Dear Globe and Mail reader,
Facts & Arguments wants to hear from Canadians, no matter who you are or where you live. The Essay on the Facts & Arguments page gives Globe readers such as yourself a chance to let other Globe readers know what's on your mind, just as though you were catching up over coffee, at a virtual water-cooler or chatting over the back fence.
Facts & Arguments essays should be personal and not political. Before submitting an essay, it's a good idea to read the page for a while, just to see the kind of essays that are being published. Often a good essay isn't accepted because there has recently been one on that same topic.
Please send submissions by e-mail, both as a Word .doc attachment, and copied and pasted into the message (in case we can't open the attachment). Send submissions to facts@globeandmail.com with the words "Facts & Arguments essay submission" in the subject line. Please include a contact number where you can be reached during the day. Please don't send submissions by mail or fax. Self-addressed stamped envelopes will not be returned.
We prefer to consider one essay at a time from any given writer. Rather than send a number of essays and asking us to choose, it's best if you choose your favourite essay to submit. Please don't send a piece that's been published on your blog or another online or print publication; we only run original, non-fiction works. Any one writer can appear a maximum of four times a year on the Facts & Arguments page.
There is no payment if your essay is accepted for publication. The Globe assumes first-print rights and electronic rights for unsolicited submissions; writers retain copyright.
Essays should be between 900 and 1,000 words. It's a good idea to stay within that range and get it to where you're happy with it rather than saying in a cover letter, "I know it's too long (or too short) but if you like it I would be pleased to cut it (or add to it)."
While we're always on the lookout for fresh ideas and will gladly help a writer with a great idea that's not yet being accurately expressed, the essays that are selected are usually those that are the closest to being fully formed.
If your essay is selected for publication, you should hear from The Globe within one month. You will not be contacted if it has not been chosen for publication.
Seasonal essays should be submitted at least three to four weeks before the event, so the submission can be considered and, if accepted, an illustration can be commissioned. It's not the best idea to send an essay with a Christmas theme on Dec. 24.
An essay goes beyond a rant or an anecdote. A good essay often involves an observation about a person, a situation or yourself, an analysis of that observation that might lead to a change of mind or a different perspective, and an extrapolation to a larger truth or a bigger question. And remember: Essays are non-fiction and they're true. We're unable to consider short stories or creative non-fiction.
Although requests are considered on a case-by-case basis, anonymity and pseudonyms are extremely rare.
Ultimately, we look for a quality best expressed by Rust Hills, one-time fiction editor of Esquire magazine: essays with "originality of perception and utterance" that offer a turn on the kaleidoscope of Canadian lives.
