Introducing The Writer Archives
By: Allan Rae, Alto
Tags: Archived Collections, Body Of Work, About Ac

Introducing The Writer Archives

Want to add yours?

One, because the Medium profile page is completely ineffective as a tool to find a writer’s body of work. Two, because a publication that showcases curated collections of a writer's work does not exist.

Detailed submission guidelines here.

The above issues were the catalysts behind both this piece and the publication which it is meant to introduce.

The Writer Archives. A Medium publication for the “smalls.”

It is for writers who may not generate followers in the 10,000 or 100,000 range, but are by far a better read than most who do. It is for writers who pen works of original creative nonfiction, poetry, fiction, and any combinations thereof. It is for writers who value and appreciate writing, not “thought leaders” who generate “content” faster than fruit flies reproduce.

Ultimately, it is a publication for writers who have accepted the challenge of being a writer, and have done so with pride. I’m confident you know who you are.

SOME CONTEXT

Remember a while back when a few people started writing posts they featured at the top of their profile page that held links to a large volume of their work on Medium? I am often linked to or credited as having been one of the first to do this, though who did what, when I really don’t know. The good thing about that, and the reason I mention it, is that with this project, it really doesn’t matter. Egalitarianism seems to be a natural fit for how a publication of curated archives functions.

Consider how often you receive something in your feed written by writers you truly want to read.

Enough said.

Now consider the potential in a one-stop shop website that contains links to most of your favorite writers’ work. Not links to individual pieces, but one article linking to entire bodies of work, or thematically curated collections. A place where most, if not all, of your favorite collections can exist as a collection, in a collection.

If picturing that is difficult, let me show you. I am looking for pieces like this one by Hana Leshner:

Or this one by Lon Shapiro:

This one by Lizella Prescott:

Or this one by yours truly:

The first three are great examples of exactly what I’d like this publication to showcase. I am hoping they submit their piece and become the next three writers this publication hosts.

Subtle hint, subtle hint.

The last example is my own archive piece. It is also this publication’s first entry. Why? Because I started the bloody thing and had to have at least one post, that’s why!

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

To make it work, we need some rules. Guidelines, if you prefer. While they are not many and not especially complicated, they are, however, specific, and at risk of potential misunderstanding:

Submissions are welcome from any writer who has a body of work on Medium. For our purposes here, a body of work is defined as a minimum of 10 original, stand-alone pieces, broadly categorized as either creative nonfiction (personal essay, op/ed, satire, memoir), poetry, any genre of fiction, and, for combinations of these categories, mixed genre. Submissions must include links to a minimum of 3 pieces from the writer’s body of work (which you will recall is defined as a minimum of 10 original, stand-alone works). For our purposes here, responses do not count as part of a writer’s body of work, and therefore are ineligible for submission. Submissions that are listicle style, “seven ways to navel gaze AND drink your power shake too” articles, articles whose sole purpose is seeking endorsements or product reviews, are not eligible for submission. Your submission MUST exist on Medium independently (that means not in a publication). In other words, while the work you are recommending in your submission CAN exist in, or not in, a publication, your SUBMISSION CANNOT already exist be in a publication.

IMPORTANT REMINDER

Any article that suggests, or recommends an article that suggests an endorsement of, or alignment with racism, sexism, ableism, GLBTQ intolerance, or those espousing general bigotry and/or promoting discrimination of any kind will NOT be eligible for submission. Those include “in the interest of opening a discussion” articles that serve only to further a bigoted agenda.

Please be aware that since this is my publication, my specific tolerance for this shit is low. Both because it should be, and because it can be.

IN CLOSING

If you’ve read the submission guidelines and have a piece that would fit, please email me with a request to be a writer and I will add you right away.

Email: archivedcollections@outlook.com

You are then set to submit your piece via the “ … ” button at the top right of your piece. Choose Add to Publication, then choose Add to Archived Collections. Press Send.

If you don’t have an archive piece yet but you like this idea and want to be a part of it, then get busy and write one. When you are ready, follow the instructions above.

Update:

There seems to be a bit of confusion over the 10 and 5 rule, so I apologize if the instructions were unclear.

To be eligible to submit a writer must have written and published a minimum of 10 stand-alone pieces (not responses) on the Medium platform, either independently or in a publication. In other words, you must have already written 10 works minimum on the Medium platform before you are eligible to submit to The Writer Archives.

A writer is then eligible to submit an archive or a collection piece that has, at a minimum, 3 stand alone works linked. The piece they are submitting to The Writer Archives (the post where the recommended links appear) cannot have appeared in any other publication.

For example, I create an archive post that has 5 works of poetry, 2 published in C(G), two in Poets Unlimited, and one in Made Up Words. That archive post must be free of a publication because if the submission is accepted this will be the publication it is housed in.