story format guidelines

Style

The story-telling style is more inviting and intimate than journalistic writing.

We are looking for human-interest, slice-of-life stories that entertain, enlighten, inspire, or motivate.

Stories must be original, non-fiction, and told in first person voice with a beginning, a climactic moment and a resolution. Central elements can include one or more of the following themes;

• Overcoming obstacles and meeting challenges in life; big and small
• The experience of a synchronistic moment, a moment of “fate,” or something awe-inspiring
• Being the recipient, or the giver, of a random act of kindness and the impact it had
• Life lessons learned (the hard or not-so-hard way) delivered in a non-preachy style
• Making the best of life and maintaining a positive attitude especially in difficult situations 

To look inside an ULTIMATE book and read samples story features, please click here. And for more tips on how to write an ULTIMATE story, check our Key Concepts menu.

 

Bylines and Attributions

Pen names are accepted, but please provide your legal name as well.  Reference your pen name in your byline of your submission. e.g Jane Doe as pen: Pseudo Nym.

Bylines for third-person stories related in first person voice, will read "Mary Smith as told to A. Great Writer."

Names and identifiable attributes or locations of characters can be changed to protect the privacy of individuals. Please place a [ED NOTE] preceding your story if this is the case.

 

Word Count

500-1500 words, plus 50 words of biographical information about you.

 

File Types

The following standard word-processing file types are accepted;
Submissions using our online submission form must be MS Word Office 2003 .doc file types
Submissions using our submissions email process can be sent as .doc (MS Office Word 2003, .docx (MS Office Word 2007), wps (Corel WordPerfect) or .wks (MS Works) files

Please review the "File Name" information on our Format Guidelines page.