The (new) FTM Newsletter
The quarterly FTM newsletter was started by FTM transsexual activist Lou Sullivan in the late 1980s. The newsletter had everything – comics, networking, upcoming events, surgery advice, testosterone stories, and more. The newsletter served as a way to connect FTM transgender and transsexual men, many of whom were isolated from larger trans communities. After Sullivan passed away in 1991, the newsletter was run by Jamison Green and co. until 2008. That’s over 60 issues!
Trans men and transmasculine people deserve a newsletter/magazine that caters to them and their issues, desires, and interests. As far as we know, there is no other newsletter/magazine in this nature. Drawing on a combination of TGA-authored articles and visitor submissions, we hope to re-create the magic that the original FTM newsletter brought to its decades of readership.
We aim to publish this newsletter quarterly, on the last day of the month. All submissions must be submitted to the Trans Guy Archive at least five days before the publishing date. Issues will be published directly on the Trans Guy Archive's website on:
- January 30th
- April 30th
- July 31st
- October 31st
You can submit to any of the above dates. Submission boxes for each date will open the date the previous newsletter is published (for example: the submission box for July's newsletter will open April 30th, and so on).
Newsletter Details
In essence, we will accept nearly anything, as long as it strictly relates to the trans male/transmasculine experience. Please see below for more details on what the newsletter is willing to accept:
ART/COMICS
The TGA will accept visual art and short comics. Given the nature of the newsletter, each piece of art/comic must relate to the transmasculine experience - how it relates is up to you. Art/comics do not have to be "good", but they should show some level of effort. Artistic nudity is permitted - if it is nudity that you could realistically encounter in an art museum.
Artworks must be 8.5 x 11 inches or less. The newsletter is printed vertically ("portrait"-style). Art/comics must be submitted as JPEG or WEBP.
ARTICLES
If you've read any of the old FTM newsletter articles, you'll know they've written an article of just about every FTM-related topic there is. As a history archive, we primarily look for educational/academic think-pieces, op-eds, informational guides, etc. You can also write about...
★ Experiences with PCOS ★ Sex ★ Your personal gender experience ★ Packing ★ Binding ★ Top surgery ★ Bottom surgery ★ How has masturbation changed while on T? ★ Experiences taking testosterone ★ Getting on T with/out insurance ★ Experiences of being a T-guy in [your country] ★ Reviews of FTM-themed books (non-fiction & fiction) ★ An experience you had being called a slur ★ Tattoos ★ Shaving ★ Gender identity and its evolution ★ Transgender "vs." Transsexual ★ Transandrophobia/misia ★ The online trans+ experience ★ Film reviews ★ Disability and being trans+ ★ Penis envy ★ etc.......
Articles may not exceed 1000 words, including any quotations.
Academic articles must follow Chicago Manual Style of citations. Non-academic articles do not have to follow Chicago.
FLASH FICTION
To those familiar with sites like Archive of Our Own & Fanfiction.net, you likely have experience writing short flash fiction. Flash fiction submitted to the Trans Guy Archive can encompass a variety of themes (unless otherwise stated by that edition's theme). All flash fiction entries must relate to transmasculinity in some capacity.
We will only publish ORIGINAL fiction. We will not publish fanfiction, unless the established character already belongs to the public domain (e.g. Hercules, King Arthur, Dracula, Merlin, etc.)
We DO allow erotic/NSFW flash fiction. We will include a short list of content/trigger warnings, if applicable. See the FAQ for more details.
Flash fiction submissions may not exceed 1000 words, not including the title & author blurb.
NETWORKING
In an age of social media, isn't it odd that many of us feel so alone? Back before the advent of the internet, to get to know someone from far away you had to put a Classified or other ad in the paper. Now, you can have physical proof of your existence and maybe attract some cuties along the way. The networking section does not necessarily have to contain romantic ads. You can put out a call for lovers, your recent theater project, future roommates, pets, supplies, medicine, and so on.
Networking ads must be 200 characters or less.
All ads put into the networking section will be thoroughly background checked by the Trans Guy Archive to prevent unsavory characters and spam. The Trans Guy Archive does not take responsibility for any interactions, online or in real life, that may occur as a result of any published networking ad.
Examples of networking ads and how to format them:
"24yr old FTM from Brooklyn ISO friends & lovers. Big fan of Star Wars, cats, & Korean food. Contact @ 123-456-7890"
"Trying to find roommates in Santa Fe. Must be clean. I am 32yr old transmasc nightlife worker. I have 2 cats. Find me on IG @..."
"FTMs wanted for sleep study at NYU. $25/day. Contact Dr. Applebaum at fakeemail@gmail.com."
PHOTOGRAPHY
Photography is one of the best ways to document transmasculine life. We're looking for more examples that we've always been here - and we'll continue to be here, despite everything going on in the world right now. Photographs for the newsletter do not need to fall under a specific theme, unless otherwise stated. Artistic nudity is permitted - if it is nudity that you could realistically encounter in an art museum.
Photographs must be 8.5 x 11 inches or less. The newsletter is printed vertically ("portrait"-style). Photos may be in color or black & white. Photos must be submitted as JPEG or WEBP.
POETRY
Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Poetry is similar to our call for flash fiction. Poems submitted to the Trans Guy Archive do not have to follow a particular theme, but must be relevant to transmasculinity in some capacity.
Poems must be 350 words or less, not including the title or author blurb.
Payment
The Trans Guy Archive is an indie company run by one guy and the funds from his part-time job. As a result, the TGA does want to offer suitable compensation for any work submitted to our newsletter, but in an amount that doesn't run our (my) coffers dry. All rates are in USD.
In return for your work, we will offer you:
Artwork: $5/artwork
Academic/Educational Articles: $0.03/word, up to 1000 words.
Comics (any length/color): $5
Flash Fiction: $0.02/word, up to 1000 words.
Photographs: $3/photo
Poetry (any length, up to 350 words): $5/poem
To prevent spam and to offset any future printing costs, any Networking ads will incur a fee of $5.
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All payments will be completed via Venmo, Paypal, or Zelle ONLY.
October 2026 Newsletter
With this being the first edition of this newsletter and October being notably a month devoted to spooky things, the theme for this issue will be:
"Monstrosity as a symbol of change."
Submissions due October 27th!
Want to avoid using Google?
The button above will take you to a Google Form, where you will be asked to sign in with your email in order to submit your work. For those who don't wish to associate themselves with Google in this way, you can email the Trans Guy Archive your information + submission.
In your email, along with your submission, please include the information in the PDF document below. You may write the information in a separate PDF document or within the body of the email.
All submissions should be sent to transguyarchive [at] proton [dot] me