An Open Invitation to Contribute

Over the past few months, we’ve received a steady stream of thoughtful emails, messages, and side-channel responses to our articles. Not reactions. Not hot takes. Responses — the kind that tell us someone sat with an idea long enough to want to answer it.

That matters to us.

We’ve said from the beginning that we believe the exchange of ideas, open iteration, and honest observation are how the world actually changes. Not through branding. Not through growth hacks. Through people thinking clearly, sharing openly, and building on one another’s work.

So we’re leaning into that.

This is us opening the door — deliberately and with constraints — to outside contributors.

Read This First: Ownership, Use, and Intent

Everything published in this section is open source.

Here is what that means in plain English:

You must fully own the work you submit, or it must already be open and freely shareable.
By submitting, you are doing so with the explicit intent that your work may be:
- copied
- shared
- adapted
- remixed
- redistributed
- built upon

— by anyone, for any lawful purpose, without permission or compensation.

If that makes you uncomfortable, do not submit.

We are not interested in managing rights, policing reuse, or mediating ownership disputes later. We believe clarity up front is better than lawyerly hair-splitting after the fact. (We like law. We do not enjoy lawyers arguing about commas.)

Submission here is an act of contribution, not control.

About Money

We don’t have any.

This is a bootstrap operation. Every dollar that reaches Cernunnos Foundation is reinvested directly into improving the communities and systems we can touch immediately. There is no venture backing. No advertising slush fund. No hidden payroll.

We cannot pay contributors.

What we can offer is:

Extension of your voice
Publication under your real name
A permanent, well-maintained archive
A direct link to your home publication or project

That is the exchange. Nothing else is implied.

What We Publish

This publication exists to improve the world around us.

That does not mean avoiding hard truths. It means writing with purpose: to clarify, to repair, to understand, and to take responsibility. There is room for shadow here — shadow shows the light — but the aim is illumination, not spectacle.

We are interested in work centered on:

Duty, craft, and responsibility
Systems thinking (technical, environmental, institutional, social)
Labor, maintenance, and unseen work
Place-based observation and lived experience
Constructive critique grounded in reality
Ideas meant to be examined, tested, or argued with in good faith

We want the idea richness of _{INSERT BRANDED MESSAGE BOARD HERE} without the abuse, pile-ons, or performative cruelty. Thought deserves space to breathe.

Content Standards (No Filler)

This is a content-rich publication by design.

We do not publish filler.
We do not publish padding.
We do not publish content written to satisfy algorithms, optics, or volume targets.

If a piece does not contain real thought, real observation, or a real claim, it does not belong here.

A Plain Statement on Tools (Including AI)

If you read this site, you already know that we use computational tools extensively — for organization, drafting, editing, layout, and visual work. We are open about that. We are intentional about it. And we take final output seriously.

We do not care how you generate your work.

We do not police tools.
We do not fetishize process.
We do not participate in moral theater about authorship methods.

Our only concern is the result.

What matters to us is whether a submission:

contains real thought,
reflects care and responsibility,
and contributes meaningfully toward understanding or improving the world around us.

If a piece inspires thought, invites action, or helps someone see more clearly, it belongs here — regardless of how it was produced.

If a piece is empty, performative, or padded, it does not — regardless of how “pure” its process may be.

That is the standard. It applies equally to everyone.

We are building an archive of ideas, not adjudicating creative purity tests.

Format & Submission Guidelines

Length: 500–2,000 words
Status: Final draft only
Tone: Clear, human, intentional
Structure: Your voice, your structure

We do not rewrite contributor articles.

If accepted, we may make visual adjustments only (fonts, bolding, layout, color) to match site design. The words remain yours.

Images

If you include an image, you must have the right to use it.
If no image is provided, we will create one to accompany the article.

Editorial Review Process

Every submission receives one of three outcomes:

Accepted – scheduled for publication
Rejected – with a brief explanation
Request for Resubmission – specific issues noted

We do not ghost.
We do not endlessly workshop.
We do not reshape work into something it isn’t.

Identity, Verification, and Contact Information

We do not accept anonymous submissions.

To submit, you must provide:

Your full name
A working email address
Sufficient contact information for verification

We verify identity prior to publication.

Any contact information you provide will not be treated as a marketing list. We are not looking for people to sell to. We are looking for allies, collaborators, and contributors.

If your primary goal is outreach, list building, or promotion, this is not the right venue.

A Direct Statement About the Future

As this organization grows, we will expand our editorial and resident writing staff.

High-quality submissions do create an advantage for contributors who later apply to work with us. We will favor people who have already shown how they think, how they write, and how they engage ideas in good faith.

We are stating this plainly and unapologetically so there is no confusion later.

That is not exploitation.
That is alignment.
That is good business.