Below are some helpful guidelines to consider when writing for the BMW MOA Owners News. If you have further questions or concerns, feel free to contact Media Editor Vince Winkel at vince@bmwmoa.org or Deputy Editor Mandy Langston at mandy@bmwmoa.org. We are excited to hear from you!

SUBMISSIONS

We recommend that you E-mail the story as a Word attachment, or in the body of an e-mail. You may also send it through the mail on a CD as a Word file. Include your name, member number and a suggested headline or two as part of the document.

Always include your name and member number on each part of your submission for easy identification (especially CDs). Do not embed the photos into the story, please. Include the photos as separate attachments or files.

Choose a tense to tell your story. Continue to use the tense you have chosen throughout the story, or as appropriate. For example, if you start out in past tense by saying, “We took a trip in October,” avoid suddenly switching to present tense and saying, “I am having a great time!”

Only one space is necessary between sentences. It is not necessary to bold or use italics in your story – plain text will work until it is edited.

Please use complete sentences. “Gorgeous day,” is not a complete sentence. “It was a beautiful day,” is a complete sentence.

If you choose to write a story about a trip you took, please include information pertinent to readers such as total mileage, total cost, recommended model bike for this sort of riding, recommended route, what you would have done differently, accommodations, etc. Consider your audience when writing – they might want to follow in your tracks!

PHOTOS

Please include no more than 50 photos per story. Be sure the shots are your best – the clear, in focus pictures work the best for the magazine. These may be sent in separately on a disc or posted to a Smugmug or similar account for easy access.

If you include photos, include cut lines (captions) for each image. A cut line identifies the people in the photographs, as well as the location and date, if appropriate. Don’t worry about cropping the images, and please remove the timestamp from the photo if possible.

Another helpful hint: vary your images between landscape and portraits. Vertical images make great cover shots, and provide for a variety of composition.

While we’re on variety; take pictures from interesting angles and with interesting perspectives. We receive many pictures of signs from state parks and motorcycles parked alongside roads. Photos with people in them are usually more interesting than photos of scenery.

If you would like to submit a photo, you may send us digital files, prints or color transparencies (slides). Please do not send originals, negatives or low-resolution copies (such as inkjet or dye sublimation prints).

If sending digital photos, please submit the highest resolution, least compressed versions available. If possible use your camera's highest resolution setting and a non-compressed format, such as TIFF.

If you must use a compressed file format, such as JPEG, use the highest (least compressed) setting. The "RAW" format option available on some cameras is an excellent format for maintaining the greatest latitude for post processing, it is a non-standard, proprietary file format, however, and therefore must be converted to another standard format, such as TIFF, before submission.

If sending prints, please submit glossy, not matte, surfaces. Please make sure that all materials you send are free of dust and fingerprints. Please do not write directly on the back of prints using markers since the ink may transfer to the face of the following print.

It's important to understand that photos printed in the magazine will be used at 300 dpi. Photos used on the web are typically low resolution (72 dpi) and highly compressed and therefore not suitable to print publishing.

Please give your story a brief edit before sending it in, checking that names of people, places and factual information is accurate. Programs like Spellchecker and Grammar check are helpful.

Have a friend read your story to ensure that it flows well, makes sense and is factually correct. Perhaps they can make suggestions to improve your story – ask them if they have any questions about your topic after reading your submission.

Write a 50-word blurb about yourself to be included at the end of your story if you wish. Tell us what you do and where you live. For example, “Laurie Macartney is a retired chemistry teacher. She works as a substitute teacher for her previous school district and works as an EMT for a local Emergency Response company. She has had her R1150R for two years. She lives in Redmond, Washington.” This gives great perspective to your readers about you.

Thank you for taking the time to contribute to the Owners New. Member submissions make the magazine! When we receive your story, we will make every effort to contact you and discuss your story in a timely manner. We look forward to seeing your story in print.

Michael Cohen, Art Director
Mandy Langston, Deputy Editor
Vince Winkel, Editor