Submission Tips

The Top Ten Things to Know When Submitting To

1. Paper Crafts only accepts submissions for projects that have never appeared online on a blog or in a gallery. This gives our readers the freshest content possible!

2. Read the calls for submissions very carefully. Check up on the blog and Facebook page for reminders and hints that might come in handy as you submit.

3. Be original. We want to see what you can create, not what you can copy. We look for great design, superb execution, clever uses of product, and fresh approaches to catch the reader’s eye. If there is a particular product or stamp set that is all the rage, you can be assured that there will be LOTS of projects submitted featuring it. If we have four projects lined up in front of us, how will yours stand out from the rest? Be clever. If you can make us laugh or get nostalgic or a little misty, that is always a great indication that our reader will love it, too.

4. Photograph your projects straight on using a neutral (tan, white, black) background with good lighting. Your picture is designed to allow us to see your projects to determine whether we’ll feature them or not. Please don’t use props, creative angles, or distracting backdrops. We don’t judge your photography, but the better the picture, the better we can see your creation. Remove personal information (referred to as a watermark) from your image. Paper Crafts magazine prides itself on its blind submissions judging. We choose the very best projects that fit our editorial needs no matter who made the project. Even the Go-to Gals submit!

5. Don’t wait to the very last minute to submit! There’s usually a lot of traffic on the deadline nights, and our system (bless its heart) can be a little sluggish.

6. Give your projects very distinctive and descriptive names so that if you receive a request from an editor, you know which project she is looking for. Don’t be afraid to send images to the editor once chosen so that she can verify which one we wish to publish.

7. When submitting, please tell us specific manufacturers for the products that used in your project, especially patterned papers and stamps.

8. For the instructions/technique section, you don’t have to give us the exact measurements of every piece of paper, ribbon, etc.  on your project. Please provide simple steps/explanations for each project so that if we can’t quite tell what you’ve done, we’ll have a better idea. Don’t put instructions available upon request.

9. You will only be contacted (via email) by a Paper Crafts editor if your project has been chosen for publication. If you don’t hear from us by the end of the week after the submission call closes, you can feel free to post it on your blog.

10. Have fun with it! Look upon it as a great way to challenge yourself with the specific calls for submission. The calls often ask for a certain approach to creation which you might not have considered. And that’s what it’s all about. If you fear rejection too much to submit, you’ll never experience the elation of being published.

For more great submission tips, please refer to the following blog posts:

• Behind the Scenes with Paper Crafts magazine (courtesy of Design Team Calls)
• Debunking the Mysteries of Submissions
• How to Get Published in Papercrafting (courtesy of Kayla Aimee)
• We’re Listening: Your Submission Questions Answered!
• Card Creations Week: Everyone Can Play (courtesy of Moxie Fab World)
• More Publishing Tips: What Not to Do (courtesy of Paper Crafts Go-to Gal Teri Anderson)
• Publishing Tips for the Paper Crafter (courtesy of Paper Crafts Go-to Gal Teri Anderson)
• Groovin’ with the Go-to Gals – Submi{tips}
• Submission Tips