Freelance writing, The Washington Examiner, pays $100 per OpEd/ Article

Oped submissions should be emailed as a Word file, in 12-point Times New Roman font, single-spaced within paragraphs, double-spaced between, maximum length of 600 words. Yes, I know that’s awfully short, but clarity, which is the sire of understanding, is also the son of brevity (In some cases, we will also post a longer version on our web site of an oped published in our print edition.) The Washington Examiner follows the AP Stylebook. Be sure to include a one-line author credit at the end. Authors who thoroughly edit their work for style, spelling and grammar prior to submission will be significantly advantaged over those too lazy or careless to do so. No matter what your college English instructor or former copy desk chief told you, split infinitives are virtually always poor grammar. Make certain you have the correct proper name spellings (persons and organizations) and complete titles on first reference.

OpEds written by individuals and published by The Washington Examiner print edition are paid $100 per article, unless otherwise agreed. Honorariums are not offered for OpEds written by individuals representing non-profit advocacy groups, or other special interest organizations. A signed and completed Free Lance Contract must be on file in order to receive payment. Feel free to inquire regarding interest in a potential topic before submitting a draft. Like many daily newspapers, however, we receive far more submissions than can be published. Repeat inquiries about publication decisions are not discouraged, but neither are they encouraged. There is, after all, only one of me and so very many of you.

Topics of Interest:

The Washington Examiner is especially interested in publishing tightly reasoned, factually based and timely opeds focusing on issues such as budget and taxes, tort reform, immigration, transparency and accountability in government, and energy. We are also quite interested in the areas of national security and defense, law and constitutionalism, the efficacy or lack thereof of government regulation, especially of enterprise and the economy, education reform, transportation, environment, and urban affairs. Our local focus is on Northern Virginia, the District of Columbia’s Maryland suburbs and the District itself. Given our length requirement, you must get to your main point with all due haste.

Limited Space in Print Edition:

Due to the extraordinary number of nationally syndicated columnists now appearing in The Washington Examiner, space for opeds by outside authors is at an absolute premium. Odds are very good that the vast majority of submissions accepted for publication will appear in the onlne edition only. There are no honorariums for online-only publication. Even so, there is substantial value and significant compensation in the millions of eager eyeballs that will be glued to your every word.

Good Advice:

Be prepared to provide upon request documentation of the factual or logical basis of every statement contained in a submission. If you aren’t certain of the authenticity of a quote or the accuracy of an assertion, kill it. If you aren’t certain of a source’s credibility, toss it. Make sure you have read the most recent edition of the AP Stylebook chapters on libel. Check your data-cites twice.

Cardinal Sins to Avoid at All Costs:

Attacks on an individual’s character, ethnicity, birthplace, parentage, sexual orientation or personality are no substitute for logical argumentation, careful presentation of fact and intellectual civility. Merely disagreeing with you is not prima facie evidence that the person is an ignorant bigot, religious fanatic, despoiler of virgin forests, unrepentant racist, paid tool of the Capitalist Oppressors or a scheming, remorseless traitor to Truth, Justice and the American Way. Submissions found in violation will be quickly dispatched to File 13, never to be seen again in the editorial-section precincts of The Washington Examiner newsroom.

Do not forward your submission with Track Changes activated. You may have 10 levels of approval to get through, but I only need to see your final version. Whenever I open a submission and see the deletes, the consideration ends abruptly and I get very cranky. And I hate being cranky.

Do a double-double-triple check to insure that the word “stakeholder” appears nowhere in your text. You may be writing about “interested parties” or ‘lobbyists” or “beneficiaries,” but “stakeholder” is obscurantist bureaucratese for “those who rub each other’s backs to insure that every hog gets a full plate at the taxpayers’ expense.”

Finally, NEVER, EVER start an oped with the word “the,” as it pitches the editorial page editor into paroxysms of manic laughter and uncontrollable weeping. (Okay, that may be a slight exaggeration, but only slight.) The good news is that with practice, you will find that avoiding “the” at the outset forces you to think more creatively and concisely about what you are seeking to communicate with your oped.

Contact Information:

For inquiries: Mark Tapscott - Mark.tapscott@gmail.com

For submissions: Mark Tapscott - Mark.tapscott@gmail.com

Website: http://washingtonexaminer.com