Promising New Online Journals

bird online

It seems like just about every time I turn on my computer I receive a notice about another new online journal. Needless to say, since anyone can start an online journal—and often without expense—there's a good deal of disparity in the quality of these journals. Some are quite dreadful; others are very good. So it's important to check out the masthead to note the credentials of the editors and staff. Check out the Archives if there are past issues. Note the poets and poems that have appeared in past issues. Note the format of the journal. Is this one where you'd be proud to have your work displayed?

I've gathered a list of seven fairly new or brand new online journals that seem to be doing a great job. In order to get on my list, the journal had to meet certain criteria:

• reveals identity of the editors 

• is visually attractive and easy to read—no black background with white or colored fonts

• does not use a pdf format

• does not post poems side by side

• does not use a single page scroll-down format

• posts poems by a single poet on a single page or one poem per page

• has easy and clear navigation through the journal

• uses social media to promote the journal—ideally should provide Facebook and Twitter links for poems        

Titles are linked to the website. Number of issues per year is indicated after the title. Reading period appears on second line.

Dialogist: Quarterly Poetry & Art—4x
all year

Driftless Review—2x
all year

Four Way Review—2x
November 1 – March 1 for  spring issue; April 1 – October 1 for fall issue

Posit—3-4x
all year

Tinderbox Poetry Journal—4x
all year

Tupelo Quarterly—4x
all year but they close submissions once they fill the upcoming issue or reach 300 submissions. Check their Submittable page to confirm that submissions are open.

Waxwing Magazine—3x
all year

Group Reading for The Crafty Poet: A Portable Workshop

Please Join Us

Group Reading for The Crafty Poet: A Portable Workshop

Sunday, June 22 

JOEL ALLEGRETTI

ANN DEVENEZIA

LAURA FREEDGOOD

GAIL GERWIN

TINA KELLEY

ADELE KENNY

ANTOINETTE LIBRO

DIANE LOCKWARD

CHARLOTTE MANDEL

WANDA PRAISNER

SUSANNA RICH

KEN RONKOWITZ

BASIL ROUSKAS

MICHAEL T. YOUNG

SANDY ZULAUF

Bernardsville Public Library

1 Anderson Hill Road

Bernardsville

2:00 PM   Free

Refreshments

Contact Madeline English: 908-766-0118

Diane Lockward: dslockward @ gmail dot com

Directions

Bringing Poetry to New Places

I love unusual venues for poetry readings. A friend of mine, Sondra Gash, had a beautiful house tucked away on a back road in Lebanon, NJ. During the years that she lived there, Sondra hosted a few poetry salons each year. She did this to support her poet pals and to support CavanKerry Press, the press that published her collection, Silk Elegy. One side of the house was all windows overlooking a babbling brook and lots of trees and vegetation. It was a perfect spot for poetry. Sondra invited poets and other kinds of artists for an afternoon of poetry and conversation. The salons were wonderful. Recently, though, Sondra and her husband made the difficult decision that it was time to sell the house and move to a retirement community.

So Sondra and Ira moved to Winchester Gardens in Maplewood, NJ. One of the enticements to move there was that the Social Director suggested that she could continue her salons there. After a period of getting used to her new digs, Sondra put together the first reading. She invited me and five other poets to gather on Monday, May 19 for an evening reading. I was stunned by the beauty of this senior residential community. The grounds were beautiful with tons of flowers and the buildings were big old stone structures.

Above is the Great Hall where the reading was held. The furniture was rearranged so that the audience could sit in rows. We had approximately fifty residents turn out for the reading. They were engaged and enthusiastic.

With the assistance of the Social Director, Sondra prepared a program brochure. Inside was a photo of each poet and a bio.

This is just before the reading got underway. Left to right are Gail Gerwin, Ed Ryterband, Sondra Gash, Howard Levy, Teresa Carson, and Joan Cusack Handler. I'm standing at the far right. As I was sitting waiting for the audience to arrive, I saw a familiar-looking woman walk in. Much to my surprise that was Rose Spear, a woman I used to teach with at Millburn High School. She was a German teacher; I was an English teacher. I went over and we got reacquainted. It was an unexpected pleasure to meet up with a former colleague. Then the reading got underway, each of us reading for approximately ten minutes. What a pleasure to read in such an exquisite room.

Me reading three poems. Following the last poet, Sondra led a Q&A which was very interesting. I had the impression that some of the seniors would like to try to write some poems of their own. Then cookies were passed around and we engaged in some conversation with those who chose to come up and chat with us.

I'm not ready to move in, but I would definitely like to go back for another poetry reading or to lead a workshop.

For Mothers Mostly But Not Only

Click Cover to Purchase

My poem "Nesting" appears in this year's issue of the Mom Egg Review. This is my first appearance in the journal and I must say that I'm very pleased. The journal has a lovely cover and is nicely done throughout. I haven't yet had a chance to peruse the entire issue, but I've read enough to know that I have a lot of good reading ahead. Kudos for editor Marjorie Tesser!

This year's issue includes more than 100 contributors. Not surprisingly, women poets far outnumber men poets, but men are welcome to submit as long as they stick to the somehow-related-to-mothers focus of the journal. Since every guy at one point or another had a mother, I'm surprised that more men don't appear within these pages. Perhaps they have felt discouraged by the journal's name. So here's a challenge to the guys: Submit this time around.

Be you woman or be you man, the new submission period just opened. Check out the Guidelines.

The 2015 issue will contain a special portfolio of poems that address the theme of compassionate action. This will be curated by poet Jennifer Jean who describes what she's looking for as follows:

We are interested in poems that explore, from different perspectives, the theme of Compassionate Action.

