*Update: our submissions deadline has been extended until the end of December 31, 2024!*
Hayden’s Ferry Review will be open for submissions in poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and translation for print issue 76 and our spring 2025 web issue between November 1-30, 2024. Please only submit to one call for submissions at a time. Note that general submissions for art are currently closed.
For issue 76, please note that we’ll have cap of 500 for poetry and fiction and 400 for nonfiction submissions. We’ll also have 100 free submissions for underrepresented writers in each genre.
Spring 2025 Web Issue: On Desire
Inspired by Oscar Wilde's evocative words, “In this world there are only two tragedies. One is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it,” we invite you to delve into the complex layers of desire where the pursuit and attainment of what we yearn for create their own distinct trials and moments of reckoning. We seek work exploring the journey of desire—how we reach for what lies beyond our grasp and what it means when we finally attain it. How does desire shape our lives and identities? What sacrifices are made along the way, and what new truths emerge when desire is fulfilled? We invite you to share stories, poems, and essays that explore these questions, capturing the tension between longing and fulfillment and examining what it means to find what we seek truly.
We welcome submissions of poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, visual art, and hybrid forms that engage with the theme of desire in innovative and thought-provoking ways. Whether through explorations of unfulfilled longing, stories of hard-won fulfillment, or reflections on the complexities of wanting, we invite you to examine the profound impact of desire on our lives. We encourage works that push the boundaries of form and perspective, revealing how desire shapes and reshapes our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
We highly encourage submissions from BIPOC, queer, and disabled writers and visual artists, as well as collaborative works. Share your unique voice and perspective on what it means to reach, to want, and to find.
Poems: Submit up to 6 pages of poems in one document. Each poem should be on a separate page. Please provide the title for each poem in the order they are being submitted on your cover letter.
Prose (fiction/nonfiction/essay): Submit up to 10 pages, double-spaced, in one document. If submitting more than one piece, please provide the title for each one in the order they are submitted on your cover letter.
Translation - An English translation must be provided alongside the original piece. Both the original and its translation will be published. If collaborating with a translator, please include their bio in the cover letter.
Art: Submit up to 6 pieces. Please provide a title for each one in the order they are being submitted on your cover letter. We encourage video work to be submitted (video work not to exceed 5 minutes).
Hybrid: Submit following the guidelines for the genre it most closely resembles/is in conversation with.
Please include a brief bio (150 words max) with your submission, including social media handles and your website. Please only submit to one call for submissions at a time.
Issue 76
For print Issue 76 (spring/summer 2025), we're accepting general un-themed submissions in poetry, fiction, nonfiction, art, and translation. We're also hoping to feature a small folio on the theme of maximalism. If you feel that your piece fits this theme (see below), please check the respective box on the Submittable form. Even if the work is not quite right for the folio's theme, we will still consider it for Issue 76!
Special Themed Folio - Maximalism
For this folio within Issue 76, we're looking for work that celebrates more is more for the sake of more. Send us work that uses too many adjectives, that are overly-punctuated, poems that are sonically overwhelming, that could be seen as overly intense. We want your excess.
How does leaning into maximalism, in being “too much,” help us express our complexities, multiplicities, and digressions?
Examples of work we’re interested in include “Equestrian Monuments (A Litany)” by Luis Chaves, “Planet Dread” by Safiya Sinclair, “Feed” by Tommy Pico, “my sweet angel on earth thank you for this life” by Jenny Zhang, and White Teeth by Zadie Smith.
See below for submission guidelines for the print journal. Note that general art submissions for this issue are currently closed. Please only submit to one call for submissions at a time.
Jovita Widjaja, Expression—Serenity
Poetry Guidelines:
Submit a maximum of 3 poems totaling up to 8 pages. Please include your entire submission in one file and be sure your name and contact information are included on the first page of the file. All work should be uploaded through our submissions manager. Acceptable file formats include .doc, .docx, and .pdf. Please send one submission at a time and wait for a response before you submit additional work. We do not consider book-length works. Submitters are strongly encouraged to read the journal before submitting. Sample work from current and past issues is available on our website.
