HOPKINSON: How/why was just femme & dandy originally started?
TSAI: I would say that, for close to a decade now, I’ve eagerly had my eye out, looking for a space that would serve and present expressions of all kinds, forms, and genres that addressed the various ways that the LGBTQIA+ community has always expressed themselves in terms of aesthetic, sartorial choices, cosmetics, and so on. These choices have been deeply wedded to self identity and expression. Although I saw spaces for particular gender or queer expressions/aesthetics, I did not see a space for all of us. And so, in December 2020, I asked co-Editor in Chief Sarah Sheppeck if they would be my partner in building just femme & dandy. It didn’t seem right to do it on my own. And they said yes! The rest is history.
HOPKINSON: Who is your target reader audience?
TSAI: I want to first say that we are not solely a lit mag. So our reader and viewer audience is, first and foremost, for the LGBTQIA+ community, across age, background, and other identities. But, I do feel that just femme & dandy is a magazine that anyone can enjoy.
HOPKINSON: What type of work are you looking for?
TSAI: We accept all genres that address LGBTQIA+ fashion (and our definition of fashion is quite broad, as will be obvious when you look through vol. 1): writing, photography, visual art, drag, video, dance, illustration.
HOPKINSON: What do you wish you’d see submitted, but rarely comes in?
TSAI: We are eagerly looking for essays or thinkpieces on Lil Nas X. We’d love to see more submissions in our triple threads section, which addresses high fashion (couture, bespoke, or something in between). We’d love work on fat fashion and plus size designers in our newest column within cancel & gretel, fat + furious.
HOPKINSON: What are some of your favorite lit mags/journals?
TSAI: Guesthouse, Guernica, Anomaly, Apogee, A Public Space, to name a few.
HOPKINSON: What is your favorite part of being on staff with just femme & dandy?
TSAI: Sarah and I work hard to cultivate a space that is enjoyable and that brings joy to others, both in the work we do and in how we run our team. I love getting to be in community with so many brilliant artists.
HOPKINSON: Where can we send submissions?
TSAI: Check out our website at http://www.justfemmeanddandy.com. If you hover over the submit button, you’ll see tailored calls for submissions in each section which include contact information for those sections. Please also take a look at the general call for submissions as well. If your work doesn’t quite fit any section, I’m happy to take a look at addie@justfemmeanddandy.com.
HOPKINSON: If someone has a question, how can they contact you?
TSAI: They are welcome to reach out to me, at addie@justfemmeanddandy.com.
Click here to read submission guidelines.
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: December13, 2021
THEME(S): Rebirth
FORMAT: Online, any file we can open!
SUBMISSION FEE: None
PAYMENT: $50 USD for text-based submissions, $150 USD for multimedia submissions.
ISSUE FREQUENCY: biannual
AVERAGE RESPONSE TIME: Within a few months, most often sooner.
SUBMISSION METHOD: Email
SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS: Yes, please notify us if your work is submitted elsewhere.
FORMS: Fiction, Non-Fiction, Poetry, Hybrid, Illustration, Photography, Other Visual Arts, Video, Hybrid forms
SOCIAL MEDIA: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
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