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New Book :: Optometry

Optometry by Xiang Yata book cover image

Optometry by Xiang Yata
Driftwood Press, November 2023

Optometry by Xiang Yata is a 250-page, full-color graphic novel that follows the story of a woman who is transported to an experimental kaleidoscopic world during a visit to the optometrist. As the eye doctor calibrates the optometry machine to investigate the faults and fractures in her eyes, the protagonist is transported to a new world, a place full of overlapping images, dots, curves, houses, and light reflections. As she struggles to navigate these various unique planes, she must confront the endless versions of herself to avoid becoming forever lost in a daze. Artist Xiang Yata guides readers through multiple art forms, combining elements of traditional comics, animation, and illustration, to investigate the myriad ways we perceive ourselves. A Kickstarter campaign to help bring Optometry to life launches on July 31, 2023.

To discover more great books from small, independent, and university presses, visit the NewPages Guide to Publishers as well as the New Books category on our blog. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to stay up to date!

New Book :: Bark On

Bark On: A Novel by Mason Boyles book cover image

Bark On: A Novel by Mason Boyles
Driftwood Press, February 2023

In Bark On: A Novel by Mason Boyles, Ezra Fogerty is an aspiring professional triathlete training out of his ma’s trailer in the eroding North Carolina beach town of Kure. When the recently disgraced celebrity coach Benji Newton shows up at his doorstep offering to train him for the Chapel Hill Ironman, Ezra accepts eagerly. Benji’s methods prove brutal and ritualistic, and seem connected to Kure’s abruptly climbing coyote population. As Ezra begins to question the logic behind his preparation, Benji invites the orphaned prodigy Casper Swayze to train with them. The diminutive Casper one-ups Ezra in every workout until suffering a disastrous injury that coincides with Benji’s disappearance, leaving Ezra to choose between caring for Casper and completing preparations for the biggest race of his career.

To discover more great books from small, independent, and university presses, visit the NewPages Guide to Publishers as well as the New Books category on our blog. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to stay up to date!

Magazine Stand :: Driftwood 2023 Anthology

Driftwood 2023 Anthology cover image

Taking the reins of their previous bi-annual literary magazine, Driftwood 2023 Anthology is the first of a new annual, double-the-punch publication! This inaugural release brings readers over 150 pages of fiction, over 50 pages of poetry, and around 80 pages of comics. The anthology is also filled with dozens of thoughtful, craft-focused interviews that take a dive deep into these well-curated pieces of writing and art. The 2023 anthology features the work of Michael Hugh Stewart, Johanna Povirk-Znoy, Vincent Panella, Izzy Buck, Rebecca Starks, Victor McConnell, Jenna Abrams, Marcie Roman, Mason Boyles, Bazeed, Luke Burton, Kimberly Sailor, Margaret Yapp, Bader Al Awadhi, Shaoni White, Anthony Immergluck, Rebert Laidler, Derek Annis, Caroline Harper New, Sarah Levine, Robin Walter, Ana Prundaru, Qiyue Zhang, Kimball Anderson, Yaronn Regev, Dave Youkovich, Stefanie Jordan, Ben Montague, and Olivia Sullivan. Due out at the beginning of March, readers can hop up and pre-order their copy today!

To find more great reading, visit the NewPages Guide to Literary Magazines, the NewPages Big List of Literary Magazines, the NewPages Big List of Alternative Magazines, and the NewPages Guide to Publications for Young Writers. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to stay up to date!

Magazine Stand :: Driftwood Press – Issue 9.2

Driftwood Press online literary and art magazine Issue 9.2 cover image

Driftwood Press will be switching to an annual anthology structure, so this is the final “biannual” issue for readers to enjoy. The latest short stories “Winged,” “Sore Vexed,” and “The Great Fall” show off the versatility of Driftwood Press like no other issue: readers are moved from a war-torn country to a Norweigian countryside, then to a global pandemic of missing memories. This issue also includes numerous poems investigating the paranormal, gun violence, familial strife, and more.

Driftwood Press also offers readers interviews with most of their contributors, with this issue featuring Chad Gusler, Caroline Bock, Kate Griffin, Daisuke Shen, Samantha Padgett, Emily DeMaio Newton, Danae Younge, Kindall Fredricks, Roben Gow, Danielle Shorr, Laura Goldin, Adriana Stimola, Kelly Gray, Amanda Hartzell, Austin Sanchez-Moran, Daniel Ferreira, and Amanda Ngo and Kendall Krantz, and additional works by Maxime Cousineau-Pérusse, Triin Paja, and Sofia Sears.

