Contributors' Guidelines

CAPPER'S is a nationally distributed monthly tabloid publication with a national paid circulation of approximately 200,000. It emphasizes home and family to readers who live mainly in the rural Midwest.

CAPPER'S purchases shared rights, which grants the publisher the right to publish or republish the work in any form in any country, at any time. The author agrees not to publish the work in any other media for a period ending one year after the date of the issue in which the work initially appears. After this period, the author retains the right to republish the work in any form.

CAPPER'S publishes manuscripts on average of two to 12 months after acceptance. Seasonal or holiday material should be submitted at least three months in advance. Notification of acceptance or rejection is made within two to three months, six months for serialized novels. No simultaneous
submissions. Query for novel-length manuscripts only; submit all others complete.

If you wish to have your manuscript returned, send SASE with adequate postage. No manuscripts will be returned without adequate postage. We do not accept e-mail or faxed submissions.

Send submissions to:
CAPPER'S
c/o Ogden Publications, Inc.
1503 SW 42nd Street
Topeka, KS 66609-1265 

CAPPER'S uses historical, inspirational, nostalgic, family-oriented, travel and human-interest stories; unusual accomplishments, collections, occupations, hobbies, etc. Approximately 75 manuscripts are purchased annually (not including Heart of the Home). Use journalistic style. Payment is made upon publication at the rate of approximately $2.50 per printed inch. Length: 700 words maximum. Good quality accompanying photos considered.

Free verse and light verse, traditional, nature and inspirational poems are purchased. Those selected are easy to read, with down-to-earth themes. Five or six poems are used in each issue. Limit submissions to batches of 5 to 6, length 4 to 16 lines. Payment of $10 to $15 is made upon acceptance; tear sheet sent upon publication.

CAPPER'S buys 5 to 10 jokes per issue. Jokes published earn a $2 gift certificate. Limit submissions to batches of 5 to 6. Sorry, no jokes returned.

We do not accept e-mail or fax submissions.

Items used on our Web site receive an additional $5.

Fiction: Query first, with brief description of plot and characters. Manuscripts accepted omit profanity, violence, sex and alcohol use. Four to six manuscripts are purchased annually. Payment of $75 to $300 is made upon acceptance. Manuscripts of 12,000 to 25,000 words preferred; 7,500 words minimum, 50,000 maximum.

Manuscripts should be double-spaced with numbered pages and accurate word count. Use readable fonts; no italics or scripts.

Color: Submit 35 mm color slides, transparencies or sharp color prints in batches of no more than 40. Include caption material. Payment of $40 for front page, $10 to $30 inside, made upon publication.

Black and white: Good quality photos accompanying manuscripts are considered. Payment is $5 to $15, depending on size and quality.

"Kate Marchbanks" uses letters sharing humorous, heartwarming, poignant and nostalgic experiences of life. These are mostly reader-written. Submissions may be held up to one year, especially if they are seasonal. Payment of $2 per printed inch is made upon publication. Length: 300 words maximum. Payment for recipes is $5 each. Hints used earn a $2 gift certificate.

"Space Place" is for original drawings, poems, jokes, stories, etc., by children 12 and under. Contributors receive T-shirts. (Include birth date, home address and shirt size with submission.)