NonBinary Review is the literary journal of Zoetic Press. They publish four themed issues every year and are seeking short stories, flash fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, visual art year-round with specific reading periods for each theme. The current theme is Shared Worlds (deadline 2/1/2022) followed by Person First in an Identity First World (deadline 4/30/2022).
You can see past issues of NonBinary Review online. You can purchase more recent, full issues from the Zoetic Press website (where they’re available in pdf, epub, and Kindle versions) or on Amazon for a nominal fee. Each week, they also publish online features in Alphanumeric, featuring pieces from the current issue. My poem “Strange Verses” found in the text of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll was featured on Alphanumeric in 2016 and more recently, my poem “What” was included in issue #23: Apocalypse.
See my interview with founder and Chief Cook and Bottle Washer Lise Quintana with a link to submission guidelines below.
HOPKINSON: Tell me a little bit about NonBinary Review.
QUINTANA: NonBinary Review is a quarterly themed lit journal. Zoetic Press also produces Alphanumeric, a podcast that highlights pieces from the current NonBinary Review issue. We embrace the nonbinary – things that are not one thing or the other, or maybe both. Lots of people have claimed “nonbinary” as it relates to their gender, their academic focus, or their career (honestly, I’ve heard it applied to architecture, programming, human sexuality, human gender expression, cuisine), and we embrace all of it.
HOPKINSON: How/why was NonBinary Review originally started?
QUINTANA: Right after grad school, I created a new e-reader that made nonlinear literature possible. I needed a way to prove the concept, so I created NonBinary Review. Once we wrapped up the software project, I realized I was in love with the journal and the community it had created. More recently, we took a 1-year hiatus. Prior to 2019, we had been basing all our issues on classic works of literature. Going forward, starting with our March 2021 issue, we’re broadening our themes.
HOPKINSON: Who is your target reader audience?
QUINTANA: My ideal reader is anyone who’s both familiar with classic literature, and who’s excited about possibilities – exploring edge cases, thinking in 5 dimensions, using language like a paintbrush, a scalpel, a javelin, a rocket. And who’s willing to cough up two and a half bucks.
HOPKINSON: What type of work are you looking for?
QUINTANA: Since our issues are themed, I’m looking for work that doesn’t go for the obvious. Every issue, we get a lot of the same responses to our theme. I’d love for people not to go with their first reaction to a theme. Explore it, pick it apart, examine it under a microscope and find something we haven’t seen or thought of before.
HOPKINSON: What do you wish you’d see submitted, but rarely comes in?
QUINTANA: Humor and horror. When we do horror-related themes, we get it, but I’d love to see the creepy in Anne of Green Gables or the scary parts of The Wind in the Willows. Similarly, I want something funny for The Books of Blood or We Have Always Lived in the Castle.
HOPKINSON: What are some of your favorite lit mags/journals?
QUINTANA: I love things like Drunk Monkeys, Red Fez, Lunch Ticket, etc., that accept a wide variety of work from anyone. I’m also excited by any lit journal that strives for good literary citizenship. The indy press world is tiny, and we’re not competitors. We should be supporting each other.
HOPKINSON: What is your favorite part of being on staff with NonBinary Review?
QUINTANA: Mentoring. Both writers and staff. Every time we send out an acceptance to someone who’s never been published before, that’s amazing. Every time we get a new staffer who wants to learn editing or social media or layout and design, that’s exciting. I’d like to think that people come away from their interactions with us a little better than before.
HOPKINSON: Where can we send submissions?
QUINTANA: You can find out what we’re looking for and submit on our Submittable page.
HOPKINSON: If someone has a question, how can they contact you?
QUINTANA: Email us at info@zoeticpress.com.
Click here to read submission guidelines.
NEXT DEADLINE: February 1, 2022
THEMES/READING PERIODS:
- Person First in an Identity First World (open 12/1/2021 through 4/30/2022)
- Person First in an Identity First World Visual Art (open 12/1/2021 through 4/30/2022)
- Shared Worlds (open 9/1/2021 through 1/31/2022)
- Shared Worlds Visual Art (open 9/1/2021 through 1/31/2022)
SUBMISSION FEE: None, “once or twice a year, we offer 24-hour turnaround for $3”
FORMS: short stories, flash fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, visual art
FORMAT: electronic only, with podcast of selections from the issue
ISSUE FREQUENCY: quarterly
AVERAGE RESPONSE TIME: 30 – 45 days
SUBMISSION METHOD: Submittable
PAYMENT: 1¢ per word for prose, $10 flat fee for poetry, $25 flat fee for art, or $50 for art selected as cover image
SOCIAL MEDIA: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
DUOTROPE: https://duotrope.com/listing/14354/nonbinary-review
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