Driftwood Press Announces Annual Anthology

Driftwood Press Annual Anthology release date logo image

The Driftwood Press editors just released this news: “We’re so excited to announce that Driftwood Press is transforming from a bi-annual literary magazine to an annual anthology. This change has been in the works for a long time, and we can’t wait to bring our readers over 200 pages in full color on a yearly basis, with our first anthology due out March 7, 2023!” The editors promise status quo on great content, just more of it, including stories, poetry, comics, interviews, and more. Subscription options will also reflect this change, and there is still one more biannual issue due out on July 1, which can be preordered here.

New Book :: The Convert’s Heart is Good to Eat

The Convert's Heart is Good to Eat Poetry by Melody S. Gee book cover image

The Convert’s Heart is Good to Eat
Poetry by Melody S. Gee
Driftwood Press, June 2022

Melody S. Gee’s The Convert’s Heart is Good to Eat meets at the intersection of cultural and spiritual identity, culminating in a set of harrowing poems that investigates how belief defines us. Melody S. Gee is the author of The Dead in Daylight (Cooper Dillon Books, 2016) and Each Crumbling House (Perugia Press, 2010), winner of the Perugia Press Prize. She is the recipient of Kundiman poetry and fiction fellowships, two Pushcart Prize nominations, and the Robert Watson Literary Prize. Her poems, essays, and reviews appear in Commonweal Magazine, Blood Orange Review, Lantern Review, and The Rappahannock Review. She is a freelance writer and editor living in St. Louis, Missouri with her husband and daughters. An excerpt from the collection:

THE CONVERT DESIRES HER WAY INTO A FIRST PRAYER

Her mother’s first lesson
was chew your wants and spit
the pulp, grow skinny feeding everyone else your flesh.
A heart’s cargo is sometimes oil, sometimes crude. A spill can undo
the waterproof of any surface.
And still the diving birds must feed,
must point their beaks past the slick that seals the cornea to eternal blur.
Does the Lord ask her what she wants when he already knows its name?

New Book :: Bath

Bath, poetry by Jen Silverman book cover image

Bath
Poetry by Jen Silverman
Driftwood Press, May 2022

Winner of the Driftwood Press 2021 Adrift Chapbook Contest, Silverman’s work was selected for its geographical and lyrical style, with poems that “communicate harrowing insights into the landscape of relationships.” Jen Silverman is a New York-based writer and playwright. She is the author of the debut novel We Play Ourselves and the story collection The Island Dwellers (Random House) which was longlisted for a PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize. Jen also writes for TV and film.

New Book :: Big Gorgeous Jazz Machine

Big Gorgeous Time Machine by Nick Francis Potter book cover image

Big Gorgeous Jazz Machine
Graphics and Poetry by Nick Francis Potter
Driftwood Press, March 2022

This is a collection of experimental graphic works and comics poetry. It includes more traditionally-minded comics (with a lyrical bent) with abstract and conceptual works, including text-based comics and comics inspired by modernist abstractions. Taken together, the work finds kinship with contemporary avant-cartoonists like Warren Craghead, Aidan Koch, and Simon Moreton, while striking out toward something altogether new. Nick Francis Potter is a writer, cartoonist, and educator who holds an MFA from Brown University and a PhD in English from the University of Missouri, where he currently teaches writing and theory in the Digital Storytelling Program.

New Book :: O

O by Niki Tulk book cover image

O
Poetry by Niki Tulk
Driftwood Press, July 2022

Chosen as one of three manuscripts for publication from their 2020 poetry collection reading, writer and performance artist Niki Tulk’s O explores the aftermath of sexual assault, unearthing myths, folklore, and profound truths about our collective history of violence, womanhood, and justice. Niki Tulk is an ex-pat Australian and experimental theatre-maker, improviser, writer, poet and author of Performing the Wound: Practicing a Feminist Theatre of Becoming (Routledge, 2022).

