WHAT ARE WE SEEKING TO DO?

We are seeking firsthand experiences, factual retellings of stories from the author’s life, and personal reflections exploring the relationship between language, identity, expression, and power. We welcome submissions from writers around the world, regardless of gender, identity, nationality, or background. We are particularly interested in work that considers how language shapes the way we understand ourselves and others, and what happens when people are denied, constrained, misunderstood, or unable to use their own voice.

WHAT ARE WE LOOKING TO PUBLISH (AND NOT LIMITED TO):

• How language shapes identity and belonging

• Language as a form of personal expression

• Language and social status

• Multilingual and cross-cultural experiences

• Preserving meaning, voice, and cultural context across languages

• Finding the language to speak out

• The limitations of mother language vs translated language

• Silence, censorship, and self-censorship

• The relationship between language, culture, and political power

• How language can reinforce or challenge systems of power

TRANSLATION:

• We welcome translated work and writing about the experience of translation as a way to fight censorship and speak about change.

• If you are submitting a translated piece, you must provide your own translator. Please note that we do not accept AI-assisted or written translations. While we aim to publish work written or translated into English; however, submissions originally written in other languages are welcome if they accompany an English translation.  

• What happens to meaning, voice, tone, identity, and cultural context when a story moves from one language to another? What can be preserved, and what inevitably changes? Language can mean spoken or written words, translation, silence, gesture, accent, dialect, mother tongue, inherited language, lost language, forbidden language, or any other form through which people communicate, express themselves, or are denied expression.

IMPORTANT SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS:

• Poetry: you can submit up to FIVE poems in one submission. We will not accept different emails with multiple submissions.

• Short-stories / Essays: prose writing should not exceed 2,500 words. You can submit up to TWO prose pieces in one submission. We will not different accept emails with multiple submissions.

• Visual Art: Accepted Visual Art includes: mixed media, acrylics, oil paintings, drawings, photographs, collages, sculptures, or any forms that fit our publication’s themes. Please note, your published artwork might be presented in black-and-white and therefore should be suitable for “print”. We WILL NOT accept any AI-Generated art. Ensure your artwork is submitted as .JPG, .PDFs, or .PNGs.

• Please note: if your piece is accepted, we will request a high-resolution author photograph. However, authors are not required to provide photographs of themselves and are always welcome to decline, should they wish to remain anonymous.‍ ‍

• Compensation for Accepted Submission:

  • Writers whose submissions are accepted will receive payment of $50.

  • Accepted artists will receive $25.