transparencies) or a high-resolution digital file (300 dpi at 9 inches by 12 inches). See SOLAR TODAY Photo Specs for more detail.

Format: Attachments to e-mail are preferred. Please store charts and graphs in separate electronic files. Submit photography as hard-copy images, on CD-ROM, or via email in standard graphic file format (eps, tif, jpg, gif).

Author data: Please include a two-sentence author biography, including city and state of residence/business, telephone and email.

Deadlines: We must receive final article text at least 10 weeks before the publication date (see Editorial Calendar). For this reason, we strongly advise authors to contact the editors well ahead of publication to discuss article proposals.