Contribute to Bicycle Times

Mailing address

Bicycle Times Magazine
3483 Saxonburg Blvd
Pittsburgh, PA 15238
412.767.9910
editor@bicycletimesmag.com

Bicycle Times is a non-glossy magazine written by and for real people who ride their bikes anywhere, any time. We publish six issue per year. Submissions to Bicycle Times are highly encouraged. We consider each and every submission received.

Submit your stories or ideas

How do I submit editorial material?

A lot of Bicycle Times' content isn't written by staff members—it's written by either professional freelancers or readers who get inspired to write something down. We accept and encourage submissions of all kinds. Choose to either submit a brief query or a finished article. Emails (keep them short!) to editor@bicycletimesmag.com are the preferred method of communication. We get lots of queries, so don't expect a quick response time. Be sure to put your contact information on all aspects of your communication. Specify if your work has been published or solicited elsewhere.

Do you pay for Articles?

Yes. Not much, but we do what we can. Standard pay is roughly ten cents per word.

Emails and Attachments

Email is the preferred method of submission. Please include an attachment friendly to Microsoft Word, with the copy also pasted in the email. No huge documents, no special characters, no special formatting. Keep it simple.

Ideas for Submissions

We have 2 types of articles—Features and Departments.

• Features are more in-depth articles, usually running 1,000-3,500 words. An example of a Feature is a "Places to Ride" with maps and a 411 sidebar, or an interview with someone really unique. Features often involve art, and will therefore require collaboration with the art department. See the Art Guidelines for more.
   
• Departments are the backbone of the magazine. However, not every department appears every issue. Consult a few issues of Bicycle Times and look at the Table of Contents "Departments" to get a feel for what we do.

Deadlines

Materials deadlines fall approximately six weeks prior to the issue date.

Anything else?

If the above didn't answer your question, contact the editor, Karen Brooks at editor@bicycletimesmag.com or call the office at 412.767.9910.

Submit your art or photography

We accept art, photos, cartoons, scribbles, collage, etc. All are welcome. The decision to use a piece of art or photography could take one week or it could take years.

Usage

Bicycle Times assumes all art and photography submitted is designated for use in the magazine. We reserve the right to reprint art on the web and in promotions and advertisements for Bicycle Times.

Payment

Payment is made once the piece is used, not before. Payment takes six weeks from the publication date. If you have specific payment requirements contact the Art Director BEFORE submitting any work.  

The Cover

We pride ourselves on our illustrated covers. Whatever the medium, there must be space allowed on top for the Bicycle Times logo and tag line. Space will also be taken up on the bottom left for the UPC bar code. The overall size is 8.25 x 11 (trims to 8 x 10.75), so please keep your artwork proportionate.

Shots

Shots is a unique magazine department that focuses on the love of cycling photography. You don’t get paid for art published in Shots. Shots is about the people who ride because they love to ride and the people who shoot because they love to shoot. Creativity is the key. We usually choose photos based on their artistic value, rather than for their newsworthiness and/ or timeliness. We like photos that are out of the ordinary. They need not accompany an article. We'll give you a nice credit line, and a decent layout.

To contribute, please email one to three high-res digital photos with “Shots” in the message’s subject line to artdirector@bicycletimesmag.com.

All photos submitted to Shots must be submitted by the original photographer or be clearly noted in body text that permission was given for reproducing image in Shots.

Please include the following information for each photo:

• Location (city/state or city/country or forest/state, etc.).
• photographer (either say you took it or say who did).
• Any other info that might be necessary, such as the rider depicted or the photograph’s title.

All digital files must be clearly labeled with your first and last name.

Reader Art

Similar to Shots, we showcase reader submitted artwork every issue. If you would like your artwork to be considered for Reader Art, please let us know when you submit it.

Electronic Submission Guidelines

We love digital files! Sending us your artwork and photography as electronic media saves time and money, and it also preserves the original materials by keeping them in their creator's possession. This can be a win-win situation as long as contributors follow some simple guidelines. Macintosh rules! Dirt Rag's entire office runs on Mac. Files created on a PC may cause problems. The preferred format for any bitmapped art is TIFF, and for vector art it's EPS. PDF & JPEG are acceptable only if the image quality is set to maximum, and the resolution is at least 300dpi. 72dpi JPEG's are great for samples, but not for print! Acceptable media includes CD and DVD. We ask that you do not e-mail files larger than 3 mb.

Return

Return postage is required if you want your materials returned. A self-addressed, stamped envelope is appreciated, but simply including a check or well concealed cash will suffice. If you want your submission returned by a specific date then you must be sure to specify this in detail in a letter accompanying your submission.

Important

Name/address/phone MUST be on ALL correspondence. This information should be on the artwork if at all possible - not just on the cover letter. If we cannot locate your address or phone number, you cannot be paid.

Questions?

Contact the art director with any questions! If you have e-mail, please contact the art director at artdirector@bicycletimesmag.com.