We Need Writers to Tackle a Special Issue on a Short Deadline

Authors, friends,

There are times in our lives when we look at something we’ve put together a say, “we can do better.” This is one of those times. We put together the topic for the summer issue of our magazine and thought it would be exactly what our readers wanted. And now as we’re closer to the issue, we started asking, s this really the most important thing we can say? And we decided it’s not.

We’d been in some conversations around the office about what it is to be… a lady. It’s easy to joke around about crazy mood swings, and the parts of our bodies we don’t like, but that’s not doing justice to one of the pieces most intricately woven through our identity – our gender. There is a lot to say on the rights for women and fighting gender stereotypes and equality of women, but I think I’ve missed some of the conversation about what it is to be a woman.

This becomes an even greater question when there are daughters following our footsteps – how do we teach them the intricacies of being female? And sons, how do we relate with them through our own female-ness? And for ourselves, how do we own the privilege of femininity?

We want to focus the Summer 2014 issue of Hello, Darling to focus on the Privilege of Femininity. And we hope you’ll join us by submitting work. Changing the entire issue this late in the game means we’re on a deadline – a tight deadline. Look at the topics below and consider what it might prompt you to add to the conversation. As a reference, you can visit our writer’s guidelines at MOPS.org/writers-guidelines.

(By the way, have you seen the new MOPS magazine, Hello, Darling yet? It’s adorable. We have a secret link to our February issue I’m including here for you to check out.)

Send pieces to submissions@MOPS.org by Monday, 14 April.

I’m excited to delve into this topic together.
-Jackie Alvarez, Executive Managing Editor

Femininity is a Privilege

Ideas for content-

• The F-Word: Why femininity feels like a bad word
• A beauty legacy: what your mom taught you about being a woman
• Ladylike: Proper vs. Feminine
• June Cleaver, Claire Huxstable and the myth of having it all- Why balance is the biggest lie of our generation.
• Practical DIY Beauty/ Beauty products (spa day at home, there is a fun book out about French women and how they age gracefully called
• Why spending time on yourself isn’t selfish
• A man’s perspective on femininity
• There is a theological argument surrounding the creation poems that says that when Adam and Eve realized that they were naked, they became ashamed not because they were naked but because they were different. It seems that concept persists even now. We have been striving to become the same rather than embracing the beauty of being unique.
• What we should teach our sons about how to treat women; chivalry
• 7 things I wish someone had told me about being a woman
• A look at the feminine characters driving our culture and what they are telling us about being a woman.
• What I like best about being a woman
• Feminine vs. beauty
• Beauty Budget: how much should I be spending on beautifying?
• 5 questions about femininity that could change your life
• 11 Things every mom should start doing right now
• 6 things to never say to your spouse
• What about an article about masculinity: Like helping the dudes in your life to see masculinity as a gift?
• Siren Song: The art of seducing your husband