guest Writer’s Guidelines

About A Balanced Glass

A Balanced Glass (ABG) is a collective of resources to offer insight and support for the physical and mental health and wellness of wine professionals worldwide. The website was launched in March 2018 as a way to connect global wine professionals and address subjects on managing wellness for long-term career success. It remains the only platform of its kind for wine professionals, and received the Runner-up Award for Innovation at the 2019 Born Digital Wine Awards and Finalist for Wine Educator of the Year with US magazine, Wine Enthusiast in 2020.

Covering the global wine community, A Balanced Glass connects this community of drinks professionals and creates a space that fosters conversation and a platform for showcasing the people and ideas moving the industry forward. To accomplish this, we would love stories from diverse voices about their experience with wellness while working in the wine industry. 

Pitching & Ethical Obligations

Send your pitch to: hello@abalancedglass.com

Please include your name and current title, along with the title and topic of your piece. Please explain the story you would like to tell and what you would like our readers and community to take away from your story. Within your pitch, please disclose all beverage or wellness industry sponsorship affiliations and/or financial arrangements you may have with any businesses in this space. This includes work for trade commissions, private labels, individual brands, and other potential conflicts of interest. You can begin writing once your pitch has been accepted. 

Story Formatting and Copyediting Guidelines:

  • Word length should be kept to 600-800 words max.

  • If including external sources or perspectives, please include a diverse range of voices. 

  • Posts should consist of takeaways or tips for the community and a call to action.

  • Where possible, include hyperlinks for further reading if appropriate.

  • If you have a "weekly reading" story to share that's relevant - even better!  

  • Please use one space between sentences.

  • Place any book, magazine titles in italics.   

  • Defer to the following manuals, in this order:

    • Chicago Manual of Style, 16th ed.

    • The Oxford Companion to Wine, ed. Jancis Robinson

Tone and Voice:

A Balanced Glass is written for a professional global drinks industry audience that is smart and informed—there’s no need for specific wine nuances but more of a focus on connecting wellness and mental health practices with our current state of the industry. Our writers project a curious and knowing voice that conveys their experience in beverage alcohol while exuding a welcoming and safe narrative.  

Our stories are focused on great storytelling—please include compelling details, memorable or personal anecdotes, and quotes if relevant. 

Bio and Byline:

Include your byline (the way you want to see it in print) and a suggested title and subheading. Also include a 2-3 sentence bio, highlighting any professional wine, beer, or spirits certifications, experience in the industry background, or any wellness credentials, if applicable. Links to personal websites and social media channels are permitted.

Formatting Basics:

Submit your article as a Google Doc (preferred) or in Word. Copy should be Arial, 10pt, single-spaced with a single space between sentences. Do not center any text. Embed the relevant web links instead of pasting them as separate links. Foreign, unfamiliar words should be italicized.

Headlines and Subheads:

  • Headlines: Always include a suggested headline at the top of your submission, focused on the takeaway of the piece. 

  • Subheads: If the article is over 800 words, please include at least two subheads.

Links:

Provide links in the articles to establishments, relevant sources, and official accounts for wineries and distilleries. Do not link to search results and product pages. Links should be three words at most. We include site links for restaurants, bars, hotels, retailers, shops, wineries, and other physical locations. 

Newsletter & Social

We encourage guest writers to Join the Community for the bi-weekly newsletter and to follow us on social media: Facebook Group , LinkedIn and Instagram.

Guest posts are shared on the following platforms:

Website:  www.abalancedglass.com

Instagram: @abalancedglass 

FaceBook: A Balanced Glass Group (not Page)

LinkedIn A Balanced Glass

Ownership of content and payment:

Guest post copy is provided free of charge, and the author retains all rights to the published article. The author also retains the right to post to their personal site; reciprocal links to the respective A Balanced Glass post are appreciated, but not expected.

Photos and Photo Credits:

Writers are encouraged to source images with their articles. Source for weekly ABG images currently is Unsplash