Write for PLY

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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 who 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 some dense and heavy topics might 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 mood board) 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? We 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 contributor list!

View Winter 2027 Moodboard

Winter 2027: Essentials

For this issue, we’re focusing on the essentials of spinning. What information should a new spinner know? What did you wish you knew when you started spinning? We have lots of questions and look forward to hearing your answers to them and other ideas you have for this topic. 

How do spinning wheels work? How do e-spinners work? Spindles? What are level winders, and what can and can’t they do? What tools beyond a wheel or spindle are needed to get started? What might you want to add later? 

What about fiber? What types of fiber are there? Fiber preps? What exactly does each fiber prep mean for how you spin the fiber and what kind of yarn you can make? How do you care for your fiber? How do you choose a fleece and process it? 

What’s the difference between woolen and worsted, and how and when do you do each? How can you be consistent when spinning? When would you want to ply and when might you leave the yarn as a singles yarn? How do you ply and what are the different plying structures? What is a kate, and when and why might you want to tension it?  

How do you describe what you’re doing while spinning and the results of the yarn you’ve spun? What kinds of measurements can you take and why would you want to take them? How do you finish a yarn and how do you decide what type of finishing to do? And how do you care for the yarn until you use it? How do you plan for a project and how do you make a yarn for a specific purpose? 

 

Article proposals due by December 1, 2026.  

You’ll hear back from us in January 2027.  

Final articles and samples due by May 1, 2027.  

 

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The last few mood boards are here:

Autumn 2027: Luxury

Summer 2027: Whorl

Spring 2027: Blends

Winter 2026: Short Draw

Contributor Guidelines

Find the Contributor Guidelines here (most recent update September 14, 2026)

No AI use policy

Do not use AI to generate any of the writing of your article. Do not use AI to do any editing of your article. If you’re worried about your writing, please don’t. Your article will be going through several rounds of different types of editing, which will help with the organization/flow and any mechanical errors.

Our most important goal is to have your article sound like you, which is what we strive for while we edit articles. Using AI for writing or editing removes your personal voice, which is a big part of what we want to see in your article.