Using This Form Instructions
Please submit your creative work using the Wards Submission form — one form submission per individual work.
For Cover Art Submissions, please utilize the submission form or email an editor directly: Maddie Bernardo (Madeline.Bernardo@hsc.utah.edu) or Annie Galt (Annie.Galt@hsc.utah.edu).
Review the below document prior to submission:
Copyright and Creator Agreement
File Sizes: 1 MB maximum for 55-word stories & 10 MB maximum for cover art (UBox, Google Drive, or Dropbox link should be provided for files of larger sizes).
File Naming Format: YearFormat(YYYY)_Wards_Last-Name_First-Name (e.g. 2023_Wards_Smith_John).
Suggested Prepared Materials:
3.14 Biographical Info *
Biographical, short-form example
A few words about your creative history; and/or the genesis of the work; and/or a high-level description of your health sciences/health care relationship, including residency program, and year — or more in-depth information — are all gratefully accepted; may be published with the work you are submitting.
Submission Guidelines/Editorial Policies
Genre
Submissions are limited to about 55 words in the form of personal narratives or stories, poetry, or a hybrid genre of creative nonfiction. They must relate actual experiences of the author; fictional accounts will not be accepted. The use of creative techniques used in writing fiction—character description, setting, scene, dialogue, and conflict, for instance—is highly recommended.
Submissions of visual art also will be accepted for consideration as cover art.
Themes
Subject matter should address aspects of medical practice, education, and training, including but not limited to: ethical dilemmas, mistakes, challenging emotional situations, tensions between personal and professional spheres, and patient encounters, especially those that are memorable for being inspirational as well as troubling.
Style/Tone
The stories in Voices from Wards should be written creatively in a voice that is personal, not didactic or pedantic. The writing should “hint” or “show,” rather than tell readers what are the submission’s “teaching points.”