We’re calling for your works of poetry and prose and are now open for submissions. Issue #128 of Bamboo Ridge Journal of Hawaiʻi Literature & Arts is scheduled for release in Fall of 2025 with guest editor Naomi Shihab Nye, and BR editor Cathy Song.
This is a regular issue with no specific theme.
Submission Guidelines
Email your submission to BRPsubmissions@gmail.com
- Subject line should read “Submission, [last name], Issue 128”
- Forms: prose, creative nonfiction, poetry, essay, micro/flash, stand-alone excerpts, visual art, experimental forms.
- Prose (word count/page count): 5,000 words
- Poetry (# of poems): up to 5 poems per author (no more than 10 pages).
- Double spaced unless it’s poetry, 12 pt. any font style (such as Times New Roman or Calibri).
- Send Word or PDF document as an attachment. File name should be your last name followed by the piece/collection title.
- In the body of your email (or optional attached cover letter) please include your author name, byline if different, short bio, and contact information. Please also indicate the island that you are from. If you are not from the Pacific, please indicate your connection to Hawai’i or the Pacific region.
- Simultaneous submissions are allowed. If accepted by another publication please notify us asap via email to withdraw your work.
- We will consider reprints if you retain rights to the work. In this case please include the name of the previous publisher and date of publication.
- If you are quoting material, like song lyrics, it must be in the public domain or you must provide permission(s) from the copyright holder to reprint the quoted material.
- We value your submissions however, cannot respond to every email personally. If your work is chosen for publication you will hear from us as soon as possible. We appreciate your understanding and patience during the selection process.
*Please do not submit AI generated writing or art. Also, we are not currently accepting full-length manuscripts.
What we’re looking for: Thought-provoking and unforgettable pieces that sustain us. Work that inspires and connects us. While we invite submissions from all writers, we’re especially interested in seeing works rooted in, and from, Hawaiʻi, the Pacific region, and island communities.
We’re open to all written and visual forms, i.e. short fiction, poetry, essays, plays, comics, experimental forms, or hybrid/mixed-genre.
What we’re NOT looking for: We are not looking for work that promotes hate speech, presents stereotypes, and/or romanticizes or exoticizes a culture/place/ or people. Work that is clearly racist, homophobic, ableist, sexist, classist, or anti-trans will not be considered.
By submitting, the author certifies that all work is the author’s or artist’s own original writing or art.
Again, if the work includes material not written by the author, then the author must clearly indicate in the work what is quoted material and include an attribution assigning proper credit. If the quoted material (including song lyrics) is copyrighted and not in the public domain, the author must also provide the press with permission(s) to reprint any such quoted material.
While we will continue to accept submissions via regular mail, we prefer email.
If you would like to mail your submission, please include your mailing address, phone, and email with your submission and mail to:
Bamboo Ridge Press
P.O. Box 61781
Honolulu, Hawaii 96839-1781
Manuscripts should be in 12-point type, with one-inch margins on one side of 8.5″ x 11″ white paper. Prose should be double-spaced. Poetry may be single-spaced.
If you would like your manuscript to be returned, please include a self-addressed stamped envelope with sufficient postage. Please do not send your only copy of your writing; we will not be responsible for lost or damaged manuscripts.
