The B.C. Catholic appreciates your interest and wants to help you share your stories with our readers. By following these simple guidelines, you can make it more likely that readers will learn about the events and activities your organization is involved in, as your submission will have a greater chance of being published.
The B.C. Catholic is loyal to the Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church and submissions must reflect that loyalty.
The B.C. Catholic publishes non-fiction and opinion articles generally ranging from 300 to 1,000 words on topics of interest to Catholics in British Columbia and Canada. News and feature stories as well as opinion pieces should be relevant to the faith and to B.C. (We may accept longer articles on occasion.)
We don’t customarily publish fiction or poetry.
If you are submitting an article that has previously been printed elsewhere, you must advise us of the publication date and the original publication. If you are submitting an article that has been submitted elsewhere and is still awaiting publication, please advise us of this as well.
Be colourful and brief
Write-ups and photos of your events needn't be long and detailed. Keep in mind that most readers will want to know, "What was the most interesting thing about your event?" This should comprise your lede – the first sentence or two. A short, engaging lede is essential to good story writing. Examples can be found on the web.
Then relate the 5 W’s and other points of interest. News articles rarely work without quotes from the "newsmakers" involved in the story. If you add quotes with attribution, your write-up will have a greater chance of being selected for publishing.
Please remember to include the more colourful details. The fact that 14 people gathered for a luncheon is less interesting than the news that at the luncheon they presented a new chalice to the pastor. And remember to get a picture of the pastor and the chalice.
Be timely
One way you can help us get your news in the paper is to keep it current. It's better to send us a couple of paragraphs and a photo this week than a two-page write-up and many photos several weeks from now. And if all you have is a photograph, send it in. Chances are it will grab just as many readers all by itself.
Be within reach
Always include a name and phone number where The B.C. Catholic can get additional information if necessary.
Please remember
All articles must include a byline, or author’s name. We rarely publish anything without attribution.
If you are submitting an opinion piece, please add one or two sentences about yourself at the end of the article. E.g., John Smith is the communication director for the diocese of British Columbia.
If you are submitting a historical piece on a person or event, please use your lede to tie it into something current. It will have a better chance at being published if you do. Also, quote an expert to help tie the article into the present.
Submit your article by email to [email protected] or through our online form.
The B.C. Catholic accepts photos from groups and individuals for publication. If you have an interesting or newsworthy photo or photos, please send them along to us.
Photo tips
To improve the chances that we use your photos, please keep in mind a few of things:
Be timely
One way you can help us get your photos in the paper is to keep them current. It's better to send us one photo right away, rather than a lot of photos several weeks from now.
Be within reach
Always include a name and phone number where The B.C. Catholic can get additional information if necessary.
Please remember
All photos must include a photo credit – the name of the person who took the photo. We rarely publish anything without attribution. Also remember to include photo caption information, including names of people in the photos.
How to submit photos
Photos can be emailed as attachments or as a web link to [email protected]. Pictures should be large files with high resolution. Originals are best. Please do not shrink the image size to send it by email; the picture won’t be printable. We do not accept hard-copy photos.