FAQ: Questions about our writer's guidelines

• Design Features. Stories on various architectural features of log homes. Stories can focus on a particular home or the same architectural feature on different homes.
  
• Technical Articles. How-to advice about specific aspects of log home construction or pre-construction. Examples are scheduling a construction project, selecting wood preservatives, installing flooring, decorating log homes, dealing with subcontractors and innovative financing programs. Writers of these articles should be experts or able to interview experts and convey the information for a lay audience.
  
• Historical Features. Articles about historical log structures in North America or abroad and restorations of same. As mentioned before, we have a limited need for this material.

Submissions
We will read unsolicited manuscripts but prefer an outline or a detailed query letter first. We accept submissions via mail or e-mail. E-mailed documents should be sent as Word attachments or within the body of the message. E-mail manuscripts and queries to editor@loghomeliving.com or mail to Editor, Log Home Living, 4125 Lafayette Center Drive, Suite 100, Chantilly VA 20151. Enclose a self-addressed stamped envelope if you would like your materials returned.

Photos
If you are submitting an unsolicited manuscript or a query, it always helps for the editors to see scouting shots of the home you would like us to consider for a feature story. Please submit color snapshots of the interior and exterior.

Writer's Contracts
Log Home Living requires its freelance writers to sign a contract with every feature story we accept. The writer's contract spells out what we can expect from our writers and what our writers can expect from us if a story is accepted for publication in the magazine. It provides basic protection for both parties if disputes should arise over payment, usage, etc.

Payment & Rights
Payment for features ranges depending on length, nature of the work and writer's expertise on the subject matter. We acknowledge receipt of submissions immediately and try to provide an editor's response within 30 days. Payment is made within 30 days of acceptance.

Cancellations
If we determine that a submitted article requires substantial rewriting, we will pay a $100 research fee for the information supplied. If we decide not to use an assigned accepted article, we will pay a $100 kill fee.

Rights & Conditions
Log Home Living buys first North American rights and nonexclusive reprint rights. Upon publication, authors will receive two complimentary copies of the issue with their work. We cannot accept responsibility for the personal safety or property of any freelancer while on assignment for the magazine. Writers and photographers are urged to have their own insurance while on assignment. We assume that all contributed manuscripts are original and that all facts and quotes have been verified. Articles that have been published or submitted elsewhere must be so identified; in such cases, the author is responsible for obtaining permission to reprint previously published materials prior to submission to Log Home Living.

Expenses
Reasonable expenses will be covered, provided that travel plans and all anticipated costs are discussed beforehand with the editor. A complete expense report, including receipts for all claims, should accompany the contributor's work. Expense reimbursement is made with payment for an accepted article.

Sample Copy
If you would like a sample copy of Log Home Living magazine, please send your check or money order for $4.00 to HBPI, Attn: Sample Copy, 4125 Lafayette Center Drive, Suite 100, Chantilly VA 20151.

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(click here for Log Home Living Writer's Guidelines)

Description
Timber Home Living is a bimonthly magazine for people who own or are planning to build contemporary timber homes. It is devoted exclusively to timber homes that have a freestanding frame and wooden joinery. Our interest in historical, reconstructed timber frames and one-of-a-kind owner-built homes is secondary and should be queried first.

Readership
Our audience is comprised primarily of married couples between 30 and 45 years old. They are generally well-educated and very individualistic do-it-yourselfers. A study has shown that most timber frame home owners take, on average, 10 years to build their homes. As a result, they tend to be very involved in almost every design, decor and building decision.

Specifications
Timber Home Living magazine welcomes new talent and strives to develop long-term relationships with those contributors who consistently deliver quality work. The magazine is produced four times a year and features up to four homes an issue and is 75 percent freelance written. These articles should reflect readers’ lifestyles and interests in timber homes. Some of the different types of articles we feature in each issue include:

• Timber home owner profiles. Articles about people who have built timber homes. In a conversational tone, describe the home as it is and tell how it came to be. Emphasize the elements that make this home special—intent, design, solutions to unique problems, features, furnishings, interior design and landscaping. Construction costs and schedules are a plus.

• Design and decor features. Photo stories on various architectural features of timber homes. Stories can focus on a particular home or the same architectural feature on different homes.

• Technical articles. How-to advice about specific aspects of timber home construction or pre-construction. Examples are: scheduling a construction project, selecting wood preservatives, installing flooring, decorating timber frame homes, dealing with subcontractors and innovative financing programs. Writers of these articles should be able to interview experts and convey the information for a lay audience.

• Historical features. Articles about historical timber frame structures in North America or abroad and restorations of same. As mentioned before, we have a limited need for this material.

Timber Home Living requires its writers to sign a contract with every feature story we accept. The writer’s contract spells out what we can expect from our writers and what our writers can expect from us if a story is accepted for publication in the magazine. It provides basic protection for both parties if disputes should arise over payment, usage, etc.

Submissions
We will read unsolicited manuscripts, but we prefer an outline or a detailed query letter first. Enclose a SASE. We accept manuscripts in three formats:

• E-mail submissions. We prefer that all written materials be sent to us via e-mail. Send submissions to editor@timberhomeliving.com. Please don’t format the text.

• Computer disk submissions. Submissions can be made on CDs, Macintosh-formatted in Microsoft Word.

• Typed manuscripts submissions. Manuscripts should be typed, double-spaced with 1-inch-wide margins on white bond paper. These can be faxed in, but we prefer that a clean hard copy be mailed in with a cover letter.

Photos
If you are submitting an unsolicited manuscript or a query, it always helps for the editors to see scouting shots of the home you would like us to consider for a feature story. Please submit color snapshots of the interior and exterior.

Payment and rights
Payment for features ranges depending on the story’s length, the nature of the work and the expertise in the subject matter. Our accounting department will not accept invoices without a written contract attached to them. Payment is made within 30 days of acceptance (not publication).

Cancellations
If we determine that a submitted article requires substantial rewriting, we will pay a $100 research fee for the additional information supplied. If we decide not to use an assigned article, we will pay a $100 kill fee.

Rights and conditions
Timber Home Living magazine buys first North American rights and nonexclusive reprint rights. Upon publication, authors will receive two complimentary copies of the issue with their work. We cannot accept responsibility for the personal safety or property of any freelance writer while on assignment for the magazine. Writers must have their own insurance while on assignment.

Expenses
Most of our assigned feature stories are written via phone interviews. We rarely send our writers to a home’s location. Therefore, we will pay all phone expenses associated with the assignment. However, if travel does occur, reasonable expenses will be covered, provided that travel plans and all anticipated costs are discussed beforehand with the editor. A complete expense report, including receipts for all claims, should accompany the contributor’s work along with the writer’s social security number. Expense reimbursements are made within 30 days of an invoice’s submission.

Sample copy
If you would like a sample copy of Timber Home Living magazine, please send your check or money order for $4.00 to HBPI, Attn: Sample Copy, 4125 Lafayette Center Drive, Suite 100, Chantilly VA 20151.

For more information, contact Mike McCarthy, Editor, Timber Home Living magazine at 703-222-9411 ext. 299 or editor@timberhomeliving.com.

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