Category: Calls for Submissions

Stirring Call for Submissions

Stirring: A Literary Collection is seeking submissions on a rolling basis for fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and visual art. They share, “Our goal is to elevate writing and art. We like to see creative work from all writing genres and a variety of visual art media. We are continually striving to publish underserved voices, POC, LGBTQ+, and other marginalized beings. We do not consider translations or previously published pieces.”

Guidelines and what Stirring is looking for in each genre are listed below:

Fiction: Submit no more than 5,000 words total but each piece can be between 250-2,500 words. We are looking for short fiction that bursts with sensory detail and places the reader fully in a time and location rooted in diverse perspectives. We love distinctive places, vivid sensory textures, character-driven tension, cultural specificity, and stories outside the mainstream. Send to Shaun Turner stirring.fiction@gmail.com.                      

Nonfiction: Submit no more than 5,000 words total but can be multiple smaller/flash pieces. We are looking for creative nonfiction with a personal connection to a broader social narrative. Creative pieces that intersect with hybrid presentations of narrative are always appreciated. Send to Ada Woofard stirring.nonfiction@gmail.com.

Poetry: Up to five poems that can be connected as a series or standalone. We are looking for pieces that question the self, challenge forms, examine identity, engage with a solid emotional core, and attention to craft. We always enjoy a poem that can make us laugh and cry and think. Send to Luci Roller stirring.poetry@gmail.com.

Visual art: Up to ten visual files that can be connected as a series or standalone. We are looking for art that deals with painting and photography mediums, but collage is also welcome. We enjoy work that incorporates the natural world and also incorporates bold visuals. Send to Stephanie Phillips stirring.artphoto@gmail.com.

If you have any questions, please contact Stirring here.

Sundress Publications Editorial Internship Open Call

Sundress Publications is now seeking editorial interns to join us in January 2024.

The editorial internship position will run from January 1 to June 30, 2024. The editorial intern’s responsibilities may include writing press releases, composing blog posts and promotional emails, proofreading manuscripts, assembling press kits, collating editorial data, research, managing spreadsheets, and more. The intern may also be responsible for writing copy, conducting interviews with Sundress authors, reviewing newly released books, and promoting our catalog of titles.

Applicants with social media experience or who would like to gain social media experience should make a note in their cover letter. Social media responsibilities include scheduling and posting promotional materials on our social media channels, maintaining our newsletter, and promoting our various open reading periods, workshops, readings, and catalog of titles. This will also include creating promotional graphics, digital flyers, logos, and social media images.

Preferred qualifications include:

  • A keen eye for proofreading
  • Strong written communication skills
  • Familiarity with WordPress, Microsoft Word, and Google Suite
  • Ability to work under a deadline and multitask
  • Knowledge of and interest in contemporary literature a plus

This is a REMOTE internship with the team communicating primarily via email and text messages and is therefore not restricted to applicants living in any particular geographic area. Interns are asked to devote up to 10 hours per week to their assignments.

While this is an unpaid internship, all interns will gain real-world experience of the ins and outs of independent publishing with a nationally recognized press while creating a portfolio of work for future employment opportunities. Interns will also be able to attend all retreats and residencies at the Sundress Academy for the Arts at a significantly discounted cost.

We welcome, encourage, and are enthusiastic to see a diverse array of applicants in all areas, including race, ethnicity, disability, gender, class, religion, education, immigration status, and more.

To apply, please send a resume and cover letter detailing your interest in the position to Staff Director Kanika Lawton at sundressstaffdirector@gmail.com by November 30, 2023.

Sundress Publications Seeks Craft Chaps Fiction Editor

Sundress Publications is now open for applications for our Craft Chaps Fiction Editor. Craft Chaps offers substantive essays by contemporary writers on creative writing practice. Each chap focuses on one aspect of craft and contains a writing exercise and bibliography for further reading. They are freely downloadable on our website.

Our fiction editor’s responsibilities primarily include soliciting one author for the series each year, editing the author’s craft chap, delivering the final product to the managing editor in a timely fashion, and working with the managing editor to make sure that it is released and promoted.