Prose Guidelines:
We accept both fiction and non-fiction. Prose should be double-spaced. Submit a maximum of one piece totaling up to 20 pages (though we favor pieces under 17 pages). Please include your entire submission in one file and be sure your name and contact information are included on the first page of the file. We accept one story, essay, novel excerpt, or memoir excerpt per author at any given time. All work should be uploaded through our submissions manager.
Translation Guidelines:
Translations submissions should be works translated into English from any other non-English language, and must include the original text along with the translated text. Translators should secure rights to translate the work they are submitting. Submit up to 6 poems/micro-fictions, or one essay/story. Upon acceptance, we will request a translator's note on your translation process (similar to an artist statement).
Translation submissions are open year-round and during the months we open for submissions in other genres for a forthcoming issue, we’ll also open submissions for 50 free translation submissions under the Submittable category “TRANSLATION: Free Submissions for Underrepresented Writers - Issue X.”
Art Guidelines:
We are looking for visual art in all categories. Please submit 5-8 pieces at a time. We may ask for additional art based on this submission. We accept work that has been previously published on the artist's social media or personal website but we do not accept work that has been previously published in other journals.
Upon acceptance, we will request high res files, an author's bio, and an artist's statement. We publish art in full color, often selecting between 2 and 4 artists for each issue. One of these will receive cover credit and bookmark credit.
General Notes on Submission:
For our PRINT issues: Please send one submission per genre at a time, and wait for a response before you submit additional work. If you submit more than one submission, we will not read the second one. Please double-check that you are submitting in the correct genre. Work submitted in the incorrect genre will be declined.
For our WEB issues: please send one submission at a time, and wait for a response before you submit additional work. If you submit more than one submission, we will not read the second one.
Simultaneous submissions are welcome. If your work is accepted elsewhere, please notify the editors immediately by adding a message to your submission in Submittable.
Withdraw your submission using Submittable. If you are only withdrawing a section of your work (for example: 2/5 poems), add a message to your submission.
Contributors receive one copy of the issue in which they appear. Additional copies may be purchased for $6 each up to 5 copies.
We do not accept previously published material - this includes work that’s been published on social media and Substack. (See the above exception for art submissions.)
We do not consider book-length works.
Submitters are strongly encouraged to read the journal before submitting: to subscribe, visit http://haydensferryreview.com/store.
Our goal is to respond to submissions within six months. Please only reach out about your submission status after six months have passed.
Anyone affiliated with ASU (staff, faculty, and graduate/undergraduate students) should refrain from submitting to HFR until they have been unaffiliated for three years.
If you have previously been published in HFR's print journal or a web issue, please wait 2 years from your publication date before submitting again.
By submitting, you are agreeing to receive occasional newsletter emails from us. You are welcome to opt out at any time and a link to do so will be included in each newsletter.
PLEASE NOTE: We no longer accept submissions by mail. We will only review work that has been received through Submittable.
Upon acceptance of your work, HFR asks for first North American Serial Rights and nonexclusive use of the Work thereafter such as in anthologies, special projects, and digital archiving; nonexclusive online publication on HFR’s website and affiliated sites or platforms, if selected; nonexclusive right of translation, publication in all languages, and distribution on HFR or affiliated sites or platforms, if selected; permission for versions to be created by nonprofit organizations for use by people who are blind or disabled; nonexclusive rights to your name(s), image(s), likeness(es), and biographical information for use in the promotion and publication of the Work.
After publication, all rights, except those stated above, revert to the copyright owner. You (or the copyright owner) retain copyright and the right of reprint. Please credit Hayden's Ferry Review as the place of first publication. You are responsible for the content of the Work. ASU and HFR assume no liability.
