ME/CFS Book

guidelines | terms and conditions | submission form

*ME/CFS Book*

* Calling all artists, photographers and writers with ME/CFS *

Contributions are required for a brand new book, describing what it actually feels like to have ME/CFS, through the words and pictures of sufferers. All prose, poetry, photos and artwork will be considered. Do you have a story to tell, an image to show the world?

Submission Guidelines

The objective of this book is to provide a platform from which people with ME/CFS - Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, otherwise known as chronic fatigue syndrome - can display their creative talents in the fields of literature and the arts, with the ultimate aim of promoting ME/CFS awareness on an international scale.
Work should be fresh, original, distinctive and descriptive. Submissions can relate to any aspect of the illness, but ideally should communicate in some way the nature of the illness and the effect it has on everyday life, hopes and dreams etc.
ME/CFS is an illness that is bound to evoke strong emotions due to the many restrictions it imposes, including at times hurt, anger and regret, so while it is perfectly acceptable to express these emotions through the work submitted, the general theme of the book will be positive, without any overriding sense of bitterness.

Prose:

There are no restrictions on format - the only limit is your imagination! Essays, short stories and memoirs etc should ideally, as a general guide, not exceed 2 - 3,000 words, although any piece of writing will be considered on individual merit, regardless of length. Small 'fragments' are also acceptable. Work can either directly relate to the illness, or be inspired by the illness, but should have some relevance to the subject of ME/CFS.
Autobiography is welcome, but writing should have a distinctive literary quality with an element of description, although personal thoughts are equally acceptable - the book will contain contributions from all over the world, so ideally the piece should communicate some sense of time and place, or more general themes and observations, rather than being just a straight relation of medical fact.

Poetry:

Poems can be short or long, but generally quality is preferable to quantity. All styles will be considered, including rhyming and non-rhyming - ideally poems should be accessible and easy to relate to, containing interesting imagery, vivid description or any other thoughts and ideas that may be relevant to both sufferers and non-sufferers, while relating in part to some aspect of the illness.

Photos:

Preference will be given to work submitted by professional or amateur photographers with a degree of experience, but each picture will be considered on individual merit. Photos should be high quality colour or b & w, and ideally should capture a concept relating to the illness, perhaps with a degree of symbolism, or a related thought or emotion. Images can either be literal or abstract. Digital photos are acceptable, but should be of a sufficiently high resolution, so as to appear similar in quality to a traditional print.
Please do not send negatives/transparencies. Either submit an original print by post with an SAE for return of material, or a colour (if applicable) photocopy of the picture. Alternatively, if your photos are displayed on a webpage then send a link to the page via email, or send a small preview of the picture (jpg/gif etc preferred), but the total size of the email, including text, should not exceed 300KB* - any that exceed this limit may be deleted without being viewed, due to limits on total capacity for email storage. Attachments should be sent in an unzipped format.
If submitting a copy/preview of original material, the quality does not need to be perfect, as long as it accurately represents the original in both colour and form - in the event of work being considered for publication, contact will usually be made to gain access to the full-size original.

Artwork:

All forms of artwork will be considered, including paintings and drawings in colour or b & w. As with photos, images should communicate a thought, emotion or concept related to the subject of ME/CFS, in an interesting and imaginative way, and can be either literal or abstract. If it is not possible to submit the original work, then a colour photocopy, scan or photo of the original may be sent as a preview by post or email - see above under the 'photo' section for details regarding submission and the type of image suitable.

