Richard Feldman Interviews Miriam Sagan About Her Blog Miriam’s Well: Part 1

My husband Rich has been brainstorming with my about this blog ever since it started. He said he had some questions, so I was thrilled to answer them. Part 2 coming later this week!

1.  How did the blog originally fit into your mission statement, and how has that changed?
I’m charmed that you even know I have a mission statement! I picked this up from my work with personal coaching.
MIRIAM SAGAN’S MISSION STATEMENT:

–To engage with as many people as possible in creative projects
–To put poetry in unexpected places where it will expand the viewer’s perceptions
–To use metaphor as a way to create connection, community, and a sense of relationship with the world
–To focus on the ephemeral, sustainable, and inexpensive

I think basically the blog still functions the way it was originally intended to. However, at the start there was a learning curve about web presence and presentation. But I do need to focus on that again and again, as in the re-design last autumn.

It also gives me a way to be creative and share writing every single day, no matter what else is going o in my life.

2.  Looking at your current list of categories, which one would you have found the most surprising when you started the blog?
I feel little out of touch with the categories. Baba Yaga and Patti Smith are the blog’s goddesses or guardians or totems, but those areas aren’t that active. Not exactly a category, but I was very surprised by the number of international contributors—that is in large part due to the ever increasingly active haiku community. So I’m surprised at how much the haiku and tanka section has grown.
3.  What do you think is the biggest current gap in the blog’s coverage?
Millennial writers. I need more voices that are different than mine. I’d love more younger perspectives. I’ve had several fantastic contributing bloggers—Bibi Deitz and Michaela Kahn to name just two—who have a lot of readers. But I’d love more from the even younger generation. You’ll note my millennial contributors are often family members—nieces, nephews, daughter—who I’ve begged material from.

***

My greatest support comes from my on-going contributors and readers. I’ve been prpud to publish so many terrific writers, and enjoy their growth and careers.
Miriam’s Well is ALWAYS looking for poetry, short fiction, art, and musings, particularly as related to our categories and in the area of haiku and other forms derived from the Japanese. If you are interested in being a guest blogger at any time, write me at msagan1035@aol.
The Well also runs a series of interviews for poets who have published at least one book or chapbook. Contact me if you are interested in doing an interview.
Miriam’s Well welcomes announcements of art openings, poetry readings, and community evens. Do keep in touch, follow the blog, and best of all—comment!

Should Literary Magazines Charge Reading Fees?

Should literary journals charge submission fees, and perhaps more centrally—should writers pay these fees? This topic is apt to spur a debate on Facebook and elsewhere. But I want to examine it on a basic level: i.e. are editors and writers adversaries or allies?

If adversaries, the answer is no. This line of thinking would be that editors are trying to rip literary writers off. I find this difficult to believe, having been an editor of one sort or another side I was sixteen. Why would a person become a small press or literary editor—a thankless unpaid task—in order to exploit writers?

So let’s assume editors are supporting writers. This leads to a more ambiguous answer.

The ever thoughtful Devon Miller-Duggan has this to say about fees:

“I think it sucks and, in cases of institutions with big endowments, is unethical. But I also understand it, particularly with journal submissions, as a kind of repugnant, but desperate response to the impossible flood of submissions that have follow on the heels of simultaneous submissions becoming the norm. Tim Green at Rattle did a detailed post a couple of years ago (he’s ferociously opposed) in which he worked out the math and made it clear that the journals are not making any money on their $3. fees. Contests are different, though still irritating. I think that money goes to pay the judges and help with the prize money most of the time, though I do like it when the press sends me a book in return for my entry fee. I am effing sick of paying entry fees, mind you, but it’s the reality.”

My advice about contests may address this in a somewhat roundabout manner. I don’t suggest you put a lot of effort (or fee money) into contests. That is because your chance of winning a contest is much lower than having a manuscript accepted by a press you actually have a relationship to (follow, purchase from, read, admire). Contests have thousands of submissions—the average press is not that inundated with possible books.

