NSNC 2026 Columnist Contest - Now Open

Sunshine Week March 15-21, 2026

Consider a Gift to the NSNC Education Foundation

Join NSNC and Reap the Benefits!

NSNC 2026 Columnist Contest - Now Open

Contest submissions now open! 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.

Sunshine Week March 15-21, 2026

We’re counting down to #SunshineWeek 2026, March 15-21. Together, we champion #OpenRecords and #OpenGovernment nationwide March 15-21. #FOIA #transparency. Free resources: sunshineweek.org

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

Join NSNC and Reap the Benefits!

We are excited for What’s in-store for NSNC members this year. We are gearing up to launch the NSNC Annual Columnist Contest on January 15, so you’ll want to be sure your membership is up-to-date. Also, if you have ideas, suggestions, etc., please share them with our President Meredith Cummings at meredithcummings@gmail.com or Executive Director Ginny McCabe at nsncdirector@gmail.com. Thank you for your support of NSNC!

In the December newsletter

newspaper

The last newsletter of the year is out — notifications emailed to members on December 1 with a link to open the PDF file. In the December issue of The e-Columnist: A special offer is announced. Dave Lieber has another interesting and helpful “you, the columnist” offering. There’s some valuable information in the “Tip Sheet…

Another Year, Another Deadline (‘Deadline Artists,’ That Is)

New York Journal-American newsroom, circa 1950

Columnists.com celebrates Black Friday, the nation’s biggest retailing day, by announcing the publication this week of Deadline Artists — Scandals, Tragedies and Triumphs: More of America’s Greatest Newspaper Columns. In September 2011, the first collection, Deadline Artists: America’s Greatest Newspaper Columns, also compiled by Jesse Angelo, Errol Louis and NSNC member John P. Avlon, came…

Byko’s Book: ‘Cats Are Supermodels’

Cats Are Supermodels, by Stu Bykofsky

“Love cats? Know someone who does? You’re going to love this,” says Stu Bykofsky. So it’s a serious, calm, reasoned book, out in time for the holidays, that pays respectful tribute to humankind’s other best friends Felis catus? You know Stu. He’s the longtime member of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists who hosted its…

Pop Culture and Politics in Op-Ed Writing

Axel Jäderin of Svenska Dagbladet, studies the concurrent newspapers.

Art of Column Writing By Suzette Martinez Standring 2004-06 President National Society of Newspaper Columnists Years ago, op-ed was associated only with political commentary. Today, op-ed can take invented directions on current affairs. For example, how pop culture is mirrored in politics is the unique viewpoint of columnist Joanna Weiss of The Boston Globe. “Putting…

Circle the Dates

Downtown Hartford, Conn.

President’s Message By Eric Heyl President National Society of Newspaper Columnists Circle the dates. Trust me, it’s OK. The calendar cops won’t appear at your door to arrest you for beginning to arrange next year’s schedule with a full two months of this year still to go. With the nation’s prisons being chronically overcrowded, they…

Penguin to Publish O’Connor Book

Published Book

PRESS RELEASE — Syndicated personal finance columnist Brian O’Connor has landed a deal to publish a guide to budgeting in bad times based on his award-winning series of “Grand Experiment” columns in The Detroit News. The series involved O’Connor putting his family budget under the microscope in a 10-week attempt to cut $1,000 — a…