Editor Interview: The Blue Bell Review

Creative work by kids.

Stone Soup
Skipping Stones
The Blue Marble Review

I simply loved Sanvi Devanshi’s poem, ‘Litany for a Cold Moon’. The moment I finished reading it for the first time, I knew we had to publish it. I deeply appreciated the poem’s unique comparisons, such as loving the moon through ‘calculation, vigil, and ruin,’ which gave the piece a thoughtful, almost spiritual quality. One particular line — ‘At her fullness, the world grew dangerous. / Even stone remembered water.’ — was especially moving. For potential submitters who want to understand the kind of writing we are looking for, Sanvi’s piece is a stellar example

In addition to art and writing from differently abled, neurodivergent, and non-English speaking students, The Blue Bell Review readers will find honest and thoughtfully curated content by young writers across the globe, along with cool prompts, book recommendations, and advice from established writers, editors, and former contributors.

Since I mostly review the poetry submissions, I often look for impactful verses that make me want to think or wonder. I love pieces that have beautiful imagery, fun metaphors, and cool themes.
I handle the initial review, and I get extremely annoyed when I have to go through tons of submissions that don't follow the guidelines, are AI-generated, or have too many errors. All our editors are putting in a lot of time to keep the magazine going, and it's exasperating to think that a submitter didn't recheck their work or put in any extra effort.
If I can connect to the piece or the author's voice, chances are I will accept it. As a reader (this may sound selfish!), I want to read poems that I can resonate with, laugh about, cry about, or just think, 'Hey! That makes sense.'

A submission which shows no sign of AI generated content, with minute imperfections that make it human. A piece where we can see that the writer has taken an effort. A piece where there are not too many typos or grammar errors. A piece which we would want to read again.

Since we are a magazine for youth, we require parental permission upon acceptance to publish the child's work. There have been many instances when we didn't receive permission, which made it harder for us to plan the issues.

We only ask for a third-person bio. Mentioning previous publications help. We don't want any personal details like which school the submitter goes to, because we don't want to publish sensitive information.

We read every piece till the end, because we want to give the writer the benefit of doubt. Mostly we know after a few paragraphs, but we ensure that we read the whole thing.

Our Review Process: Step-by-Step
1. The Initial Screening
All submissions are read blind by our editors to ensure complete fairness. Because we accept submissions on a rolling basis, I, Editor-in-Chief, Elaine, takes a first look as soon as they arrive.
Immediate Rejections: If a submission clearly violates our guidelines, skips formatting rules, or contains excessive grammatical errors, it won't move forward to the editing team.
A Note on AI-Generated Content
Pieces generated by AI are rejected immediately. We do not provide feedback for these submissions because it doesn't help a human creator grow. Trust us, we've read enough AI prose to spot it quickly, but we always double-check using multiple AI detectors before making a final call.
2. Editor Review & Feedback
If a piece looks promising, I pass it along to the appropriate section editor. The editor reviews the piece and provides constructive feedback, which we always share with the submitter, whether the piece is accepted or not.
3. The Tie-Breaker (When We Can't Decide)
If an editor is on the fence, or if we are judging a major competition (like our recent Young Writers' Ekphrastic Contest in collaboration with Phosphorescent Lit), the entire editorial board steps in. We discuss the pieces together, hold a vote, and let the majority rule.

As both a tenth-grader in India with major exams coming up this year, and an editor for two other magazines besides The Blue Bell Review, I have to maintain a strict schedule to keep up with my tasks. I wake up really early to get homework done, respond to emails, go to school, come back, take a break (play football or read fiction), review submissions, study and then work on whatever extracurriculars I have on that particular day.
First I go over the pieces that came in recently, and then send them to the other editors. After that I go over all the poems I am supposed to review each day, and jot down thoughts in my notebook. Then it is just a matter of sending the acceptance/rejection email.

It depends on the piece. Sometimes we work with the author and edit each and every line with them. If it is just a few issues with grammar or something, we sort it out, and then send it to the author. They get to approve the final edits.

As of now, no.

I do content creation for an NGO in India to earn enough money to keep the magazine going. This is a labour of love.