Mothers, and motherly nurturers, don't only feel for others in pain and strife—they take action. This compassionate action, whether large or small, often occurs at home or in small communities. It can also occur on national or global levels. Sometimes it doesn’t occur at all.

Poems might consider:
What compassionate actions have you witnessed? How have you surprised yourself? What must be overcome to find paths of action, and to bypass inertia? How can we encourage people to take compassionate action in their own lives?

Note that you may submit to either the General Poetry section or the Compassionate Action theme section, but not both. Note, too, that the journal also includes some fiction and creative prose. Book Reviews are posted at the journal's blog.

Summer Journals Q-Z 2014

Here's the third and final installment of the list of print journals that read during the summer months.  Again, please let me know if you spot any errors or omissions. Good luck!

No rejections allowed.

**Remember that the asterisks indicate that the journal accepts simultaneous submissions.

Journal accepts online submissions unless otherwise indicated.

**Quiddity—2x

**The Raleigh Review—1x—July thru October

**Rattle—2x
via email

**Redactions—1x—by email–July 1-Feb 15

**Redivider—2x

**Rhino—1x—April 1-Oct 1

**River Styx—2x—May 1 thru Nov 30
snail mail

**Rosebud—3x
via email

**Sakura Review—2x

**Salt Hill—2x
August 1-April 1

**San Pedro River Review—2x
month of July
via email

**Saw Palm—1x—July 1-Oct. 1

**Smartish Pace—2x

**South Dakota Review—4x

**The Southeast Review—2x

**Southern Humanities Review—4x—Aug 2-April 6
via email or snail mail

**Southern Poetry Review—2x
snail mail

**Sugar House Review—2x—Jan 31-Oct 15
via email

**Tahoma Literary Review—4x

**32 Poems—2x

Threepenny Review—4x—reads thru June

**Turnrow—2x
snail mail

**Tusculum Review—1x

US 1 Worksheets—1x
snail mail
April 15- June 30

**Washington Square Review—2x—Aug 1-Oct 15

**West Wind Review—1x—July 1-Sept 1

**Women Arts Quarterly Journal—4x

**Yemassee—2x


Summer Journals A-F

Summer Journals G-P

Summer Journals G-P 2014

Here's the second installment of the list of print journals that read during the summer months. If you find any errors or have others to add to the list, please let me know. Good luck with your submissions.

This mailbox is ready to receive good mail.

**Indicates that simultaneous submission is ok
Unless otherwise indicated, the journal accepts online submissions


**Grist—1x—June 15-Sept 15

**The Grove Review—2x
fee but pays

Hanging Loose—3x
snail mail

**Hartskill Review—3x

**Hayden’s Ferry—2x

**Hiram Poetry Review—1x
snail mail

Hudson Review—4x—April 1-June 30 (all year if a subscriber)
snail mail

**Lake Effect—1x
snail mail

Little Star Journal—1x
strong preference for snail mail
strong preference for no sim sub

Louisiana Literature—2x

**Lumina—1x—check in July

**MacGuffin—3x
via email attachment

**Madison Review—2x

Manhattan Review—2x
(prefers no sim but will take)

Measure—2x
metrical only

**Michigan Quarterly Review—4x

**Mid-American Review—2x

**Minnesota Review—2x—August 1–November 1

**Missouri Review—4x

**The Mom Egg—1x—June 1-Sept 1

**Nimrod—2x—Jan 1-Nov 30
snail mail

**Parnassus: Poetry in Review—2x
snail mail

Pinyon—2x
via email

**Pleiades—2x—Aug 15-May 15

**Ploughshares—3x—June 1 to January 15

**Poet Lore—2x
snail mail

**Poetry—11x


Summer Journals A-F

Summer Journals Q-Z

Summer Journals A-F 2014

It's that time of year again. During the summer many of us have more time to write and submit, but quite a few journals close their doors to submissions for the summer months. Do not despair. There are still many journals that do read during the summer and some that read only during the summer. This is the first of a 3-part list of those journals, all print. As in the past, several had to be removed this year as they have closed their doors permanently. But a few have been added.

I've added links for your convenience. I've also indicated the number of issues per year, the submission period dates, which journals accept simultaneous submissions, and which ones accept online submissions. If you find an error, please let me know.

This mailbox only accepts Acceptances!

**Indicates that simultaneous submission is ok
Unless otherwise indicated, the journal accepts online submissions.
If no dates are given, the journal reads all year.


**American Poetry Review—6x-tabloid

**Another Chicago Magazine—2x—Feb-Aug 31

**Asheville Poetry Review—3x—Jan. 15-July 15
snail mail

**Atlanta Review—2x—deadlines June 1 & Dec 1
reads all year, but slower in summer
snail mail

**Baltimore Review—2x—August 1-Nov 30

**Barn Owl Review—1x—June 1-Nov 1

**Bat City Review—1x—June 1-Nov 15

Beloit Poetry Journal—3x

**Birmingham Poetry Review—2x
snail mail

**Black Warrior Review—2x—Aug 1-Oct 1

**Bone Bouquet—2x
women only

**Briar Cliff Review—1x—deadline Nov 1

**Burnside Review—2x
email sub ok
$3 reading fee /pays $50

**Caketrain—1x
email sub

**Chariton Review—2x
snail mail

**Cimarron Review—4x

**Columbia Journal—2x—March 1- Oct 1

**Columbia Poetry Review—1x—July 1-Nov 1

**Conduit—2x
snail mail

**Crab Orchard Review—2x—Aug 15-Oct 1 (special issue)
snail mail

**Cream City Review—2x—Aug 1-Nov 1

Field—2x—August 1-May 31

**The Florida Review—2x—Aug 1-May 31 (subscribers all year)

**The Fourth River—1x—July 1-Sept 1

Summer Journals G-P

Summer Journals Q-Z