Editorial Submission Guidelines

In the pages of Pacific Yachting, powerboaters and sailors share a common interest in recreational boating in B.C. and the Pacific Northwest. The bulk of our writers and photographers not only come from the local boating community, many of them were long-time PY readers before coming aboard as a contributor.

Many of our stories have a “hands-on” feel to them. The reader shares the experience with the writer, and is encouraged to “follow in the author’s wake.” While precise nautical and technical information is important, colourful anecdotes bring the story to life. Both are important. In other words, our reader wants you to balance meaty navigational and technical details with first-person observations, blending the practical with the romantic.

Types of Stories

We buy both features and contributions to our departments. Take a look at a few issues of Pacific Yachting to see the variety of stories we publish. In particular we look for destination pieces, how-to articles, seamanship pieces and articles of general interest to boaters cruising the West Coast. Rates vary with the amount of revision required to each manuscript, and how strong the photography is. Features run up to 2,000 words and include colour photos. Departments run 800 to 1,000 words.

Write tight, write short, write with the reader in mind, write to inform, write to entertain and make sure it’s meaty.

Submissions

Submissions can be sent to us “on spec” or as queries. Stories submitted on spec are preferred as they can be assessed more quickly for suitability in the magazine. Queries should offer a clear idea on what the piece is about and what it hopes to accomplish, and should include an outline of the piece, as well as information on where you got your information (whether it’s first hand knowledge, interviews, and so on). However, every magazine has a “slush pile” of unsolicited material that comes in “over the transom,” which is used to fill holes in the editorial lineup, and Pacific Yachting is no exception. Queries submitted with a few sample photographs will get the editor’s attention much, much faster.

We prefer submissions to be in .doc format and submitted by email.

Please ensure the correct spelling of all names and titles—Hours can be wasted trying to correct poor spelling and sometimes even the best proofing will not catch a misspelled proper name that we cannot confirm without a local phone call or reference to a book in our library. Be accurate, and ensure that you have covered the five basic Ws. Be specific, our readers like to know how far, how long, how many. Be historic, these touches enrich the read.

Photos

Photos should be in digital format if possible, but we can handle high quality slides and prints. When submitting photos for publication please send us the original photo in as high a resolution as possible. Generally we need photo file sizes above 1 MB in order to print.

Payments

We offer payment on publication, so contributors should expect their agreed upon payment within a month of the publication date.