If you feel you MUST submitted to magazines and contests with fees—give yourself a budget. A budget used to go to stamps and envelopes. Now it can go to fees. Set your budget for the year, don’t go over it, and tax deduct it. You’ll feel better if you exert some control.

The opinion from Alicia Marie Rencountre-Da Silva is representative of how fees negatively affect writers:

“I think it is a really hard thing to see something like a residency that we already know will be highly competitive and then to see that they charge 35 or 50 or 25 just to read our 250 word application and look at our work. If they need money I believe it should be factored into their costs in other ways.

For me it erodes my own sense of worth and place as an artist and writer. I feel “slighted” irritated and a strong sense of aversion and even bad-will or judgement towards the executer of the residency or exhibition or contest.”

However, there are some interesting perspectives outlined below by engaged artists.

Nate Maxson: If I can pay the submission fee and it’s not egregious, I don’t mind. It helps independent publications stay in operation. It’s not like anyone is getting rich off small press poetry. Lots of writers look at submission fees with the mindset of “but what does this do for ME?” and I find that smallminded and self centered. Gotta support your literary community.

Danny Sagan: It is difficult to make a living in the arts these days. If an organization needs to charge a fee per submission in order to keep the organization that publishes or exhibits in business, so be it. Think of it as crowd sourcing. I would pay a fee to be listed in a directory. There is a local gallery in town that works on a membership basis. We get to see the work, they get to exhibit it. The rent gets paid. No shame in that. If the government would subsidize what we all do , we would not have to pay to play, but this late capitalism in America.

Steve Peters I would never pay to submit to a journal. I mind less for residencies and grants if it’s a reasonable fee – I’ve been on enough panels to know that it is a lot of work to go through many proposals and I wouldn’t do it without being paid.

***

One additional note—it is worth asking that a fee be waived—not for a contest but for a residency application or even graduate school. It doesn’t hurt to ask. Grad schools often will, and I’m guessing well funded residencies will too.

My personal policy is to not complain every time a call for submissions comes up with a fee. I just pace myself, paying a very occasional fee for something. I also don’t do much in the way of multiple submissions. I know that is anathema in today’s world, but I don’t feel I need to flood magazines with my work. But the heart of my submissions policy is to see writers and editors as connected, and necessary, to each other.

Where to submit nontraditional and found poetry

THIS information looks to be about a year old, but is still a great list. Enjoy, and make use of it! The list is from Trish Hopkins who does good work with these compilations–link at end of piece.
Miriam
***
Most editors are happy to answer questions regarding submissions. If a lit mag seems like a good fit for your work and it happens to be a collaboration, found poem, or other more nontraditional form, contact them via email or on other social media to ask if they are open to such forms. If you receive a response and can share it with me here, I’ll note it for others in the future.

Most of the listings below have accepted found work or other unusual formats of poetry and/or claim that they will. They are listed alphabetically; some are currently accepting submissions, some are temporarily closed. I’ve also included a link to their Duotrope page, which will allow you to track deadlines if you currently subscribe to Duotrope.
Apeiron Review

Submissions: Open September 1st and close on October 15th: Publication will occur in January. Open February 1st through March 1st: Publication will occur in July.

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/7776

“Apeiron Review is Pennsylvania based literary magazine currently only published online. We publish poetry, prose, and photography from all over the world. We want something real, something beautiful, something ugly, and something that sings to the far reaches of our being. Make us laugh or make us cry, but we want something visceral.”
Cicada

Submissions: Currently open to poetry submissions through Sunday, May 31, 2015

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/27

“Cicada is a YA lit/comics magazine fascinated with the lyric and strange and committed to work that speaks to teens’ truths. We publish poetry, realistic and genre fic, essay, and comics by adults and teens. (We are also inordinately fond of dark humor and Viking jokes.) Our readers are smart and curious; submissions are invited but not required to engage young adult themes.”
Contemporary Verse 2

Submissions: Accepts submissions for bi-monthly issues, e.g. January 15, 2015 deadline for Jan/Feb issue

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/752

“CV2 is nationally respected for its openness to a diverse range of poets and poetic styles. From fresh to familiar and from traditional lyric to extreme language wrangling—we’re not afraid to take it on.”
Cybersoleil

Submissions: Rolling submissions, check site for dates.

