Share Your Take

House on Fire keeps its doors open for stories that make people stop scrolling and start thinking —  or simply enjoy themselves. We welcome essays, reviews, criticism, commentaries and columns that explore politics, human rights, the media, culture, festivals, fashion, campaigns, sex & relationships, mental health, as well as lived experience and personal perspectives. If you care enough to write it, we care enough to publish it.

If you’re a journalist, writer, expert in your field or a public figure with something to say, send your work to: hey@wehoufi.com

If you’re an emerging or unpublished author, we’d love to hear from you at: wearehoufi@gmail.com

You might have something ready to go, or just an idea you’d like to try out. Either way, we’d be happy to see it.

We judge the writing, not the writer. Your race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, political beliefs, gender identity, sexual orientation, education, disability, marital or family status, criminal record, age (18+), or any memberships and affiliations will never affect our interest in your story.

Please note that contributions are unpaid — we publish work to broaden the public conversation, and because we know there are plenty of people whose ideas, insights and observations deserve to be read.

What Makes a Good Pitch

• Subject lines matters. Keep it clear and specific.

For example:
You Write / Why I Stopped Believing Political Promises

•  Introduce yourself. Tell us who you are and why you’re the right person to tell this story.
• Outline your idea. Suggest a working title, followed by 3–5 sentences explaining your angle. Include any relevant sources or context.
• Finished pieces welcome. If you’ve already drafted your piece, attach it —  it helps speed things up.

Length and Style

Most of our pieces run between 1,000 and 2,000 words, though that’s not set in stone. The real priority is that the writing holds together, makes its point, and is well-edited.

Key Things to Know

• Your piece must be original and authentic.
• We do not publish work that includes hate speech, discrimination, or abusive content.
•  Writing should be grammatically correct, clearly written, and stylistically consistent.
• You’re fully responsible for any personal stories you share.
• If you’d like your piece to appear in both Serbian and English, please provide a translation.

Please Don’t

• Send pitches via social media DMs — we only accept submissions by email.
• Propose topics that are too broad or vague, without a specific angle.
• Pitch something we’ve already covered — have a look through our archive first.
• Resend your pitch or chase us with reminders.

Before submitting a pitch, please read our Terms of Use — they set out your rights and how we handle editing and publication.