New: Winter 2024 Issue!

Submissions

Mississippi Folklife welcomes thoughtful, high-quality submissions on the people, histories, traditional art forms, and culture of the state of Mississippi and its borders. 

We are currently seeking submissions on an annual and rolling basis.

The editorial team values diverse approaches to storytelling, and we welcome submissions from contributors of all backgrounds and experiences, from first-time writers to published authors. 

Please send all submissions to Managing Editor, Maria Zeringue, via email at mzeringue@arts.ms.gov.

Submission Process

We publish two issues per year: the Summer Issue and the Winter Issue. Each issue is comprised of 3 to 5 features. We publish original articles, photo essays, documentary films, interviews, and reviews of books, music, films, and exhibitions.

Contributors should submit a brief, but thorough pitch to one of our editors. Pitches should be around 200 to 500 words in length and, if relevant, accompanied by 1 to 3 multimedia samples or photos. 

We do our best to respond to pitches and submission requests within 6 weeks. Please note that we do not accept snail-mail submissions. 

Editorial Process 

Mississippi Folklife reserves the right to edit submissions before publication.

If editorial guidelines are not met, the editorial team reserves the right to deny publication of a featured work at any point during the process. We will never publish any works without the consent of the writer.

All submissions are reviewed by our editorial staff, with at least three respective reviewers, including our Managing Editor.

Text Formatting and Word Count

If a pitch is accepted, articles should be submitted as a Microsoft Word compatible document or a Google Doc shared via email to the corresponding editor assigned to the piece.

The entire document, including title, quotations, and endnotes, should be double-spaced, 12-point font. Articles are typically between 750 to 2,500 words in length. Published photo essays are led with impressive original photography and are accompanied by a written introduction of at least 250 words and detailed photo captions. 

Citations

When writing articles, please consult the The Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, as well as Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 11th edition. If a writer is not familiar with The Chicago Manual of Style, the editorial team will provide assistance when applicable. 

Full citations, reference materials, and resources are listed as footnotes below the article text. Hyperlinks may be added if required.

Photos and Captions

Photo essays should include 8 to 15 high-resolution images (up to 1 MB each). Other types of features such as articles or interviews can include up to 12 high-resolution images. For both written articles and photo essays, the accompanying images should not be larger than 1400 pixels in height and width. 

Each photo must be accompanied by captions with identifying information. The captions and corresponding photo file titles should be organized on a separate document and sent to the assigned editor. 

Contributor Photo and Biography

Each feature will include a photo and a short biography of the contributor that is displayed at the bottom of the article page. At the beginning of the editorial process, the contributor will be asked to submit their profile image and biography of 2-3 sentences. The contributor's feature photo file should be no larger than 500 x 500 pixels. 

Audio and Video Files

If including audio clips and/or videos to your feature, the length of the clip should be between 1 to 8 minutes. All audio and video files should be emailed to the assigned editor as Mp3 or Mp4 files. Alternatively, if the author has a YouTube and Vimeo account, the files may be shared with the editorial team as YouTube and/or Vimeo links. 

Contributor Honorariums and Travel Reimbursements

All published features are supported by a contributor honorarium of $500 as of July 1, 2023. Travel stipends for contributors are offered on a case-by-case basis, and should be requested in a brief, proposed budget to Managing Editor, Maria Zeringue.

There is no submission fee at this time. 

Copyright Statement

The Mississippi Arts Commission (MAC) will hold perpetual, royalty-free, nonexclusive license to the material. MAC also maintains the right to duplicate and utilize the material for non-profit, educational purposes. Submissions will be made accessible to the public free of charge. The author retains copyright to all original materials.

Contact

Please feel free to contact Managing Editor, Maria Zeringue, (mzeringue@arts.ms.gov) if you have questions about submitting an article and/or our editorial process.

Disclaimer

The ideas and opinions expressed in each feature belong solely to the contributor and do not represent the views of the Mississippi Folklife staff or the Mississppi Arts Commission and its partners.