New Book :: One Person Holds So Much Silence

One Person Holds So Much Silence by David Greenspan book cover image

One Person Holds So Much Silence
Poetry by David Greenspan
Driftwood Press, March 2022

Chosen as one of three manuscripts for publication from their 2020 poetry collection reading, Greenspan’s work explores the intersection of physical and emotional traumas and was selected for its “surprising, jaw-dropping language from poem to poem.” Simultaneously lush and bizarre, the poems culminate in a striking deep dive into the pain and experiences of existing within a body. From self-harm to suicidal ideation, Greenspan tackles these topics through writing brimming with original language and wrought empathy. David Greenspan is a PhD candidate in Creative Writing at the University of Southern Mississippi and earned an MFA in Poetry from UMass Amherst.

4th Annual Adrift Chapbook Contest Winners Available for Pre-order

2021 Adrift Chapbook Contest Winners banner

Driftwood Press has announced last year’s Adrift Chapbook Contest Winners are available for pre-order on their website.

Jennifer Silverman’s Bath is set to be released in May of this year. 2021 contest judge Traci Brimhall had to say this about Silverman’s collection

Jen Silverman’s poems are baptisms of desire. They’ve traveled the world and come back to tell you the pleasure to be found there, the holes of each leaving, the way it is all “drenched in light and wine.” Economical in syntax and generous in image, Bath astonishes at every turn with its heart, its wisdom, its waters.

Melody S. Gee’s The Convert’s Heart is Good to Eat is set to be released in June. Brimhall said of Gee’s collection

Melody Gee’s gorgeous poems offer both divine wounds and delicious consolations. At the intersections of the familial and the sacred, The Convert’s Heart is Good to Eat reminds us that what is created is also consumed. Beautiful, sensory, and aching, this collection reminds us that not all hungers are mortal ones.

Pre-order your copies today!

Contest :: Driftwood Press Extends Deadline of In-House Contests

Driftwood Press In-House Contests Extension banner

Extended Deadline: January 31, 2022
Submit soon to our In-House Short Fiction & Single Poem Contests! On the short fiction side, we’re proud to announce that we’ve upped the award to $500 for the winning story and $150 for all runners-up! Winners and runners-up also receive publication, an interview, and an illustration that will appear alongside their story. All stories submitted are considered for publication by not one—but two editors, and response times are faster than usual. On the poetry side, all works are also considered for publication, with the runners-up awarded an interview, publication, and $50 per poem. The winner of the In-House Poetry Contest will receive $400, publication, a featured interview, and a commissioned illustration to appear alongside their work.

Driftwood Press – Issue 9.1

Driftwood Press‘s latest short stories “Wing Breaker” by Rachel Phillippo and “Spanish Soap Operas Killed My Mother” by Dailihana Alfonseca take you from brutal arctic traditions to the cultural traumas of migrants in America. This issue also collects some of the most insightful and harrowing poetry being written today; these poems delve into illness, motherhood, religious pressure, and much more. Wrapping up the issue are visual arts and comics by Io Weurich, Kelsey M. Evans, SAMO Collective, Jim Still-Pepper, Andrew White, Kimball Anderson, & Casey Jo Stohrer. Now at the Driftwood Press website.

Contest :: Driftwood Press In-House Short Fiction & Single Poem Contests

Driftwood Press 2022 In-House Contests banner

Deadline: January 15, 2022
Submit soon to our In-House Short Fiction & Single Poem Contests! On the short fiction side, we’re proud to announce that we’ve upped the award to $500 for the winning story and $150 for all runners-up! Winners and runners-up also receive publication, an interview, and an illustration that will appear alongside their story. All stories submitted are considered for publication by not one—but two editors, and response times are faster than usual. On the poetry side, all works are also considered for publication, with the runner-ups awarded an interview, publication, and $50 per poem. The winner of the In-House Poetry Contest will receive $400, publication, a featured interview, and a commissioned illustration to appear alongside their work.

Driftwood Press Announces Changes for In-house Contests

Driftwood Press Instagram Post on 2022 Fiction Contest

As a writer the wait to hear from a journal or press about the status of your submissions can be a long and tedious road where you are stuck in limbo. With their 2022 In-House Contest, Driftwood Press has decided to make some changes to alleviate this.

Instead of notifying writers once everything has been read and judged, they will be announcing results to writers as soon as the piece has been read and a decision made, whether a rejection or continuing on in the contest.

All submissions accepted will be initially given runner-up status. Then in April 2022, one of the runners-up will be awarded the Grand Prize.

The deadline to submit to the In-House Short Story Contest is January 15. There is a $12 fee. The chosen Grand Prize winner will receive $500, publication, and five copies of the issue in which their story appears. They will also have the opportunity to be interviewed about their work and the interview will be published alongside the winning story.

