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Submissions are currently closed. Our guidelines for the next reading period are available to read below.

What is swim meet lit mag, anyway?

swim meet lit mag is a young online literary publication based in Meanjin (Brisbane, Australia). We accept all kinds of creative work and love to be surprised.

Swim meets bring people together; swim meet lit mag seeks to offer an accessible space to read and publish all kinds of creative work from around the world, with a particular focus on emerging local contributors. Our mission is to provide an accessible avenue for publication, especially for emerging creatives – but we accept submissions from anyone (as long as written works are predominantly in English). That’s why our general submissions are free, and our response time is usually very swift. Likewise, our catalogue is, and always will be, free to read.

We aren’t strict about themes, but our editor is particularly interested in submissions from swimmers (current or former), or about swimming – whatever that means to you. If your work has nothing to do with swimming, that doesn’t mean we don’t want to see it! Mainly, send us something you’d be proud to see published.

Because we’re a volunteer-run publication committed to paying our contributors, we offer a Tip Jar Submission option with a fee of $3.00, which we will endeavour to respond to as swiftly as possible. We also accept donations all year round. Your support means we can continue paying artists.

Donations: As a volunteer-run publication, we are always open to donations that help support our operational costs and allow us to pay writers. The amount is automatically set to a one-off payment of $5.00 (AUD).

As a publication based in Meanjin (Brisbane, Australia), we’d like to offer a space for local creatives, emerging and established, to share their work and build a community. However, we are happy to receive submissions from anywhere in the world.

The nitty-gritty

Who can submit? Anyone! We love supporting local creatives, but we accept submissions from anywhere in the world.

Formatting: Please include all pieces in one document (.doc or .docx where possible) for written submissions. PDF, JPEG, and PNG files are acceptable for visual and hybrid work. If submitting multiple pieces, please include them in a single submission (no need to start a new Google Form for each submission). You will be able to upload multiple files in one submission. If these formats aren’t suitable, please upload a file with a link to your work (wherever you see fit, as long as the editor can access it – but make sure it isn’t publicly available).

Poetry: Up to 3 poems, up to 50 lines each, in one document. Please begin each poem on a new page.

Prose submissions: One piece of up to 1500 words. Flash pieces are also welcome! Please include the word count in the submitted document. If you have something longer, please email us with a pitch (it doesn’t have to be formal – just communicate how long the piece is, what it’s about, and why it might be a good fit for us).

Visual Art and Photography: Up to 10 pages/pieces in one submission. If your work doesn’t fit into this category or you have any questions, please contact us. Visual submissions may be considered for cover art (feel free to specify if you have a particular preference in this regard).

Multiple submissions? Just once per genre (i.e. one poetry packet, one piece of fiction, one art submission), but we ask that you wait to hear back from us before sending more work in that genre. Please don’t re-submit a piece that we have declined (unless directly requested).

Payment: We are committed to paying our contributors (via PayPal where possible). At this time, we are only able to pay Australian contributors.

Payment is $30 for poems, flash prose, and visual art.

$50 for longer prose, cover art, or suites of poetry and visual work.

If you would like to help us increase our rates, please consider donating above or submitting via our Tip Jar submission option. We also promote local contributors’ work online and occasionally through in-person events in Brisbane.

Rights and reprints? All rights remain with the author, regardless of submission outcome. If your work has appeared in another publication (not your personal blog or social media) and you have the rights to it, we will consider it. Please make a note of where the piece has appeared previously in your cover letter if this is the case. If a piece published in swim meet lit mag is published elsewhere, we request that the author credit us with prior publication.

Simultaneous submissions? Sure! Just let us know if your work is accepted elsewhere. (Congrats, by the way!)

What happens upon acceptance? If the editor sees fit, written work may undergo a collaborative editing process, using email communication and Track Changes in Word/Pages. The work we usually accept is of high quality and does not require major structural or stylistic editing; some pieces don’t require editing at all. The purpose of the editing process is to polish and retain the integrity of the work, to bring out the best in each piece to help it shine. We always listen to the artist and want to hear your suggestions during the editing phase!

Any other questions? Send them our way over at our contact page!

Submissions Currently Closed

Please make sure you have read the guidelines above! Work that doesn’t meet our guidelines or ethics will not be considered. No refund will be provided for paid submissions that fail to meet guidelines.

All submissions will be considered with equal weight, but we will move Tip Jar submissions to the top of our queue for an even quicker response!

Free General Submissions: closed

Tip Jar Submissions: closed

Thank you for supporting swim meet lit mag!

Meet the editor