Writing Competition: Institute for Immigration Research New American Voices Award

Institute for Immigration Research New American Voices Award

Founded in 2018, Fall for the Book and the Institute for Immigration Research created an award to recognize recently published works that illuminate the complexity of the human experience as told by immigrants, whose work is historically underrepresented in writing and publishing.

Three jurors will judge all entries for the New American Voices Award and choose three finalists and then award the prize to one. Finalists will be announced during the summer and all three finalists and the judges will appear at the Fall for the Book festival in October for the presentation and to read from and discuss their work. The winning writer will receive $5,000 and the two finalists each will receive $1,000.

If America is a country of immigrants as it is often described, then the quintessential American literature would be the literature of immigration... Hopefully these new voices will make us step back and look at ourselves with new eyes, and new hope and new meaning.

Submit to the Award

Starting December 4, 2025, publishers can enter immigrant writers* who have published no more than three books.

• Entries must be prose: literary fiction or creative nonfiction. Please no journalism, plays, anthologies, or poetry.

• Eligible books must have been (or will be) published between October 1, 2025 and September 30, 2026.

• Four bound copies of the book (galleys/ARCs are acceptable) must be postmarked March 31, 2026 and sent to:

Kara Oakleaf

4400 University Drive, MS 3E4

Fairfax, VA 22030

along with a $20 entry fee. Checks can be made out to Fall for the Book, Inc.; entry fee may also be paid online here.

• For accessibility reasons, please also submit your book digitally. Please email them to:

 kara [at] fallforthebookorg (Change [at] to @)

If no bound copies will be available by the deadline, you may submit digitally only.

*Writers should be immigrants to the U.S., living in the States. They can be first generation by either definition of the term (born elsewhere and immigrated to the U.S., or born in the states to parents who immigrated to the U.S.)

Questions? Contact Kara Oakleaf – kara[@]fallforthebook.org

Call for Submissions: 149 Review

149 Review is an online journal focused on publishing fresh, original, thought provoking poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. We want work that pushes the boundaries of literature while at the same time paying attention to the importance of craft. Devoted to publishing nothing but the highest quality issues, we are looking for work from writers at every stage of their career, so send us your best. We publish issues twice a year, in the Summer and Winter.

Poetry

To submit, send 3-5 poems in a single .doc or .docx file to:

149poetry@gmail.com

Please include a cover letter and third-person bio in the body of your email. The poems should be single-spaced and in a standard 12-point font. Our open reading periods for Poetry are February 1-April 30 for our Summer Issue and August 1-October 31 for our Winter Issue, please send only one submission per reading period.

Creative Nonfiction

To submit, send one essay in a single .doc or .docx file to:

149nonfiction@gmail.com

Please include a cover letter and third-person bio in the body of your email. Please send us your most polished work of up to 5,000 words, though we prefer 3,000 or less. We will be considering Creative Nonfiction year-round, but please send submissions no more than once every three months.

Fiction

To submit, send one Fiction piece in a single .doc or .docx file to:

149reviewfiction@gmail.com

Please include a cover letter and third-person bio in the body of your email. Send us your most polished work of up to 5,000 words, though we prefer 3,000 or less. We will be considering Fiction year-round, but please send submissions no more than once every three months.

Visual Art

We will also be looking to consider art of any form in our issues. Whether it’s photography, oil painting, or any other form of visual art, as long as we have the pieces in .jpeg, .jpg, or .png format, we would like to consider it. Submit up to 6 pieces at a time to:

149reviewart@gmail.com

We will be open for art submissions year-round, but please send submissions no more than once every three months.

Every issue, our editors will choose 1 poem, 1 creative essay, and 1 story that utilize the tools of their craft exceptionally well. Whether it’s the use of line break, mode, and ostranenie in Poetry, whitespace, narrative braiding, and POV in Nonfiction, or character, voice and setting in Fiction, if your work moves our editors with a mastery of craft, we want to highlight it.

This is a non-monetary prize with the intent to acknowledge the hard work of our contributors. It takes an incredible amount of time to develop a command over one’s craft toolkit, and as writers ourselves, we want to put that effort on display.

All accepted unsolicited submissions will be in contention for our craft prizes, so there is no need to send a separate submission to be considered.

