John Mauk began professional life as a rhetorical theorist, then later acknowledged his literary reflexes. His fiction has appeared in journals such as Salamander, Arts and Letters, The Forge, New Millennium Writings, Main Street Rag; his nonfiction in Rumpus, Beatrice.com, and Writer’s Digest. He has two full-length story collections, Field Notes for the Earthbound and Where All Things Flatten (April, 2024). He was elected professor of the year at two different colleges. Now, after twenty-four years of teaching, he hosts Prose from the Underground, an emerging video series for active writers.

John is accepting everything from flash fiction to novels for critique. The fees and parameters for each of these categories are as follows:

• Flash fiction, up to 2 pages in length, $25
• Short stories, up to 20 pages in length, $55
• Chapbooks, up to 40 pages in length, $275
• Novellas, up to 100 pages in length, $425
• Short story collections, up to 180 pages in length, $550
• Novels, up to 300 pages in length, $795

All manuscripts should be double spaced and formatted in 12-point font. The deadline to submit work for this consultation program is October 31. John will complete his work and respond to all participants by November 30.

John will provide detailed comments on your manuscript as well as a cover letter. After receiving these files, participants who submit chapbooks and full-length manuscripts may also book phone/video conferences with John at no additional charge.

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John Mauk's Statement of Purpose

Fiction writing is ballet on a tightrope. We must manage gravity and grace at each moment. No writer should go it alone. I’m willing and ready to help. As a reader, teacher, editor, and reviewer, I’ve noticed three primary issues that can make revision more productive: 

1) Tension: Great stories, in any genre, rely on a singular tension, one that is established immediately (or very early). It is the force that brings all other elements (imagery, description, prose, dialog, staging, history) along with it. I understand that singular tension in two different ways: as a function of the characters' purpose or the characters' desire. When that tension is palpable from the start, the story moves and carries readers with it.

2) Scenes: Fiction is all about the crucial scenes—not the information but the action that occurs in the narrative present. All writers need help intensifying their scenes. That often means minimizing exposition and maximizing the real-time situations that define characters’ lives. The better the scenes, the better the story.

3) Subtext: Subtext is the subtle current of thought beneath the text itself. Subtext allows readers to enter the text, grapple with it, make meaning within it. Subtext is the roaring silence between words, beneath sentences. For writers, it’s often the most challenging element to cultivate. But it need not be mind-boggling. It’s often simply a matter of strategic omission—carving out statements or passages that do too much work, that say too much.

As a consultant, I will consider these three elements. Of course, there are more issues: concerns about setting, syntax, narrator placement, and so on, but the above three issues will drive my approach. I’ll offer scene-by-scene comments. I’ll say what makes me hope, wonder, worry, and cheer. I’ll offer suggestions for intensifying and attenuating. Also, I’ll say what the story is doing best because we all need affirmation. I look forward to reading whatever you might send.

Raena Shirali is the author of two collections of poetry. Her first book, GILT (YesYes Books, 2017), won the 2018 Milt Kessler Poetry Book Award, and her second, summonings (Black Lawrence Press, 2022), won the 2021 Hudson Prize. Winner of a Pushcart Prize & a former Philip Roth Resident at Bucknell University, Shirali is also the recipient of prizes and honors from VIDA, Gulf Coast, Boston Review, & Cosmonauts Avenue. Formerly a Co-Editor-in-Chief of Muzzle Magazine, Shirali now serves as Faculty Advisor for Folio—a literary magazine dedicated to publishing works by undergraduate students at the national level. She holds an MFA in Poetry from The Ohio State University and is an Associate Professor of English at Holy Family University. The Indian American poet was raised in Charleston, South Carolina, and now lives in Philadelphia.

Raena will provide detailed comments on your manuscript as well as a cover letter. After receiving these files, participants who submit chapbooks and full-length manuscripts may also book phone/video conferences with her at no additional charge.

