Submission Guidelines

Writing for The Pointe-Claire Record

Opinion versus a news story

Our news stories report the facts without showing the opinion of the reporter, editor, publisher. A story can contain opinions through quotes or attributions. But we will not express our opinion on the matter.

Guidelines for writing a news story

Word length: Varies, please ask the editor, most pieces are under 300 words.

Images: All images must be captioned and rights-free. If you do not own the rights to a photo, please state the copyright owner and have him or her send us permission to use it.

Write it without emotion or value-laden words. Avoid “good”, “bad”, “better”, “ideally”. If you have to add in opinions, cite or attribute them to someone.

Guidelines for writing an opinion piece

An opinion piece gives the point of view of a writer. It may include facts but may also include unsubstantiated claims and may show the writer’s bias. We will print opinion pieces which we believe are issues pertinent to Pointe-Claire residents. We also will refuse to print opinion pieces that are hurtful to others, defamatory, use vulgar language. We may choose to print opinion pieces with disclaimers about the fact-based nature of certain claims. All opinion pieces are subject to editing by the PC Record, and we will send you our proposed version before publishing.

Word length: Varies, please ask the editor, most pieces are under 300 words.

Be Kind. Be Polite: For a Kindness/politeness check, ask yourself the following question: Could you confidently read this aloud to the head of a church or temple, your grandmother, a judge, a doctor, or your child’s teacher?

Consider your audience: You are speaking to all of Pointe-Claire: the newcomers, the old timers, the homeowners, the renters, the condo owners, people of all races, religions, gender, and level of education.

Think about how to make yourself and your points understood by folks you’ve never met before.

Sending a submission

Please email your submission to editor@pcrecord.ca

We accept submissions in MS Word or Google Docs format. We must receive your submission 10 days before the Publishing Date, which is generally the 22nd of each month.

All submissions are subject to editing by the PC Record, and we will send you our proposed version before publishing.

And thank you for your submission! We will reply to you within 5 business days.