Outdoors Unlimited Contributor Guidelines

Become an Outdoors Unlimited contributor! Outdoors Unlimited (OU) is OWAA’s award-winning publication. This members-only magazine helps our Members and Supporting Groups stay up to date on news important to outdoor media. From industry-focused craft improvement articles, conservation-focused content to a bookshelf section promoting member publications, OU is specifically geared to benefit OWAA Members and promote our contributors.

OU thrives because of our members. Currently, OWAA Members provide content pro-bono as a way of giving back (and perhaps getting some exposure with their peers).

Craft Improvement Articles

Craft Improvement articles help OWAA members further develop their skills. OWAA welcomes pitches for articles in all media categories.

  • “Tips & Tricks” articles: Articles like “10 News Sourcing Tips”, “5 Tips to Improve your Low-Light Photos”, “7 Interviewing Tips”, etc.
  • “How to” articles: Articles like “How to start writing a book”, “How to create a successful podcast”, “Hot to use a monopod in the back country”, “How to write killer leads,” etc.
  • Lessons learned articles: Articles like, “What I learned my first-year freelancing”, “What I learned on an international photography trip”, “What I learned my first year as an editor”, etc.
  • Journalistic articles: These are focused on a specific craft and include interviewing an expert in their field and writing an informative journalistic style article. i.e. The making of a podcast with Joe Smith.
  • Trend articles: These focus on a specific trend in the outdoor communicating space and include three or more sources. i.e. What editors want (getting feedback from several editors on how they want pitches), What successful freelancers have in common, etc.
  • Other styles: Do you have a creative idea or another style article that you think will help other OWAA members improve their craft? Pitch it. Creativity is welcome.
Cover of Feb/Mar 2020 Outdoors Unlimited
An OWAA member stands gazing at the mountains
Photo by Paul Queneau

Conservation issue articles

Pitches for conservation related issue articles are always welcome.

Portfolio

Pitches for photos and photo essays in OU are always welcome. You can showcase your work and promote your business.

Photo by Paul Queneau
A crowded bookshelf
Photo by Iñaki del Olmo

Bookshelf

To promote your book in OU, send the book information (using the template below) and a .jpg image of your book cover to info@owaa.org. Space is limited to 4-6 books per issue.

Title by Author’s Name, publisher, publisher’s address; contact’s phone number, contact’s e-mail address and/or website address, book format (hardcover, softcover, paperback, etc.), number of pages e.g. (255 pp.), number of photographs e.g. (56 color photos); price.

Review/Summary: Approx. 100 words.

Additional Information

Send your best pitches to: info@owaa.org

A one-page article is 500-700 words while a two-page article is 800-1,400 words.

All articles include a bio of the author. Photos are very helpful to accompany articles. We also accept infographics, illustrations, graphs and charts along with written articles.

OWAA reserves the right to republish and/or reuse your article on the OWAA website (either within the Members Only section or the consumer-facing blog) and/or on OWAA’s social media. Contributors are always attributed and links to your preferred URL (a website, blog, social link, etc.) will be included wherever possible.

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