Letters to the Editor and Guest Essays

The Lawrentian prides itself on representing a wide range of opinions and perspectives across the campus population. To this end, we encourage any reader to submit a letter to the editor and any current Lawrence student to submit a guest essay for consideration to be published.  

Letters to the editor should be less than 500 words and respond in some way to an article previously published in The Lawrentian. Any letter to the editor received during a standard news cycle will be published in the edition immediately after the letter has been edited and revised. The letter will appear on The Lawrentian website at the same time as the rest of that edition. If a letter to the editor is received outside of the standard news cycle, it will be edited and revised per usual and will be uploaded to The Lawrentian website once that process is complete. Letters received outside of the standard news cycle will not be published in print. 

Guest essays may vary in length, but the most successful essays tend to be between 500 and 800 words; essays may not exceed 1,000 words. Guest essays will be published in the Opinions & Editorials section and should make an argument grounded in fact from a unique perspective. Essays should be timely, engaging, original, focused and clearly written. Strong essays address the author’s position in relation to their argument and must consider any conflict of interest or ethical implications to their writing. 

All articles published by The Lawrentian will be edited for clarity, style and grammar. All information claiming to be fact, including information contained in a letter or guest essay, will be verified for accuracy. We also encourage any person considering submitting a guest essay to review the editorial policy before they submit their work. If an essay is accepted for publication, the guest writer will be asked to submit an annotated copy of the essay, listing the relevant sources for each factual assertion. Members of the Editorial Board will be responsible for verifying these claims. From there, editors will work with writers to discuss the result and how to move forward with the piece if necessary. 

Essays may be published under a pseudonym, though we encourage writers to consider how anonymity may impact credibility. 

Guest writers will be paid $15 for their essay if their submission is accepted; payment occurs at the end of each academic term. Unlike The Lawrentian staff, guest writers will not be paid hourly for time spent researching or conducting interviews. Guest writers may submit multiple essays throughout the course of the term and will be paid at the end of the term for each one which is published. Writers of letters to the editor will not be paid for their submissions. 

Letters may be submitted as a Word document via email to lawrentian@lawrence.edu. Guest essays may be submitted as a Word document directly to the Opinions & Editorials editor. Letters to the editor and guest essays are due by 9 p.m. on Sundays during the standard news cycle.