We are looking for applicants with the following qualities:

  • Knowledge of contemporary fiction and prominent authors
  • Strong editorial skills including both line edits and proofing
  • Good communication skills
  • Ability to self-start on projects
  • Great time-management and attention to deadlines

Applicants are welcome to telecommute and therefore are not restricted to living in any particular location.

Sundress Publications is staffed entirely by volunteers, so this position, as with all positions at the press, is unpaid. Craft Chap editors will receive a small honorarium for their work each year.

To apply, please send a CV and a brief cover letter detailing your interest in the position to Executive Director Erin Elizabeth Smith at erin@sundresspublications.com. Applications are due by December 1, 2023.

Sundress Publications Social Media Internship Open Call

A square promotional image with pale pink and orange blends, similar to tie-dye, with black text over top. The text at the top of the image reads, "SUNDRESS PUBLICATIONS." The curved texts below reads, "apps now open," and the text under that reads "EDITORIAL INTERNS AND A SOCIAL MEDIA INTERN." At the bottom of the page, the text shares the application deadline and where to find more information: "DEADLINE: MAY 18TH, 2023 MORE INFO: SUNDRESSPUBLICATIONS.COM."

Sundress Publications is seeking a social media intern. The social media internship position will run from July 1 to December 31, 2023. The intern’s responsibilities include scheduling and posting promotional materials on our social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram), maintaining our newsletter, and promoting our various open reading periods, workshops, readings, and catalog of titles. This will also include creating promotional graphics, digital flyers, logos, and social media images. Applicants for this internship must be self-motivated and be able to work on a strict deadline.

Preferred qualifications include:

  • Familiarity with Adobe Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, and/or Canva 
  • Familiarity with social media scheduling tools
  • Ability to work under a deadline and multitask
  • Strong written communication skills 
  • Knowledge of and interest in contemporary literature a plus

This is a REMOTE internship with the team communicating primarily via email and text messages and is therefore not restricted to applicants living in any particular geographic area. Interns are asked to devote up to 10 hours per week to their assignments.

While this is an unpaid internship, all interns will gain real-world experience of the ins and outs of independent publishing with a nationally recognized press while creating a portfolio of work for future employment opportunities. Interns will also be able to attend all retreats and residencies at the Sundress Academy for the Arts at a significantly discounted cost. 

We welcome, encourage, and are enthusiastic to see a diverse array of applicants in all areas, including race, ethnicity, disability, gender, class, religion, education, immigration status, age, and more. 

To apply, please send a resume and cover letter detailing your interest in the position to Staff Director Kanika Lawton at sundressstaffdirector@gmail.com by May 18, 2023.

Sundress Publications Editorial Internship Open Call

A square promotional image with pale pink and orange blends, similar to tie-dye, with black text over top. The text at the top of the image reads, "SUNDRESS PUBLICATIONS." The curved texts below reads, "apps now open," and the text under that reads "EDITORIAL INTERNS AND A SOCIAL MEDIA INTERN." At the bottom of the page, the text shares the application deadline and where to find more information: "DEADLINE: MAY 18TH, 2023 MORE INFO: SUNDRESSPUBLICATIONS.COM."

Sundress Publications is seeking editorial interns. The editorial internship position will run from July 1 to December 31, 2023. The editorial intern’s responsibilities may include writing press releases, composing blog posts and promotional emails, proofreading manuscripts, assembling press kits, collating editorial data, research, managing spreadsheets, and more. The intern may also be responsible for writing copy, conducting interviews with Sundress authors, reviewing newly released books, and promoting our catalog of titles.

Preferred qualifications include:

  • A keen eye for proofreading
  • Strong written communication skills 
  • Familiarity with WordPress, Microsoft Word, and Google Suite
  • Ability to work under a deadline and multitask
  • Knowledge of and interest in contemporary literature a plus

This is a REMOTE internship with the team communicating primarily via email and text messages and is therefore not restricted to applicants living in any particular geographic area. Interns are asked to devote up to 10 hours per week to their assignments.

While this is an unpaid internship, all interns will gain real-world experience of the ins and outs of independent publishing with a nationally recognized press while creating a portfolio of work for future employment opportunities. Interns will also be able to attend all retreats and residencies at the Sundress Academy for the Arts at a significantly discounted cost. 

