Submission Guidelines
RiverCraft is OPEN for submissions!
Every year, RiverCraft publishes a collection of exceptional literary fiction, poetry, photography, and visual art crafted by Susquehanna University students. For our upcoming issue, we invite writers and artists to submit work based on their own creativity, inspiration, and artistic crafts. RiverCraft will not be selecting a theme for this year’s edition, as we hope to understand the connections of this year’s submissions before defining them. We ask you to explore your craft and share with us pieces that aim to push the boundaries of writing, photography, and art. What drives you to create artistic works? Explore the themes and values that drive you to continue creating.
Getting your work published can be rewarding for all students, regardless of major. A publication can bolster your resume, circulate your name, and offer you practical experience in preparing your work for a mass audience. Even more, being featured in a magazine can help build confidence in your craft and remind you to celebrate your art. With the permission of our contributors, works accepted for our print publication will also be published on our website to further increase the reach of your piece.
You can find the guidelines for each submission category below. Send all submissions, applications, and questions as separate messages to rivercraft@susqu.edu.
Literary Fiction Guidelines
RiverCraft specializes in publishing literary fiction. We look for stories that are artfully constructed with strong character work and a distinctive, economical prose style. Craft that pushes the boundaries of language and explores the complexity of how we view a story. We aim to find works that breathe life into the words on the page and move us to understand human identity further. We encourage you to read past issues to acquaint yourself with the style of work and standard of quality we expect.
We accept short stories, flash fiction works, and novel excerpts that can stand on their own. We also accept graphic works such as comics, political cartoons, and illustrated fiction pieces. We have no set minimum word count, but we do have a maximum of 5,000 words. Please send multiple submissions as separate attachments and include a cover page with your name and email address. Each attachment should be sent as a Microsoft Word document. Submissions should be paginated, double-spaced, and in 12-point Times New Roman. Graphic works should be attached as JPEG or PDF files in the highest possible resolution and cannot have your name or any other identifying information visible on the file. The subject line of your email should be written as FICTION SUBMISSION.
Poetry Guidelines
Poetry is arguably the most experimental, intuitive, and boundless form of writerly expression, and this year, RiverCraft is seeking submissions that take full advantage of that fact. We look forward to poetry that is distinctive in its use of language and meaningful with its structure, whether that structure be a traditional form, free verse, or a groundbreaking blend of both. The poem may set out to capture our imaginations, resonate with our lives, shine an inquiring light on the state of our world, or simply paint us a picture, but no matter its intention, we hope that it greets us with singularity and confidence.
We accept poetry of any form or style. We also accept illustrated poetry. Please send multiple poems in the same Microsoft Word document attachment, remembering to include a cover page with your name and email address. Please limit your work to a maximum of 5 poetry pieces per submission. Each contributor is allowed one submission total in order to best conform with the magazine’s style and consistency. Format your piece(s) as you wish them to be laid out in the magazine, but please use 12-point Times New Roman and be sure that the distinction between each poem is clearly defined with a page break. Graphic works should be sent as JPEG or PDF files in the highest possible resolution and cannot have your name or any other identifying information visible on the file. The subject line of your email should be written as POETRY SUBMISSION.
Photography Guidelines
Please send photo submissions as JPEG attachments in the highest possible resolution. No cover letter is required, but please title your photograph(s) and use that as the file name. Please limit your work to a maximum of 10 photographs. The subject line of your email should be written as PHOTOGRAPHY SUBMISSION.
During our publication process, one photograph or work of art will be chosen as the cover of the magazine.
Visual Artwork Guidelines
We will accept works of any variety, from realism to abstraction to painting or multimedia. Please send all works as a digital copy in the highest possible resolution and most compatible file type. No cover letter is required, but please title your art and use that as the file name. Please limit your work to a maximum of 10 artworks. The subject line of your email should be written as VISUAL ART SUBMISSION.
During our publication process, one photograph or work of art will be chosen as the cover of the magazine.
Reading Board Application
We want your feedback on submissions! You can apply to be on one of our reading boards for fiction, poetry, or photography and visual arts. Serving on a reading board can be an amazing opportunity to read widely, lend editorial insight, and play a significant role in shaping a publication. The applications for our fiction reading board, poetry reading board, photography and visual arts reading board can be found here.
There is no limit on how many submissions you may send except for poetry, photography, and visual arts. You are welcome to submit to multiple categories. You are also welcome to serve on a reading board even if you have submitted work.
As part of our commitment to uphold social and aesthetic diversity, submissions will be reviewed blindly. No work will be rejected based on subject matter alone, apart from any threatening or hateful expressions of racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, or antisemitism. We only accept original, human-crafted works and will not accept submissions that utilize or were aided by generative AI.
The deadline for both reading board applications and submissions is December 12th at 11:59PM. An extension to the deadline may be given depending on the circumstance. If you have any questions, please contact our staff (rivercraft@susqu.edu) or our Managing Editors (murraykb@susqu.edu & (howards@susqu.edu). We will be in touch with reading board decisions come December, and we will be in touch with fiction, poetry, and art decisions in February.
We cannot wait to receive your best work. Happy submitting!