Please submit your text as a Word document and include all components listed here. Read more here >>>
Important: Before submission, please get written (email) usage permission, text/caption approval from each author and photographer, and a release from each person in photos, and submit these and captions for every image at the same time as your article.
Texts must be submitted as a Word doc (not PDF).
Structure your document as follows:
Your Name
Address
Email
Phone
Title
Subtitle
Bylines: (List alphabetically by last name)
Text by ...
Photos by ...
Stand-first
A brief introductory summary of the article (2 sentences), appearing immediately after the headline, in smaller font size than the heading but still larger than the main text.
Body text
Use Arial 11-point font; single-spaced; double space between paragraphs; do not indent.
Include notes, if any, as to desired photo placement in text in brackets, with image file number/name.
Include notes, if any, as to desired sidebar placement in text in brackets. To denote end of text, place three hash marks at the end: ###
Author bio
2-3 sentences about the author including your full name, your nationality, where you are based, your profession, certifications, specialities/focus or latest book. List your website URL where readers can go for more info.
Acknowledgements
(1 line) Briefly list just the main dive operators/resort, individuals or organizations the author wishes to formally thank for their assistance in the production of this article.
Sources
Please list all outside sources used for facts and quotes in your text, using the following format:
Author's last name followed by initials, other authors or et al. (Year published). Title of article in low caps except for the first word. Title of book or periodical in low caps except for the first word. Publisher. Volume, issue number, pages or Website URL.
Sidebars (if any)
Sidebar title
Sidebar text: limit 150 to 300 words max. If over 300, write it into the main body text, or submit as a separate article.
Fact file
(for travel features only)
Please follow the Fact File format in our past travel features.
Paraphrase – do not copy and paste – information from sources: cia.gov World Fact Book, cdc.gov or your country's health department for health and vaccination info, travel.state.gov or your country's state department for visa and security info, xe.com for currency and exchange rates.
List of captions, image credits, usage license/permit
Each image requires a caption, as well as an image credit and usage license (i.e. Creative Commons), if it is not your own image. Submit a list with this information with your article text.
Use the following file naming convention for images. Do not use periods in file names.
- Image number_Location_DiveSite_SpeciesNameAndBehaviour_ByPhotographerName_license
The file number/name gives sequence and caption information, which helps us place it in the right spot in your text.
List the location and/or dive site first in all file names.
Use ‘ByPhotographerName’ to credit the photographer, so we know they are not a person in the photo.
See file name examples below:
- DC1012_Bali_Tulamben_HouseReef_HairyFrogfishGuardingEggsOnNightDive_ByJaneDoe
- DS4043_Dorset_Weymouth_HMSWarriorII_JackSmithAtPropeller_ByJohnDoe_CC BY SA
No punctuation in files names
Please do not use periods, punctuation or symbols in file names, as they may cause InDesign to crash.
Use folders to group images by photographer, so we know whom to credit.
Place topside photos in a separate folder.
Images
Photos must be 3000pix, 144dpi, RGBs jpg or tiff, histogram- and colour-corrected, cleaned of backscatter, with no watermarks/photo credits on them. Maximum: 30 image files. See this post for all details.
