Wordgathering

A Journal of Disability Poetry

Volume 2     Issue 1     March 2008

Submission Guidelines

At the present time Wordgathering is principally seeking poetry. We are also accepting a very limited number of literary essays and books of poetry for review. Because our aim is to give voice to the emerging genre of disability literature we seek work related disability or by writers with disabilities. The following guidelines are for the submission of poetry. Guidelines for submission of essays and books for review guidelines are given at the bottom of the page.

  1. Writers with disabilities can submit poems on any topic. For topics unrelated to disability, Wordgathering will ask you to confirm that you have a disability upon acceptance.
  2. Non-disabled writers must submit work that relates in some way to disability.
  3. Submit up to 4 poems.
  4. We prefer poems under 60 lines.
  5. We would appreciate receiving the poems in at least 16 point font.
  6. Any style of poetry may be submitted.
  7. Previously unpublished work is given preference. If a work has been previously published, please let us know where.
  8. Work should be submitted to submissions@wordgathering.com
  9. Write submission in the subject line of the e-mail.
  10. Please send poems as attachments. On the attachment include your name, conventional mail address and e-mail address.

Writers interested in submitting essays or books of poetry for Wordgathering to review should first send a query to the editors at submission@wordgathering.com describing the proposed essay or the book to be reviewed. Essays are generally between 1000 and 1500 words and should in some way contribute to the development of the genre of disability either theoretically or through personal experience as a writer with a disability. The editors strongly recommend that potential contributors read past essays, especially Jim Ferris,"Crip Poetry" or Dan Simpson's "Line Breaks the Way I See Them", as examples of the kind of essays Wordgathering looks for.

Wordgatheringis also very interested in reviewing books of poetry by writers with disabilities. As with essays, it is a good idea to read previous book reviews. Reviews of Linda Cronin's Dream Bones and Sheila Black's House of Bone provide good examples. A word of caution, Wordgathering is unlikely to review books whose primary purpose is to be inspirational, uplifting, or therapeutic.

Acceptance of work will generally come within a month. As with most online journals, work submitted can not be returned. Unfortunately, due to its non-profit nature, Wordgathering cannot provide compensation for work that is accepted for publication.

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