We welcome, encourage, and are enthusiastic to see a diverse array of applicants in all areas, including race, ethnicity, disability, gender, class, religion, education, immigration status, and more. 

To apply, please send a resume and cover letter detailing your interest in the position to Staff Director Kanika Lawton at sundressstaffdirector@gmail.com by May 18, 2023.

Sundress Publications Open for Microgrant Applications for Black and/or Indigenous Writers

Call for Submissions for Light Bill Incubator Grant

Sundress Publications is now open to submissions for grant applications from Black and/or Indigenous identifying writers with a chapbook in progress. All eligible authors are welcome to submit during our application period from August 1st to October 31st, 2022.

The Light Bill Incubator Microgrant will award $500, a slot in Sundress’s reading series, a residency at the Sundress Academy for the Arts in Knoxville, TN, and the potential for digital publication. This award will go to one Black and/or Indigenous writer with a chapbook in progress, to support the completion of said project. 

All applications will be read by members of our editorial board. One writer will be selected, who will then work with Sundress’s reading series coordinator, residency team and editorial board. 

Applicants may apply with any genre; however, the proposed project must be chapbook-length, meaning the planned final version should be no more than 48 pages. 

To apply, please send a sample of the chapbook in progress along with a brief (no more than 500 words) artist/personal statement. These items should be sent to our editorial board as DOCX or PDF files at sundresspublications@gmail.com. Please include the phrase “Light Bill Incubator Microgrant Application” in the subject line. There is no fee to apply.

Stirring Open Call for Submissions

Stirring is open for submissions of creative work from all writing genres and a variety of visual art media. We are continually striving to publish underserved voices, BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and other marginalized beings. We do not consider translations or previously published pieces. We are currently not accepting books for review but would still love to read reviews you have written.

We enjoy short poems, long poems, flash fiction, memoirs, form, prose, narrative, lyrical, etc. Stirring is a journal with several editors who all contribute their individual input for each issue. The joy of Stirring is the confluence of our diverse opinions. Of course, keeping up with Stirring, as well as reading a few of our previous issues, will give you the best idea of what we are looking for in written work. Visual art submissions may range from images of your 2-D work or 3-D pieces. We are open to select 4-D or video art submissions if they suit our needs.

We welcome simultaneous submissions. However, you must inform us immediately if your work has been accepted elsewhere. We do not consider previously published work. Please refrain from sending multiple submission to us as they will not be considered for publication.

We request that all written work be submitted in the body of your email. No attachments, please. Additionally, please include a brief third-person bio in your submission.

Submissions Guidelines:

Book Reviews: Up to 700 words sent to Katie Culligan at stirring.reviews@gmail.com

Poetry: Up to 5 poems sent to Luci Brown at stirring.poetry@gmail.com

Fiction: Up to 5,000 words sent to Shaun Turner at stirring.fiction@gmail.com

Nonfiction: Up to 5,000 words sent to Ada Wofford at stirring.nonfiction@gmail.com

Art: Between 5 and 10 individual files attached and/or a link to your portfolio sent to Stephanie Phillips at stirring.artphoto@gmail.com

If you get published with Stirring, we obtain First Serial Rights of your work during the time it appears on our website’s current issue. When the new quarterly issue goes up, the rights revert back to you. We also hold the right to re-print your piece in any further issues of Stirring or any print anthologies back by Sundress.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact us here.

Open Call for Pitches for Short Anthology Projects

Sundress Publications is open for submissions of pitches for short anthology projects. Anthologies would be published as part of Sundress’ e-chapbook series in 2021 and would be available for free download on the Sundress website. These anthologies will be limited to 50 pages of content.

All editors are welcome to submit pitches for qualifying projects. We are especially interested in projects helmed by or focused on amplifying the voices of BIPOC, trans and nonbinary writers, and writers with disabilities.

Pitches should be approximately 250 words and include:

  • Potential authors editors would like to solicit 
  • Example pieces of work to be included
  • Outline of a plan for the editorial process
  • Why editors believe the anthology is important to the contemporary literary landscape.

