American Catholic | Writer's Guidelines

St. Anthony Messenger Articles

Information for Freelance Writers

St. Anthony Messenger, published by Franciscan Media, is a monthly, general-interest, family-oriented Catholic magazine, in continuous print since 1893. Our company motto, "Live in love. Grow in faith." states well the goal of this magazine: We seek to meet our 170,000 subscribers where they are and to offer them inspiration from the heart of Catholicism—the Gospels and the experience of God's people. There is a Franciscan flavor to all that we do: faithful, sometimes challenging, always down-to-earth, infused with love and respect, always following Jesus in the life of his Church.

The best way to know what we publish is to study several recent issues of St. Anthony Messenger. Links to some typical articles are at the end of this page.

GUIDELINES FOR WRITING, PREPARING AND SUBMITTING AN ARTICLE

Query in advance by e-mail. If a query is accepted, the completed article should normally be submitted within two months of acceptance.
In your query, state your proposed topic, sources, authorities and your qualifications to write the article. Library research will not suffice. Fresh sources and interviews with experts or people in the field will be necessary. Seasonal material (Mother's Day, Lent, Christmas, etc.) should be submitted one year in advance.
We do not publish filler material—anecdotes, jokes, thoughts to ponder. We do not publish articles in installment or serial form.
We never consider articles submitted simultaneously to other magazines. We do not reprint articles from publications outside of Franciscan Media.
E-mail submission is strongly preferred. E-mail all initial correspondence, queries etc. to mageditors@franciscanmedia.org, attention John Feister.
Feature articles are 2,000-2,500 words. We increasingly are publishing shorter pieces as well.
Popular, accessible style is essential.
Please allow up to eight weeks for return or purchase of publication rights. Manuscripts are reviewed by a number of editors who sometimes travel, etc.
Payment for articles and fiction is 20 cents per published word—upon acceptance and return of a signed author-publisher agreement form. We buy first worldwide serial rights to publish and republish "the work" in any and all forms or formats, including all electronic formats. Authors receive two complimentary copies of published work.

Photography

Photo support is crucial for articles about a one-of-a-kind event. The content of thematic articles or essays (for example, "the importance of forgiveness") lends itself to illustration. Our art director is part of the decision to buy an article and will indicate whether photos or illustrations will be needed. For more information, contact Art Director Jeanne Kortekamp (jeannek@franciscanmedia.org.)
If professional-quality photos already exist on a subject, please supply information on how to obtain them. Otherwise, supply contact information for the subject(s) of the article so that a professional photographer can be engaged. In some exceptional cases, nonprofessional-quality photos can be used.

Examples of articles we have published:

Church/Sacraments

The Lord's Supper: Ancient Story, New Beginning
Praying the Steps: A Good Friday Tradition
Catholic Parishes Minister to Soul and Body
Sexual Abuse and the Catholic Church: Where Are We Now?

Education/Spiritual Growth

Finding Faith in God's Creatures
Keeping Faith During Hard Economic Times
Holistic Care: Treating Mind, Body and Spirit
The Catholic Tradition of Health Care
How a Mutt Taught Me About God
St. Francis and the Millennials: Kindred Spirits
World Youth Day: Celebrating Young Faith

Family/Marriage

Christopher West on the Theology of the Body
Caregivers Need Care, Too

Profile/Celebrity/Saints

Dick Vitale: Faith, Family and Foul Shots
Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez on The Way
Blessed John Paul II: Witness to Hope
Therese Borchard: Beyond Blue
Matthew Kelly: On Faith and Fatherhood
Jason Berry, Church Whistleblower
Sisters of Life
Blessed John Henry Newman: Lover of Truth
Pray, Hope, Love: Dr. Robert Wicks
Father Leo Patalinghug: Connecting Food and Faith
The Feast of All Saints: God's Glorious Nobodies

Scripture/Theology

Jesus' Extraordinary Treatment of Women
God's Great Reversal: Key to the Gospel of Luke
St. Paul and Women: A Mixed Record
Jesus: What's Fact? What's Fiction?
St. Peter: A Pope for All Seasons

Social Issues/Foreign

Lessons in Giving
Bringing Help and Hope to Haiti
Last Call: Grace and Sobriety
Will There Be Christians in the Holy Land?
No Greater Love: Operation Pedro Pan

Spirituality/Inspirational Stories

Pathways to God in Everyday Life
Michael Leach: Why I Stay Catholic
12 Keys to a Sacramental Marriage
Seven Things Catholics Should Know About Divorce
Fitting Prayer Into a Busy Life
Spiritually Healthy Children
Women & Spirit: Catholic Sisters in America
My Life With Multiple Sclerosis
Connecting With Creation at Yellowstone

Fiction: We do not have examples of fiction on our Web site. Consult our Writer's Guidelines about fiction and see recently published stories.

St. Anthony Messenger magazine
Franciscan Media
28 W. Liberty St.
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202

	New for Lent 2012
	An inspiring new way to rediscover Lent from Matthew Kelly!

	Love
	Schedule one or more St. Valentine's Day e-cards today to be sent next Tuesday.