NSNC 2026 Columnist Contest - Deadline Extended to May 1

Consider a Gift to the NSNC Education Foundation

NSNC 2026 Columnist Contest - Deadline Extended to May 1

Contest submissions will be accepted through May 1! We are accepting entries from columnists, bloggers, and serial essayists  for our 2026 Annual Columnist Contest (for work published in 2025). We will accept entries from columnists, bloggers, and serial essayists published in 2025.  Everyone is welcome to submit. You don’t have to be an NSNC member.

Consider a Gift to the NSNC Education Foundation

The National Society of Newspaper Columnists Education Foundation is a tax-exempt charitable organization [501(c)3] devoted to the education and training of new and experienced columnists everywhere. Donate here: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/NSNCEdFnd

An Irresistible Point of View

Suzette Martinez Standring

By Suzette Martinez Standring Syndicated Columnist, GateHouse News Service A definite purpose, like blinders on a horse, inevitably narrows it’s possessor’s point of view. Robert Frost (1874-1963) Wanted: a strong, personal point of view, emphasis on “personal.” No other form of journalism but column writing allows the writer’s individuality to shape both a message and…

Prez Column – Mike Argento

Mike Argento

By Mike Argento, NSNC President York (PA) Daily Record A new baseball stadium opened this summer in our small city here in the heart of what we fondly call Pennsyltucky. It’s a beautiful ballpark, even if it is still under construction. It sits in a crook of the Codorus Creek, which flows through the center…

Views on Writing Contests

Columnist

A Way to Build Name Recognition By Monica McCabe Cardoza   Entering a contest says a lot about your devotion to your craft. It proves that you take column writing seriously enough to want to be recognized for it. But before you say, “Oh, I never win those things,” consider this: Winning a top prize…

Syndication is not for sissies

By Robert Haught  Getting yourself syndicated is an achievable goal, but it doesn’t come easy. It takes a lot of hard work. That’s the primary advice offered by Jim Miller, a model of success in self-syndication. Miller, a member of the faculty for the 2007 Will Rogers Writers’ Workshop, syndicates his “Savvy Senior” column to 400 newspapers and…

Philadelphia Conference 2007

NSNC Loves Philly – Conference Highlights By Sheila Moss, Web Editor The City of Brotherly Love opened its arms to the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and the Newspaper Columnists fell in love with Philly. The NSNC annual convention opened June 21st and was greeted by both the Mayor, John F. Street, and the Governor of…

Oklahoma City 2007

Oklahoma City Workshop Well Received By Robert Haught, Workshop Director   Writers from 25 states across the country who participated in the Will Rogers Writers’ Workshop in Oklahoma City March 15-17 judged it a successful undertaking.  A sizeable majority said the experience will be beneficial and many of the attendees expressed an interest in going…