Editors of selected pitches would solicit and read work for the anthology project with Sundress-backed support in submission curation, contracts, proofing, promotion, and design. Sundress Publications will also provide a small budget to selected projects ($250) that may be used to pay editors for their work, or contributors, or both, as the editor deems appropriate.

To submit, email your pitch (DOC, DOCX, or PDF) to sundresspublications@gmail.com. Be sure to note both your name and the title of the project in your email header.

The deadline for submissions is September 30, 2020.

Open Call for Poetry Broadside Contest

Sundress Publications is pleased to announce that we are now open for submissions for our poetry broadside contest. 

The winner’s poem will be letterpress-printed as an 8.5” x 11” broadside and made available for sale on our online store. The winner will receive $200 and 20 copies of their broadside. 

To submit, send up to three poems, no longer than 30 lines each (line limit includes stanza breaks but not the title), in one Word or PDF document to contest@sundresspublications.com by March 31st, 2020. Be sure to include a copy of your payment receipt or purchase order number (see below for payment of fees). Please make sure that no identifying information is included in the submitted poems.

The reading fee is $10 per batch of three poems, though the fee will be waived for entrants who purchase or pre-order any Sundress title. We will also accept nominations for entrants, provided the nominating person either pays the reading fee or makes a qualifying purchase. Authors may submit and/or nominate as many manuscripts as they would like, so long as each is accompanied by a separate reading fee or purchase/pre-order. Entrants and nominators can place book orders or pay submission fees at our store. Once the purchase is made, the store will send a receipt with a code. This code should be included in the submission.

Previously published material is welcome so long as you maintain the rights to the work. Let us know in your cover letter if any of your submitted poems have been previously published. 

Poems translated from another language will not be accepted. Simultaneous submissions are fine, but we ask that authors notify us immediately if their work has been accepted elsewhere; poems accepted for publication are still qualified provided the author retains the rights to the work.

Call for Submissions: Short Story Collections

officeArt object

Sundress Publications is opening for submissions of full-length short story manuscripts. All authors are invited to submit qualifying manuscripts during our reading period, which runs from October 1, 2019 to December 31, 2020.

We are looking for manuscripts of 125-165 double-spaced pages of fiction; front matter is not included toward the page count. Individual stories may have been previously published in anthologies, chapbooks, print journals, online journals, etc., but cannot have appeared in any full-length collection, including self-published collections. Manuscripts translated from another language will not be accepted. Simultaneous submissions are fine, but we ask that authors notify us immediately if their work has been accepted elsewhere.

The reading fee is $15 per manuscript, though the fee will be waived for entrants who purchase or pre-order any Sundress title or broadside. We will also accept nominations for entrants, provided the nominating person either pays the reading fee or makes a qualifying purchase. Authors may submit and/or nominate as many manuscripts as they would like, provided that each is accompanied by a separate reading fee or purchase/pre-order. Entrants and nominators can place book orders or pay submission fees in our store.

All manuscripts will be read by members of our editorial board, and we will choose one manuscript for publication in late 2020. We strive to further our commitment to diversity and seek to encounter as many unique and important voices as possible. We are actively seeking collections from writers of color, trans and nonbinary writers, writers with disabilities, and others whose voices are underrepresented in literary publishing. Selected manuscripts will be offered a standard publication contract, which includes 25 copies of the published book, as well as any additional copies at cost.

To submit, forward the qualifying Sundress store receipt for submission fee or book purchase to sundresspublications@gmail.com, and attach a 20-35 page sample of the manuscript (DOC, DOCX, or PDF). The sample should include the author’s name and an acknowledgements page. The sample may include one story or a number of shorter stories. After our initial selection process, semi-finalists will be asked to send the full collection.

Be sure to note both the author’s name and the title of the manuscript in the email header. For those nominating others, please include the name of the nominee as well as an email address where we can reach the nominee and we will solicit the manuscript directly.

##

A 501(c)3 non-profit literary press collective founded in 2000, Sundress Publications is an entirely volunteer-run press that publishes chapbooks and full-length collections in both print and digital formats, and hosts numerous literary journals, an online reading series, and the Best of the Net Anthology.
 

Website: www.sundresspublications.com  Facebook: sundresspublications
Email: sundresspublications@gmail.com  Twitter: @SundressPub