We accept simultaneous submissions as long as you notify us immediately if the piece is accepted elsewhere. To let us know, please reply to your submission email with your withdrawal. If your work is accepted by us, we kindly ask that you withdraw your poems from other consideration as quickly as possible. We do not accept reprints.

Please submit once per reading period for poetry, and no more frequently than every three months for CNF and visual art. If you have been published in 149 previously, please wait a year from your work’s publication date before resubmitting.

Upon acceptance, we reserve First North American Serial Rights. Following publication, all rights revert to the author, but we ask that 149 Review is credited in subsequent reprints. On top of this, we will be looking to submit to all major anthologies once given the opportunity.

We will not be considering work that utilizes AI as a writing aid nor will we consider work that has any AI generated content within it. Please avoid submitting if this applies to your work.

Call for Submissions: Banshee

Banshee welcomes submissions from both Irish and international writers of any background, including first-time writers. We welcome work from members of groups or communities typically under-represented within literature, whether or not the work addresses this.

All submissions should be previously unpublished.

Our guideline maximum word count for stories and essays is 5000 words. Flash fiction should be under 1000 words, poems no more than 40 lines.

We are happy to read: one story or one essay or two flashes or up to four poems. Please submit in one category only.

Submissions should be in one .doc or .docx attachment. Prose submissions should be double-spaced.

Please include a third-person biography (max 50 words) in the body of your email. If you are sending a prose submission, please note the word count of the piece in the body of the email.

Deadline: March 31, 2026 

Email to:

subs dot bansheelit at gmail dot com (Change dot to . and at to @ )

indicating the category of your submission in the subject line (e.g. Flash/Story/Essay/Poetry).

We are happy to consider simultaneous submissions, but ask that you notify us as soon as your work is accepted elsewhere.

Please note that we cannot offer feedback on unsuccessful submissions.

For contributions to Banshee literary journal, we pay: €300 for a story/essay; €100 for flash fiction; €75 per poem.

Banshee Press authors receive advances in the range of €1000–€5000. We hope to increase these rates with future publications.

For events, we cover the cost of travel where the writer is travelling outside their county of residence. We also cover accommodation where the length of travel involved and/or the start time of the event necessitates it.

We are committed to paying artists within 14 days of work being delivered.

We ensure that writers’ copyright is respected, both in terms of moral and economic rights.

We believe in the importance of transparency on matters of pay and working conditions, and that sharing this information publicly is to the benefit of all writers. 

Call for Submissions: West Branch

The editors of West Branch welcome submissions of poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and translation. We normally read unsolicited manuscripts between August 1st and April 1st. We print only original, unpublished work. For accepted work, we purchase First North American serial rights.

Payment is awarded for accepted works in the amount of $100 per submission of poetry, and $.10/word for prose with a maximum payment of $200. Additionally, we provide each contributor with two copies of the issue in which his/her work appears and a one-year subscription to West Branch.

Submission link here.

Call for Submissions: Colorado Review

  

• Fiction & poetry manuscripts are accepted from August 1 to March 31.

• Nonfiction manuscripts are accepted year-round.

• Book reviews are accepted August 1 through April 30.

Simultaneous submissions are accepted; writers must notify us immediately if the work is accepted elsewhere.

If Colorado Review has published your work in the last two years, please refrain from submitting so that we may continue to feature new voices.

With the exception of book reviews, Colorado Review does not publish the work of CSU faculty (current or emeritus), staff, or students; CSU alumni may submit three years after their graduation.

We consider only previously unpublished work.

We accept translations of previously published or unpublished work. Upon submitting a translation, writers must provide proof of permission to translate.

Colorado Review purchases First North American Serial Rights; all rights revert to the author upon publication in CR. We pay our poets a flat fee of $100 and we pay $300 for short stories and essays. Authors also receive two copies of the issue in which they are published and a one-year subscription to CR.

We strongly encourage writers to be familiar with our magazine before submitting to it. Examples of work published in Colorado Review are posted on our website; sample copies of issues before Spring 2020 are also available for $10 each, including postage; issues beginning with Spring 2020 are $12 each, including postage.

Authors do NOT need to be residents of Colorado or the United States. If you are, however, a foreign national working in the United States, please check the conditions of your visa status with regard to receiving payment from entities other than your sponsor. Colorado State University cannot issue honoraria to foreign nationals with B1/WB, B2/WT, H-1B, or F-1 visas. A J-1 visa holder with a sponsor other than CSU must have written authorization from the Responsible Officer (RO) at their sponsoring institution prior to the activity.