Raena is accepting single poems, folios, chapbooks, and full-length collections for critique. The fees and parameters for each of these categories are as follows:

• Individual Poems, up to 2 pages in length, $25
• Folios, up to 7 pages in length, not to include more than 5 poems, $55
• Chapbooks, 16-40 pages in length, $275
• Full-length collections, 45-80 pages in length $425

All manuscripts should be formatted in 12-point font. The deadline to submit work for this consultation program is October 31. Raena will complete her work and respond to all participants by November 30. 

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Raena Shirali's Statement of Purpose

I believe that every poem, published or not, is a work in progress; as Paul Valéry famously said, “a poem is never finished.” I bring this ethos to every piece of writing I critique. Each poem teaches its audience how to read it, and sometimes, as poets, we aren’t even sure what terms the poem wants to be interpreted on. It is my job—indeed, my life’s calling—to identify what the poem seems to want to say, and to guide authors towards those aspects of craft and content that are asking to be evolved. This can be especially valuable for clients who have been writing for some time; our voices, images, inspirations, and aesthetics are always evolving, and sometimes our poems need be cultivated at their own pace, on their own terms. 

My experience as an author and editor will guide your consultation—journals look for pieces whose content and form exist in compelling conversation with one another, and I read first and foremost through that lens. When suggesting a formal approach that might involve an overhaul of the poem at hand, I will provide examples and resources to assist in your revision journey. But knowing your goals as a writer also informs my practice. I don’t subscribe to the school of thought that renders authors silent; knowing what you are trying to accomplish, and why, will help me give you advice on what the poem needs done, and how.  

Beyond polishing poems for publication, my goal is to increase clients’ self-awareness as authors. What does an author do particularly well, without much (conscious) effort? What aspects of craft seem to evade them in the generative and revision processes, and how can we bring more awareness to each level on which the poem operates? You’ll at times feel understood by my assessments, and at times, we may not perfectly align—it is those moments of disconnect that are in fact the most fruitful ground for us to examine, in an effort to increase our conscientiousness as artists and writers.

In my own work, I experiment with free verse forms, lyric voice, docupoetics, enjambment, and tension. My poems are personal and political and don’t believe in the distinction between those categories. Put another way, I will find a deeper meaning in a poem, others’ or my own, because I believe that even a poem about a breakup contains within it some deeper truth about how we live as humans, or some deeper question about why we are the way we are. This doesn’t mean I’m a self-serious poet, though. I love playing with language—alliteration, assonance, and unexpected rhyme, in particular—and my newer poems are tonally cheeky and sarcastic. Poets I currently call my favorites include Linda Gregg, Bhanu Kapil, Adrienne Rich, and Richard Siken. A lifelong student of line break and voice, I bring heightened awareness of those aspects of craft to my own writing and to my interpretation of the writing of others. 

Please do not send manuscripts that promote hate speech, are intended to harass or bully a specific person or group of persons, or include glorified sexual violence. If the manuscript includes potentially triggering content around disordered eating, please include a brief statement indicating as such on the title page. 

You're in the submission form for poetry. If you're intending to submit prose (fiction, creative non-fiction, etc.), please return to the main page and select the prose category instead. (Chapbooks of prose poems and poetry/prose hybrid projects can be submitted under either poetry or prose, per your preference.)

Twice each year Black Lawrence Press will run the Black River Chapbook Competition for an unpublished chapbook of poems or prose between 16-36 pages in length. The contest is open to new, emerging, and established writers. The winner will receive book publication, a $500 cash award, and ten copies of the book. Prizes are awarded on publication.
 

All entries are read without identifying information by our panel of editors. All manuscripts should include a title page (listing only the title of the work), table of contents (if applicable), and when appropriate, an acknowledgments page. Manuscripts should be paginated and formatted in an easy-to-read font such as Garamond or Times New Roman. Manuscripts should be 16-36 pages in length (double-spaced for fiction), not including front and back matter (table of contents, title page, etc.). Identifying information for the author should not be included anywhere on the manuscript itself, including in the name of your file or in the "title" field in Submittable. You are welcome to include a brief bio or something about yourself in your cover note on Submittable, which will only be made accessible to the editorial panel after the group of Semi-Finalist and Finalist manuscripts has been chosen.

