Write for Us
We are currently closed for submissions.
We’re always looking for new pieces that cover any number of topics on women and gender in the history and popular culture of science, technology, and medicine. We run three medium-form feature stories each month, which are typically thoroughly-researched pieces with a historical framing. We also run personal essays, cultural criticism, reviews, commentary on current and historical events, and much more. Before you send us a pitch, be sure that you read through the site to get a sense of our style and content to determine whether or not your piece is a good fit.
Features
Thoroughly researched historical pieces, written for a general audience. Features should have a clear argument and be well sourced.
When Love Stories Became Medicine for Warworn Soldiers
Specimen Days: Human Zoos, the 1904 World’s Fair, and the Gender of Imperialism
White Feminism and Eugenics: The Case of Gertrude Davenport
Essays
Essays can be personal or researched. Typically less in-depth than features, they can be about the past or the present, from pop culture to politics. Special Series, like our annual Queer Science series, are part of this category, and specific calls for submissions for these are posted on social media.
What it’s like to be a trans scientist with imposter syndrome
Archive of Hate: Ethics of Care in the Preservation of Ugly Histories
Ideas
Ideas includes a broad range of topics and styles, from interviews to rants.
Liberate Your Lawn From the Legacy of Masculine Science
500 Women Scientists Use STEM in the Fight Against Trump
Commentary
This section includes commentary on both current and historical events, such as takes on the news, political controversies, and important historical anniversaries.
The Ghost of the Glass Ceiling That Still Haunts Equal Pay
Expertise and the Never-Ending Election
Scientists wade into the historical monument debate and find themselves in familiar waters
Reviews
Reviews of recent books, films, plays etc. that touch on Lady Science themes.
Patricia Fara’s "A Lab of One’s Own: Science and Suffrage in the First World War"
The Science of Self-Making: Neflix'‘s “Self Made” and the Methodology of Madam C.J. Walker
Through the Reproductive Lives of Women: On Cassia Roth’s “Miscarriage of Justice”
What we’re NOT looking for
Straight biographies of particularly famous scientists, like Marie Curie (or anything about Marie Curie).
Breaking science news stories. Profiles or interviews may work but they should have a clear connection to LS themes of science, gender, and history.
Pitches for recurring columns.
Advertorials, sponsored content, or explicit self-promotion or promotion of a specific project/product.
How to pitch us
Send pitches for Essays, Commentary, Ideas, and Reviews to ladyscienceinfo[at]gmail[dot]com and send pitches for Features to Sarah Muncy at sarah[at]ladyscience[dot]com. Please include “PITCH” along with your pitch headline in the subject line, and let us know if the pitch is time-sensitive. Please only submit one pitch at a time. Do not send full drafts.
Your pitch should be two paragraphs and include:
A clear sense of what your piece is about and what angle you are taking on it. (Be sure that you are pitching an argument or story, not a just a topic, and that your angle is original)
The necessary elements of the piece (The people, conflicts, context of your story or argument).
Research. Let us know that you’ve done your research on your angle and that you’re capable of following through.
Why is Lady Science a good fit for your piece?
Practical information about qualifications/bio, when ideally you’d like the piece to run, and relevant clips to previous writing. (If you know what section you’d like the piece to run, include it, but if you aren’t sure, don’t worry about it too much. We’ll figure it out for you!).