Cover letters should provide the author’s name, mailing address, phone number, and e-mail address (if available).

Manuscripts should be double-spaced, printed on one or both sides of the paper. We appreciate one-inch margins, 12-point type, and standard typefaces (e.g., Times New Roman). Please don’t send your only copy; we are not responsible for loss of or damage to your manuscript.

Please wait until you've received a response to your submission before submitting again.

Every single submission received at Colorado Review is read at least once. If two or more of our editorial assistants upvote a submission, it moves on to a genre editor, who will make the final decision to accept it. We have a large and talented editorial staff, and generally we respond within four months (and sometimes quicker). Please do not assume that we did not read your work just because you receive a response within a couple of weeks of having submitted to us. At the beginning of our reading period, for example, we are very quick, as we have fewer submissions to read. If, however, you submit during winter break, much of the staff is on vacation and response time may be longer. Similarly, if you submit close to the end of our reading period, we may not get to your submission until the fall. If you have not received a response from us after three months, you are welcome to call or e-mail about your submission.

Submit your work here. 

Call for Submissions on Theme of "Ripples": Libretto Magazine

 

For Issue 15, with the theme RIPPLES, Libretto Magazine is pleased to announce it’s call for submissions. Libretto Magazine invites writers and artists to respond to the theme RIPPLES, the visible and invisible waves created by a single moment, action, or voice. This issue explores how small beginnings expand outward, shaping memory, identity, relationships, environments, and futures. Submissions may engage with personal, social, political, emotional, or ecological ripples, embracing subtlety as much as impact. Libretto Magazine welcomes thoughtful, imaginative work that traces movement, consequence, and connection across time and space.

Send in your experiences and desires, your resilience and patience for brighter days to return, as well as your dreams and despair in relation to the theme. We want voice. We want artistry. We want heart. The selection process is set to be thoroughly rigorous, therefore, endeavor to submit only your best work of art.

The submissions window opens: February 1—March 31, 2026

Submission Guidelines:

POETRY:

• Submit up to 3-5 poems per entry.

• Each poem can be of any length.

• Include all poems in a single document.

• Preferred format: Word document (.doc or .docx) or PDF.

• Use Times New Roman or Arial font, size 12.(Single-Spaced).

• Each poem should be titled and every new poem should begin on a new page.

• Include author’s name, and a biography of no more than hundred words, written in the third person attached on a single document, a profile picture of you in high-resolution, and your social media handle(s).

• Only send unpublished work.

• We accept simultaneous submissions, please do let us know if your submission has been accepted by another platform.

• Submission must be properly edited and sent through our submission form. Our editorial team reserves the right to edit your work if there is any need.

Submit your poetry submissions Here

NONFICTION/ESSAY:

• Submit one entry for nonfiction, essay or article.

• Length: 2,500 to 3,000 words.

• Preferred format: Word document (.doc or .docx) or PDF.

• Use Times New Roman or Arial font, size 12 (Double-Spaced)

• Include author’s name, and a biography of no more than hundred words, written in the third person attached on a single document, a profile picture of you in high-resolution, and your social media handle(s).

• Only send unpublished work.

• We accept simultaneous submissions, please do let us know if your submission has been accepted by another platform.

• Submission must be properly edited and sent through our submission form. Our editorial team reserves the right to edit your work if there is any need.

Submit your Nonfiction/Essay submissions Here

FLASH FICTION:

• Submit one short story per entry for flash fiction

• Length: 1,000 to 1500 words.

• Preferred format: Word document (.doc or .docx) or PDF.

• Use Times New Roman or Arial font, size 12. (Double-Spaced).

• Include author’s name, and a biography of no more than hundred words, written in the third person attached on a single document, a profile picture of you in high-resolution, and your social media handle(s).

• Only send unpublished work.

• We accept simultaneous submissions, please do let us know if your submission has been accepted by another platform.

• Submission must be properly edited and sent through our submission form. Our editorial team reserves the right to edit your work if there is any need.

Submit your Flash Fiction submissions Here

FICTION:

• Submit one short story per entry for fiction

• Length: 3,500–5,000 words.

• Preferred format: Word document (.doc or .docx) or PDF.

• Use Times New Roman or Arial font, size 12. (Double-Spaced).