Duotrope: not listed

“Submit up to 5 poems at a time. We are open to any style.”
District Lit NEW!

Submissions: Reopen on August 1, 2015

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/8508

“We want poems that writhe on the page, that are essential to understand something true and real. We’re open to experimental forms, but generally prefer poems that are grammatically understandable.”
Duende

Submissions: Reopening on March 1, 2015

Notes: Per the current editor, they are also open to found poetry, erasures, etc.

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/14258

“We are especially interested in collaborations between two or more writers, or between writers and visual artists. We accept submissions from writers working in English, or translating into English, from anywhere in the world.”

“If your poetry is rough-cut diamonds, slightly off-kilter; if your fiction will make us feel more human and less alone; if you enjoy exploration of new forms at the edges of the literary universe; if you can bring us elegant translations of literature from far corners of the globe; if your nonfiction is wild and honest; if your visual art is raw and earnest…show us. We want to see it.”
ELJ Publications

Notes: Check out their related projects on Duotrope for more details on submitting

Small Reading Fee: $2 (Chapbook)

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/10510
The Fem

Submissions: Submissions are rolling – always free, always open.

“We review works of poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and art. We encourage thought-provoking works that highlight the personal experiences of women, LGBTQIA individuals, people of color, people with disabilities, etc. We also encourage experimental pieces that mix genres and show us something new with structure – if it mixes genres, don’t stress – we’ll figure out where to place it.”
Festival Writer

Submissions: Rolling Submission Periods. Check cut-off dates.

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/15782

“Festival Writer is a way to keep the spirit of the Festival of Language moving throughout the year beyond and between appearances at AWP, SSML, and M/MLA. By making available diverse and engaging work, Festival Writer aims to celebrate both established and emerging writers with a variety of voices and is particularly interested in publishing that which is traditionally marginalized.”
Found Poetry Review

Submissions: Will be open to submissions from Sunday, February 1, 2015 through Tuesday, June 30, 2015.

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/5698

“The Found Poetry Review is a biannual print journal celebrating the poetry in the existing and the everyday. We publish found poetry, centos, erasure poems and other forms that incorporate elements of existing texts. Give us your poems made up of lines from newspaper articles, instruction booklets, dictionaries, toothpaste boxes, biographies, Craigslist posts, speeches, other poems and any other text-based source. Only found poems will be considered for publication; original poems, regardless of quality, will not be accepted.”
Futurepoem

Submissions: Temporarily closed to submissions

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/1244

“Futurepoem books is a New York City-based publishing collaborative dedicated to presenting innovative works of contemporary poetry and prose by both emerging and important underrepresented writers.”
Ghost Proposal

Submissions: Temporarily closed for submissions, watch for upcoming calls

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/9928

“At Ghost Proposal, we want you to send us your broken packages, your word memories like bathing suits that don’t fit; show us your love handles! We are a journal that seeks to represent a wide range of brain activity and circuitry in poetry, creative nonfiction, and multimedia, so be your own boundary, then cross it.”
Half Way Down the Stairs

Submissions: Quarterly reading periods, see their submission guidelines

Notes: Themed Issues

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/372

“poetry that is fresh and original”
Hotel Amerika

Submissions: Currently open to poetry submissions through Friday, May 1, 2015

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/152

“We welcome submissions in all genres of creative writing, generously defined. We do not publish book reviews as such, although we will consider review-like essays that transcend the specific objects of consideration.”
Hyacinth Girl Press

Submissions: See their main page for open submission calls

Notes: Some themed issues (Bye-bye Bukowski is an erasure themed issue)

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/5486

“Hyacinth Girl Press is a micro-press that publishes up to 6 poetry chapbooks each year. We specialize in handmade books of smaller press runs. We consider ourselves a feminist press and are particularly interested in manuscripts dealing with topics such as radical spiritual experiences, creation/interpretation of myth through a feminist lens, and science.”
JAB

Submissions: Temporarily closed to poetry submissions.

