How to submit
Please read before submitting
Submissions by email only, pasted into the body of the message with ‘Website Submission’ in the header. Do not send attachments. Spell-check and proof read your work. There is no limit on word length but preference will be given to material that is less than 3,000 words. If you are sending a birth story, title it with your first name, the name of your child and the year of his/her birth (eg, Anne-marie’s story of Harry’s birth, 2001). Anonymity is acceptable so let me know if you want to use a pseudonym to protect your privacy. Material is uploaded regularly so you can submit at any time.
Please note that Parenting Express reaches a global audience so try to minimise culturallyspecific references that may not be understood by most readers. If you feel your story needs these references, you could try listing them with brief definitions at the end of the piece. I edit the submissions to maintain regional spelling, so you may find some stories with realiZe, for example, and others with realiSe. Feel free to add a link in your submission to your own published material (in the parenting genre).
Photography
On the home page, I am happy to publish suitable photographs featuring parents and children. I’m interested in well-framed, clear, quality shots with thoughtful composition, in either colour or black and white. Send images as jpegs in low resolution, with file sizes no larger than 200K and name them with your surname.
Submission guidelines (PDF)
“Being at home can be fun, insulating, relaxed, boring or isolating ... depending on how the day is going.”*
School holidays are almost over in my part of the world – six long weeks of noise and squabbling balanced by hot, lazy days at the beach or the pool with lots of daring exploits and laughter. Many of our days were spent at home, basking in simple pleasures like baking, playing games or outdoor pursuits – trying to relax the everyday routines of school-morning bustle and ‘having to be somewhere on time’. However pleasant, I must admit to being relieved that life gets back to normal next week, and I can reclaim some of my own time for writing again!
* From Being Mummy by Anne‑marie Taplin published April 2007