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The Elephant in the Room is Cancer. Tea is the Relief Conversation Provides.

January, 18th 2025: Join us for food, drinks, dancing, and author sharing — all to support our mission. Learn more here!

Submitting Your Story

We appreciate your interest in sharing your story with the Elephants and Tea AYA (adolescent and young adult) cancer community!

Please read the guidelines below before submitting using the form at the bottom of this page.

Our Director of Content will reach out to you once your submission has been reviewed. Because of the influx of submissions we receive, this will take a minimum of two weeks.

Most articles submitted will be shared only on our website, as we post three articles a week: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Due to the amount of submissions we receive, articles are scheduled up to three months in advance.

Current Website Submission Theme:

Cancer Never Goes Away
* Submissions due Friday, December 20, 2024

 

We have four quarterly print magazines that come out in March, June, September, and December. Each magazine issue adheres to a specific theme, and only submissions on those themes will be considered for the magazine. While we would love to include every submission in one of our magazines, we unfortunately are unable to do so. See below for the full list of magazine themes for the year.

Current Magazine Submission Theme:

June 2025 Issue – Does Everything Happen for a Reason?
* Submissions due Friday, February 14, 2025

Website and Magazine Theme Descriptions:

Website Call for Submissions:

Cancer Never Goes Away

Submissions due Friday, December 20, 2024

  • How has cancer stuck with you?
  • If you are done with treatment, do you feel like cancer is behind you? Why or why not?
  • Do you feel that cancer will always be a part of who you are? Why or why not?

2025 Magazine Themes:

March Issue – My Identity After Cancer

Submissions closed

June Issue – Does Everything Happen for a Reason?

Submissions due Friday, February 14, 2025

  • “Everything happens for a reason” is a common statement made by those attempting to comfort someone when diagnosed with cancer. Has anyone ever said this to you? How did it make you feel?
  • Do you think everything happens for a reason? Why or why not?
  • If you could replace this common saying or rephrase it, what phrasing would you use?

September Issue – Struggles of Survivorship

Submissions due Thursday, June 5, 2025

  • What does survivorship mean to you?
  • What are some common misconceptions about cancer survivorship?
  • Do you identify with the language of “survivor” or “survivorship?” Why or why not?

December Issue – The Emotions of Cancer

Submissions due Friday, September 12, 2025

  • Are there any emotions you’ve experienced since diagnosis that have surprised you?
  • Rarely do we experience just one emotion at a time. What combinations of emotions have you felt at the same time? Have they ever seemed to conflict with each other?
  • If you made a timeline of your cancer experience from diagnosis to now, what feelings would show up at what points in your timeline?
  • Are there any emotions that you’ve experienced that feel hard to talk about with other people? Explore those feelings and why they might be challenging.
  • Have you experienced any emotions since cancer that you feel like you “shouldn’t” experience? What makes you think you shouldn’t feel them?
  • If you have trouble identifying your emotions, look up a feelings wheel for a place to start

Submission Requirements:

"There is no right or wrong way to share your story. Your writing might take you in a direction you didn't expect and that's OK. Write from the heart and share what you are comfortable with. I'm excited to read your submission!"
-Rachel Mihalko, Director of Content
  • Suggested website submission word count: 500 – 1000 words
  • Suggested magazine submission word count: 1200 – 1500 words
  • Suggested Perkatory submissions word count: 1000 – 1200 words 
  • Poetry submissions of any word count are encouraged
Any questions? Click here to email Rachel Mihalko, Director of Content rachel@elephantsandtea.org

Elephants and Tea is committed to representing the stories and experiences of all members of our herd. The following information is optional and collected only to inform the organization about who our audience is. Your responses to the following questions will not have any impact on your submission.

"*" indicates required fields

Name*
Which of the following best fits you?*
If you don’t want to share, no problem! Just put ‘N/A’
What is your gender?*

What is your sexual orientation?*
Hidden
What is your sexual orientation? (old)*

How do you racially identify yourself?*

Have you written for Elephants and Tea before?*
Theme of article*

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

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Elephants and Tea is a trademark of the Steven G. Cancer Foundation, a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit under federal tax guidelines.

© 2024 Steven G. Cancer Foundation, all rights reserved.