A note regarding previously published work: Chapbooks containing individual stories or poems that have been previously published online or in print are absolutely eligible for the BRCC–please simply note previously published work on an acknowledgments page. On the other hand, if your chapbook–or a significant portion of the work included in your chapbook–has been previously published as a book or chapbook-length collection (including publication with a press, self-publication, online/digital publication, and publication in a small, limited-edition print run), then the manuscript is not eligible for the BRCC.

• Simultaneous submissions are acceptable and encouraged, but please notify us by withdrawing your manuscript on Submittable immediately if it is accepted for publication elsewhere.
• Multiple submissions (the submission of more than one manuscript to the contest) are permitted.
• Collaborative collections are welcome.
• Hybrid/multi-genre submissions are also welcome; please enter under the submission category that best fits your work.
• Prose category: Beginning with the Spring 2019 contest, our category previously titled “fiction” has been re-categorized as “prose” to accommodate fiction, creative non-fiction, lyric essay, and prose hybrid manuscripts. (Chapbooks of prose poems and poetry/prose hybrid projects can be submitted under either poetry or prose, per your preference.)
• We cannot accept translations for the BRCC.
• We will consider submissions including visual art (i.e. interior illustrations or photographs), but please note we do not regularly publish chapbooks with interior art. Please do not include suggested cover artwork with your submission.

  The annual deadlines for the prize are May 31 and October 31.

Optional book bundle: Interested in reading a few of our chapbooks while we read yours? Below you will have the option to purchase a bundle of five of our chapbooks, which includes This is Not a Frank Ocean Cover Album by Alan Chazaro, Oh My Darling by Cate O’Toole, Notes on the End of the World by Meghan Privitello, Killing It by Gaia Rajan, and Far Enough: A Western in Fragments by Joe Wilkins. The discounted price of $39.95 for this chap bundle includes the cost of shipping. Purchase not required for submission to the BRCC!

You're in the submission form for prose. (This includes fiction, creative non-fiction, lyric essay, and prose hybrid manuscripts.) If you're intending to submit poetry, please return to the main page and select the poetry category instead. (Chapbooks of prose poems and poetry/prose hybrid projects can be submitted under either poetry or prose, per your preference.)

Twice each year Black Lawrence Press will run the Black River Chapbook Competition for an unpublished chapbook of poems or prose between 16-36 pages in length. The contest is open to new, emerging, and established writers. The winner will receive book publication, a $500 cash award, and ten copies of the book. Prizes are awarded on publication.
 

All entries are read without identifying information by our panel of editors. All manuscripts should include a title page (listing only the title of the work), table of contents (if applicable), and when appropriate, an acknowledgments page. Manuscripts should be paginated and formatted in an easy-to-read font such as Garamond or Times New Roman. Manuscripts should be 16-36 pages in length (double-spaced for fiction), not including front and back matter (table of contents, title page, etc.). Identifying information for the author should not be included anywhere on the manuscript itself, including in the name of your file or in the "title" field in Submittable. You are welcome to include a brief bio or something about yourself in your cover note on Submittable, which will only be made accessible to the editorial panel after the group of Semi-Finalist and Finalist manuscripts has been chosen.

A note regarding previously published work: Chapbooks containing individual stories or poems that have been previously published online or in print are absolutely eligible for the BRCC–please simply note previously published work on an acknowledgments page. On the other hand, if your chapbook–or a significant portion of the work included in your chapbook–has been previously published as a book or chapbook-length collection (including publication with a press, self-publication, online/digital publication, and publication in a small, limited-edition print run), then the manuscript is not eligible for the BRCC.

