Contributor Guide
Quarterly, the Nastawgan editorial team produces a journal that is informative, entertaining and of high quality. To ease this process and to assist contributors, we are providing the following guidelines. If you have any questions please contact the editor-in-chief.
Please provide the name, address, phone number and email address of the writer of your article at the top of the page (see sample) so that we can contact you. |
We accept anything that would be of interest to canoeists who enjoy wilderness trips as well other related outdoor adventures: articles, trip reports, diaries, personal reflections and experiences, environmental issues within the scope of canoeing concerns, news items, products-and-services information, letters to the editor, viewpoints, opinions, reviews of books and other publications, requests for trip partners or information, anecdotes, poetry, jokes, photographs, sketches, cartoons, etc. | Note: We are limited in the amount of space in Nastawgan in which to print articles. We welcome and will print all suitable material submitted by members of the WCA. However, when we have extra space we reserve the right to make selections from pieces submitted by other sources in the interest of providing our readership with unique and informative material. |
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Be sure that all facts such as names, dates, phone numbers, addresses, map information, photograph captions, etc., are correct. This is very important! Triple-check! |
The maximum word count of major articles (which need up to 11 pages in Nastawgan, including illustrations) is approximately 5,000 words. Avoid anything longer than that, except in very special cases (but then, contact the editor first). Medium-length articles have about 2,000 words maximum. One full page of text in Nastawgan contains approximately 1,100 words. | One standard sheet of 8.5 x 11 manuscript paper contains about 250 typewritten (or computer print-out) words if the lines are double-spaced and the borders are 2.5 centimetres wide. |
Illustrations are very important in Nastawgan. Also, in order to print them, we need a particular quality that is sometimes not apparent to contributors. Therefore, we would appreciate as many photos as possible from which to choose a few. Thus, you might send us twenty photos and we would pick five or six to print. Also please include captions and the photographer’s names. See below for more details.
Photographs should preferably be sharp and correctly exposed. Try not to choose dark and high-contrast pictures. Write captions on a separate piece of paper: never write with a ballpoint or pencil on the back of photographs. |
Maps are required to explain the location of trips, especially in lesser-known areas. They should be sketched clearly with all the necessary information included, such as names, compass orientation, distance scale, direction of river current (if not evident). If a writer finds that making a map is not possible, the editor can make a map from the information provided. Any clear copies of existing maps can assist this or might be used.
Drawings of relevant subjects are welcome to illustrate articles or to use as general fillers. They should preferably be done in pen and ink, but other media are also acceptable. |
TEXT (see sample manuscript sheet below)
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PHOTOGRAPHS
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Sample Manuscript Page
Joe Stern
123 Paddle Street
Canoetown, Province Approx. 1850 words
AlB 2C3
123-456-7890
jstern@serv-prov.ca
DOWN DANGEROUS DOODLE CREEK
Article: Joe Stern
Photos: Anna Bow
It was a dark and dreary day when the four of us packed all the gear plus the two canoes in and on top of the van. We’d much rather stay in bed and do what all sane people should do on a day like this, sleep. But alas, we had made arrangements with the fly-in airplane people and we had to be there on time. And besides, we really wanted to paddle that famous river.
Five hours of driving through the fog and misery of this terrible day brought us, pooped out, to the muddy airport in Uptheretown where the somber-faced pilot was busy refueling his ancient float plane.
“So, you’re the guys for Doodle Lake?” he mumbled without moving his lips. “Okay, jump in. Let’s go. That’ll be two flights because this old lady Beaver here can’t take more load than one canoe plus two people and gear. Got the money?” Nice, confidence-inspiring guy, this one.
We paid him. He loaded two of us plus equipment in and on the scruffy-looking flying machine. The take-out on the glassy-smooth lake was beautiful. That pilot knew what he was doing.
At last, the long-awaited expedition to Doodle Creek, that notorious canoe-eating collection of rapids, falls, and killer-souse holes, was on its way.