• Include author’s name, and a biography of no more than hundred words, written in the third person attached on a single document, a profile picture of you in high-resolution, and your social media handle(s).

• Only send unpublished work.

• We accept simultaneous submissions, please do let us know if your submission has been accepted by another platform.

• Submission must be properly edited and sent through our submission form. Our editorial team reserves the right to edit your work if there is any need.

Submit your Fiction submissions Here

VISUAL ARTS/PHOTOGRAPHY:

• Submit original artwork or photography.

• Length: 10-15 artworks

• High-resolution images preferred (at least 300 dpi) with a note about the work you are submitting.

• Submissions should include a cover letter with a brief history/synopsis about each artworks.

• Include author’s name, and a biography of no more than hundred words, written in the third person attached on a single document, a profile picture of you in high-resolution, and your social media handle(s).

• Only send unpublished work.

• We accept simultaneous submissions, please do let us know if your submission has been accepted by another platform.

• Submission must be sent through our submission form.

Submit your Visual Arts and Photography submissions Here

ONE ACT PLAY:

• Submit original plays or scripts for one act play

• Length: 10 to 20 pages.

• The submissions should have at least 8-10 characters

• Preferred format: Word document (.doc or .docx) or PDF.

• Use Times New Roman or Arial font, size 12. (Double-Spaced).

• Submissions should include a cover letter with a brief synopsis of the play, and include the reading time, performance history and awards (If there are any).

• Include author’s name, and a biography of no more than hundred words, written in the third person attached on a single document, a profile picture of you in high-resolution, and your social media handle(s).

• Only send unpublished work.

• We accept simultaneous submissions, please do let us know if your submission has been accepted by another platform.

• Submission must be properly edited and sent through our submission form. Our editorial team reserves the right to edit your work if there is any need.

Submit your One Act Play submissions Here

BOOK REVIEWS:

• Submit original book review

• Length: Not more than 1,500 to 2,000 word

• Preferred format: Word document (.doc or .docx) or PDF.

• Use Times New Roman or Arial font, size 12. (Double-Spaced).

• Submissions should include a cover letter with a brief synopsis of the book you are writing a review on.

• Include author’s name, and a biography of no more than hundred words, written in the third person attached on a single document, a profile picture of you in high-resolution, and your social media handle(s).

• Only send unpublished work.

• We accept simultaneous submissions, please do let us know if your submission has been accepted by another platform.

• Submission must be properly edited and sent through our submission form. Our editorial team reserves the right to edit your work if there is any need.

Submit your Book Review submissions Here

SPOKEN WORD (VIDEO):

• You can submit 1-3 spoken word video entries.

• Keep your video between 3-5 minutes. Short, powerful, and to the point.

• Your piece should reflect the theme of this issue, which is “Ripples.”

• Record in a quiet place with good light. Make sure your face is visible and the sound is audible.

• Record the video in landscape (horizontal) dimension.

• Keep it simple—no need for heavy edits, filters, or visual effects.

• Deliver like you are speaking directly to your audience.

• Save your video in MP4 format (or a widely supported format).

• Ensure the video is of good quality (preferably HD).

• Submit within the deadline provided.

• Name the file: Spoken Word_ [Your Name] _Ripples

• By sending in, you allow us to share your video on the Libretto Publishers platforms (YouTube, Spotify, Audiomack, social media and website).

• Credit will always be given to the performer.

Submit your Spoken Word (video) submissions Here

Call for Submissions to Anthology: Strange Aeon: 2026 (Weirder Tales)

Strange Aeon: 2026 (Weirder Tales) is a continuation of the Strange Aeon anthology series. As always, I want good, solid stories in a cosmic horror/Lovecraftian vein.  I specifically say Lovecraftian rather than Cthulu because I’d like stories across the entire Mythos, including additions by the original group of Mythos authors like Robert Howard and Clark Ashton Smith. 

[1]. In fact, I’d like to use more stories that do not have specific Lovecraftian references and that move away from the traditional Lovecraft style and voice. Try to avoid pastiche and tell fresh new stories in your own settings. Style preference applies to gore and sex as well: think early Weird Tales, no excessive language or explicit sexual references. (You do not have to remove all profanity from your submission—I can read around it—but, if your story is accepted, you will be required to remove it from the final version.)