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/16129

“Our mission at Jab is, simply, to publish the best poetry being written today. We don’t subscribe to any poetic “movements”, or “schools”. All we want is poetry that jabs. We want pathos. We want anti-ethos, anti-logos. If it sings, we’ll listen. We want you to punch us in the face as hard as you can. We want you to singe our hair and pull our teeth. We want punk. We want movement, dirt, skin, and cigarette burns.”
Jubilat

Submissions: Currently open to poetry submissions through Wednesday, April 1, 2015.

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/16129

“From the first issue onward, jubilat has aimed to publish not only the best in contemporary American poetry, but to place it alongside a varied selection of reprints, found pieces, lyric prose, art, and interviews with poets and other artists. Rather than section off these varieties of work, the magazine creates a dialogue that showcases the beauty and strangeness of the ordinary, and how experiments with language and image speak in a compelling way about who we are.”
Juked NEW!

Submissions: Reading year round

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/960

“We don’t adhere to any particular themes or tastes, but some people tell us they see one, so who knows.”
Kenning

Submissions: Currently open to poetry submissions through Sunday, February 1, 2015

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/7558

“Kenning wants your page poems & your spoken word poems. We want poetry videos. We want you to surprise us. We want poems that are funny, ferocious, beautiful, passionate, idiosyncratic. We want all forms, styles, and subjects as long as they make for good poems.”
The Museum of Americana

Submissions: Deadline January 15, 2015 for their special music themed issue

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/8159

“Give us love poetry that mixes language cribbed from The Federalist Papers with language cribbed from WWII propaganda posters. We want medicine shows and riverboats, Doo-Wop and Duke Snider. We want aspects of Americana we may not have even heard of yet.”
NonBinary Review

Submissions: Deadline January 15, 2015 for their special music themed issue

Notes: Themed Issues, Paying Market, see previous submission call due June 1, 2015 here.

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/14354

“We want language that makes us reach for a dictionary, a tissue, or both. Words in combinations and patterns that leave the faint of heart a little dizzy. We want insight, deep diving, broad connections, literary conspiracies, personal revelations, or anything you want to tell us about the themes we’ve chosen. Literary forms are changing as we use technology and typography to find new ways to tell stories—for work that doesn’t fit neatly into any one genre, we’ve created a separate category to properly evaluate submissions of a hybrid or experimental nature. Each issue will focus on a single theme.”
Poetry WTF?!

Submissions: Always accepting submissions

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/8159

“Poetry WTF?! is a website for poetry, but not your gran’s poetry. At Poetry WTF?! you will find serious literary remixes, surprising sculptural whiteouts …. and the occasional textual mess. It’s a brave new world.”
The Rain, Party, & Disaster Society

Submissions: Will be open to submissions from Thursday, January 1, 2015 through Thursday, January 15, 2015.

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/13808

“The basic purpose of The Rain, Party, & Disaster Society is to publish works that are unlikely be published by more mainstream publications. The RP&D Society strives to give representation to new ideas and thoughts, to challenge the reader and to question commonly accepted opinions, values, etiquette and ideas. Within our pages, you may find: works that tackle hot-button issues, works presented in a style that is out of the ordinary, works that present the reader with a question or debate, and works that break mainstream rules within their genre.”
Raleigh Review

Submissions: Currently open to submissions through Thursday, April 30, 2015

Small Submission Fee: $3 fee to submit

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/4395

“If you think your poems will make a perfect stranger’s toes tingle, heart leap, or brain sizzle, then send it our way. We typically do not publish avant garde or language poetry and have a general aversion to unnecessarily exclusive work. We do like a poem that causes–for a wide audience–a visceral reaction to intellectually and emotionally rich material.”
Scissors and Spackle

Submissions: Will be open to submissions from Thursday, October 1, 2015 through Tuesday, December 1, 2015.

