Suggest a Link
The easiest way to contribute is Cast-On is to submit a link through the contact page. If you’ve discovered a noteworthy story or blog post, a hot tip or a knitworthy pattern, you can also use the Cast On Drop to get in touch. If we use your suggestion, we’ll link to your site or blog as a way of saying thanks.
Write for Cast On
Cast On welcomes submissions of fiction and non-fiction with a strong sense of narrative. By that we mean stories that actually go somewhere, that have a point, or a purpose, or speak to a larger issue. Actual knitting content is always a plus, but if the writing is good, and the piece is entertaining with a wide appeal, we’re likely to use it. Please note that Cast On does not solicit poetry submissions and will not respond to such.
Cast On is produced in series, across a central theme and submissions “on theme” are more likely to be used than those that are “off theme”. The current series theme is 20 Mile Radius. If you have an idea for an essay or story that you think would be perfect for this theme, write it up, and send it in.
The Submission Process
If you wish to contribute, please spend some time familiarizing yourself with the various features and regular format of both the podcast and the website. Please send the text of your submission in plain text in the body of your e-mail, rather than as an attached file, and put the words “EDITORIAL SUBMISSION” in the subject line of the e-mail. We do our best to respond promptly to all inquiries, but we have noticed submissions tend to come in waves. Nothing for weeks then, suddenly, an inbox overflowing with an embarrassment of riches. We do sometimes get behind. However, if you have not heard back after three weeks, you may assume that we will not be able to use your idea or submission.
Copyright
You, as creator of the original work, will retain all copyrights to the work. Accepted work will be distributed via the podcast, or published on the website or both, and will remain so in perpetuity.
Recording for Cast On
Cast On is noted for its high standard of audio quality. In order to maintain that quality, if your submission is selected for inclusion in the podcast, it will be recorded by one of our many talented Cast On Readers. Please do not record your submission.
If you are skilled at reading aloud, and are able to obtain similar audio quality to that of the podcast, you are invited to become a Cast On Reader. Please read the selection below and record in mono, 441000Hz, with a 16 bit float. Please export the file as an MP3, at 128kbps, and attach the file to an email using the subject line “READER”.
If you have written something that you would like to record yourself, you are welcome to include a reading of the text below with your submission, although we reserve the right to assign a Cast On Reader to your submission if your audio quality is not up to our standard.
You are welcome to interpret the following text in any way you like in your reading. Thanks, and have fun!
Death of a Pig
by E B WhiteI spent spent several days and nights in mid-September with an ailing pig and I feel driven to account for this stretch of time, more particularly since the pig died at last, and I lived, and things might easily have gone the other way round and none left to do the accounting. Even now, so close to the event, I cannot recall the hours sharply and am not ready to say whether death came on the third night or the fourth night. This uncertainty affects me with a sense of personal deterioration; if I were in decent health I would know how many nights I had sat up with a pig.
The scheme of buying a spring pig in blossomtime, feeding it through summer and fall, and butchering it when the solid cold weather arrives, is a familiar scheme to me and follows an antique pattern. It is a tragedy enacted on most farms with perfect fidelity to the original script. The murder, being premeditated, is in the first degree but is quick and skillful, and the smoked bacon and ham provide a ceremonial ending whose fitness is seldom questioned.