Write for The Neuroscience Review.
Real brain research, with the rigor of a journal and the readability of a Sunday paper. We are looking for a few sharp new voices to help write it.
The blog started as one person writing the kind of neuroscience he wished existed when he was learning the field. It is growing, and the goal now is to bring in other people who love real research and can explain it clearly. If that is you, we would genuinely love to read your pitch.
Who we are looking for
Neuroscience undergrads, grad students, postdocs, premeds, and science communicators who can take a real finding and make it land for a smart general reader. You do not need a journalism degree. You do need curiosity, a clear voice, and a habit of citing your sources.
What we publish, and what we do not
We publish explainers and paper breakdowns on peer-reviewed neuroscience, written for a curious non-specialist, usually 800 to 1,400 words. First-principles pieces that build a concept from scratch are welcome too.
We do not publish press-release rewrites, opinion without evidence, listicles, anything promotional or sponsored, or text generated or edited by AI. The whole point of the site is that a reader can trust it, so the writing has to be real and the science has to be right.
What you get
A real byline on a site built around accuracy, distribution to our newsletter, and hands-on editing that turns your draft into a polished, portfolio-ready clip you can point to for grad school, SciComm applications, or your own writing. You keep full credit and get your own author page.
To be upfront, contributors are unpaid for now, because the site is free and new. If it ever starts earning, contributors share in it. What we can offer right now is a real audience, real editing, and a real published piece with your name on it.
The easiest way in
If a full essay feels like a lot, start with a short one. We run a recurring feature called The Paper That Hooked Me, where a researcher or student answers a few set questions about a paper that shaped how they think. You answer the prompts, we handle the rest. It is the simplest way to get a first byline here.
Our standards
- Plain, warm prose with one clear takeaway.
- At least three peer-reviewed primary sources, cited, with claims linked to the actual papers.
- Jargon defined the first time you use it.
- Animal studies labeled as animal studies. Correlation never dressed up as causation.
How to pitch
Step 1. Email a one-paragraph pitch. Tell us your angle, why it matters, the key paper or papers you would cite, and one line about who you are.
Step 2. We reply within about a week. If it is a yes, you write the full draft and send it as a Google Doc or a Markdown file. We handle the formatting and the visuals, so you never touch code.
Step 3. One or two rounds of editing with us, then we format it, give it a figure, and publish it on a Wednesday.
Rights and credit
You keep the copyright to your work. You grant us the right to publish it first and to keep it up and send it to the newsletter. You are free to republish it elsewhere later, just link back to the version here.
Pitch us
Send your one-paragraph pitch to ckh2127@columbia.edu with the subject line "Pitch." Not sure if your idea fits? Send it anyway. We would rather see it.