Writers' Guidelines

Overview

Often cited by the futurist R. Buckminster Fuller as a metaphor of leadership and empowerment, a trim tab is, in essence, a small lever acting upon a large lever to create change out of all proportion to its size. Trim Tab is also Cascadia’s quarterly e-magazine—a publication that intends to mirror the metaphor evoked by its name.

The magazine showcases the provocative ideas, innovative projects, critical issues and premier events that are truly redefining how we design, construct and operate buildings and communities. Our readers are professionals and emerging professionals that are seeking the most cutting-edge information on green building and design.

We accept freelance submissions covering issues, news and projects that support our mission of providing readers with the ideas and solutions that will create transformative change in the built environment. Though Cascadia is a regional organization, the articles we publish in Trim Tab can be national or international in scope.  

We do not accept and will not review advertorials or commercial pitches.

Sections accepting submissions

Freelance submissions are accepted for the following sections:

Features: 1000-2000 word articles that cover issues and/or solutions on the leading edge of the green building movement. If covering a specific project or projects, it/they should meet the requirements for the highest level of LEED Platinum or its equivalent at a minimum.

Project Highlight: 500-700 word case studies of projects, highlighting one innovative “green” aspect. The project should meet the requirements for the highest level of LEED Platinum or its equivalent at a minimum. High-quality images should accompany the piece.

Moving Upstream: 50-100 word news bites of pertinent, transformational milestones, events, and issues that demonstrate real progress in the green building movement. News can be regional, national or international in scope. Note: no credit will be given to the submitter for the news bites, if used.

We do not accept and will not review advertorials or commercial pitches.

We use the Associated Press Stylebook.  We ask that all submissions be consistent with the AP Stylebook.  For your convenience we've posted a quick reference below. 

Download Associated Press Quick Reference

Quick Style Points
Acronyms:
- Please limit the use of acronyms.
- Refer to the International Living Building Institute™ as "the Institute" at the second + reference.
- Refer to the Living Building Challenge™ as "the Challenge" at the second + reference.
- Refer to Cascadia Green Building Council as "Cascadia" at the second + reference.

Use of Copyright:
Below is a list of examples of accepted copyright references.
- USGBC's LEED® rating system, use the registered trademark symbol the first time it is referenced in an article.
- The Living Building Challenge™, use the trademark symbol the first time it is referenced in an article.
- The International Living Building Institute™, use the trademark symbol the first time it is referenced in an article.

Format of Submission

We can accept only electronic submissions. We encourage you to send queries or proposals, rather than completed submissions. Please include any published clips or writing samples with queries. Images are encouraged.  Please send invited submissions as attachments (in Word) to joanna(at)cascadiagbc{dot)org.

When sending images please follow the steps outlined:

SUBMITTING YOUR IMAGES TO TRIM TAB

Send high-resolution artwork for the magazine. If you will be taking photos, set your camera to take high-quality / fine images. Otherwise, send the largest files that you have.
• Send .JPG and/or .TIF files.
• Pixel dimensions should come close to 1500 pixels on both the length and width of the images that you send.
• DO NOT send photos placed into Word, PowerPoint or that have any text on them.
• Please send only original artwork or images for which you have obtained permissions to reprint. Submission to Trim Tab constitutes permission to reprint, and resulting copyright claim will be the responsibility of the author.

HOW TO CHECK PHOTO PIXEL DIMENSIONS:

On a PC: Right-click on the icon for the image. A drop down menu will appear, and you should select “properties.” Next, select either “summary” or “details.” You will see the dimensions listed. Both the length and width should exceed 1500 pixels.

On a Mac: Control-click on the icon for the image. A drop down menu will appear, and you should select “get info.” A window will open. Click the triangle next to the words “more info.” You will see the dimensions listed. Both the length and width should exceed 1500 pixels.

Process

Once your pitch is received, the editorial team will review for appropriate content and quality of writing. If we are interested in the story, we will request a draft for review—this is not a promise of inclusion. If the draft meets the caliber of writing and thought we expect, we will slate it for publication.

Please allow one to two months for an initial response.

Compensation

Freelance contributors will have the benefit of sharing their stories and ideas to an advanced audience of green building practitioners, providing progressive fodder for discussion, projects and real change.

At this time, freelance contributions are voluntary. This may change as the publication grows.

Rights

To aggressively promote transformative change in the built environment we make our articles available under the Creative Commons license. We grant permission to our authors to reprint their work, as long as they acknowledge in the reprint that the piece first appeared in Trim Tab and include the author byline.