The Association of the U.S. Army is hitting the refresh button on its professional education writing program to encourage submissions from junior leaders that are reflective and conversational.

“We decided to rework it to touch a younger generation, to give junior leaders an opportunity for their voices to be heard, so they could get published,” said Nzinga Curry, AUSA’s director of education and programs. 

Two types of papers can be submitted to the AUSA Writing Program. Research-heavy, scholarly manuscripts of up to 10,000 words could, if accepted, be published as a Land Warfare Paper. AUSA will also publish shorter, opinion-style papers of up to 5,000 words that could be published as Landpower Essays.

Junior leaders, cadets and soldiers are encouraged to write a Landpower Essay that’s reflective of their experiences and presents an opinion based on those reflections, Curry said.

An example of the sort of writer AUSA would like to hear from is a cadet or junior leader who wants to write about an experience on an overseas deployment, lessons learned on leadership, or what it’s like to work with different armies, Curry said. The published essay would ideally reach a broader audience and open a stimulating discussion. 

“You still need to support your writing with some type of research, but it’s not as heavily weighted for research and scholarly writing,” Curry said.

While the program is in search of younger voices, there are no age restrictions for Landpower Essays, Curry said. We don’t want to limit or block anyone else from having the opportunity to write, because someone who is considered a senior leader might want to write a reflective piece,” she said.

Accepted papers will be published online. They must be original and previously unpublished and be between 1,500 and 5,000 words no more than 5,000 words and no less than 1,500 words. A one-page synopsis of the paper and a brief author biography are also required.

Submissions are welcome from soldiers and service members, past and present, Army civilians, friends of the Army and others with an interest in and knowledge of national defense.

For more information on the AUSA Writing Program, click here.