Call for Writers

Imagined is interested in storytelling that promotes positive social change, learning from one another, and new ways to live more socially, politically, and culturally engaged. We publish cultural critiques, photography, investigative reporting, and advocacy and solutions journalism looking at women in action and exploring solutions to small and large  social problems.  Imagined also features articles covering fearless and compassionate women, human rights, innovative ideas, and research accessible to a diverse audience of women interested in social change.  Our lifestyle departments are specifically tailored for progressive women, and one of our focuses will be on how women can feel authentic.

We are looking for writing that is both earnest and light-hearted. The writing that will catch our attention will be engaging and tell an interesting narrative rather than just an argument.  Many of our articles are hard hitting, but our tone is compassionate.

Our writers are professional and amateur journalists, professionals from various academic disciplines, as well as those on the front lines of social activism and community development. We offer not just a magazine, but also a network of women with common goals. We are also looking for regular writers to contribute at least two articles per month.

Departments

Series Features

Imagined publishes multiple article series using investigative, advocacy, and social justice reporting. We appreciate ground-breaking, engaging narrative storytelling, and solidly reported stories relying on interviews, archival research and public documents.

News, Solutions & Possibilities

Innovative and Critical Thinking: An essay on a current policy or a research article explaining what the issue can mean to the general public. This feature goes beyond digests of academic arguments, but clearly describes how the research might benefit women. Imagined understands good intention is not enough. We must reframe and tinker with our assumptions and practices of doing good. We appreciate articles with strong narrative storytelling, which lay out the cast of characters. These pieces include web links to evidence and supporting research published elsewhere.

Community Ingenuity: In what new ways do communities of women organize? How do they use new media? How do they bridge boundaries and geography and imagine themselves as part of a greater community?

Environmentalism: We want reporting about environmental policy, economics, culture, as well as new ways to live greener.

Science and Social Change: We do not look for traditional science, health, and tech articles, but ways new methods and innovations solve social problems. Imagined also publishes stories on notable women scientists and researchers doing worthy work.

Dispatches: Takes on news and current events.

Mind & Body

Psychology:  Imagined publishes articles about how to keep women engaged and involved in the community.  This includes pieces on identity, career, surviving abuse, and maneuvering higher education.  We are looking for ways that help women get passed emotional barriers that keep them from being engaged and accomplishing their goals.  We also realize that it is common to suffer from burnout when doing community work.  We are creating a space where writers can explore ways for us to address this.

Advice columns: We want a few psychologists to write advice columns.

Research/News: Our readers are interested in the innovation coming out of the psychological research community

Essays: We publish stories about overcoming obstacles that keep women for being happy and being engaged.  We want to know about women’s crooked paths and how finding out what they were helped them find out who they are.

Imagined desires to know how women overcome tragedy and learn how to listen to their intuition and learn to trust themselves. We want to hear how women follow their inspiration.  These articles are more than personal essays and must engage larger cultural, historical, psychological or medical trends.

Health: Imagined publishes health articles relevant to women.  We desire articles on topics such as how to negotiate new health care plans, environmental health hazards, the real scoop on HPV, and working with doctors to get your health needs met.

People & Community

Fearless Females: Imagined features profiles of public thinkers, policy researchers, practitioners, career achievers, or community workers doing worthy, but possibly unpublicized work. Of course, these women had fears, but they were able to work through them to achieve their goals.  Can also run in question-and-answer form.

The Way We Are: We publish stories about how women live in the U.S. and around the world.  We like stories about communities of women and girls who are getting together to change ideas or change their worlds.

The Way We Were: This feature covers histories of empowered women.

Triumphs: We want to know how communities and organizations overcame bureaucratic and other impediments on their path to success.

Finding Inspiration (Again): Our writers interview women activists and researchers about what is energizing, stressful, or helpful in their life and work. They look at tactics and strategies, and why they succeed or stumble. We want to know how these women went with their gut and learned to deal with the naysayers. We realize hope can waver. Imagineddesires to know how women got it back. We also accept autobiographical submissions from prominent leaders, social changers, and nonprofiteers.

Career & Financial

Our unique career section covers stories on how women can break into socially responsible, environmental, and nonprofit fields and how to balance their careers with their community and activist commitments.  We welcome stories about women working in traditional male dominated fields and social entrepreneurs.  For example, how can fair trade be fairer to women? Which small business loans are most effective for social entrepreneurs?

Advice columns: We are looking for human relations professionals and psychologists to field questions from our readers.

Culture

Essays and News: From critical social theory to pop culture, we publish smart pieces on subjects relevant to progressive women.  We especially welcome essays about various music genres including: pop, country, rock and hip hop.

Reviews: Imagined publishes reviews of books, video games, film, music, televisions, and exhibits. Although literary and artistic analysis and critique is important, because of the nature of our publication, we are more interested in the social, political, or activist nature of art and culture.

Picks: Authors write best picks of books, music, and film.

Book Club Leaders: We are looking for writers to lead our book club discussions.  Leaders will choose book selections and write one or two reviews for each selection.

Food

Eat, Drink, and Politics: Farming, distribution, and restaurant and hotel labor unions comprise the world of food and drink. We care about what’s on your plate.

Cooking: We are looking for stories of organic, sustainable, and cooking for one.  We care about health, but we do not publish articles about loosing weight.

Style, Fashion, Art, Design

How do people make space more conducive through design, transportation, art, or architecture? We also publish reviews of national exhibits.

We understand our readers care about their impact on the planet and their communities. Imagined reviews socially responsible, environmental, and sweatshop-free products. We also report about the companies making these products and socially responsible trends.

Fashion: We publish sweat free, fair trade, sustainable, slow fashion, vintage shopping, dressing for work and DIY style.  Since our magazine caters to women of various ethnicities and racial groups, we encourage writers to provide diverse content.

Videography/Photojournalism/Visual Ethnography: We welcome photo essays with socially relevant themes. We want more than just photos of socially disenfranchised communities, but are more interested in women in action. We also seek photos of historical significance.

Email us at editors (@) conducivemag.com

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