Both Palooka and Submishmash are working hard and out of our own pockets to support and promote the work of writers and artists. We look forward to seeing your work. Happy submitting!
What We're Interested In:
We're very open to all kinds of work. Feel free to send us your best short stories, flash fiction, graphic short stories, creative nonfiction, lyric essays, graphic essays, poetry, plays, multimedia, comic strips, photographs, paintings, miscellaneous artwork, etc.
Simultaneous Submissions:
We hope you're pursuing simultaneous submissions, but please withdraw your piece as soon as possible if accepted by another journal. If this is the case, we offer you a sturdy e-handshake and congratulations!
Multiple Submissions:
If you would like to submit to more than one category at a time, go for it! We've got nothing against writers or artists who are skilled in more than one genre and would never hinder you from proving this.
Payment:
We offer all contributors a complementary copy and several discounted copies of the journal in which their work appears.
The Wait:
As a writer and submitter myself, I understand how difficult it can be to wait for a decision on a submission. Palooka has a very speedy turn-around, while still taking great pride in reading every word and giving each piece its due attention and thorough consideration. Response time is currently 1-2 weeks. -- Jonathan Starke, Editor
Bios:
These are read after the piece or pieces are evaluated and have no bearing on publication. While schooling and publications are interesting, truths about youself and your life are much more interesting.
Past Contributors:
We are currently only looking for work by authors and artists we have not yet published.
Fiction - $2.50
Size limit: 15,000
Amount: One short story or up to three flash pieces (combine the flash pieces into one document).Word count: 500 - 15,000 words.
Formatting: 12-point font, one-inch margins, double-spaced, page numbers.
Editor Says:
"I prefer simple, good stories. Instinctive, natural. I don't believe in arbitrary places or people or objects. I believe in strong storytellers with characters I can say I've never met before, but had a really great time getting to know them." -- Jonathan Starke, Editor
Poetry - $2.50
Amount: Up to five poems (combine into one document)Formatting: 12-point font.
Editor Says:
"I want to see poems with a great story or with some really vivid imagery that I've never experienced before. I want to feel startled, alive, jump-started, and I don't know what to do about it." -- Jonathan Starke, Editor
Nonfiction - $2.50
Size limit: 15,000
Amount: One essay or up to three lyric/flash essays (combine the lyric/flash essays into one document).Word count: 500 - 15,000 words.
Formatting: 12-point font, one-inch margins, double-spaced, page numbers.
Editor Says:
"I'm interested in personal essays, memoir, hybrids, and academic or scholarly endeavors if they are fused really well with the creative. I want honesty, vulnerability, danger, risk. The writer must be putting something on the line. I have to feel it. I have to make it to the end and read that final line and be out of breath." -- Jonathan Starke, Editor
Plays - $2.50
Amount: One play in however many Acts.Page count: 5 - 40 pages.
Formatting: 12-point font, one-inch margins, page numbers.
Editor Says:
"Anything goes. I'm excited to see some fresh dialogue and interesting character dynamics. Don't forget that these will be read and not performed, so please keep this in mind when submitting. Looking for plays that read like literature." -- Jonathan Starke, Editor
Graphic Fiction,Graphic Essays, & Comic Strips
Size limit: 15,000
Amount: One graphic short story or graphic essay and up to three comic strips (combine into one document). Must incorporate photos/drawings/paintings/sketches, etc.Word Count: 500 - 15,000 words.
Page Count: Nothing over 40 pages.
Formatting: Any font or typeface or size that suits the material.
Editor Says:
"I'm looking for something that moves both within the language and the image. The piece must hit on several levels if it's a graphic story or essay. With the comic strips, I'm looking for thoughtful, dark, zany, funny, deep. Really anything here. I want enticing and enriching work." -- Jonathan Starke, Editor
Multimedia
Amount: One video or audio file per submission (or up to three each if the size can be withstood in zip file format). You may also submit hyperlinks to work on Youtube, Vimeo, Dailymotion, etc.Editor Says:
"This is a new endeavor for Palooka. I'd like to support creative projects that might fall outside the possibility of being printed on literal pages. I'm looking for anything creative related to video or audio, whether that be noises put together, visual collages, changing colors, moving shapes, metal music, solo singers, vocal collages, monologues, dialogues, etc. I consider this new project to be the most creative and open of all the submission categories, so please submit your most creative projects. Selected works will be published on the website and released as a supplement to the printed journal." -- Jonathan Starke, Editor
Photography
Amount: Five photographs (combine into one document or zip file)Formatting: all image types, but prefer the highest quality images you can send.
Editor Says:
"I like pictures that can tell a story." -- Jonathan Starke, Editor