To New ILLUMINATION Writers
What’s different about this Publication?
Ever been to an all-you-can-eat salad bar? A restaurant with an endless supply of toppings: croutons, olives, beets, bacon, eggs, nuts and cheese; all on the freshest bed of, well, salad.
While perhaps a vegan’s delight, it might fall short of the fare required of the average omnivore.
Consider ILLUMINATION an artfully crafted, aesthetically designed restaurant that specializes in appetizers, entrees and desserts, with a little of the unexpected thrown in for good measure.
In other words, ILLUMINATION is a publication designed to be inclusive. If you are a coder, a designer, an architect, doctor or handyman, we have something for you. If you are looking for informative articles about climate change, Covid-19, dating, love, families or the art of mediation, you have come to the right place.
So, as you can image with such a diverse readership we need and want new writers who are willing to roll up their sleeves, open their hearts and minds and submit the articles that they have been meaning to write. The articles you have felt and thought about for some time, but have set aside because you didn’t know where it would be a good fit.
This is why ILLUMINATION was created by Dr. Mehmet Yildiz a few months ago. For writers like you. When you’re finished with the rest of this article, please take a stroll through some of these to understand the beginnings of this publication.
WHAT TO WRITE
The options are endless. Poetry, Prose, Fiction, Non-fiction, Haikus, Tankas, How-To and essays into the existential nature of man. 😊
Read — what others are writing. Express your appreciation through comments and claps or special messages to them — engage. Create the relationships that will help you craft the kind of work that you are seeing every day in this publication and on Medium overall.
Learn — there are countless subjects being explored on ILLUMINATION. Delve into as many as you like, find the words or phrases that speak to you. Let the creativity of these writers inspire you in whatever direction makes sense. Talk to them and find new ways to express old ideas or ones newly formed and spend a little time each day sampling what is being offered.
Writer’s are always questioning something; the world, the people in it, how it all comes together
Write — whatever feels right at that moment in time. Experiment with poetry. If that article won’t come together as a non-fiction article, put that concept, that idea in need of a vehicle, into a poem and see what happens. As a writer, I have done it many times with success. It’s freeing to simply allow the idea to find its own form.
Engage — with other writers. Use our Slack channels to talk to writers about writing. What is working, what is not. What you thought was great — How did they do that? On ILLUMINATION we are about sharing. Not just what we write and hope that you read it. But about the craft. The journey we are all taking. Sometimes it’s just more fun to travel along with others than going it alone.
Be Fearless — Writer’s are always questioning something; the world, the people in it, how it all comes together. And at times they even question themselves. Is this okay to publish? Is it really any good? It comes with the inquiring nature of writers that we challenge what’s out there and what we’re doing about it. We want you to experiment. To write what you feel strongly about even if there’s not a consensus for it — yet. In other words, be funny, be cheeky, be wise, be humble, be emphatic — be fearless.
But most of all, we want you to feel unrestricted in your pursuit of the writing craft.
RULES — GUIDELINES AND A HELPING HAND
The rules that apply to Medium in general, also apply to ILLUMINATION. Images and articles are like pancakes and maple syrup — they go perfectly together. Use Unsplash or other websites that offer frees pictures and graphics. Use your own photos or drawings. All we ask is that they are captioned and that you have permission to use them.
There are amazing articles and prose and poetry on the Internet that can be read and that often provide inspiration for all of us. If some piece inspires an article — give them a shout out to let them know. If you use a quote of theirs, simply write who it belongs to.
Our rules are few but simple. Respect the works of others and acknowledge their contribution when appropriate.
Our editors are available to answer questions and point you towards helpful information that may already be available on our publication. Don’t wonder, just ask us, and we’ll be happy to help.
Here are a couple of other articles that will help guide you to a successful future on ILLUMINATION.
But most of all, we want you to feel unrestricted in your pursuit of the writing craft. Write that poem or limerick. Craft that article about the inherent comedic talents of the Red Panda or tell us a tale of ghosts and apparitions in the old farmhouse down the road from where you lived as a child.
We have the readers who are interested and as ILLUMINATION grows in popularity here on Medium, your work will have a chance to grow throughout Medium as well.
Good luck and welcome!
Joe Luca is writer and editor for ILLUMINATION and a published author and writer of children’s stories, short fiction, non-fiction articles, screenplays and poetry. Publications include Child’s Life, Children’s Playmate and others. There are some other articles below — have a read. And thank you for stopping by.