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/6046

“We welcome the bizarre, in fact, we encourage it. Send us you lists; resumes; transcribed conversations. The surest path to acceptance is the element of surprise.”
Silver Birch Press

Submissions: Search for their themed submissions listed separately on Duotrope.

Note: They have accepted found poetry and reprints of my work in the past and are great to work with.
Split Lip

Submissions: Appears to accept work year-round

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/8215

“Send up to five unpublished poems of face-melting material. Avoid any peppy and rhyming works. We want new, innovative works by fresh voices. Please avoid submitting what we consider “journal entries,” meaning: rants about feelings and how unfair the world is. Poetry Editor Scott Siders wants poems that are “as short and sweet as possible. Be original. Experiment. Take risks.”
Star 82 Review (*82)

Submissions: Poetry only

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/10271

“We are currently accepting work in five separate categories; you may submit in two categories (please see the specific guidelines for each or your work will not be read)… [the categories include] Erasure Text: Find a new, unrelated text in an old text. Also known as altered text: usually a page from a used book or a scan or copy that has been completely transformed with color, collage, sewing, handwriting, mixed-media, or text from other sources. Looking for both visual and verbal impact. (Erasures done only with black Sharpie are unlikely to be accepted.) Send up to two files in one submission.”
streetcake

Submissions: On-going

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/10271

“the magazine for innovative, experimental, and visual writing”
Third Point Press

Submissions: On-going

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/16610

“We want you to send us the stuff you know is good. We want to see the not-quite-genre and not-quite-literary. We like experiments and minimalism and conceptual writing. We like magical realism and absurdism and underrepresented perspectives. We want you to use your voice and your perspective–not just what’s popular right now.”
Verse-Virtual

Submissions: Poetry only

Notes: I know this editor and he is open to discussion or questions. He has published my found poems and I think he would be open to collaborative work. I do think he would like to see more than one poem, so that he could build a page based on it. Feel free to email him and let him know what you have and see if he has suggestions or interest.

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/14551

“Send poems that speak honestly and clearly, that are understandable, that are unusual, that have the essential mystery of good poetry, that have personality and meaning.”
Vagabonds: Anthology Of The Mad Ones

Submissions: Currently closed for submissions. Will reopen 2015!

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/13124

“Our anthology publishes twice a year. We harbor the mad ones. People who are dedicated to their work to the point that they become misunderstood, or seen as a hot mess of crazy. Our anthology does not seek to break boundaries, we want to break boundaries and go farther. We want the shameless—the deep dark, cigarettes and dirty words combo. Although there is not a set theme of what we’re looking for, we often look at slice of life works.”
Wicked Alice

Submissions: Women writers only

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/1129

“we seek writing that is innovative”
Window Cat Press NEW!

Submissions: Rolling submissions, check for dates

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/16862

“Here, we encourage innovation. Play with form! Celebrate the ways our lives intertwine via the Internet, and bring the fun back to creative expression. Free to submit to and access, Window Cat Press offers a place for young, emerging artists to share quality work as diverse as our audience. We publish a variety of media: cross-genre, collaborations, slam, etc. in addition to more traditional and widely-accepted forms.”
Young Ravens Literary Review

Submissions: Current submission period is open until March 31st, 2015.

Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/16278

“We accept fiction, nonfiction, visual art, and poetry of all flavors, from free verse to found.”

Source: Where to submit nontraditional and found poetry

Call for Submissions from Santa Fe Literary Review

Click to enlarge. Reading period is open!

Blog Thoughts

First of all, a thank you to all the poets who made April a lively month on the blog! There is some extra work that came in too late for poetry month that I’ll be presenting later.

