Write for PLY

Whether you’re a seasoned writer/designer or putting fingers to keyboard for the first time, we absolutely know you can write for PLY! We want real spinners, authentic voices, strong narratives, great stories, practical advice, passionate words.

Feel like you’re not the best writer in the world? We don’t care! It’s easy to help with writing but it’s not easy to find somebody that knows what you know. We want your voice, your story, your spinning. We want you. That’s right, our goal is to get as many voices in this magazine as possible.

Feel like you don’t know enough about a particular topic? We still want you. While it’s true that we have dense and heavy topics that require lots of knowledge and years of experience, we also have experimentation articles, learn as you go write-ups, spin it articles, spinner profiles, guild pieces, tip jar tips etc. There is something for each and every spinner (to both read and write!).

Each issue has a theme and everything in the issue relates to that theme. The mood board (see below submission form for moodboard) will explain the theme, give you some ideas of what we’re looking for, show you the color palette, and tell you the proposal due date and when you’ll hear a yes or no.

Won’t you write for us? I promise we’ll do everything we can to make it an easy and gratifying experience. Plus, it pays and because we value the creative process, we only borrow the rights to your work. Twelve months after publication, the work reverts back to you and you’re free to do whatever you like with it.

Wanna be notified each time we put out a new call for submissions to PLY ? Sign up here for our e-mail list!

View Current Moodboard

Summer 2026 – Purpose

Although spinning up a gorgeous skein of yarn seems like a project in and of itself, ultimately most handspun yarn is used to create something else. So how do you spin with a purpose in mind? We want to hear about it!

What crafts do you use your handspun yarn for? Knitting? Crochet? Weaving? Embroidery? Macrame? Rug making? Mixed media art? Each one can have specific needs for the yarn, and we want to explore those qualities in this issue.

What makes a yarn a good knitting yarn? What are some changes in that yarn to make it better for crochet? Does it make a difference if you’re using knitting needles, working on a knitting loom, or cranking a sock machine? Does Tunisian crochet have the same yarn needs as crochet?

What about weaving? What are the qualities that work best for the warp vs the weft? Do you want to use different yarns if you’re using a rigid heddle loom vs a table loom? What about tablet weaving?

Do you use handspun for embroidery or visible mending? What kinds of yarns work best for those crafts?

When you have a specific project in mind, what kinds of questions do you ask yourself before you start spinning? How do you determine what characteristics a yarn needs? What are those characteristics? From the technical (twist per inch, ply structure, wraps per inch) to the yarn qualities (drape, shine, warmth, sturdiness, loft), how do you know what decisions to make?

What about repurposing? Do you use recycled materials in your spinning? Have you used handspun yarn to upcycle or modify something already made?

Tell us about your spinning community. Do you have a group that spins for a cause or a charity?

What about tools? How have you used something else as a spinning tool or used a spinning tool in an unusual way?

And this issue wouldn’t be complete without some patterns. We’re always looking for knitting, crochet, or weaving patterns, but we’d like to see an embroidery pattern or another craft pattern for our readers to make with their own handspun.

Article and project proposals due by June 1, 2025.

You’ll hear back from us in July 2025.

Final articles, samples, and projects due by December 1, 2025.

The last few mood boards are here:

Spring 2026: Experimental

Winter 2025: Long Draw

Autumn 2025: Plants

Summer 2025: Tension