Runner-ups will be offered publication, an accompanying interview, $150, and one copy of the issue in which their story appears.

Driftwood Press Novella Prize Winner Announced!

Driftwood Press has officially announced the results of their Novella Reading Period. Kevin Litchty’s The Circle That Fits is the winner. “The novella explores the fraught relationships between two parents and their son as they live in a travelling carnival.” The Circle That Fits will be released in 2022.

Due to a generous donation from Sarah “Hollis Queen,” the award for Litchty’s novella was increased from $400 to $1,000.

Driftwood Press is currently accepting novella manuscripts once more. There is a $20 fee. Future novellas selected will receive $400, publication, and 10 copies of their printed novella.

Driftwood Press 2020 Poetry Collection Results

screenshot of Driftwood Press 2020 poetry collection resultsDriftwood Press has announced their 2020 poetry collection reading period results. They have selected three manuscripts for publication.

One Person Holds so Much Silence by David Greenspan was chosen for its “surprising, jaw-dropping language from poem to poem.” Also selected, is O by Niki Tulk is a fable revealing real-world trauma of sexual assault through the fantastical. Last, but not least, Fit to be Tied by Sarah Moore Wagner examines addiction and experiences of womanhood in a small, rural town.

Honorable mentions include Robin Gow’s Stained Glass Rifle, Laura Bandy’s CINEMA, Heather Bartlett’s Another Word for Hunger, and Carolyn Oliver’s Inside the Storm I Want to Touch the Tremble.

Keep an eye out for the three forthcoming collections and if you’re interested in submitting your own poetry manuscripts, they are currently open to submissions.

Contest :: Driftwood’s 2021 Adrift Contests End This Week!

photo of Xu Xi and Traci BrimhallDeadline: July 15, 2021
The deadline is almost here! Xu Xi is this year’s Adrift Short Story Contest Guest Judge. The winning story receives $500, ten copies of the issue in which their story appears, and a featured interview. Runner-ups receive $200, five copies, and a featured interview. All stories read for the contest are considered for publication, which means your likelihood of publication and placing in the contest is much higher. For our 2019 contest, we selected three stories to publish. Traci Brimhall heads up the Adrift Chapbook Contest this year! This contest winner will be awarded $500, a royalties contract, twenty copies of their chapbook, and an interview to be published alongside their chapbook. www.driftwoodpress.net

Call :: Driftwood Press Open Year-round & Pays Contributors

screenshot of Driftwood Press updated CFS flier
click image to open full-size flier

Submissions accepted year-round.
John Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests. We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing services and seminars, too.

Driftwood Press – June 2021

Short stories “Work” by Chad Szalkowski-Ference and “Haze” by Mike Nees take you across the white plains of the Tularosa Basin and into a hazy apartment complex. From joyous lyricism to stark realism, the poems this issue are a bricolage of loss, grief, solitude, and joy. Wrapping up the issue are visual arts and comics by Kelsey M. Evans, Rachel Singel, Dustin Jacobus, Lia Barsotti Hiltz, Coco Picard, and Laila Milevski. Read more at the Driftwood Press website.

New Additions to Driftwood Press’s Shop

Have you ever seen a piece of art in a literary magazine and loved it so much you wanted to frame it? Now you can do just that with art from contributors to Driftwood Press.

Art by Kelsey M. Evans, Coz, Jason Hart, Nathaniel Saint Amour, Rachel Slotnick, and Samantha Fortenberry is now available in the Driftwood Press shop in the form of posters, framed posters, and T-Shirts. An enamel pin designed by Jerrod Schwarz is also forthcoming at the end of July 2021 and can be preordered now. Each item listing links back to the artists’ Instagram accounts for easy following.

Decorate your walls and show off your love for art and literary magazines with the help of Driftwood Press‘s shop.

Contest :: Driftwood Press 2021 Adrift Contests

photo of Xu Xi and Traci BrimhallDeadline: July 15, 2021
Xu Xi is this year’s Adrift Short Story Contest guest judge. The winning story receives $500, ten copies of the issue in which their story appears, and a featured interview. Runner-ups receive $200, five copies, and a featured interview. All stories read for the contest are considered for publication, which means your likelihood of publication and placing in the contest is much higher. For our 2019 contest, we selected three stories to publish. Traci Brimhall heads up the Adrift Chapbook Contest this year! This contest winner will be awarded $500, a royalties contract, twenty copies of their chapbook, and an interview to be published alongside their chapbook.

