New Plains Review invites submissions for our 40th-anniversary issue with a theme focused on The In-between.
Founded in 1986, our home is the University of Central Oklahoma but the scope of our interests is global. To welcome this celebratory issue, the journal invites all voices—from the underrepresented to the marginalized—to submit. We are looking for pieces that fall outside of conventions, work that disrupts challenges, and deconstructs. We accept a variety of submissions across (and in between) genres: poetry, fiction, nonfiction, art and photography, and beyond. Genre hybridity is, of course, encouraged.
We do not accept previously published work. Simultaneous submissions are great, but please inform us immediately if your work has been picked up elsewhere. Please note that we do not discriminate against race, sex, gender identification, sexual orientation, national origin, native language, religion, age, disability, marital status, citizenship, etc.
AI generated content is prohibited.
Specific guidelines for each genre are listed below.
The deadline is March 13.
New Plains Review seeks poems from new and old voices alike, poetry that comes from the individual and is shaped by unique experiences. We want to read work that blurs boundaries and publish work that the world needs. We will consider up to three poems per submission (no more than six pages total). Our theme for this issue is “The In-Between,” and as such, we are open to any style and all content. We welcome weirdness in your work and experimental forms!
Poetry in languages other than English is permitted (if possible, translated footnotes are encouraged).
Guidelines for Art and Photo+
New Plains Review is proud to accept multimedia submissions of visual art & photography from artists across the nation and internationally.
We value submissions that examine the overlaps of borders. While the work doesn't necessarily have to reflect any region or identity, we love seeing creators push boundaries that bring to life new forms. Expand our theme,The In-between, by sending us your strongest work that explores genres and mediums such as collage, portrait, sculpture, experimental work, etc. We hope to uplift voices that have been systemically underrepresented in our society. We encourage artists of intersectional or marginalized identities to submit!
We will consider any submission in this genre for this issue’s cover.
Please limit your submission to four, single-file images, all file types accepted.
We invite nonfiction submissions that reflect experiences from personal, critical, or creative narratives. This includes think-pieces, essays, prose, plays, and scripts that challenge, explore, and encourage our theme. Submissions will be a maximum of 6,000 words. If your work is under 1,000 words, you are welcome to submit up to three flash pieces in one submission and should be kept between 500-1,000 words. While we understand that “The In-between” is a broad spectrum, so we invite you to test those parameters.
Thank you for having our journal in mind and we are excited to read your submissions!
Please share your finest plays and scripts with us, work that comes alive on the page. We encourage writers who push narrative boundaries and accept submissions of up to 6,000 words in any form. While we are focused on plays and scripts in a traditional sense, we also invite work that tests the boundaries of genre and form. We welcome the stories and perspectives of writers from traditionally underrepresented communities. Simultaneous submissions are acceptable.
We are looking within the liminal spaces of existence and people caught in the borders of society. “The In-between" is the moment of choice between actions—the pause that defines who we become. Per submission, please submit previously unpublished short stories ranging between 1,000 to 6,000 words, up to three flash fiction pieces ranging from 500 to 1,000 words, or up to three microfiction works ranging from 3+ sentences to 500 words. Show us the in-between through genre-fluid approaches. We welcome and encourage work by writers from traditionally underrepresented communities.