I appreciate the response to my disability writing. I’m working on a much longer piece, a memoir of the harrowing illness that led to my current situation. The events happened forty years ago, and the experience created memories confused by morphine, sleep deprivation psychosis, and near death experiences…but I’m trying to reconstruct a narrative whole. Hopefully will be sharing some of it.

Please consider sharing your own experiences of disability. I’m looking for short prose pieces on this theme.

I’m also working more on writing about my father–it ties in with the former material, too.

Looking forward to Haiku Canada conference next week in Victoria, BC and no doubt will be sharing haiku from there.

What do you want to read? To write? I welcome your suggestions and submissions.

The Blog Is On Vacation and so is The Editor!

Miriam’s Well is on vacation until January 1, 2015. Enjoy the winter holidays!

We’ll be back, with a bunch of interviews with poets, an essay on poetry on sand, a review of the best Baba Yaga novel ever, a visit to a sustainable adobe art site, more from contributing writers and new-to-us writers, a preview of Kathleen Lee’s forthcoming novel about China in the 1980’s, and a continuing look at habits—good and bad.

As always, I welcome contributions from you, the blog’s readers. Particularly interested in haiku, tanka, haibun, and personal essay. Also on the lookout for quirky musings and images. And coverage of local events, calls for submissions, small press, and views of land art.

I will be reading and responding to email during the break at msagan1035@aol.com.

Thank you—it has been a great year.

Eccentric teapot,SFCC

Mythic Tanka: Call for Submissions

MYTHS AND THE CREATIVE IMAGINATION edited by Sonam Chhoki
Submit to: Send submissions to blacklangur@outlook.com with the subject line: “Submission – “Myths and the Creative Imagination.” Complete information below.

IN CONTEMPORARY TIMES A MYTH IS PERCEIVED AS A FALSEHOOD, SELF-DELUDING, SOMETHING THAT IS NOT TRUE. However, myths have been a part of human civilization from the earliest times.

The Scottish anthropologist James Frazer saw myths as pre-scientific attempts to explain the natural world.

Mircea Eliade, a historian of religion and myths, took a wider perspective. He defined myths as stories of origins, of how the world and everything in it came to be. Therefore, myths are basic tools humans use to make sense of our world and who we are.

Joseph Campbell extended this creative aspect of myths, when he said that the first function of a myth is to reconcile waking consciousness to ‘the mysterium tremendum et fascinans of this universe’. In other words, myths point people to the metaphysical dimension of their existence – the origins and nature of the cosmos.

The psychoanalytical interpretation of myths as expressions of the human psyche in the works of Freud and Jung was one the most influential theories of the 20th century.

Freud focused on the ritual significance of myths. In his study, Totem and Taboo (1912-13) he compared taboo beliefs to neurosis and concluded that individual neurosis and social taboos have psychological roots.

Jung’s interpretation of myths has particular significance for the creative imagination. According to him an individual is on a quest for self-realization. He called this the ‘individuation process’. Myths provide the blueprint for this quest. Myths emerge from the unconscious and contain archaic truths about existence and are our fundamental source of inspiration.

Jung argued myths contain messages to the individuals, not the group, no matter how many people are involved in retelling and listening to them. ‘Myths are first and foremost psychic phenomena that reveal the nature of the soul.’

The power of myths to open up the world of imagination (Samuel Taylor Coleridge) is undeniable. However, the fate of myths has not been a happy one. Ironically, the critique of myths began in Greece, where myths inspired epic poetry, tragedy, comedy and visual arts. The Greeks subjected myths to a long and penetrating analysis as a result of which myths were radically demystified. This was influenced by the rise of schools of thoughts like Ionian Rationalism and the Materialists. Democritus criticized the gods in the works of Homer and Hesiod as being “capricious, unjust, immoral, jealous and vindictive”.

Christianity continued this demystification to undermine paganism. However by destroying myths as pagan falsehood, Christianity damaged the belief in the interaction between the cosmic and the natural world.

The steady disjunction between myths and the individual took a particular turn in modern times as disenchantment. It forced poets and writers to create their own private imaginative worlds and present it to a frequently uncomprehending public.