Call :: Driftwood Press, Open Year-round & Paying Market

banner with artwork showing mountains, woods, and a woman's headDeadline: Year-round
John Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.”

At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests.

We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing services and seminars, too.

Read issue 8.1 featuring R. C. Davis, Ben Kline, Brennan McMullen, Wren Hanks, Kelsey M. Evans, Jake Goldwasser, Kat Y. Tang, Mason Boyles, Lynda Montgomery, Sam Heydt, Robin Gow, Lina Patton, Lora Kinkade, & Summer J. Hart for a taste of what they like. www.driftwoodpress.net

Call :: Driftwood Press, A Paying Market

banner with artwork showing mountains, woods, and a woman's headWe Pay Contributors: Driftwood Press Submissions Open

Submissions accepted year-round.
John Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests. We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing services and seminars, too. www.driftwoodpress.net

Call :: Driftwood Press Seeks Artists Who Care About Doing It Right

banner with artwork showing mountains, woods, and a woman's headSubmissions accepted year-round.
John Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests. We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing services and seminars, too. www.driftwoodpress.net

Don’t forget to check out Issue 8.1 which was just published in January 2021.

Call :: Driftwood Press Pays Writers & is Open to Submissions Year-round!

banner with artwork showing mountains, woods, and a woman's headWe Pay Contributors: Driftwood Press Submissions Open

Deadline: Year-round
John Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests. We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing services and seminars, too.

Call :: We Pay Contributors: Driftwood Press Submissions Open

Driftwood Press bannerSubmissions accepted year-round
John Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests. We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing services and seminars, too. www.driftwoodpress.net

Event :: Driftwood Seminars for Fiction Writers & Poets

Driftwood Press Editors & Writers Seminar & Chapbook SeminarDeadline: February 14, 2021
Event Dates: February 15 – March 19, 2021 Event Location: Virtual
Both of our beloved seminars have returned! Whether you’re a fiction writer looking to improve your craft or a poet looking to build a chapbook, we have a seminar ready for you. Both seminars will run concurrently, from Feb 15th to Mar 19th. Check out the testimonial below, and make sure to join your course before the seats fill! “[Instructor James’] sincerity and love for the “craft” (and for literature itself) came through loud and clear in this seminar. It is clearly a daily labor of love to maintain an exemplary literary journal like Driftwood…. You have given us a candid glimpse behind the curtain.”—Richard Ellett Mullin, on the Editors & Writers Seminar. “The Driftwood Press Chapbook seminar is an insightful look into an often-overlooked way to collect work. Led by a strong coach, the five-week course was insightful and engaging even for experienced writers.”—Anonymous, on the Chapbook Seminar

Call :: Driftwood Press Accepts Work Year-round & is a Paying Market

Driftwood Press website screenshotSubmissions accepted year-round.
John Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests. We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing services and seminars, too. Check out our latest issue (8.1) featuring work by Mason Boyles, Lynda Montgomery, Sam Heydt, Robin Gow, Lina Patton, Lora Kinkade, Summer J. Hart, R. C. Davis, Ben Kline, Brennan McMullen, Wren Hanks, Jake Goldwasser, Kat Y. Tang, and Kelsey M. Evans. www.driftwoodpress.net

Driftwood Press – Issue 8.1

Featured in our latest issue is the 2020 Adrift Contest winning story “Myopic” by Mason Boyles, selected by T. Geronimo Johnson, alongside another story, “Whomp,” by Lynda Montgomery. From the whispers behind grief to the galactic weight of finding a new identity, the poetry in this issue drills into some of mankind’s most intimate desires and conflicts. Read more at the Driftwood Press website.

Driftwood Press :: New Poetry Title & Launch Party

Do you need something good to look forward to? Driftwood Press has you covered.

Their first full-length poetry collection is forthcoming on December 15: Magnolia Canopy Otherworld by Erin Carlyle. The collection has received advance praise: Rebecca Morgan Frank, author of Little Murders Everywhere calls it a “riveting, smart, and unforgettable debut,” and F. Daniel Rzicznek, author of Settlers warns readers: “Be ready for her to interrupt your life with poem after stunning poem in this haunting and arresting debut.” You can preorder your copy now.

