| Monthly Schedule: Last Thursday: Initial article deadline First Thursday: Secondary due date Second Thursday: Newsletter publication Third Thursday: NCRA Meeting |
Want to submit an article or share the clip of an interesting article? Please use the following ink to send it to the Newsletter team: |
Guidelines:
Article, blog and series ideas always welcome.
Articles must be approved in advance by the Editor or the Board of Directors.
Each article has two or three versions – long pdf, email summary/intro and original on the website blog.
We rarely publish articles longer than 1,000 words. Prefer a series of short articles over a few months.
Original articles longer than 400 words should have outlines and/or drafts submitted early in the process. These requirements may be waived for previously published articles and/or writers who have a proven track record.
Large or last minute submittals may be punted to the next issue.
Hint: Read articles out loud a few times before submittal. This is a great technique for catching errors as well as duplicate concepts, words and phrases.
Specifications
Microsoft Word, Arial font, left justified, no paragraph indent, spaces between paragraphs, one space after periods.
Submit two versions – the original and a short summary or introduction.
Format
See last newsletter for examples
Font: Arial 12, Bold
Title: Capitalized
Byline: First Name Last Name, Organization and/or Organization, M/D/YY (Ex: 7/9/18) (Arial 10)
Formatting Tips and Tricks
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- Embedded links: Create or edit embedded links or email addresses by holding <Ctrl> key down and pressing <K>.
- Correcting Extra Paragraph Marks On Web Pages:
On webpages, hard returns are often turned into two lines when one often wants one line.
The fix is to replace hard return paragraph marks with soft either on the page or in the word processor. Depending on your Line and Paragraph settings you may have to do this a few times or replace two hards with one soft.
On Web Pages:
Replace the <Enter> keystroke with a simultaneous <Ctrl> <Enter>.
This is done as you type or just by replacing known but unseen formatting marks.
In Word Files:
1) Save File.
2) Turn on Paragraph Marks. Icon looks like a paragraph mark.
3) Select Find and Replace, park in Find and use Special – down at the bottom of the pop-up, to select Paragraph Mark.
4) Park in Replace and use Special to select Manual Line Break.
5) Replace All
6) Check your work and then perhaps Undo and start again.
Note: Depending on your Line and Paragraph settings you may have to do this a few times or replace two hards with a soft.
Uploading Media Files
Note: All NCRA signed docs should be posted as pdfs. Editable generic files can be in MS-Word – remove logo and organization details and save with XXXX instead of NCRA.
1) Open Page – on which you want to post a photo, a video or another kind of file.
2) Select Add Media, Upload or Media Library
3) Select a file to upload – usually off of your hard drive.
One at a time is best. It can be a slow process, be patient otherwise you get multiples that will have to be deleted.
4) Copy link from right on Upload page and close by hitting x on top right. Don’t bother clicking Insert since you are just copying the link.
5) Highlight words awaiting links. Use Control K (explained above) or the Chain icon to paste in the URL
6) Update Page
7) Test Links
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