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MotherVerse Submissions

MotherVerse is a magazine dedicated to the biological, cultural, psychological, and universal state of motherhood. This is quite obviously a very expansive area of focus and because we do not wish to limit the voice of any author we put very little in the way of restrictions on the subject matter we publish in our magazine.

MotherVerse is currently accepting open submissions for poetry, creative nonfiction, short fiction, and free form essays discussing personal experience as well as your thoughts, theories, and observations. 

In addition to our open pieces we are often looking for works that fit the criteria of a regular section or a specific focus point. Works submitted to one of these categories should follow closely the guidelines we have set forth for it.

Most importantly MotherVerse is looking to feature intelligent, thoughtful, and individual pieces inspired by everyday existence as well as that which is outside the realm of normal daily activity; pieces that reflect the authors distinctive perspective. We enjoy very much receiving submissions from around the globe and across cultural lines. We do ask that you send all submissions in English.

Please review our site to get an idea of what kind of work we are looking for, but do not hesitate to send unique works that you feel should appear in MotherVerse as we are always looking for fresh, diverse voices.

Refer to the submission guidelines below for specifics.

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Submission Guidelines
Important note: We are actively searching out visual art for our cover and inside pages as well as book reviews and interviews. Please see guidelines at the bottom of the page if you care to submit in these categories.

How to Submit
All works should be edited carefully so that the spelling, grammar, and form appear as you would like to see them published. We may assume that any “errors” we encounter are part of the artistic angle of a piece or we may choose to edit confusing segments. Please email your submissions to as a .rtf attachment(Rich Text Format) AND in the body of an email. In your email, and in all attached documents, include your First and Last Name, Address, Email Address, and the Date. Please also include a Short Bio to accompany your piece(s) if published. Include the Title of Your Work and  its Category(poetry, fiction etc) in the subject line of your email. We only accept electronic submissions.  We do accept simultaneous submissions but please inform us promptly if your piece is accepted elsewhere. Works submitted should be original pieces that have not been published elsewhere either online or off.  (email- submissions [@] motherverse.com)

Response Time
For the convenience of our writers we attempt to respond to all submissions as quickly as possible, however, we usually consider pieces on a semiannual basis. Depending on when you send your submission in our publishing cycle it may take us just a few weeks or up to six months to reply.  If you have submitted a piece and we have not responded within three months please feel free to contact us about the status of our decision.

Payment
Currently payment for any published piece is one copy of the issue of MotherVerse your work appears in.


Works We Accept

Poetry
Poems may be of any style, form or length. We do not, however, typically publish poetry that examines mundane concepts unless you are doing something powerful or unique to set them apart. We are looking for poetry that takes the reader somewhere new or creatively examines an old subject.  Poetry that is experimental or offbeat is always welcome as are poems that utilize both traditional and original writing styles and layout. We accept up to four poems at one time for consideration. If your poems require a special layout please make sure to send them as a .rtf to retain formatting and mention so in your email.


Creative Nonfiction, Fiction, and Essays
Works in these categories may be rather short(500 words or more) but should not exceed more than 4000 words in length. We ask that you do not submit more than one work of significant length at a time. The subject matter is open and can deal with any issue or experience that fits within the general purpose of the magazine. Please view our Current Issue area if you need clarification on this. Pieces focusing on motherhood and culture, feminist thought, contemporary politics, activism, history and science are welcome in addition to those pieces which deal with everyday experiences and personal journeys.  Please make sure you have examined your subject fully before sending it along; in other words be descriptive and visual and don't leave out the details.  We do not typically prefer queries over finished works but if you have a piece in progress and want to know our general interest in publishing it feel free to inquire.

Muddy Path
Muddy Path is regular section in MotherVerse that features well-written personal accounts of life. These accounts should focus on a specific experience or time in your life and can take the form of creative nonfiction or poetry limited to 1500 words. We have a wide scope here and are always looking for something original. We also have a special interest in pregnancy/birth/breastfeeding stories and stories of culture displayed with creativity and thought, or in the form of poetry. Please specify that you are submitting to the Muddy Path section in your email.


DeepVoice
DeepVoice is a regular section that features a variety of short pieces written by readers of MotherVerse. The pieces need not fit any specific form or style. We are looking to print a wide array of unique ideas. The entries should be limited to 500 words and can be a short essay on something of interest to you, fiction, a poem, a bit of humor, a political or social outcry, a captured moment, a spot about your daily life, something noteworthy you have read or heard, or even a question. Do not feel limited, send us what you have we will consider it.


Book Reviews
Book reviews can focus on any book or collection of works (fiction or nonfiction) from any era. The book review area is a regular section of the magazine and so we are always looking for reviews that inform our readers of great works. We are not looking for critical assessments but rather for an analysis that is clear and intelligent; letting the reader know why the book or collection is relevant to the state of motherhood and how it is exceptional in its genre. Book reviews should not exceed 1000 words in length.



Contemporary Parenting
We are looking for essays or works of non-fiction discussing issues facing parents either in their unique communities or globally. These issues may be biological, societal, psychological, emotional or otherwise. Length is unimportant, we will consider pieces of varying lengths, as long as they do not exceed 5000 words. Issues discussed should be ones that are relevant to parenthood (or just mothers specifically) in the modern day and should include detailed information about the issue, what kinds of effects (emotional, social etc) are being felt, what kinds of actions (if any) have been or are being taken to remedy the problem, and possibly how readers can get involved to make positive change.


History and Science
We are looking to feature works that examine motherhood from a scientific or historical perspective.We will consider any work that is less than 5000 words. Pieces should be thought provoking, intelligent and original in their content. The piece, if it makes use of sources, should be fully referenced and include a bibliography for our readers. There is alot of possibility with a section like this as history and science are obviously very broad subjects. Examples would be an examination of a mother-scientist, a look at what motherhood was like during a specific historical time or from a specific cultural perspective, or a look at how modern genetics is helping us understand our maternal past. Don't limit yourself here, we are looking for unique, fascinating stuff.


Politics and Activism
Smart, open minded pieces about the broader societal impacts of politics and activism on mothers in a specific group or mothers in general are welcome. We will not publish pieces which are in any way hateful, derogatory or whose main goal it is to persuade our readers of a personal belief system. We ARE interested in pieces that bring to light important issues facing mothers and whose intent is to aid mothers in some way.


Visual Art
We are always in need of artwork in the form of photographs, graphic art, sketches and the like to feature on our cover and within our pages. We are particularly interested in pieces which convey a thoughtful and unique perspective on motherhood. Please keep in mind that, aside from our cover, MotherVerse is a black and white publication. You may send works that are in color but if we choose not to use the image on the cover we may ask to print it in black and white in our pages. Please do not send images that will lose their purpose if printed imperfectly. Images should be sent as an attached .jpg and should be at least 300dpi.

Interviews
Interviews with  persons whose interests are aligned to some degree with the feel of MotherVerse are welcome. Interviews can be as long or short as necessary and do not need to be focused on well known individuals. We would rather see an interview from someone unique and unknown that deserved some attention than one with an individual that has already had their share of interviews. However all interviews of interest will be considered.


If you have a piece that you do not feel fits into any of these categories please inquire as to our interest anyway, we are always looking for new ideas. 


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