Our general poetry submissions are currently open.

Submission Guidelines

Poets Reading the News publishes poetry about current events. Please read our full guidelines in advance of submitting your work.

• We accept only original and previously unpublished works, up to three (3) poems per submission.

• You may have one submission under review at a time.

• Simultaneous submissions are encouraged. If your writing is accepted elsewhere, please notify us as soon as possible.

• Entitle your submission “Breaking” to alert the editors if your submission is time sensitive.

• Whenever possible, include news sources to support your submission. Provide sources for any data or quotes.

• If your submission is modeled after another poem, for example an updated edition of or featuring passages borrowed from another writer’s work, please acknowledge it in the header of the submission document. Published poems that fail to include mention of mother poems risk being removed from our platform.

• Poets Reading the News encourages writers of all backgrounds to submit their writing, including women writers, writers of color, emergent and previously unpublished writers, LGBTQ+ writers, low/no-income writers, and writers from regions and countries near and far.

• Poets Reading the News does not publish works that promote prejudice or hatred. This prohibition includes racism, misogyny, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, anti-semitism, Islamophobia and white supremacy.

• We accept submissions through Submittable. We are not able to review submissions directly emailed to our editors.