Q: Describe what you publish in 25 characters or less.
A: smart sensual imagery
Q: What other current publications (or publishers) do you admire most?
A: Zone 3, 32 Poems, Bateau, Forklift Ohio, Literary Mama, Clade Song, Denver Quarterly, Normal School, Pavement Saw, Tinfish--many others!
Q: If you publish writing, who are your favorite writers? If you publish art, who are your favorite artists?
A: Poetry: Peter Gizzi, Elizabeth Willis, Kaia Sand, Bob Hass, Joan Retallack, Forrest Gander, C.D. Wright, Bin Ramke, Donald Revell, Harryette Mullen, Susan Schultz, Carol Frith, Laverne Frith, Karen Skolfield
Q: What sets your publication apart from others that publish similar material?
A: We are particularly open to poems from new and emerging writers.
Q: What is the best advice you can give people who are considering submitting work to your publication?
A: Take a look at the most recent issue; when our editorial board changes, we change submission guidelines to reflect the new editors' preferences and give submitters a better chance of figuring out what we want. On the other hand, sometimes we don't know what we want until we see it!
Q: Describe the ideal submission.
A: A poem that uses clear imagery to explore an idea (or a confluence of ideas) and arrive in a place that keeps the reader thinking.
Q: What do submitters most often get wrong about your submissions process?
A: They send too many poems. We ask for 1-3 poems for each submission.
Q: How much do you want to know about the person submitting to you?
A: We ask for a brief bio because we'll print it if we print the poem. We read the bio AFTER we decide on the poems. (Sometimes the bios are better than the poems, but Common Ground is a poetry magazine first and foremost.)
Q: If you publish writing, how much of a piece do you read before making the decision to reject it?
A: I usually read every piece to the end. But if the submission is longer than 61 lines, we won't accept it anyway. (See guidelines!)
Q: What additional evaluations, if any, does a piece go through before it is accepted?
A: We have 3 poetry editors who will read a piece if it gets a "maybe" or a "yes" from me or whichever editor or intern has seen it first. If it still gets a "maybe," we have to wait until the magazine is almost ready to go before we decide if it is a "yes" or a "no."
Q: How much do you edit an accepted piece prior to publication?
A: We usually don't edit much; occasionally we will suggest changes and work with the author to arrive at a mutual decision.