I am especially interested in stories of mad science, monster-based horror, weird western, and stories that “peel the onion.” Indeed, I cannot emphasize strongly enough the need for these categories. Victoriana and Lovecraft era period pieces will have a much harder time finding acceptance.

This year, I’m particularly looking for the stories that you typically cannot easily find a home for but that are, nevertheless, good stories. We’ve published a fair number of these in the past and I’d like to showcase them. Typically, these are stories that are either too long or plot driven for the average market or that are more melancholy than horrific—either strong voice, strong plot, or unusual concept. To go with these, I’m also looking for stories in the lesser used styles of the “Lovecraft circle” writers; westerns, dark fantasy, occult detectives, etc. Finally, I’ll be a little more open to what might traditionally be called Lovecraft pastiche just to round things out (although these stories will still need to be self-contained.)  

In brief, if it’s something that doesn’t fit in the normal submission boxes for most publishers, I’d like to take a look at it. That being said, please send anything you consider a good story. Feel free to query for any questions. If you are planning to write a story especially for this anthology, by all means query the idea first.

For this anthology I’m asking for non-exclusive rights and will happily take reprints. Simply tell me the publication history so that I can give proper copyright acknowledgment. I will prioritize original stories over reprints and older, more obscure reprints over more recent ones. Simultaneous and multiple submissions are acceptable; please do so in a professional manner. For multiple submissions, feel free to send all submissions attached to a single email. If you are in doubt about a story or story idea, feel free to query.

Though I am not especially interested in non-fiction or poetry, I will consider it.  At most, only one non-fiction piece and one work of (long) poetry will be used.

I’m not overly concerned about length. 5,000 to 10,000 words is preferable but I know that horror doesn’t always lend itself to a strict word count and I’ll look at any length. (I think the longest pieces that have been used have been just over 20,000 words and the shortest about 2,000.) I don’t care about submission formatting as long as it’s legible, clean copy. Electronically, I need the manuscript attached as an RTF, DOC, or DOCX file. Please submit to the email address:

mkeatonauthor (at) gmail (dot) com (Change (at) to @ and (dot) to . )

with the word Submission in the header.

The goal is a final book with ten to 15 stories averaging 5,000 to 10,000 words apiece. I will be accepting submissions no later than the end of April (or until the anthology is filled. If you are writing a story specifically for this anthology and are concerned about the “is filled,” feel free to query me in advance).  I will update these guidelines and notify any already accepted authors if the date has to be pushed back.  I plan to start making final decisions beginning in May. All submissions should have final confirmation of acceptance or rejection by the first week of May.

What's in it for the author? There will be a token payment of $20 and a compensatory copy for the author, or $35 for authors outside the USA. Contributors will get a bio to promote their own work. (I would like to avoid a specific word limit on bios; please respect the reader and the fact that every additional page raises the cover price. I reserve the right to edit bios for space.) Copyright will be retained by the author. Payment will be upon acceptance with comp copy to follow release of the anthology.  If, due to unforeseen circumstances, the anthology is canceled, the author is, of course, to keep the $20. [2]

Important Notes:

1]  Authors new to working in the Mythos may find this a bit confusing. Let me be clear: do not use characters, creatures, book names, or anything else from modern authors. Modern authors are under copyright. Lovecraft and the other members of his original “circle” are largely under public domain.  Please, do not accidentally infringe on anyone’s copyright. Always check first. In addition, gaming rules and supplements are also copyrighted works and should not be used. If in doubt, only use Lovecraft’s own work as a source just to be on the safe side. Better yet, create your own. This is always important when writing but especially in the murky pseudo-shared world of the Mythos where the lines are more difficult to see. If you questions have or concerns about this, a quick internet search should tell you what you need to know. (One exception is if you wish to include Cobalt Green milieu references. Any Cobalt Green tie-ins should be queried first but since I own the copyrights, I also have the leeway to grant usage rights. Nevertheless, I would still rather see your original ideas.)

2]  Since any publication, the first time, in any form, is by definition a use of First Rights, if you sell an unpublished work, even on a non-exclusive contract, then you have used your First Rights. And once First Rights (North American, World, Print, E-, or whatever other form they may be) are used, it's all reprints from there and most places are no longer interested.  I would love to see your work, but I don’t want you to lose out on another market because of confusion about the rights. As noted earlier, I am interested in reprints for this project. One of the goals of this anthology is to help writers and readers in this specific genre interest discover each other. For this, reprints work very well.