Shortform Submissions
You Need to Know That Shortform Is Excited to Welcome New Writers
Empower yourself and come and write for us here
Updated information added as of 9th October 2023.
Hello and welcome to The Shortform (TSF) publication.
Hi, I’m Jonathan. Let me guide you through a step-by-step process so you can smoothly submit your article to TSF.
Firstly, let me explain. If you want to write for my publication, then do, please send me an email requesting to become a writer, not forgetting to include your medium username as I need this to discover you on the Medium platform.
This is what mine looks like:
Shortform’s new email address is:
You will receive a reply from me within 24 hours of your request (although internet outages may add a slight delay to that schedule), so fingers crossed.
Remember that all shortform articles are just that, short and sweet. They are designed so that your readers can quickly find something to read when they are busy and short of time.
ShortForm writing has body text of 1️⃣5️⃣0️⃣ words only.
⚠ Please note that from 1st August 2023, no AI-generated articles will be accepted into The Shortform. ⚠
Any submissions that are AI-generated will be rejected out-of-hand.
Let’s be original here and write what our minds generate for us.
Not what AI generates instead.
I’m not saying that AI is not useful, quite the contrary, AI can be of benefit to many people who want to use its assistance when researching information to write an article but, don’t be fooled, all the information that AI finds for you, can just as easily be discovered by you too, simply by searching the internet for yourself. Yet do bear in mind that AI is simply computer generated with absolutely NO humanity to it.
No emotions.
Nothing but the facts with NO creativity.
So please, no AI-generated articles. Write what you know to do, write from your heart, don’t let the computer do it.
🔺 I feel it is important to point out at this stage that whilst The ShortForm will always welcome any writer who wants to submit their self-published pieces already live on their profile page, all shortform editors reserve the right to reject any that do not contain working links or are over the 150-word limit when submitted (please bear in mind that if you have already published your full version of the article on your own profile page then, these points should already be in place anyway.) This is to ensure that all writers who have submitted original articles (and not those which are previously self-published) are not unduly held up within the editing process time. 🔺
Please also bear in mind when adding images that you make certain that you are providing the accurate backlink to the image. It is not legitimate to simply provide the image without this, because this is copyright infringement, using an image if you do not credit the image creator correctly, and the link does not go back to its original source. So, bear in mind that you add this every time, and remember that if you are using a Pinterest image, these are NOT royalty-free images (unless it is an image you are using from your own Pinterest account.)
Pinterest states that “… copyrights are generally owned by whoever creates the work of expression. In some cases, the owner may be someone else if the work was created by an employee or contractor. The original owner can also transfer ownership of the copyright to others.” (Don’t simply assume, you do need to check with the owner of the image prior to using any of these.)
So, you may be better off staying on the safe side and use CANVA, Unsplash (as is the default on Medium), or Pexels. Remember though, should you be externally accessing Unsplash, it will not automatically add the image credit as Medium does already for you. You must add this to your chosen image as a caption independently.
All editors have been taking considerable lengths of time in attempting to sort this out for you, but editors are voluntary and have many other correctly formatted credits in other submissions to attend to also.
So, please help us to help you…
🔷 Furthermore, do remember that the shortform publication is here “to serve the needs of your readers so they can quickly find something to read when they are busy and short of time,” as I have already pointed out.
As such, it is felt that to aid in maintaining readers’ interests, do ensure that at least 50% of your submission is original to you, as we have been seeing many submissions lately, which mostly comprise evidence links to other writers’ words. Whilst providing evidence of what quotes you have used is, of course, mandatory it must be remembered that the shortform is here for what you say, what you think, and what you feel others would like to read too. Let’s try to keep it that way, shall we? 🔷
🟧 Remember, whilst these are never meant to be hard and fast rules, nevertheless, the final decision to publish will always remain with the editor-on-duty. 🟧
Perhaps you are sitting on public transport, having a quick coffee break whilst you are at work, or in a shopping queue and want something fun or useful to occupy you whilst you take a breather; then shortform is the tool for you😊.
Let me repeat my earlier message for you, Shortform articles are only 1️⃣5️⃣0️⃣ words long (this is your body text.)
Please remember to correctly format your title (first letter of each word in a capital letter only with the remainder of words in lower case (highlight and select ‘large T’ to format correctly as a title.)
Should you choose to include a subtitle, although subtitles are not obligatory within The ShortForm, then please capitalize the first letter of the first word ONLY; the remainder of the subtitle in lowercase letters only (highlight and select ‘small t’ to format as a subtitle.)
❗ Please be certain to add links to any quotes/sayings/or names of others you choose to add to your article so that the original quote can be sourced & correctly credited. Remember too, even if you choose to use your own photographs in any article you write, it is still imperative that you still credit the image — for example, “photograph taken by and remains the property of the author at all times.”
What is NOT counted in what you write for TSF are:
- Kicker.
- Title. Make certain that your title is correctly formatted with each first letter of every word in capitals; observe for the blue correction line when writing this which will guide you.
- Subtitle. Your subtitle (which is not imperative in this publication) if included, must be fully in lowercase letters, other than the first letter of the first word, and for the first letter of the first word following a full stop.
Please help editors to help you.
Correcting these basic errors can be a time-consuming process.
- Captions (the words in your images or text you add in the box.)
- Embeds (the words inside the rectangular box, remember, you can include a maximum of two in your shortform article only.) All embeds must now be added at the end of your submission.
- Separators. Words below any used separator are still counted within the body text of the same article.
Ensure that all images are grouped together to assist editors with achieving correct word counts, as interspacing these can create errors in assessing these counts.
Self-publishing guidelines.
The Shortform does accept 150-word articles that you have previously self-published on your own profile page (note: not any other publication though) but do be aware that it will display within the shortform on its original date & time of when first published by you; so, you many not see what you have had published on the main page for this reason.
☑ Once you are added as a writer, simply click the 3 dots (in the top right of your screen.)
☑ This next box will appear with all the publications that you currently write for.
☑ Simply click on The Shortform and hit select.
☑ A confirmation box will appear like the image below, here you can add up to five tags of your choice which will help you to get your article seen across Medium.
☑ Once you have added your tags and chosen to opt in or opt out of metering your story and/or sending a link to your subscribers, simply hit ‘submit to publication.’
Hey, presto!
You will see this next screen.
Pretty simply isn’t it?
So, get writing your pieces and submit them to us.
I look forward to seeing you here at The Shortform soon.
Please remember that any submissions that editors have left a private note on, requesting edits to your article do need to be responded to timely, as any submissions without a response from you will be kicked back to you after 48 hours.
© Jonathan Townend (March 2023, updated 9th October 2023)
