Although many articles in Arms Control Today (ACT) are solicited by the editors, we also welcome unsolicited submissions.
We strongly recommend that potential authors submit a complete draft of a proposed article for consideration. That may speed the decision process. If you have not yet written a full draft and wish to find out if ACT is interested in your proposed topic, please send a one- or two-page pitch with 1/a clear thesis statement 2/a 2-3 paragraph introduction and 3/a summary of the points that buttress your thesis. All submissions must include the author’s resume.
To ensure that your submission is appropriate for ACT, please familiarize yourself with the magazine, its guidelines, as well as past articles on related topics. (If you have previously submitted an article, please review the guidelines again as they are revised periodically.)
Feature Articles
ACT welcomes submissions on topics in the field of international arms control and disarmament, including nuclear proliferation, strategic weapons reductions, missile defense, AI as it pertains to WMD, chemical and biological weapons, missile proliferation, and conventional arms exports. Feature articles should stimulate debate and offer constructive policy suggestions. ACT articles are not purely academic discussions or journalistic accounts; we seek articles that detail and analyze a current policy problem and propose appropriate means for addressing it.
Feature articles should range around 2,500 words. We occasionally accept articles as long as 4,000 words but that is not the norm. We require a reasonable amount of sourcing in the endnote – not footnote – format. Charts, graphs, or other supporting material are welcome.
Our readership includes experts and non-experts; articles should be written so that they are of value to both groups. Avoid jargon and unnecessary technical detail; if used, such terms should be explained on the first reference. Avoid cluttering the article with abbreviations and acronyms.
"New Voices" Essay Series
As weapons of mass destruction dangers evolve and expand, a new generation of thinkers and doers is needed to help develop ideas and solutions to eradicate the threat, now, and in the years ahead. We invite scholars, think tank analysts, activists, and other experts who are 35 years old or younger and who have not previously been published in Arms Control Today to submit proposals for possible publication as part of our "New Voices" essay series. Women and people of color, who have been underrepresented in national security debates, are especially encouraged to forward proposals, but anyone with a good idea will be considered. ACT welcomes submissions on the same topics that we cover in feature articles (above). Proposals should be submitted as completed drafts in the range of 1,500 words. Endnotes are required. Authors should submit a resume.
Book Reviews and Our “Looking Back” Series
ACT book reviews cover relevant titles in the field of arms control; they run in alternate issues. Book reviews are essays; although they should summarize the arguments and style of the book that is being reviewed, they need not restrict themselves to that. They should avoid jargon and unnecessary technical detail. Potential authors should model reviews on those previously published in ACT and/or the style in The New York Review of Books.
ACT also publishes occasional “Looking Back” essays that reflect on a significant past arms control decision, event, or milestone. These articles often consider the current policy situation and contextualize it within the larger legacy of important treaties, conventions, nuclear tests, etc. Potential authors should consider pegging the article to an anniversary (particularly the fifth, tenth, etc.) of a major arms control event. Book reviews and "Looking Back" essays are generally in the 2,000-word range.
Letters-to-the-Editor
ACT welcomes letters from readers in response to current events or articles in previous editions. Letters are limited to 500 words and may be edited for space.
How to Submit
Submissions and letters-to-the-editor may be emailed to [email protected]. In the subject line, please indicate what type of submission you are attaching. Our editorial team meets monthly, usually during the first two weeks, to consider new submissions. We aim to inform authors of decisions in a timely fashion. If you need a quicker response, please let us know and we will try to accommodate the request.
Once an article is accepted for publication, it undergoes a multistage editing process. The amount of time this takes depends on many factors, including the issue in which the article is scheduled to appear. The editor will advise authors as appropriate.
Complimentary Subscription
Authors of an accepted feature article, book review, "New Voices," or “Looking Back” piece will receive a one-year professional digital subscription to Arms Control Today as well as four copies of the edition in which their submission is printed.