• Simultaneous submissions are acceptable and encouraged, but please notify us by withdrawing your manuscript on Submittable immediately if it is accepted for publication elsewhere.
• Multiple submissions (the submission of more than one manuscript to the contest) are permitted.
• Collaborative collections are welcome.
• Hybrid/multi-genre submissions are also welcome; please enter under the submission category that best fits your work.
• Prose category: Beginning with the Spring 2019 contest, our category previously titled “fiction” has been re-categorized as “prose” to accommodate fiction, creative non-fiction, lyric essay, and prose hybrid manuscripts. (Chapbooks of prose poems and poetry/prose hybrid projects can be submitted under either poetry or prose, per your preference.)
• We cannot accept translations for the BRCC.
• We will consider submissions including visual art (i.e. interior illustrations or photographs), but please note we do not regularly publish chapbooks with interior art. Please do not include suggested cover artwork with your submission.

The annual deadlines for the prize are May 31 and October 31.

Optional book bundle: Interested in reading a few of our chapbooks while we read yours? Below you will have the option to purchase a bundle of five of our chapbooks, which includes This is Not a Frank Ocean Cover Album by Alan Chazaro, Oh My Darling by Cate O’Toole, Notes on the End of the World by Meghan Privitello, Killing It by Gaia Rajan, and Far Enough: A Western in Fragments by Joe Wilkins. The discounted price of $39.95 for this chap bundle includes the cost of shipping. Purchase not required for submission to the BRCC!

Each issue of Fair Copy includes a limited number of prose pieces, each comprised of an early draft; the final, fair copy; and a reflective craft essay from the author about the drafting and revision process.

Fair Copy wants to see flash prose, short stories, essays (broadly defined), hybrid prose, and experimental prose up to 7500 words. We’re open to submissions from both emerging and established writers, and we’re especially interested in pieces with forms and content solidified in surprising ways through the drafting and revision process. Fair Copy is also open to a variety of subgenres and movements including speculative and genre-bending work, and we skew towards literary styles and techniques. Pieces with gratuitous violence–physical, emotional, or psychological–are highly unlikely to fit our aesthetic, and for the benefit of our readers, we ask that you provide content warnings when appropriate. We do not consider AI-generated work or pieces developed with the aid of AI generators/software.  

In your cover letter, please provide a short, third person bio with your preferred contact information. Upload one file in 12pt, double-spaced font. Your file should include your submission followed by a page break and then a draft from your writing process which best shows the evolution of your piece. Submissions that do not adhere to these guidelines will not be considered. We aim to respond to authors in 3-6 months.

If a piece is accepted, editors at Fair Copy will request the author contribute a mini craft essay/reflection on your drafting and revision process, and either a writing exercise authored by the writer meant to engage an aspect of craft featured predominantly in the piece or permission for the editors of Fair Copy to develop a craft-based writing exercise based on the published piece. All accepted submissions will be included in print issues; select submissions will also be published online.

Questions about submitting can be directed to editors@faircopyjournal.com.

​tr. is an international literary journal that celebrates and highlights the cultural power and vital contributions of literature in translation to the english-speaking world. ​
​
tr. publishes poetry and prose translated from any language. we read submissions on a rolling basis. we publish work on a rolling basis. 

tr. reads the world. join us. . .

Submissions should be formatted in an easy-to-read font such as Garamond or Times New Roman. Please attach your work as a .pdf, .doc, or .docx file and include a copy of the original text as well as a cover letter and bios for the author and the translator. 

It is the translator’s responsibility to secure all relevant and appropriate translation rights.

All submissions must be previously unpublished. Simultaneous submissions are allowed. 

If you have a pending submission, please wait for a response before submitting again. Our average response time is 2–3 months. 

General submissions require a submission fee of $2.00 per submission.   

Fiction and Nonfiction (up to 3000 words)  

Poetry (no more than 5 poems) 

The immigrant narrative is at the heart of the American experiment. However, despite the contributions of immigrants to the cultural, financial, scientific, and artistic makeup of the United States, there is no clear home for new immigrant writings in the United States. To remedy this, Black Lawrence Press proudly announces the Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series, an innovative program designed to provide a home for new immigrant writings in the United States and bridge a gap in the American literary community. The Series will remain a self-standing body with complete autonomy within Black Lawrence Press, and its editorial and advisory boards will be composed of immigrant writers and/or authors whose works explore the immigrant experience.

