CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS!

PaperDolls is a new online magazine created for teengirls. By "teen girls,"we mean anyone who is a teen and identifies as a girl. This ad-free magazine is a pro-girl online spacethat provides multiple points of view without the bias and agendas of printteen magazines available on newsstands. In other words, we are not using girls to sell products;rather, we are sharing information and advice with girls that might nototherwise be available to them.  Additionally, ourmagazine will host teen-girl writers to debate issues and to give their voiceand opinions on life and culture. We think it is very important to have an opendialogue with our target audience.  Our voice is fresh and casualwithout undermining the seriousness of the issues faced by today’s teen girl.

    Currently we are looking for submissionsfor our first issue, which weplan to launch August 1, 2008. Our first issue, the "GirlIssue," will explore thequestions we have posed to ourselves: Do girls need spaces dedicatedspecifically for them? What is great about girl culture? How could it beimproved? How does the media portray and respond to girls? We are looking toexplore all areas of girlhood: tomboys,riot grrls, sorority girls, and all the other girls out there, as wellas girls' relationships with girlfriends, boyfriends,girl friends, and boy friends.

    Articlesand submissions are open-ended as long as they apply to the theme of the issueand apply to our target audience, teen girls. Articles should maintain a casualbut thoughtful voice and follow our style guide, which is attached.

PaperDolls is juststarting out and we are workingon obtaining a non-profit status. Our funds are limited. For the firstissue we will be paying contributors $5 per article, because we think it is important togive a physical value to our writers' work and because we want high-qualitywork. In the future, we plan on providing more substantial compensation. Submissions are due June 1.

What We’re LookingFor:

FeatureArticles

Feature articles are entirely open-ended.They should be current and newsworthy and maintain a strong sense of who theaudience is. These may be critiques, exposés, journalistic articles, etc. 2000 to 3000 words.

Short Articles

These are similar to feature articles and include critiques, extended reviews,bios/profiles, historical and reported articles, etc. 1000words or less.

Health Articles

Health issues should relate veryspecifically to our audience and be completely current. 1000to 2000 words.

Letter From …

This section of the magazine is exactlywhat it sounds like. Girls from different parts of the country or planet writea letter telling other girls what is happening in their neck of the woods. Whatis going on there now, what the kids are up to these days, any events takingplace, etc. Contributors have the option of adding their own photographs. 350 to 500 words.

Comics

We love comics! Comic submissions shouldbe submitted electronically if possible and relate very specifically to ouraudience.

Reviews

We are looking for people to reviewbooks, film, television, and music. Here’s the deal: We want to inform girls ofgood media whether it came out yesterday or 50 years ago. If you are no longer a teen, think of taking a “bigsister” approach, turningyour little sister onto some really cool thing you either love or used to love as a teen orshowing how something is not as cool as they might think. This section willinclude a medley of new and old. 150 to250 words.

Fiction/Poetry

Short fiction or poetry that is eitherwritten by a teen, reminiscent of teen years, or directed specifically atteens.1500 words or less.

Art andIllustration

We are open to accepting art andillustration submissions as long as they fit within our theme and as long as submissionsfollow our style guide. Send us your work!

All submissions should be sent to paperdollsmag@gmail.com and shouldfollow the given style guide. Deadline for August issue is June 1.