Submission Guidelines

General

• Submissions Closed

General

• Submissions Closed

Important: Please review all Submission Guidelines carefully. Submissions that do not follow these guidelines may be ineligible for consideration. We will not send individual notifications for submissions declined due to guideline issues.

  General:

· Submission Period: October 1, 2025 — January 2, 2026

· All submissions will be reviewed following the close of the submission period

· We estimate all submissions will receive a response by March 31, 2026

· Open to poets of all backgrounds and experience levels

· We are committed to uplifting diversity and strongly encourage submissions from marginalized voices

· Poetry must be original and unpublished, with the exception of social media

· Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but please notify us promptly if your work is accepted elsewhere

Submission Attachment Requirements:

· Submissions must be a single Microsoft Word file attachment (.doc or .docx file). If you are using another program, please export your file to word before submitting

· 12pt, Times New Roman font

· 1.5 spacing

· Maximum of 3 poems per submission

· Each poem must be on its own page

· Each poem must fit a single column on an 8.5x11in page

· Each poem must have a title

· Any poetic form is welcome

· Please do not include your name or any other personally identifiable information in your submission file attachment. Submissions should be anonymized to ensure a fair review process.

Submission Email Requirements:

· Subject Line: Please include your name followed by “Anthology Submission” (e.g. Jane Doe – Anthology Submission)

· Please use author name exactly as you would like it to appear in the anthology

· In the body of the email, please include author name, the title(s) of your poem(s), and a third-person author’s bio.

Author Bio Guidelines:

· Length: 150-200 words

· Style: Third person

· Include your pronouns after your name [e.g. Jane Doe (she/they)]

· Content: Include relevant writing experience, publications, awards, or other notable achievements. You may also include a brief personal detail or insight that gives readers a sense of who you are.

· Online presence: Please end the bio with one place readers can find you online (Instagram, Substack, personal website, etc.)

Style & Theme: 

We’re curating an anthology for poets who are head over heels for language itself. This collection celebrates poems that explore the endlessly recursive act of writing poetry. We love poetry that is emotionally charged, fearless, and speaks truth. We value powerful poetic storytelling with evocative metaphors, vivid imagery, and unique wordplay. We desire poetry that feels intimate, as if the author is sharing secrets with their audience.

Theme: Smitten with the Written: A Poet’s Guide to Poetry Made Poetic

· Poems should engage with the craft, joy, or obsession of writing poetry

· Work can be meta, self-reflective, or whimsical, highlighting the relationship between poet, poem, and (if applicable) reader.

· We welcome experimental forms, wordplay, and unconventional structures.

Topics can include:

o The Process: drafting, revising, scribbling on whatever is within reach, lines that arrive at inconvenient times, etc.

o The Why: why we write, what compels us, what poetry gives or takes away

o The Who: portraits of the poet-self, mentors, muses, or audiences (real or imagined)

o The Where: places poetry lives, like classrooms, kitchen tables, open mics, subway rides, in nature, etc.

o The Meta-Moments: poems about the blank page, the stubborn lines, or the thrill of a stanza falling into place

o The Struggle: when you have the undeniable urge to write, but the words just won’t land.

o The Obsession: poems about being consumed by a single idea, image, or line that won’t leave you alone

o The Inspiration: The sparks that ignite your poetry

o The Risk: writing that pushes boundaries or exposes vulnerability

o The Silence: when the words aren’t there yet, but you sit with the emptiness, listening and waiting

o The Aftermath: the feelings after finishing a poem, like relief, exhilaration, or doubt

What We’re Not Looking For:

· Work that is purely instructional or academic

· Work that is overly didactic, like step-by-step “how to write” instructions

· Poems unrelated to the love of words, reading, writing, or the poetic experience

· Hateful or discriminatory content

· Poems that are incomprehensible without context (obscure references, inside jokes, or experimental forms that don’t communicate meaning)

· Extremely short, single word poems or poetry fragments unless they carry a clear, purposeful resonance. 

Submission Fees & Optional Feedback:

· Anthology submissions are free — everyone is welcome to submit without any cost

· Optional editorial feedback:

o $5 for feedback on one poem of your choice

o $10 for feedback on all three submitted poems

· Payment Instructions:

o Include your author name and email address in the payment notes

o In the body of your submission email, include a short note confirming you paid for feedback

o If you are requesting feedback on only one poem, please specify the title of that poem

· To ensure we can provide feedback, please follow all submission guidelines. Submissions that don’t may not be eligible for editorial feedback.

Important Information To Consider:

· Trim Size: Our book size is 5.5x8.5 inches. Long lines may need to be wrapped to fit within our trim specs.

· We aim to use white space thoughtfully: We keep your structure intact, but spacing between lines and stanzas may be adjusted to curate a collection that feels balanced and full

· Please use your author name consistently: Use it exactly as you’d like it to appear in the book — on your submission, contract, author bio, email signatures, and any other correspondence. Consistency helps us avoid errors and ensures your name is represented correctly in the anthology

· Please note: minor edits for formatting, clarity, or consistency may be made during the production process, but substantial changes will be discussed with you beforehand. Necessary line-wrapping and line spacing do not qualify as substantial changes.

Accepted Poets Will Receive:

· Publication of their poem(s) with Arcana Poetry Press

· A complimentary copy of the anthology

· Promotion on our website, social media, and other marketing channels

· Authors retain copyright ownership of their work

How To Submit:

Check back on October 1st (when submissions open) for guidelines on how to submit!