We welcome all submissions to the Voice for the Defense. What follows are some general guidelines for your articles.
Required
- Articles generally run between 500 and 2,500 words. The size should be dictated by the relevance and significance of the material presented.
- Be sure to include a short (3-5 sentence) biography, photo, and contact information to be included along with the article.
- Sample Bio:
Ed McClees is the managing partner of McClees Law Firm, PLLC. He is the former Chief of the Organized Crime Section of the Harris County District Attorney’s Office, where he routinely provided advice to federal and state law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, IRS, Joint Counterterrorism Task Force, United States Secret Service, Houston Police Department, Harris County Sheriff’s Office, and many others. He currently represents individuals charged with various DWI and intoxication-related crimes, murder, sexual assault, white collar crimes, and others. He can be reached at or 713-322-9087.
- Sample Bio:
- We generally do not publish articles that detail pending litigation. Topics should be timely or relevant to case law. We suggest you visit the TCDLA website to review previous Voice articles.
- Articles need to be of law review quality. Be sure to proofread your article before submission and double-check all citations, grammar, and punctuation.
- See below for Guidelines for writing articles.
Helpful Resources
The links below consist of reference material created by Clay Steadman. Feel free to utilize the information throughout your writing process.
Clay Steadman Reference Presentation
Clay Steadman Reference Paper
Deadlines
The drop-dead deadline for articles is the 10th day of the month preceding the month of publication—i.e., March 10th for the April issue. For the bi-monthly issues, the deadline is the 15th day of the first month (i.e., January 15 for the January/February issue). These fall after the annual Rusty Duncan Advanced Criminal Law Seminar and over the Christmas holidays.
Submission
Submission of an article does not guarantee its publication. Acceptance is contingent upon myriad considerations, including relevance and timeliness. Articles are also not always published on a first-in-first-out basis in order to deliver the most relevant, timely information to our readers. If you have any questions about whether a subject might prove of interest to readers, email one of the following:
Submit articles to and .
View the Voice for the Defense Committee online.
Selection Process
- Articles will be edited for content as well as for conformity to magazine style.
- Be sure to proofread your article prior to submission and to double check all citations, grammar, and punctuation.
- We encourage everyone to participate in our magazine. Our members depend on the new and pertinent information found in its pages. Do not feel that you need to set the world on fire with your prose. If the subject matter is important to our members, we will work with you to make sure the information is presented in a clear and concise manner.
TCDLA Guidelines for Writing Voice Articles
For more specific style guidelines, please see our guidelines for writing a Voice article.