The Crystal Quill
Each month, the Barony of Nordskogen produces The Crystal Quill, the baronial newsletter. Each issue contains letters from baronial officers, contact information, meeting schedules, and event listings, as well as articles, artwork, announcements, and miscellany. The Chronicler is actively seeking articles and artwork pertaining to these themes. Articles should focus on period practices, research, and/or current SCA practices. Submission guidelines and deadlines are below. If you have ideas for a good issue theme, please share it with the Chronicler.
Meet the Chronicler
Rima al-Zahra (mka Reiko Soukup)
(612) 414-8442 -- no calls before 8am or after 9pm, please
chronicler@nordskogen.northshield.org
The Crystal Quill Online
The Quill has moved to a free, digital-only format. You will need Adobe Reader (free download here) to view the PDF files. If you would like a printed copy or a past issue, please contact the Chronicler.
Submissions
The Crystal Quill is always looking for submissions of articles, stories, songs and poems, and artwork. Submission deadline is noon on the Sunday following the monthly business meeting (normally the third Wednesday) of the month preceding publication, unless otherwise noted.
Written pieces
- Format: Submissions can be given or mailed to the Chronicler in hardcopy or disk (text-only PC format please), or can be sent as a Word document (.doc or .docx files) attached to an e-mail message to chronicler@nordskogen.northshield.org. Please do not do any formatting, or as little as possible, to your work.
- Permission: You must return a completed Permission to Publish Form to the Chronicler by the submission deadline. Your piece will likely not be published if your form is not submitted in time. (Exceptions: no form is needed for officers' letters or regular columns.) Note: Each author of the piece must complete and return a form.
- Editing: The Chronicler reserves the right to edit, modify, or reject any submission. Note that submissions will be edited for grammar, spelling and punctuation. The Chronicler will make every attempt to preserve tone and content, and will make every attempt to contact the author in the case of severe changes or rejection.
Artwork/Photos
- Color: The Crystal Quill is an electronic newsletter that is available on the internet. Consider the nature of your artwork and how well it will interact in that environment.
- Format: TIF files are preferred for best quality; other high-resolution formats and JPGs/JPEGs are also acceptable. No GIFs, please.
- Size: Maximum published artwork dimensions will be 4.5" wide by 3.75" tall, and will often be smaller. Please design your piece with this in mind.
- Credits: Your piece will be credited within the issue, but it's nice to have your name/signature somewhere on the piece itself, however small. For photos, please make sure that you have permission from all gentles within the photo, make every effort to include the names of all principal gentles within the photo, provide a caption, and ensure that the photo is of high quality (see Format, above).
- Permission: You must return a completed Permission to Publish Form to the Chronicler by the submission deadline. Your artwork will likely not be published if your form is not submitted in time. Note: Each artist of the piece must complete and return a form.
- All original (i.e., hardcopy) artwork will be returned to the artist.
Nordskogen Directory
The Nordskogen Directory is a listing of citizens and friends of the barony. Listing is free and voluntary, and directories are available for purchase for a small fee. If you would like to be listed in the directory or need to update your contact information, please click here.