Terms and Conditions
1: Work can be submitted by post or email. All work submitted by post will be returned to contributors, but only if accompanied by a suitably sized SAE (self-addressed envelope) with sufficient return postage, or international reply coupons for overseas contributors. Writers are advised to keep a copy of their work, and artists are advised to submit copies of their work where possible - every effort will be made to return original material safely, but no responsibility can be taken for work lost in transit by postal services. An SAE should also be enclosed if you require a response following submission, even if the work itself does not need to be returned.
2: All emails should contain the text of the submission form copy/pasted* from below, including the questions, your answers and the final declaration. Please do not send attachments for written work, the text should be copy/pasted into the body of the email, although rich text format is acceptable. No email should exceed 300KB, including text and pictures - an average email of about 2,000 words is normally only aprox 50KB.*
3: A maximum of two items per category, per contributor will be considered: for example, any combination of up to two poems, two pieces of writing, two photos or two pieces of artwork. If the total amount of work to be sent by email exceeds the 300KB limit, please either select the best pieces only, or send contributions by post.
4: All personal details will be used solely for the purpose of compiling the book, and will not be used for commercial purposes or distributed to any third party, other than those involved in the production or distribution of the book. However, work that is used in the book will probably be accompanied by a few biographical facts about the contributor, including any of those listed on the submission form, but not including telephone number, postal address or email address. By submitting work you are agreeing to details being used in this way.
5: Work submitted for publication will be subject to editing as deemed necessary, although this will be kept to a minimum as far as possible. Although every effort will be made to preserve the original essence of written material, the emphasis is on quality rather than quantity, so in certain circumstances it may even be the case that only a few paragraphs are selected, as an example of an elegantly expressed emotion, thought or idea - in such an instance work may appear under a more general title than the one submitted.
6: Copyright of individual submissions will remain with the contributor, but copyright of the book as a whole will be determined by the contract between editor and publisher, including the right to use extracts from the book for promotional purposes.
7: There is no upper or lower age limit for contributors, all work will be considered on individual merit.
8: Some form of payment for work used will be made following publication, but is likely to be small, perhaps consisting of a free copy of the book or possibly a gift voucher, depending on the total number of contributors and the nature of the publisher's contract. While the book is being produced in association with a British publisher, there are also plans for distribution in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Contributors will be supplied with full details at the time of publication, and will be contacted prior to then to confirm if work is being used.
9: The information on this website may be printed and distributed freely, provided it is distributed as a whole, containing the guidelines, submission form and these terms and conditions. In other respects all rights are reserved, and no part of this information may be reproduced for purposes other than general distribution as stated above. The contents of this website may not be reproduced in any other electronic format whatsoever, other than the copying of the submission form for contributions sent by email.
10: By submitting work you are agreeing to be bound by the above terms and conditions.
An exact deadline for submissions has yet to be decided.
Due to limited space, it is only going to be possible to include a small proportion of material submitted - so don't be too disappointed if it isn't possible to use your work, all submissions are greatly appreciated and you can still help to promote ME/CFS awareness by supporting and publicising the book when it becomes available.
Details of publication will be posted on this website as available, and will also appear in ME/CFS journals and the international press.

Tips
For those with limited web experience:
* To copy/paste text: highlight the information you want to copy by clicking and dragging the mouse over the desired area (in this case the submission form, or text of your contribution), select 'edit' from the toolbar at the top of the page and click on 'copy'. Move the curser to the place you want to copy the text to (e.g. the body of the email), select 'edit' from the menu at the top of the email and then click on 'paste'.
* If you are unsure of the size of an email, save it into your drafts' folder by selecting 'save' from the 'file' menu of the email, click on the subject line of the email in the drafts' folder to highlight it, and then select 'properties' from the 'file' menu at the top of the page.
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Submission Form
Please read carefully the submission guidelines and terms and conditions listed above before printing or copy/pasting*(see above) this form, including the final declaration, and submitting material by post or email. For a printable version of this form, click here
'ME/CFS contributions'
18 Bishops Way
Buckden
Huntingdon
Cambs
PE19 5TZ
United Kingdom
email: book@mecfs.fsworld.co.uk
First name:
Surname:
Date of birth:
Occupation -
[Prior to becoming ill]:
Current occupation -
[Please specify full or part-time,
or if you are unable to work]:
Date of onset of illness -
[To the nearest year]:
Full Address -
[Including postal
code and country]:
Daytime telephone:
Evening telephone -
[Please list landline instead
of mobile if possible]:
Email address -
[If applicable]:
Title(s) of work -
[Including photos and artwork,
but leave blank if untitled -
please indicate which title
applies to which piece,
or label work accordingly]:
If submitting visual material,
is the piece a copy of a photo,
a copy of artwork, or is it an
original -
[For multiple submissions,
include a brief description
with each title listed]:
Has the work been
previously published -
[If so, where]:
Where did you find out
about this book -
[Name of publication
if applicable]:
I have read and agreed to the 'terms and conditions' accompanying this form, and confirm that the details on the form are correct and that work submitted is entirely my own.
Checklist

By Post:
Remember to include:
* Your contribution(s).
* A copy of the submission form.
* A stamped, self-addressed envelope [+ international reply coupons if overseas].
By Email:
Remember to include:
* Written contribution(s) copy/pasted into the body of the email [not attached as a separate file].
* Previews of artwork or photo contributions [acceptable as attachments, as long as the total email size does not exceed 300KB].
* The text of the submission form copy/pasted into the body of the email, along with answers.
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