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L.A. Affairs submission guidelines

L.A. Affairs is a first-person column in the L.A. Times chronicling romance and relationships.
(Hanna Barczyk / For The Times)
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L.A. Affairs is a first-person column in the L.A. Times chronicling romance and relationships. We are looking for previously unpublished work. Here’s how to submit your essay.

  • We are looking for previously unpublished work.
  • We prefer stories that are rooted in the present, not the distant past.
  • Each story needs to have an arc. Mere musings on the state of affairs won’t do.
  • We like stories to have a strong sense of place and to feel rooted in Southern California.
  • Stories should be roughly 1,000 words.
  • Stories must be true. Everything in each piece including names must be factually correct. No exaggeration, no fictional or composite characters, no hyperbole for the sake of dramatic effect.
  • We will not accept anonymous essays.
  • We pay $400 for a published essay.

We understand that these stories are personal, and we will edit them with the greatest sensitivity we can muster. But we will edit — for content, for length and for tone. We see writing and editing as a collaborative venture, but ultimately the editor’s decisions will stand.

Please be patient: We receive dozens and dozens of submissions for L.A. Affairs each week and are not always able to respond immediately.

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