Rilke was one such disenchanted poet who resurrected the myth of Orpheus in his 55 Sonnets to Orpheus (1922).

WB Yeats similarly turned to the ancient Celtic myths for inspiration. TS Eliot drew on James Frazer’s study of comparative religions and myths, for his Waste Land.

How important are the religious/sacred aspects of myths to your own inspiration?
Do you think that these are relevant in our times for poets and writers?
Do you draw on any mythic traditions to write?

Myths and the Creative Imagination will be published as a Special Feature on the Atlas Poetica website at: http://atlaspoetica.org/?page_id=136 The general guidelines for Atlas Poetica apply. Myths and the Creative Imagination will publish spring, 2015.

Please submit up to five of your tanka about myths that have a special resonance for you. Only one tanka per individual poet will be selected, so please send us your best poems. The poems must be original, previously unpublished and not under consideration by any other journal. Poems posted in social media fora like twitter, facebook or personal blogs will be considered.

Send submissions to blacklangur@outlook.com with the subject line: “Submission – “Myths and the Creative Imagination.” Please send your tanka in the body of the email and include a brief (not more than 5-lines) bio-note about your writing. Do not send attachments, which will be deleted.

Submission deadline: 1 December —28th February 2015.

Acceptance or non-acceptance of submissions will be notified as soon as possible after the deadline.

Soup Submissions

Hello! This is an invitation to contribute to the November issue of Lost Paper, a blog devoted to the publication of collective writing projects.
http://lostpaper.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-i-list.html

It is now Soup Season in the northeast of the U.S.A. so the November, 2014 installment will be devoted to Soup Stories.

I hope you will contribute by sending a short piece (no longer than 100 words) about soup. You may include the ingredients or not, it’s up to you.

Your story might be about soup you have made, soup that’s been made for you, soup that turned out great, soup failure, soup on the run, soup for one, soup with a crowd, fantasy soup . . . . you get the idea.

Previous lists on the blog have included contributors’ names at the end but this time your name will go along with your soup story.

The DEADLINE for submissions is Saturday, November 8th at 5 p.m. Eastern U.S. time.

E-mail to:
zee@twcny.rr.com

NO ATTACHMENTS; no fancy fonts; no colored ink.

Paste your entry into the body of the e-mail with your name at the top, exactly as you want it to appear. E-mail addresses don’t always correspondent with people’s names so this is important.

Send as many “soup stories” as you wish; I’ll choose.

As the curator of the blog I reserve the right to make all editorial decisions and to gently edit contributions.

REMEMBER: each entry must be 100 words OR LESS!

Warmly,
Zee

http://lostpaper.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-i-list.html
http://www.zeezahava.blogspot.com/
http://brassbellhaiku.blogspot.com/
http://paintedparrot.blogspot.com/

Call It Slush: SFLR call for submissions

We’re reading!
Staff Lydia Gonzales, Baro Shalizi, Veronica Clark, Kate McCahill, Sudasi Clement, and Meg Tuite are busy looking for publishable poetry, fiction, and memoir.
Submit to:
SANTA FE LITERARY REVIEW
Miriam Sagan
6401 Richards Avenue
Santa Fe, NM 87508

Deadline: December 1, 2014

Send black & white art via jp file to: SFLRARTSUBMISSIONS@GMAIL.COM

Tip: we’re looking for the unexpected–comics, graphic novels, mixed genre, screenplays, and bilingual work.

Happy to Be Featured in The Drug Store Notebook Poem of the Month–Miriam Sagan

The Japanese girl
at the hot springs
coos over a nest
of swallows, takes
a cell phone photograph
then, when everyone else
does the same
winces, don’t hurt
their eyes, and in childish panic
covers her own, exclaims
what if they fall out of the nest?
but they don’t–
she kisses
her boyfriend, flits off

To see the whole poem and a great site: http://thedrugstorenotebook.co/2014/10/10/octobers-poem-of-the-month-is-here/