Do you have a St. Louis River story? Here is a list of local and regional publications, online resources, and blogging sites so you can find the best fit for your story.
We don’t publish stories; the goal of One River, Many Stories is to aggregate St. Louis River stories across multiple media platforms. Many of these stories will be added to the growing collection on our interactive map of the St. Louis River region and shared via social media.
No matter which medium you prefer, be sure to share your story with us via Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook with the hashtags #OneRiverMN or #ChiGamiZiibi. We will repost your article, audio, video, blog, or image, and it will appear on the OneRiverMN.com news feed.
Simple publishing platform
Medium.com is a quick, easy way to get your story live and accessible to the public. You can create an account by linking to your existing social media or by using your e-mail. Once you have an account, you are ready to begin writing and publishing. Once you have a story, you can add tags and share with the world — for One River, use #onerivermn or #ChiGamiZiibi. It’s that simple.
Multi-media formats
Storify is an easy way to curate social media posts to tell a story, as seen on our blog. This is a great option if you want to pull multiple voices and images into your story. Making an account is simple, and, like Medium.com, you can choose to create an account with your Facebook or Twitter. Then choose “New Story” and begin. On the right side of your computer screen, you will see all of the media you can choose to pull into your Storify. On the left, you can create a headline, description and text to give your Storify context. When you are done, simply hit “Publish.”
YouTube has been around long enough that it doesn’t need an introduction. The St. Louis River lends itself to visual and audio stories, which makes YouTube a wonderful fit for One River, Many Stories. Be sure to share your videos with us on social media.
Blog sites
Perfect Duluth Day accepts posts to its (moderated) blog page, and the PDD guidelines page is both informational and entertaining. The Selective Focus feature on Perfect Duluth Day is seeking photos of the river: April 1 topic is contemplative aspects, natural beauty, venerated resource. April 8 topic is recreational possibilities.
WordPress: We asked writers in the community to share their favorite blog sites, and many mentioned WordPress, which is free and user-friendly. When you begin, you will choose your topic, theme and domain name. After you enter your login, you are ready to blog. There are upgrades available for a fee, but the basic usage is completely free.
Area publications that accept submissions
There are an astonishing number of news outlets in the Twin Ports and the river region, and many have been enthusiastic participants in One River, Many Stories. Listed here are just a few of the places you can contact to publish your story, but as all writers know, submitting for consideration isn’t a guarantee of publication.
The Duluth News Tribune will occasionally accept submissions for news stories. If you have a freelance story to pitch, e-mail Andrew Krueger at akrueger@duluthnews.com.
If you are looking to write an opinion piece such as a letter to the editor or column, you have more options (although these are not paid). These pieces have a 300-word limit, must be your own, original work and must be exclusive to the DNT. Letters are edited for style, space, accuracy and civility. Additionally, you could consider writing a Local View piece, which has a 600-word limit. These should portray a unique insight and display a strong knowledge of the subject. E-mail submissions to: letters@duluthnews.com
The Lake County News Chronicle accepts story submissions with a max of 750 words and no first-person writing. Articles written in the first person will be considered a guest commentary, which has a maximum of 600 words. Submissions can be sent to chronicle@lcnewschronicle.com.
The Pine Journal runs stories exclusively about Carlton County. These stories must be factual and written to accepted journalism standards. If you have a story for The Pine Journal, e-mail Editor Jana Peterson at jpeterson@pinejournal.com.
The Superior Telegram accepts article submissions; submissions and questions on deadlines can be directed to Editor Shelley Nelson at snelson@superiortelegram.com or (715) 395-5022.
Bi-weekly, monthly, and quarterly publications
Lake Time Magazine is an online and print magazine featuring stories about Northern Minnesota. Its website hosts a submissions page. You can send in your ideas or fill out a contact form. Also, use #itslaketime to give permission for the Lake Time to share your stories.
Northern Wilds, based out of Grand Marais, has a page with submission guidelines that says simply to contact them.
Zenith City News reviews story ideas during the editing process rather than accepting already completed articles. While it most likely has no upcoming story slots open, consider them in the future if you have a promising story idea. Their features are generally 2,000-3,000 words long. Their e-mail is zenithcityweekly@yahoo.com.
Especially for Students
If you are a student journalist looking to publish, you can contact your school’s student publication:
Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College students: Get in touch with The Independent.
Lake Superior College students: Submit to The Wave.
St. Scholastica students: Contact The Cable.
UMD students: Check out The Statesman.
UWS students: Write for The Stinger.
Media outlet looking for stories?
If you are a local outlet interested in publishing stories written by local storytellers on the topic of communities along the St. Louis River, tweet us @OneRiverMN or email us at onerivermanystories@gmail.com.
One River, Many Stories
“One River, Many Stories” is a journalism, media and storytelling project and resource hub for journalists, educators, and citizens to foster deeper conversations about our community. This University of Minnesota Duluth Journalism program project is funded in part by the Knight Foundation Fund of the Duluth Superior Area Community Foundation.
St. Louis River, April 2016: See what happens when journalists and storytellers in one region turn their attention to one topic.
For more information, please contact Project Coordinator Judy Budreau at onerivermanystories@gmail.com.