PLEASE REVIEW IN FULL BEFORE SUBMITTING 

Writing allows us to imagine a world where oppression and trauma don’t exist. And there is a reality where we are not defined by our trauma(s), but through our power. And you’re invited to be a part of that.

 Awake is a digital zine and collection of work by Black writers and artists that explores the power we each hold. Awake, [Issue 8], will be in print! 

Use the prompt below to complete your submission: 

 LOUD is a forthcoming issue celebrating the full range of Black voices. Our slang, our codes, our humor, our tenderness, our rhythm, and the everyday language that carries our history. Across the diaspora, the way we speak is a place of belonging. It is a record of who we come from and who we are becoming.

This issue invites Black writers and artists to honor the words, phrases, sounds, and speech patterns that shaped you. Maybe it is the way your cousins talk on the porch, the wisdom in your grandmother’s stories, the neighborhood jokes that only make sense if you grew up there, or the musicality of your friends' conversations. Whatever form it takes, we welcome work that celebrates the sound of us in all its brilliance.

All creative expressions are welcome (poetry, creative nonfiction, photography, audio transcripts, visual art, hybrid forms, and more). 

PAYMENT (UPON ACCEPTANCE):

$30 — Haiku, Short Poems (<14 lines), Micro Fiction (under 100-300 words)

SUBMIT UP TO 3 PIECES PER UPLOAD

$50 — Prose, Short Story, Flash fiction, Creative-Nonfiction, Hybrid/Experimental (under 1500 words)

SUBMIT NO MORE THAN 1 PIECE PER UPLOAD

$70 — All Artwork (includes photography, comics, paintings, etc.)

SUBMIT UP TO 3 PIECES PER UPLOAD

Upon acceptance, submissions will be included on our websiteand in print and will be eligible for publicization on social media.  

Accepted authors will receive a payout of $30, $50, or $70, each accepted submission. 

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We do not accept work that has been previously published in print or online. 

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*We encourage you to donate with your submission. Your contribution fuels the publication of Lucky Jefferson, as we are a growing independent publication with a mostly volunteer staff.​  

 **Previously accepted poets/writers should wait 2 quarters, or two issues, from the time of acceptance, before submitting new work to any open call.** 

 Upcoming Print Issue, Paradox 

What happens when you look closely at the strangeness of daily life? Paradox is an exploration of the everyday. It is a place where curiosities, absurdities, social tensions, and impossible what‑ifs sit side by side. It is a way of looking closely at the bizarre logic of our all‑encompassing reality and translating that attention into writing or art. 

Inspired by the work of our Summer 2022 Literary Illustrators, this issue invites you to examine the contradictions that shape daily life and respond with work that questions, unsettles, delights, or reveals something true.

Concepts your work may explore:

∙ Information overload and uncertainty

∙ Digital intimacy and digital distance

∙ Climate anxiety and everyday joy

∙ Economic precarity and creative resilience

∙ Community care in a time of institutional failure

∙ Identity in flux

∙ The surreal nature of the news cycle

∙ Hope as contradiction

∙ The politics of the everyday

∙ Memory versus documentation      

Need INSPO: Use our student zine (that inspired this issue) to spark new ideas!

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PAYMENT (UPON ACCEPTANCE):

$25 — Haiku, Short Poems (<14 lines), Micro Fiction (under 100-300 words)

SUBMIT UP TO 3 PIECES PER UPLOAD

$40 — Prose, Short Story, Flash fiction, Creative-Nonfiction, Hybrid/Experimental (under 1000 words)

SUBMIT NO MORE THAN 1 PIECE PER UPLOAD

$50 — All Artwork (includes photography, comics, paintings, etc.)

SUBMIT UP TO 3 PIECES PER UPLOAD

 Upon acceptance, submissions will be included on our websiteand in print and will be eligible for publicization on social media.  Accepted authors will receive a payout of $25, $40, or $50, for each accepted submission. 

