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Editor Interview: Polyphony Lit

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

A: Best high school writing.

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

A: Other publications that accept teen writing: Adroit Journal, One Teen Story, Blue Marble Review, The Apprentice Writer, Parallax.

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

A: Polyphony Lit is unique in three ways: 1) we give in-depth feedback to all submissions, including those we reject for publication (which is about 94% of all submissions); 2) our editorial board is comprised of more than 300 teens from around the world who volunteer to join us. As of this year, all editors are trained via our online workshop "How to Be a Literary Editor;" and 3) our organization puts a lot of emphasis on the craft of editing, with senior editors giving feedback to junior editors on the commentary of every submission.

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

A: We at Polyphony Lit have immense respect for the emerging writer who is at the beginning years of developing voice and craft. We urge young writers to consider the following:
1) Write with intent. We have a principle of respecting authorial intent. If the story you are burning to write is about the heartbreak of basketball season on paper, we respect that intent and our editors will respond to you with feedback on ways that you can best write that story. But be intentional about the precise goal of that work- the precise themes, tone, effect you want to leave with the reader.
2) Consider craft. As a student, we assume you are still learning craft, but consider the elements of the genre and be deliberate about how you put them to use. For example, for poetry, consider how you deploy imagery, sound, and structure in your work.
3) Precision. Be thoughtful about every word.
4) Proofread!!!

Q: Describe the ideal submission.

A: We believe that when young writers put precise and powerful language to their lives it helps them better understand their value as human beings. So, for us, an ideal submission comes from a writer who cares to get their words and ideas onto a page and does it with care.

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

A: Beware of the word limits. For creative nonfiction, please don't submit academic essays or college application essays. For poetry, make sure creative structural elements like line breaks and punctuation have a purpose. Young writers probably have the most difficulty with the craft of fiction - they read a lot but might not have been exposed to the craft of writing fiction. Dialog is hard, endings are tricky, plot choices are many.

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

A: We do not ask for cover letters or publication credits.

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

A: Three editors read and give commentary to every piece we receive, even if rejected. (Two editor read if submission received in last month of our submission cycle).

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

A: If a piece is accepted, a senior editor will work with the author to do an in-house edit prior to publication.

Q: What is a day in the life of an editor like for you?

A: Our 300+ editors are all high school students who are juggling all that high school requires: class, homework, sports, extracurriculars, duties at home. Our editors have very different habits:
"When I finish a big homework project or test, I reward myself by checking what is on my docket."
AND
"just played another game of "finish your commentary before midnight Illinois time"! i played this one on hard mode: i forgot to do my commentary earlier today and ended up starting with only 2 and a half hours on the clock! thankfully, all the neurons in my brain fired at once and i completed my commentary in record time for me. and my commentary was good! didn't need to sacrifice anything for time. fate was truly on my side today..."
Each submission has three readers. Every reader writes Specific and General Commentary, as well as "Rationale for Accept/Reject." The second and third readers also give feedback to the prior editors/readers. Then, the Genre Editor, in collaboration with the Executive Editor, composes feedback to the submitter. The Executive Editor work through pieces where accept/reject is not clearcut.

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

A: For us, technology has allowed any English-speaking teen in the world to participate with us. And further, we have deployed online learning as it is intended: democratize education.

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

A: Every submission gets in-depth commentary from three readers/editors (or two readers/editors if you submit in last month of our cycle). The commentary has Specific Commentary (line edits) and General Commentary that reflects on how the piece works.
If selected for publication, we have an in-house editing process where author has approval of final edits.

Q: Do you nominate work you've published for any national or international awards?

A: Yes, we process the Claudia Ann Seaman Awards for Young Writers.
3 annual cash awards of $200 for best poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction selected from among the works we publish.