The SMOKING POET

Submission Guidelines

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The Editors

brentsartexhibitmay2011046.jpg
Art by Brent Spink

 

 

Fall/Winter issue deadline: November 30

 

Fiction and Non-Fiction Submission Guidelines

 

The Smoking Poet publishes flash fiction, up to 1,000 words, and short stories, up to 4,000 words, that ignite our imagination, inflame our passion, leave us with a smoky aftertaste. We’ll also consider the occasional novel excerpt as well as non-fiction.

 

Submit to us your finest flash pieces; we are open to all genres, within good taste. All we ask is that you submit your best work.

Paste your submission into the body of your email—no attachments please—to the attention of Fiction Editor, and include a bio statement of no more than 100 words (please resist being cute and keep it professional). Subject line should read: Fiction: Title—Last Name.

 

For novel excerpts, we’ll consider one chapter, up to 2,000 words, or longer if it’s truly outstanding. Again, paste your submission into your email, to the attention of Fiction Editor. Subject line should read: Novel excerpt: Title—Last Name. See below for author interview or book review guidelines.

 

For non-fiction we seek compelling personal stories up to 2,000 words. We accept travel essays, personal essays, and memoirs that deal with the human condition or explore a universal theme. We’ll also consider scholarly discussions, political essays, or articles on the art of writing.

 

Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but please state as much in your cover letter and notify us immediately if your work has been accepted elsewhere. We do not accept work that has been previously published, even at your own Web site. TSP acquires first rights for publication. Rights revert to author/artist upon publication. We reserve the right to reprint the work in the event of a print-based anthology at a later date.

 

Multiple submissions are not accepted. Please send only one submission per issue, and if your work has been previously accepted in TSP, please do not send another submission for the next two issues. We want to give all good writers a chance!

 

Poetry Submission Guidelines

We read with interest and attention every poem submitted to The Smoking Poet and, quite simply, we publish those that seem to us to be the best of the best. Our interest is in the broadest possible range of work: traditional forms and free verse, the meditative lyric or the haunting haiku, the work of the famous and the work of the unknown. We are committed to the discovery of new poets.

Email a group of two to six unpublished poems in the body of your email—no attachments—to the attention of Poetry Editor, and include a bio statement of no more than 100 words (please resist being cute and keep it professional). Subject line should read: Poetry—Last Name.

 

Simultaneous (but NOT multiple poetry submissions per issue)submissions are accepted, but please state as much in your cover letter and notify us immediately if your poem(s) have been accepted elsewhere. We do not accept poems that have been previously published, even online on your own site. Please do not submit more than once per issue. TSP acquires first rights for publication. Rights revert to author/artist upon publication (occasional exceptions are made at the editor's discretion). We reserve the right to reprint the work in the event of a print-based anthology at a later date.

 

We do not accept multiple submissions. If your work has been accepted, please do not re-submit for the next two issues.

 

 

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Due to the large number of submissions The Smoking Poet receives, we regret that we are unable to critique submissions, nor do we wish to open a debate on the reasons why we reject a submission—too out there, too verbose, poor structure, dialogue, characterization, etc., which often enough results in a vindictive response to our ability to recognize good literature when it’s submitted to our inbox.

 

We, too, have received our share of rejections—that’s par for the publishing course—and we understand that rejection is not easy to take (although it builds character and many well-known authors cite perseverance as an essential element of success). We have found no easy way to say, “No thanks.” Understand that when we say our decision is subjective, we are saying that, while we feel your work isn’t right for our publication, another publication may find your work a good fit.

Good writing!

The Editors

 

SUBMIT TO THE SMOKING POET

The Smoking Poet Seeks Keweenaw Writers

“Words that turn the page to flame.”

www.thesmokingpoet.com/

 

The Smoking Poet, an online literary magazine in publication since 2006, is seeking submissions from Keweenaw writers.

Every issue, we publish the work of international writers in all genres, but now and then, we add a special feature on a Michigan region. For the combined fall/winter issue, online in December 2011, we have chosen to feature the Keweenaw.

The magazine’s founder and editor-in-chief, Zinta Aistars, is a former Keweenaw resident—with every intention of someday returning to become a permanent resident—and this is a way to show the rest of the world what astounding beauty can be found here, and along with that beauty, a wide range of artistic talent.

Deadline for all submissions is November 30, 2011. For full submission guidelines and to get an idea of the kind of work we publish, see our website at www.thesmokingpoet.com, read the issue and browse the archives. Submissions should be e-mailed to thesmokingpoet@gmail.com. Please put KEWEENAW in your subject line. Send no more than one submission per genre.

We publish poetry, fiction, nonfiction (memoirs, travel essays), author interviews, book reviews and art. A feature artist for the fall/winter issue will be Ed Gray of the Ed Gray Gallery on Fifth Street in Calumet. We will also have work from the Keweenaw poet, T. Kilgore Splake. 

And maybe you? We want to hear from you! Send us your best work.

 

 

 


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Feedback, submissions, ideas? Email thesmokingpoet@gmail.com