To celebrate the release of Magnolia Canopy Otherworld, tune in on December 18 for a free digital launch party held on Zoom. In addition to Erin Carlyle, Wren Hanks, Ben Kline, Helli Fang, Kimberly Povloski, Charles Malone, and Annie Christain will also be reading. Find more information about the launch party at Driftwood Press‘s Facebook.

Call :: We Pay Contributors: Driftwood Press Submissions Open

Driftwood Press website screenshotDeadline: Year-round
John Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests. We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing services and seminars, too. www.driftwoodpress.net

Driftwood Press Adrift Contest Winners

Earlier this week, Driftwood Press announced the winners of their third annual Adrift Chapbook Contest.

Winner
Lily-livered by Wren Hanks

Runner-up
Dead Uncles by Ben Kline

Guest Judge Sandra Beasley chose each of these chapbooks which will be available in 2021.

In fiction, T. Geronimo Johnson selected “Myopic” by Mason Boyles as this year’s Adrift Contest winner. This story will appear in the January 2021 issue of Driftwood Press.

If you’re disappointed you missed your chance to submit this year, no worries! The Driftwood Press Poem Contest and the Driftwood Press Short Story Contest are both currently open for submissions until January 15.

Call :: We Pay Contributors: Driftwood Press Submissions Open

Driftwood Press website screenshotJohn Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests. We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing services and seminars, too. www.driftwoodpress.net

Event :: Driftwood Press Virtual Seminars for Fiction & Poetry

Driftwood Press Fall 2020 Virtual Fiction & Poetry Seminars bannerDriftwood Press‘ “Editors & Writers: The Path to Publication” and “Chapbook Creation” seminars are open for registration! Short story writers and poetry chapbook writers seeking to polish their craft and learn about the other side of submissions should apply; each course includes five lectures, critiques, prompts, readings, and more. Both courses are limited to fifteen spots each and will close when those spots are filled or when the course begins on October 19th. Click the link for more testimonials, a lecture list, and additional information.

Call :: Don’t forget Driftwood Press Pays Contributors

Driftwood Press 7.2 coverJohn Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, they actively search for artists who care about doing it right, or better. They are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests. They also offer their submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note they have editing services and seminars, too. Read Issue 7.2 featuring Jessica Holbert, Seth Brady Tucker, Janiru Liyanage, Katherine Fallon, Yi-Hui Huang, and more, for a taste of what they like. Submissions accepted year-round.

Call :: Driftwood Press Open to Submissions Year-round

John Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests. We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing services and seminars, too. We pay our contributors.

Call :: We Pay Contributors! Driftwood Press Submissions Open

Driftwood Press website screenshotSubmissions accepted year-round.
John Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests. We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing services and seminars, too. www.driftwoodpress.net

Contest :: Driftwood Press 2020 Adrift Short Story Contest

2020 Adrift Short Story Contest posterDeadline: July 15, 2020
For our Adrift Short Story Contest, the guest judge this year is Geronimo Johnson (Welcome to Braggsville). The winning story receives $300, ten copies of the issue in which their story appears, and a featured interview. Runner-ups receive $100, five copies, and a featured interview. All stories read for the contest are considered for publication, which means your likelihood of publication and placing in the contest is much higher. For our 2019 contest, we selected three stories to publish. Deadline is on July 15th!

Driftwood Press – Issue 7.2

Featured in our latest issue is the 2020 In-House Contest winning story “Trash Man” by Jessica Holbert alongside another story, “The Taxidermist,” by Seth Tucker. The poetry in this issue explores the emotional and physical connections to different geographies and technologies, from abandoned lighthouses and frost-covered pastures to half-truth news coverage and Harry Potter. Wrapping up the issue are visual arts and comics by Coz Frimpong, Geoffrey Detrani, Yi-hui Huang, Aimee Cozza, and Jason Hart. Read more at the Driftwood Press website.

Call :: Driftwood Press Open to Submissions Year-round

Driftwood Press call for submissionsJohn Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, and interviews. We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing service, too. www.driftwoodpress.net

Driftwood Press Extends Application Deadline for Online Seminars

Good news! If you missed the April 30 deadline for Driftwood Press’s 2020 Online Seminar Series, you’re in luck! They have extended the deadline to apply to May 30. These seminars will run for five weeks starting on June 1 and ending on July 3.

