catapult magazine

About the articles

by The *cino staff

Who writes articles for catapult?

Like it says in this issue’s editorial, most of our writers are personal connections and we ask them to write because we know they have a particular interest in some of the issue topics. We publish both original articles (written recently or not-so-recently) and, with proper permission, articles that have appeared in other publications. Our articles have featured the work of both professional writers and junior high students, English instructors and adults who haven’t written since college. Because we value the experiences and stories of people working in all areas of culture, we like to make it possible for people of all writing skill and appreciation levels to participate. For this reason, we sometimes conduct interviews with individuals who will make an important contribution, but who wouldn’t necessarily sit down willingly in front of a computer to do so. We also do surveys that ask people to respond out of their own experiences to specific questions: “Is Halloween a trick or a treat?” is a good example of this method.

What should I do if I want to submit an article?

You can contact Kirstin, the magazine’s editor, at kirstinvgr@cultureisnotoptional.com. We are always accepting submissions, preferably in Word format, but rich text format works too. If a particular submission doesn’t fit with an upcoming issue topic, we will hold onto the article until it fits and e-mail you when we publish it. We have no length restrictions for articles, but if you need a suggestion, let’s say 500-1500 words. If you would like to write an article for an upcoming issue, send a quick e-mail to Kirstin with a short summary of the proposed article and she’ll let you know if it will work.

What are some of the *cino community’s favorite articles from past issues?

Several articles were mentioned in response to this question. Most people enjoyed those articles that told personal stories in a way that related the stories to the issue’s topic and broader life issues. To revisit some of these non-fiction articles, see “”http://www.catapultmagazine.com/issues/article.cfm?issue=2&article=13" target="_blank">Sock Feathers" by Simon du Toit, “Waiting for the Rising” by Kirstin Vander Giessen-Reitsma and “Retreating into the fray” by Naomi R. Wenger. For a fiction example, read “Second Chances” by Jeff DeVries. In the realm of non-fiction articles that challenge readers to think critically about larger issues from a Christian perspective, favorites include Grant Elgersma?s “Is your church fantasy friendly?” and anything by Steve Lansingh: check out “The rat race, art, and the inner life” and “Movie lines that intersect the spiritual dimension”.