Issue 24: Open call for writing  and an editorial artist for our upcoming issue on grief.

After generations of unbridled loss and trauma, Black folks from across the diaspora have much to mourn. We’re interested in stories that capture grief in its many forms and faces. 

Think: The mundane griefs that pepper our lives as a result of intergenerational trauma. The silence that follows going no-contact with family members who do not accept our queerness or religious differences. The loss of temperate seasons as a result of widespread environmental catastrophe. The altars we maintain for our ancestors and all the love and wisdom they were not able to share with us. 

While we encourage you to interpret the theme of grief broadly and authentically, here are the types of stories our three editors are most excited to read.

Our Wishlist:

Ava is seeking:

• Personal essays or short stories about experiences with poverty, abuse, or marginalization
• Stories on the impact of intergenerational trauma, complex trauma, and PTSD 
• Speculative or horror fiction
• International writers, Afro-Latine writers, or those outside of urban centers

Cecilia is seeking:

• Longform pieces or poetry about how grief lives in the body and somatic experiences
• Surrealist pieces
• Writers with disabilities, chronic illness, mad and neurodiverse writers

Yumna is seeking:

• Essays about going no-contact with family due to queerness or religious beliefs
• Stories that explore grief related to climate change and environmental crisis
• Essays on the experience of growing up in predominantly white spaces
• Queer writers from East and West Africa

Compensation:

All writers will be compensated $0.04 per word for up to 1,000 words.

The selected editorial artist will receive a stipend of $80 for illustrating the issue based on the selected writing.

Non-writing submissions will be compensated on a case-by-case basis depending on length, medium etc.

Payments will be sent upon completion of the issue via Venmo, PayPal, or Zelle.

Guidelines:

Please submit up to 3 poems.

3,000 word limit for essays and creative non-fiction.

4,000 maximum word count for fiction.

How to submit:

Please email all writing submissions to [email protected] by Tuesday, April 30th, 2025 at 11:59PM EST to be considered.

To apply as an editorial photographer, email us with former work samples by Tuesday, April 30th, 2025 at 11:59PM EST to be considered. Painters and visual artists are encouraged to apply. Please note you don’t have to create any new work for your application.

Please include “ISSUE 24” in your email’s subject line along with a brief biography (3-4 sentences, in third person) in your email.

General submissions:

Hello! We’re so glad you’re here. Before submitting, here are a few notes to read…

​Thank you for your interest in submitting! Please read our FAQs for more details on our submission guidelines and send all of your submissions through our submission email (see below).

Thanks to the support of our readers, we’ve developed a trial payment structure for editors, writers, and illustrators using a combination of issue sales and community fundraising. This is a brand-new approach for us based on variable financial factors, so this compensation structure is subject to change based on the funding we receive.

For our printed issue submissions, we can currently offer writers $0.04 per word (for up to 1,000 words). Non-writing submissions for our printed issues will be compensated on a case-by-case basis depending on length, medium, etc.

At this time, we are unable to pay for pieces published on our website. However, please rest assured that we are working hard to pay all digital contributors in the near future. 

All payments will be issued via Zelle, Paypal, or Venmo upon publication. Pieces that are not accepted or published will not be compensated.

We understand firsthand how difficult it is to make a living as a writer or creative—especially if you’re Black, queer, or gender-expansive. We’re working to expand our payment structure to support our community members and demonstrate that Black storytelling is worth the time, the effort, and its weight in gold.