Writing for UYA

In writing content, there are a few things to keep in mind. All of our articles go through a review process. To ensure doctrinal integrity, consistent voice/tone and suitability for the target audience, a team reads and comments on all writing submitted. We can’t guarantee that we will accept every article we receive. However, our decision not to use an article does not necessarily mean a doctrinal issue—it just might not meet our needs at this time. 

Please remember the guidelines below when writing and submitting your article: 

General Guidelines 

• Consider: would this topic be interesting and relevant to UCG young adults? 
• Word count: 600-1,000 words 

Voice and Tone 

• The core values we keep in mind are truth, love, authenticity and positivity. All of our articles are to reflect these values as they present a compelling message. 
• Voice is our overall tone as United Young Adults, and as UCG. Our voice is caring, clear, urgent and real. 
• An article’s tone is how the voice adjusts to different topics; an article about dating will have a different tone than an article about domestic terrorism. 

Content 

• Since our articles are on primarily spiritual topics, we frequently reference scriptures throughout. Although we recommend avoiding articles that simply present a bullet-point list of scriptures, referencing scriptures, and occasionally quoting passages from scripture help keep the article in a biblical focus. 
• Articles do not have to use scholarly sources or overly academic language, but it is important to go in-depth on topics, providing sources and scripture where needed to illustrate a point. Many of the same tone guidelines that apply to Compass Check can be useful when writing articles for UYA. 
• Personal anecdotes and stories from the news, history or other sources can make interesting openers or provide helpful illustrations. However, it’s important to balance the article so that it is not primarily narrative, but allocates plenty of space for the spiritual topics being discussed. 

Article Structure 

• Include a one or two sentence intro paragraph under the title which can be a synopsis of the article or a tease about its contents. 
• For articles over 400 words, break the article into readable sections by adding subheads before new thoughts to indicate what the next few paragraphs will cover. 

References 

• When quoting a source, the format should be in this order: author, article title, publication name, date of publication. 
• When quoting a source from the internet, please copy and paste its link immediately below the quotation so the managing editor can verify its accuracy. 
• For scripture quotes, use the New King James Version; if you quote from a different version, please note which version it is. 

Article Submission 

• Please submit completed articles by email to uya@ucg.org. Readable formats include .docx and .pdf files.  
• When submitting a series of articles, please send them as a completed set. 

If you have any questions about these guidelines, please contact the UYA team at uya@ucg.org.  We look forward to hearing from you and reading your article!