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Editor Interview: Raising Mothers

Q: Describe what you publish in 25 characters or less.

A: Marginalized POC

Q: What other current publications (or publishers) do you admire most?

A: I admire the work of Wear Your Voice Magazine, Kweli Journal, Catapult and Electric Literature.

Q: What sets your publication apart from others that publish similar material?

A: Raising Mothers focuses strictly on the voices of marginalized femme presenting POC. Our goal is to level the playing field with work by mother writers of color. In the mother literary field, we are expressly unique as an actual literary space in highlighting only marginalized people.

Q: What is the best advice you can give people who are considering submitting work to your publication?

A: We accept work that makes our readers think AND feel. It is important to be relatable as much as possible. It is important that the writer be able to write and stand in their full truth of their own identity. Raising Mothers is more than a literary space; we treat it as a place for healing.

Q: Describe the ideal submission.

A: The ideal submission is clearly written, lengthy (1400 words or more is a sweet spot) and instantly grabs the reader. We are keen to show parenting in all of its light so vivid writing is crucial. Work that interweaves race and/or culture and focuses on the parent rather than the child(ren) is of utmost importance in our selection process.

Q: What do submitters most often get wrong about your submissions process?

A: Raising Mothers isn’t a parenting blog. We aren’t interested in quick tips or typically what you would find on the average mom blog. We want exquisite literary writing from women of color and nonbinary people of color who parent. We want deep, thoughtful, introspective work. Work that reconciles our own childhoods and the childhoods we’re helping to currently shape.

Q: How much do you want to know about the person submitting to you?

A: We encourage the person submitting to Raising Mothers to let us know how they are marginalized. It is something to take pride in. Especially if there are intersectional ways this shows in the writer and their work. We prefer this come in the form of a cover letter. Previous publication credits are not mandatory, but if you have some you are proud of, by all means share them with us.

Q: If you publish writing, how much of a piece do you read before making the decision to reject it?

A: Out of respect for the writer, we read the entire piece prior to making a decision currently. Sometimes you know a piece isn’t right for our publication, but we still give it a full read at least once before making a decision to pass or take further steps.

Q: What additional evaluations, if any, does a piece go through before it is accepted?

A: We have 2 or 3 editors read a piece before acceptance. Then we work with the writer on any edits that may be needed.

Q: How important do you feel it is for publishers to embrace modern technologies?

A: All of our submissions are electronic and it is absolutely vital for publishers to embrace current technologies and adapt as things change. I particularly think this is easy as far as literary journals go. Presses should also consider being fully electronic so we can be more environmentally responsible. There is a world of tools at our disposal currently that make it easy for us to save a few forests.

Q: How much do you edit an accepted piece prior to publication?

A: Our editing depends on the piece. We do not offer substantive editing; we would rather the author rework their piece and resubmit at a later date. We do provide line editing and copy editing. Authors get to approve all final edits prior to publishing.