The Taborian is seeking submissions on a year-round basis for essays, short stories, and poems. Writers belonging to historically underrepresented racial or ethnic groups are especially encouraged to submit.
What We Are Looking For
Essays
A beautifully written introspective essay covering art (e.g., dance, music, literary, theatre, cinema, painting, photography, television) and cultural events or practices from underrepresented racial or ethnic groups that garners fond memories or inspires you. (1,000 to 3,000 words)
Short Stories
A stimulating short story that exhibits a lead character that has one or more of the following traits: eccentric, complicated, exciting, industrious, misunderstood, resilient, rebellious, stubborn, thoughtful, pessimistic, optimistic, unpredictable, confident, and/or leader. The short story must be dramatic and not predictable. (3,000 to 5,000 words)
Poems
A vivid poem with prose that stirs a thought-provoking moment for the reader. Your words should be the paint to create a painting on a reader’s mental canvas. (50 to 750 words)
What We Are Not Looking For
Essay, short story, or poem that communicates hate or violence due to a person or group’s race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, class, ability, age, etc. We will consider an essay, short story, or poem that represents a character who redeems themselves from a past transgression(s).
Submission Guidelines
- Please submit only once every six months.
- We will consider previously published work only if you still own the rights and you identify the publisher and the date when the work was first published.
- Simultaneous submissions are okay, but please send an email immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere.
- By submitting, you are consenting for your work to appear (if selected) on our website with the exact written content submitted. Please ensure your work has been proofread and edited as needed. At this time, we cannot offer monetary compensation. We ask for exclusive rights to use the work for 60 days from when it is published on our website. After 60 days, all rights will return to the author and the work can be reprinted. If the reprinted work is used by another publication, we request the following acknowledgement: This (essay/poem/story) was originally published on The Taborian website. Please note your work will remain on our website after our exclusive rights period ends.
How to Submit
- For consideration, submit your work to [email protected] with the following:
- In the email subject line, type Submission – and then the name of your essay/short story/poem. For example: Submission – The Name of My Poem
- In the email body – your name (a pen name is fine), contact information (if different from email address used for sending submission), third-person author bio (no more than 75 words) as you would like it to appear in publication.
- An attached Word document that includes your submitted essay/short story/poem and typed in Times New Roman (12-point font). Please make sure essay/short story/poem meets word count requirements.
Response time varies, but you should receive an email response within 3 months of your submission. If your work is selected, we will notify you prior to 30 days of publishing your work. Please note, the publishing date for accepted submissions can range from 2 to 9 months depending on the volume of accepted submissions. In advance, thanks for your understanding and submission!