Mission Statement:

The Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series aims to provide a clear and consistent home for new Immigrant Writings in the U.S. Book selections will be made by a four-member editorial board composed of writers in the U.S. who are either immigrants or whose works focus on the immigrant experience. Selections will be based on merit with the goal of publishing the best works by immigrants. Poets and authors, at any stage of their careers, who identify as immigrants are welcome to submit a book manuscript of poetry or prose or a hybrid text for consideration. Submissions are accepted year-round. However, selections are made in June and November for a total of two books per year. In addition to publication, marketing, and a standard royalties contract from Black Lawrence Press, authors chosen for the Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series will receive a travel stipend of $500, which can be used for book tours or in any manner chosen by the authors.

Editorial Board:
 Sun Yung Shin
 Rigoberto Gonzalez
 Ewa Chrusciel
 Abayomi Animashaun

Advisory Board:
 Barbara Jane Reyes
 Ilya Kaminsky
 Omofolabo Ajayi-Soyinka
 Virgil Suarez

Rules & Eligibility

1. Works by immigrants will be considered for the Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series. 

2. Submission is open to any individual living in the U.S. who identifies as an immigrant and who either (i) was born in another country, (ii) has at least one parent who was born in another country (iii) is a refugee, or (iv) lives in the United States under Asylum or a Protection Program, such as TPS or DACA .
 

3. No more than two book manuscripts can be submitted per year per author.
 

4. A third book manuscript submitted in a given year by an author will not be considered for the Writing Series.
 

5. All manuscripts received after May 31st will be considered for the November Reading Period.
 

6. All manuscripts received after October 31st  will be considered for the June Reading Period.
 

7. Only full length manuscripts of poetry (at least 45 pages), prose (fiction or nonfiction), and hybrid texts of poetry and prose (at least 100 pages) will be considered for the Writing Series. We are not accepting chapbook manuscripts at this time.
 

8. An author whose book manuscript has previously been selected for the Writing Series and published through Black Lawrence Press will not be considered a second time for the Series. However, the author in question is welcome to send new book manuscripts to Black Lawrence Press (BLP) for consideration during BLP’s June and November Open Reading Periods.
 

9. Only authors who have not previously published with Black Lawrence Press will be considered for the Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series.
 

10. Aside from Rules 1 through 9, there are no conditions for submitting manuscripts.
 

11. There are no entry fees.
 

12. Submissions are accepted year-round.
 

*13. Only one book manuscript will be selected for the June Reading Period, and only one book manuscript will be selected for the November Reading Period, for a total of two books per year. (* If no book manuscript is chosen for a June Reading Period, the Series Editors reserve the right to choose two book manuscripts (instead of one) in the November Reading Period immediately following the June Reading Period in question)
 

14. The Series Editors reserve the right to choose no book manuscript for the Writing Series during any given year or any Reading Period.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How do you define an immigrant?
Anyone who identifies as an immigrant and who either (i) was born in another country, (ii) has at least one parent who was born in another country, (iii) is a refugee, or (iv) lives in the United States under Asylum or a Protection Program, such as TPS or DACA

2.  I live outside the United States, can I submit my work?
No, immigrant authors must be living in the United States when they submit their work for consideration

3. Can I submit an anthology for consideration?
No, anthologies will not be considered for the Writing Series. However, Black Lawrence Press (BLP) welcomes proposals for anthologies during its June and November Open Reading Periods

4. Are collaborations welcome?
No, works should be by one author only. However, collaborations are welcome during BLP’s June and November Open Reading Periods

5. Are BLP’s June & November Open Reading Periods the same as those of the Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series?
No, these are different and distinct programs within the Press. While the readings occur concurrently, The Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series is a self-standing entity with its own eligibility and rules and editorial and advisory boards. The editorial board, composed of immigrant authors, has complete autonomy in selecting book manuscripts for the Writing Series. Each year, these editors recommend up to two books for publication through Black Lawrence Press. Please see the program’s mission statement , rules and eligibility, and bylaws.

