Come Write for Science Spectrum!
An open call for educators who love to write about math, science, and technology
“While we teach, we learn.” — Seneca (c. 4 BC — AD 65)
Big News!
Science Spectrum has just been selected to be a charter member of Medium’s new Editor Partner Program. In short, your stories will be boosted, but without the nominator process. Here is how it will work:
One big difference is that you will no longer have to apply as a writer at Science Spectrum. Anyone can now submit a draft of a prospective article. Given that many people will not read past this point, we should say this at the outset:
We want to hear *your* voice, not the lifeless regurgitation of an LLM. If your submitted draft is written by AI, it will be deleted. Repeat offenders will be blocked.
What Makes Science Spectrum Special
Here at Science Spectrum, our goal is to make complex concepts accessible to everyone. Both Cole and I are seasoned educators and published researchers. We are keenly aware of how the learning process works and how it is that students of any age build an understanding of how science works. If this idea resonates with you, come write with us! Below are the details. It might sound like a silly request, but please be sure to read them before submitting your draft.
We take pride in the fact that we feature some of the finest science writers on Medium. We want to hear your voice, not the lifeless regurgitation of an LLM. Given its exponential growth and widespread adoption, we need to be clear that if your profile or your submitted draft is written by AI, your draft will simply be deleted.
What We’re Looking For
We are looking for writers who have the ability to communicate with their readers in an accessible and entertaining way. The best stories treat their audience as peers engaged in mutual exploration. Every submission to Science Spectrum is carefully reviewed by either Cole or Harlan to make sure it is consistent with our mission.
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Before you consider submitting, please understand that at Science Spectrum, we want you to teach us the specifics of how and why things work, not simply tell us that they exist or that they are interesting. Every story should have a clear goal of educating the reader about a specific topic. We particularly like stories that can potentially serve as a classroom resource.
What We’re NOT Looking For
- Absolutely no listicles! We are looking for articles that form a compelling narrative, not a series of bullet points.
- No AI-generated content. Thoughtful, well-executed images are okay, but we do not accept articles written using AI. The generic, sterile, prosaic, and otherwise lifeless text produced by AI is more obvious than some people think. We can't state it clearly enough that AI-generated writing will be deleted.
- Anything at odds with Medium’s Rules.
Science Spectrum Style Guide
While we are not a peer-reviewed journal, we do require a consistent look and feel for all stories we publish. We also pay close attention to content and style. Here is how you can make our job easier:
- Use Title Case for article titles.
- Make use of the subtitle option immediately below the title to further entice a potential reader to explore your story. You can do this by selecting the text and using the subtitle format (the smaller “T” in the formatting bar):
- Following the subtitle, please include an image (at least 800 pixels wide) that represents the theme of your story. Here’s what you should end up with:
- Use the subtitle option and title case for section headings.
- If you have subsections, you can use boldface and sentence case rather than title case.
- Try to avoid using the passive voice. We find that the active voice is a clearer, more concise, and engaging way to communicate. For example:
Passive: “In 2003, a study was conducted by Ebner and Winkledorf that looked at….”
Active: “In 2003, Ebner and Winkledorf conducted a study that looked at….”
- Where possible, try to break any super-long paragraphs into more approachable chunks. Well-placed breaks give the reader an opportunity to rest and digest what they just read. It can also help the flow of your story.
- Make sure that all images are properly attributed and that you have permission to use them. This means that either:
A) you have produced them yourself,
B) they are in the public domain, or
C) they carry an appropriate Creative Commons license. - Please avoid adding too many Call-To-Actions to your articles. This includes links to other articles you’ve written, or requests to follow your account or other social media profiles. Having a few related articles at the end of your story is perfectly okay.
- Last but not least, use a spelling, grammar, and punctuation checker. There are free tools out there, such as Quillbot and Grammarly. There are also numerous GPTs that can do the job. Stories with too many errors will be rejected.
Publishing Schedule
The submission queue ebbs and flows. We endeavor to publish articles in the order in which they are received, though some stories naturally require more editorial attention, which can delay publication. For the greatest impact and effective distribution, we aim to publish no more than two articles per day.
We’re excited to see your drafts. Thank you for being here!
Cole & Harlan
