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Thank you for your interest in writing for the Cornell Claritas! As a magazine, we are flexible in the topics and writing styles of submissions, however, there are standards that we uphold. Please use the following guidelines to direct your writing. We look forward to hearing from you!

Audience: We seek to appeal to a broad audience of all students on campus of all faiths and backgrounds. Please keep this in mind in your writing as we are not just writing to other Christians. Articles should be clear and simple enough that non-Christians and Christians alike can understand them.

Content: The journal will be printed bi-annually and at the end of each semester. Journal article topics are up to the discretion of writers. Articles should be longer (1000-2000 words), thoughtful, culturally relevant posts that raise questions and search for answers about the great questions of life, which seek to articulate the union of faith and reason. Suggested topics include but are not limited to: examinations of current events, reflections on Cornell culture, personal anecdotes, attempts to reconcile science and religion, etc. If you are unsure about where to start, let us know at cornell.claritas@gmail.com, and we will pair you with an editor.
  • CREATIVE PIECES (Short Fiction, Poetry, Artwork, Illustration, Personal Essays)
    • We have no formal rubric for creative pieces, but we ask that you put forth your best efforts and do NOT demonstrate a complete and final rejection of the Christian faith.
  • NON-CREATIVE PIECES (Academic Papers, Testimonies, On/Off-Topic Articles)
    • Claritas is a ministry aiming to add to His kingdom. Please try not to be unnecessarily belligerent or exclusionary.
  • Send us your article at cornell.claritas@gmail.com.
  • Include a short biography of yourself that includes such information as year, major, hometown – one sentence is sufficient.
Formatting:
    • TITLE YOUR PIECE, though the editors might revise it.
    • Include an article summary/blurb of your own fashioning, which will potentially be used as the article’s tagline in the printed issue.
    • We use the American standard for punctuation. Commas should be placed inside quotations (i.e. “The Lord is good,” she declared.)
    • Scriptural citations should contain the translation/version.
    • Quote the Bible like this: The Bible says, “Jesus wept” (John 11:35).
    • No abbreviations for the books of the Bible.
    • Please remove all contractions (e.g. “can’t,” “isn’t,” “won’t”).
    • If you are submitting an academic paper that you wrote for class:
      • Label it as an academic paper, so we know that it is an academic paper
      • Citations should follow Chicago Style
      • If you already received the grade for the paper, please do not submit the paper unrevised if it received a grade of B or below.
    • Use relevant Bible verses!
    • Any images should be attached separately (i.e., do not embed them in the Word document) at the highest resolution possible and preferably as a tiff or JPG.
Expectations for Editing:
Each writer will be assigned to an editor for his or her article based on the content of that article and whether is for the blog or print. Please expect to go through at least one round of edits before your piece is published.