________

We encourage you to donate with your submission. Your contribution fuels the publication of Lucky Jefferson as we are a growing independent publication with a mostly volunteer staff.​          

________  

*Please visit https://luckyjefferson.com/submit for important info should your work be accepted*

Upcoming Digital Issue, En Recuerdo De 

Memory stays with us in ways we do not always expect. It shows up in the names we repeat so they are not lost, in the stories that return when the world grows quiet, in the people who taught us how to hold on. It lives in the rituals we keep, the grief we carry, and the care we offer when we speak of those no longer here.

This issue invites work that reaches toward those absences and honors what remains. Share the moments when loss changed your path, the memories that surface without warning, the voices you still hear, and the ways you keep their presence alive. Show how remembering becomes a form of action, how it shapes your choices, how it keeps love moving, and how it can call us toward justice for those who can no longer speak for themselves. For those who may never get the justice they deserve.

We remember because it matters. We remember because it keeps us connected. And we remember together.

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Los recuerdos permanecen con nosotros de formas que no siempre esperamos. Aparecen en los nombres que repetimos para que no se pierdan, en las historias que regresan cuando el mundo se calma, en las personas que nos enseñaron a seguir adelante. Viven en los rituales que mantenemos, en el dolor que llevamos dentro y en el cariño que ofrecemos cuando hablamos de aquellos que ya no están aquí.

Este número invita a presentar trabajos que aborden esas ausencias y honren lo que queda. Comparta los momentos en los que la pérdida cambió su camino, los recuerdos que afloran sin previo aviso, las voces que aún oye y las formas en que mantiene viva su presencia. Muestre cómo el recuerdo se convierte en una forma de acción, cómo da forma a sus decisiones, cómo mantiene vivo el amor y cómo puede llamarnos a la justicia para aquellos que ya no pueden hablar por sí mismos. Para aquellos que quizá nunca obtengan la justicia que merecen.

Recordamos porque es importante. Recordamos porque nos mantiene conectados. Y recordamos juntos. 

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 Examples of what we're looking for: COMING SOON

**Submissions that are not in English should include a translated version of the work.**

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 PAYMENT (UPON ACCEPTANCE):

$25 — Haiku, Short Poems (<14 lines), Micro Fiction (under 100-300 words)

SUBMIT UP TO 3 PIECES PER UPLOAD

$40 — Prose, Short Story, Flash fiction, Creative-Nonfiction, Hybrid/Experimental (under 1000 words)

SUBMIT NO MORE THAN 1 PIECE PER UPLOAD

$50 — All Artwork (includes comics, paintings, etc.)

SUBMIT UP TO 3 PIECES PER UPLOAD

 Upon acceptance, submissions will be included on our websiteand in print and will be eligible for publicization on social media.  Accepted authors will receive a payout of $25, $40, or $50, for each accepted submission. 

 ________ 

We encourage you to donate with your submission. Your contribution fuels the publication of Lucky Jefferson as we are a growing independent publication with an all-volunteer staff.​          ________   *Please visit https://luckyjefferson.com/submit for important info should your work be accepted*

Calling all educators and arts organizations!

Little Jefferson partners with after-school writing programs, classroom settings, and youth arts organizations to publish exceptional work created by young writers ages 9-13.

This form is for educators and program coordinators submitting student work on behalf of their organization. Little Jefferson is not open to individual submissions from parents or students.

Upon acceptance, submissions will be included on our website and in other formats agreed upon.

Student Work Submission Guidelines:

When submitting:

• Send no more than three poems or one story per student

• Use titles or page breaks to separate poems

• Include the student's preferred name (or a pen name), grade/age, and a brief bio (2-3 sentences)

• Provide context about your program and how this work was created (optional)

• We only accept translations in Spanish

• We do not accept work that has been previously published in print or online.

Not part of a writing program? 

Little Jefferson is partnership-based and not open to individual submissions. Writers of all ages can submit to our 365 Collection, which accepts individual poetry and prose submissions year-round.

Support Little Jefferson

We encourage program partners to consider a donation to help sustain this work. Your contribution supports our mission to publish young voices through partnerships with educators and arts organizations.