Free Submissions for Underrepresented Writers
Hayden’s Ferry Review recognizes that for too long the literary canon and the publishing world have largely privileged certain stories and voices over others. According to Pen America’s “Reading Between the Lines: Race, Equity, and Book Publishing” report, “the [US] publishing industry, and the books it puts out, remain disproportionately white.” Yet, the report goes on to say, “Not only is the United States a demographically diverse nation—as of the last census, an estimated 42 percent of the country are people of color—it also boasts a demographically diverse readership. The National Endowment for the Arts estimates that approximately a quarter of America’s regular adult readers are people of color. For decades, voices within and outside the publishing industry have called on publishing houses and bookstores to more fully reflect this demographic diversity.”
At HFR, we believe that as a literary journal we have the responsibility to publish creative work that reflects diverse experiences, identities, and cultures on both a national and global scale. We are especially committed to uplifting the voices of those who have long been marginalized and underrepresented.
Art submissions are open year-round and always free but during the months that we are open for other genre submissions, we will have at least 50 free submissions in each genre for underrepresented voices. If you consider yourself to fit into this category, please submit for free to “Free Submissions for Underrepresented Writers.” Among the many types of underrepresentation that exist in literature, we particularly encourage Black, Indigenous, People of Color, and those who belong to the LGBTQIA+ and disability communities to submit to HFR.
We do not discriminate on any impermissible basis, including race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, or disability. Anyone without regard to these categories is welcome to submit as an underrepresented writer if they consider their experiences or identities to be underrepresented in the literary industry.
A Note on Accessibility:
It has come to our attention that Submittable may not be accessible to visually impaired writers. HFR is committed to accessibility and wants to receive submissions from all writers equally. If you are a visually impaired writer who is currently unable to submit via Submittable due to accessibility issues, you may email your submission as an attachment in .pdf format to haydensferryreview AT gmail.com. Please let us know in the email you are submitting due to accessibility concerns. Note that submissions received via email which are outside the current submission period, or do not suit the current call(s) or guidelines, will not receive a response. If you have questions concerning this policy, please email us at the above address.
HFR Annual Contest
Starting in spring 2024, HFR has hosted an annual poetry and fiction contest. You can view our 2024 contest guidelines here and read about the winners here. We’ll share updated information about our spring 2025 contest soon!
Contest submission guidelines:
Submit 1-3 poems totaling up to 10 pages or a short story or novel excerpt of up to 20 pages.
Writers may submit multiple entries, but each entry must include its own entry fee.
Judges will pick the winners and runner-ups from a list of finalists chosen by HFR editors. All entries are considered for publication.
Submitted work must be original work by the writer and unpublished. If your work is accepted elsewhere for publication, please withdraw your submission. If only a part of your poetry submission has been accepted elsewhere, please leave a note in Submittable.
Close friends, family, or former and current students of the judges should refrain from submitting. We define a "former or current student" as someone who has done a semester-length course with the judge or who the judge has served as a thesis advisor. If you attended a one- or two-week-long workshop or similar with the judge, you are still eligible.
If you were published in one of HFR's print journals or web issues in the past two years, you CAN submit to this contest. (See our "general notes on submission" for specific guidelines for our print and web issues, which may differ from contest guidelines.)
Anyone affiliated with ASU (staff, faculty, and graduate/undergraduate students) is not eligible to submit to this contest and should refrain from submitting to HFR until they have been unaffiliated from ASU for three years.
Book Reviews & Interviews:
Our book reviews and interviews are conducted by current and past HFR staff and students in the ASU MFA program with the occasional solicited review or interview. We accept books for review submission during the months of September to April. If you would like us to consider your book or collection for a featured book review or interview on our blog, especially if you are a former contributor, please email (haydensferryreview @ gmail dot com) with the subject line “Book for Review/Interview Consideration.” In the email, include the title of your work, a brief summary, and anything else you’d like us to know. If you have a digital copy of your work, feel free to include this. If we are interested in reviewing your work, we will send you our mailing address where you can send a physical review copy. We receive many wonderful works but, unfortunately, are unable to review all of them. If you haven’t received a response from us within two months, we are currently at capacity and won't be able to take on your book. This doesn't mean we aren't thrilled to see your work out in the world! But because we operate with a mostly volunteer staff, our bandwidth is limited.