The Central Dissent: A Journal of Gender and Sexuality is Oklahoma’s first and only journal to center the exploration of gender theory, gender identity, and how race, class, and ethnicity shape society’s expectations of the individual. We welcome a diverse variety of research-informed work from our region and beyond, including academic articles and reviews, poetry, artwork, fiction, creative nonfiction, and hybrid narratives. Our aim is to amplify voices that are historically marginalized, without discriminating against race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, citizenship, age, disability, or any other underrepresented communities. The Central Dissent is an interdisciplinary academic journal produced by New Plains Student Publishing and sponsored by UCO's Women’s Research Center and BGLTQ+ Student Center.
In our journal, we challenge dominant narratives and subvert patriarchal systems in order to expand our understanding of humanity and the world as a whole. Your submission can come from a personal or critical perspective, and while you do not have to identify with the subject you are engaging with, we ask that your research, artwork, or writing emerge from an informed, empathetic lens.
Make it radical. Make it weird. Make it visible.
We do not accept previously published work. Simultaneous submissions are acceptable, but please inform us if your work has been picked up elsewhere. AI generated content will not be accepted. Your submission should have the title of your work as the file name, with the case formatting as you would like your title to appear if selected for publication (example: The Missing Woes.jpeg). File types currently accepted: .doc, .docs, .docx, .jpeg, .png, and .pdf. Audio or video submissions should be sent as unlisted or private links on your personal host platform like Vimeo or YouTube.
Our deadline is January 18, 2026. If you haven’t heard from us by March regarding your submission status, please email Elle Prather, Editor-in-Chief, at lprather2@uco.edu.
The Central Dissent is looking for works of fiction and creative nonfiction pertaining to gender and sexuality, especially those that offer insight into non-normative experiences. As with the other categories, we ask that your submission suggest an informed outlook on your subject, blending innovation with academia.
Be imaginative, be inventive, and be bold.
Please keep prose submissions fewer than 7,500 words.
Guidelines for Art and Photo+
We allow artists to submit their work across a variety of mediums, including visual art, music, song, dance, music videos, and multimedia work. We encourage the odd, the unusual, and the unconventional.
We will consider up to three pieces per submission. Works featuring identifiable human faces will not be accepted.
Send us your original research and reviews! The Central Dissent is an academic journal, and we seek research that examines ideologies of gender and sexuality. Please keep your citations in accordance with your discipline.
Original research submissions are to be fewer than 15 pages (excluding bibliographies or works cited), and reviews between 750-1,000 words.
The Central Dissent desires poetry that bewitches us. There are no limits to the types of poetry we accept, including experimental forms and blackout poetry.
We will consider up to three poems per submission, limited to seven pages total.
To be considered for our Featured Artist, please submit no more than four works of art as a set. Please refrain from submitting works featuring identifiable faces of people.The selected artist will be interviewed for this issue, discussing ideas typically covered in artist’s statements, such as inspiration, intent, and other relevant information that contributes to the audience’s interpretation.
To be considered for our Featured Writer, please submit up to four works not exceeding fifteen pages across any combination of written works, including short stories, flash fiction, and creative nonfiction. The selected writer will be interviewed for this issue, discussing ideas typically covered in writer’s statements, such as inspiration, intent, and other relevant information that contributes to the audience’s interpretation.