6. How many book manuscripts can I submit in a given year?
Only two book manuscripts will be considered each year per author

7. Can I submit two book manuscripts in different genres?
No, each author can submit no more than two manuscripts in a given year, regardless of genre

8. I am an immigrant and I have two book manuscripts, can I submit both at once or at different times of the year?
Yes. Each author is welcome to submit a maximum of two books per year either together or at different times in the given year

9. It’s the end of June or November and there’s been no announcement yet on the manuscript selected for the Writing Series. What’s going on?
Thanks for your patience. The four-member editorial board will announce the selected manuscript as soon as they’ve made a decision. That said, the editors also reserve the right to choose no manuscript during a reading period.

10. I have other questions not addressed here. Who should I contact with my questions?
Please send questions to immigrantwritingseries@blacklawrencepress.com. 

You may send an email to the same address to request a copy of the Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series bylaws.7. Only full length manuscripts of poetry, prose (fiction or nonfiction), and hybrid texts of poetry and prose will be considered for the Writing Series. We are not accepting chapbook manuscripts at this time.

If you are interested in facilitating a workshop for the Black Lawrence Press series, please review the information below and submit a proposal.

Workshop Series Description

Join Black Lawrence Press on the second Tuesday of each month for writing workshops on craft and the writing life. Featuring Black Lawrence Press authors and other nationally recognized authors, these virtual Workshops on poetry, prose, and hybrid texts are open to poets and writers, regardless of age and level of expertise. Workshops last for ninety minutes, and they are free to the public. 

When: The Second Tuesday of Each Month (Except in January & July)

Time: 8:00 PM - 9:30 PM EST

Where: Zoom (with Online Registration) 


For Workshop Leaders:

Compensation: Compensation is $75 cash or $75 BLP gift card.

Format: We will send an essay and/or prompt to the participants in advance of the workshop. The workshops will last 90 minutes. It will be free and open to the public, but will require registration. The workshops will not be recorded.

Attendees: As mentioned above, these events will be open to the public. We will use BLP’s social media to publicize the events. We will also welcome the workshop leaders to invite current and former students.

Essays for Workshop: Workshop leaders are invited to share craft essays or essays on the writing life with participants. Essays can be original works by workshop leaders, or they can be essays by other writers.  

Outreach: We’ll publicize each workshop on our social media and through our newsletter.

Note: The series is popular and is often well-attended. We encourage Workshop facilitators to be prepared and to come ready to share their knowledge and joy of writing.

Sample Description of Workshop

Writing your Mad Skills: a workshop with Tanis MacDonald
Permission is a mad skill; this workshop is designed to assist poets in locating the space from where they write and the people to whom they write. By identifying our individual “mad skills” through a series of writing prompts, we will generate material for poems that weave together generosity, risk, and connection. Come prepared to write! 
Reading: “Mad Skills for the Twenty-First Century,” Far Villages, pages 508-514.   

Black Lawrence Press now offers scholarships for our consultation program. Although we work hard to keep the costs of our consults as low as possible, we understand that many writers are not able to afford these services. 

We award up to $1,000 in scholarships per month. The deadline to submit your manuscript is October 22. We will award the scholarships in the first week of October. If your manuscript is not selected for the scholarship, please feel free to apply again in the future. However, please wait at least six months before sending a second scholarship application.

Scholarship recipients will be chosen by senior Black Lawrence Press editors and will be selected based on the merit of the submitted work. While we do not request that submitters disclose any personal financial information, we want to be clear that these scholarships are intended for writers who would not otherwise be able to afford the cost of our consultation service. 

FAQ
 

1. Who is eligible for this scholarship?

Any writer who is looking for feedback on their work and would not otherwise be able to pay for a manuscript consultation is eligible. Applicants may be at any stage in their writing careers and we heartily welcome new writers. 

2. I'm not currently a student, may I apply?

Yes. This scholarship is open to both students AND applicants who are not currently pursuing degrees or otherwise enrolled in academic institutions. 

3. Do I need to demonstrate need to receive this scholarship?

No. We do not require any such demonstration.