Editor Interviews
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Read all the editors' answers to Duotrope's interview question: How much do you want to know about the person submitting to you? Learn more.
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Here is a small sampling from our recent Editor Interviews. We have interviewed over 2,125 editors.
Q: How much do you want to know about the person submitting to you?
A: A simple bio will suffice. The work submitted for consideration should be the focus, not credentials or publication credits. If we need more biographical information we will ask for it.
A: Publication credits are good for reference, but not particularly important. Cover letters are nice, but not required.
We do want to see your name, email address, and a short biography.
A: I don't need to know much, if anything, about contributors. All I need to see is the work they're submitting.
A: We judge only the poem. The judges receive no additional information. If a poem has received previous honors or publication, we want to know about that so we can give credit when we publish.. Previous publication/awards info may be included in the ID section of the ID copy.
A: OLPR consider quality work over cover letter. We do expect submitters to get familiarized with magazine. We don't have separate eye for new and established writer.
A: I want to know about their creative process and product more than their "credentials." A cover letter would be nice as long as it's not the standard blah-blah-blah but has the spark of the person writing it. I'd rather see them in their work than in a dry list of achievements.
A: I always ask for a short bio up to 100 words or so. All the articles presented are Features. It's fine to mention just a few publications you're most proud of, last book, awards etc.
A: Our submission form collects information about the writer and their manuscript. We don’t require that writers include a book proposal, and if they don’t, we’ve included questions on the form they can fill out instead to give us the important details. We also don’t require that writers include a cover letter, but of course they are welcome to if they feel it will provide additional details or context important to the submission.
A: Our poetry selectors care little for name, experience, or previous accolades. They relish great poetry. They prefer to let poems stand on their own merit and select poems, not poets. Our prose selectors, however, like to get to know a bit about the artist behind the work - they prefer to get to know the person, not just their resume. For them, the story teller is as important as the story. In either case, brief personal intros are helpful in submitters emails.
In general, we like giving a platform for the previously unpublished or under-published. For our magazine publishing, though, we also strive to make sure the submitters' credentials, links, and media are included and accurate so our readers can connect and to credit the publications of previously published works.
A: Cover letters are not necessary. The submission will proceed through a double-blind, peer-review process, so your name will not matter to our readers; your qualifications and background will be evidenced by the quality of your work.
A: We are committed to uplifting BIPOC, queer, marginalized, and under-represented voices. To that end, we don't look for or prioritize submissions by writers with MFAs or particular publication credits. We are especially excited when we get to accept work where we're the poet's first publication credit!
A: We don't require cover letters and do not check the writers' academic experience. But we do screen for plagiarism from time to time. The quality and integrity of the scholarship is all that matters, and we are proud to have published texts by established professors and PhD students alike.