The Erasure Poetry Seminar instructor is Jerrod Schwarz who teaches creative writing at the University of Tampa. This seminar features an in-depth look at the history, practices, and importance of erasure poetry. Every week students receive a video lesson, tailor-made writing prompts, and detailed feedback. The course will culminate in a Showcase Booklet of students’ work which will be made available for free download on Driftwood’s website.

The Editors & Writers Seminar is targeted towards three types of writers: writers submitting to magazines and wanting to fight through the slushpile, writers who wish to be editors of short fiction or run a magazine, and writers who wish to become better editors of their own and others’ work. The instructor will be Driftwood Press Fiction Editor James McNulty. Students receive weekly video lessons, a writing or revision assignment, a reading assignment, and detailed feedback on writing assignments.

Don’t forget that the biannual journal is open to submissions year-round and the publishing arm is currently open to submissions of novellas, graphic novels, and comic collections. They do charge a reading fee. Expedited response options available for journal submissions.

Driftwood Press Wants Your Graphic Work

Any graphic novelists or comic creators in the house? Driftwood Press is eager to hear from you! They currently accept short graphic works (one image up to 22 pages of comic art) for publication in their biannual, online journal. They’re open to serializing longer graphic works with presentation of the work’s first chapter and a series outline. The editors also seek graphic novel manuscripts for publication consideration. Submit full or partial manuscripts via Submittable.

Comic submissions to the magazine and graphic novel manuscript submissions are both free. Learn more about what they’re looking for at their website.

But if graphic work isn’t for you, the magazine is still accepting submissions for two of their contests until July 1.

Event :: Driftwood Press Erasure Poetry Seminar

Event Location: Online Only
Application Deadline: April 30, 2020
Applications are now open for the “Erasure Poetry” seminar! This seminar is offered completely online. The “Erasure Seminar” is perfect for poets looking to explore the history and techniques behind erasure poetry. Deadline to join is April 30th, and all students will be admitted on a first come, first served basis.

Event :: Driftwood Press Online Editors & Writers Seminar

Event Location: Online Only
Application Deadline: April 30, 2020
Applications are now open for the “Editors & Writers: The Path to Publication” seminar. This is offered entirely online. The “Editors & Writers: The Path to Publication” seminar is perfect for short fiction writers who are submitting to magazines; come see the process and the craft from an editor’s point of view. Deadline to join the class is April 30th, and all students will be admitted on a first come, first served basis.

Reader, Writer, Editor – Driftwood Press Has You Covered

Village of Knives by Helli FangDriftwood Press has plenty on the horizon for both readers and writers.

Writers looking to hone their craft can benefit from the two seminars Driftwood Press offers—Editors & Writers: The Path to Publication, and a seminar for Erasure Poetry. These are both conducted online and have plenty of information to help guide writers and editors better their work. The deadline to apply for each of these is April 30.

Readers can now order copies of Helli Fang’s new chapbook Village of Knives from the press. Chen Chen says of the collection, “The poems here listen to immigrant life and dream, to gendered expectation and subversion, to desire, to the body’s surging, briny rhythms.”

If you’re interested in having your own poetry read by the editors, consider submitting your full-length manuscript. Submissions are currently open for the rest of the month, so act fast! If you do end up missing this submission period, there are still two contests currently open until July.

Whether you’re looking to learn, read, or submit, Driftwood Press has you covered!

Driftwood Press 2020 Seminar Series

In 2020 Driftwood Press will offer two courses in its Seminar Series. The first is an Erasure Poetry Seminar instructed by Jerrod Schwarz. He is an instructor of creative writing at the University of Tampa and his own erasure poetry has appeared in PANK, Entropy, Poets Reading the News, and the Plath Project. Applications open through April 30. This course will run five weeks from June 1 through July 3. The course is entirely online.

The next course is the Editors & Writers Seminar. This is a five week online class designed for writers submitting to magazines, for writers who want to be editors of short fiction or literary magazines, and writers who want to become better editors of their own work and others’. The course will be limited to 20 students. Applications are open through April 30. Managing fiction editor of Driftwood Press, James McNulty is the instructor. The course will run from June 1 through July 3.

Call :: Driftwood Press

Driftwood Press January 2020 issueDriftwood Press is not only a biannual digital and print literary magazine, but also a book publisher.

Submissions are accepted year-round with expedited response options available. Besides general submissions for their journal, they are currently open to submissions of novellas, graphic novels, and comic collections.

Many of their authors are offered editorships and interviews.