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Black Warrior Review 870

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About

Established in 1974 by graduate students in the MFA Program in Creative Writing, Black Warrior Review is named for the river that borders the campus of The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. The city, the river, and the magazine all derive their names from the 16th-century Indigenous leader Tuskaloosa (also spelled “Tushkalusa”), whose name comes from two words of Creek or Choctaw origin—tasca, meaning “warriors,” and lusa, meaning “black.” In 1540, Tuskaloosa battled the Spanish colonizer Hernando de Soto at Mabila, a fortified settlement perhaps in the vicinity of present-day Selma. Tuskaloosa was likely among the thousands who perished in the resistance effort, which is thought to have stopped the advance of de Soto’s campaign. BWR publishes fiction, nonfiction, poetry, comics, and art twice a year. Contributors include Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winners alongside emerging writers.

Fees Notice: This project charges fees (or requires purchases) for all submissions.
Important Notice: On our latest check, they were not open to submissions, although their website states they should be.

Country of Publication & Year Established

United States Established in 1974

Publication Medium & Frequency

Print Publication Print PublicationPublished 2 x per year.

Fiction Open Fee-based

We want work that familiarizes the strange and mystifies the familiar. Traditionally, BWR accepts work that takes risk or is experimental, in lieu of convention and/or grammatical cleanliness.

Dates:

Open to fiction submissions through 01 August 2024* (approx. 77 days from now). 14

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Genres:
General General
Lengths:
Flash Fiction Flash FictionUp to 1,000 words.
Short Story Short Story1,000 - 7,000 words.
Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Experimental, Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics.

Payment:

Semi-pro payment (1-4.9 US cents per word) to Professional payment (5 or more US cents per word) Pay ranges from Semi-pro payment (1-4.9 US cents per word) to Professional payment (5 or more US cents per word).
Note: We list broad pay categories rather than prize specifics. Check with the publisher for details.

Submissions:

Method: Submittable submission manager.
Reprints: Reprints are NOT allowed.
Simultaneous submissions: Simultaneous submissions are allowed.
Media: Text.

Nonfiction Open Fee-based

An Invitation: BWR non-fiction very much seeks the non-canon; pieces outside western traditions; pieces that defy any such categorization. We would like to extend this invitation especially to BIPOC writers.

Dates:

Open to nonfiction submissions through 01 August 2024* (approx. 77 days from now). 1

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Lengths:
Essay EssayUp to 7,000 words.
Narrative Nonfiction Narrative NonfictionUp to 7,000 words.
Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Experimental, Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics.

Payment:

Semi-pro payment (1-4.9 US cents per word) to Professional payment (5 or more US cents per word) Pay ranges from Semi-pro payment (1-4.9 US cents per word) to Professional payment (5 or more US cents per word).
Note: We list broad pay categories rather than prize specifics. Check with the publisher for details.

Submissions:

Method: Submittable submission manager.
Reprints: Reprints are NOT allowed.
Simultaneous submissions: Simultaneous submissions are allowed.
Media: Text.

Poetry Open Fee-based

BWR is seeking poems of sociopolitical and emotional immediacy. Poems of surprise. Poems that remain thumping in the body, long after reading. Revelation and breakthrough, as well as the mundane. The delicacy of detail, the enormity of light. BWR wants poems of rage and tenderness, quiet and quivering, poems delivering more questions than answers. We are seeking poems outside the historical canon, poems of innovative form, poems delivering broader perspectives. And all this to say, we don’t know what immediacy we are seeking until you show us.

Dates:

Open to poetry submissions through 01 August 2024* (approx. 77 days from now). 13

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Genres:
General General
Lengths:
Poem PoemNo line limits known; Up to 3 pieces.
Poetry Forms:

Open to all/most Forms.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Experimental, Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics.

Payment:

Professional payment (US$50 or more per poem) Professional payment (US$50 or more per poem).
Note: We list broad pay categories rather than prize specifics. Check with the publisher for details.

Submissions:

Method: Submittable submission manager.
Reprints: Reprints are NOT allowed.
Simultaneous submissions: Simultaneous submissions are allowed.
Media: Text.

Visual Art Closed
This project has permanently closed to submissions in this category.

Always check guidelines for details and restrictions. If you aren't familiar with these terms, see our glossary.

Black Warrior Review Submission Statistics — Free Preview!

The statistics in this section are compiled from submission reports sent to us through our submission tracker. They are not provided by the publication's editors/staff or by Duotrope's admins. Information in this section is updated a few times per day. Learn more about the statistics.
This project ranks among the 25 Most Challenging Fiction Publishers in our database.
This project ranks among the 25 Most Challenging Poetry Publishers in our database.
AccuracyWe have received 418 reports from 341 different members within the past 12 months, not including pending responses (see below). The more responses reported, the more accurate the information.
Days Reported0 min | 92.0 mean avg | 87.5 median | 322 max days (47.7 std dev)
Responses92.59 %
Acceptances0.48 % of submissions accepted (102.5 avg. days per acceptance) | 0.59 % of submitters accepted Rejections are often underreported, which skews the statistics in favor of acceptances. Most publishers have a lower acceptance rate than indicated here.
Rejections92.11 % (92.1 avg. days per rejection) | 41.6 % personal, 40.0 % form, 18.4 % unspecified | 0.7 % shortlisted
Non-Responses7.42 %
Lost/Returned-
Never Responded0.96 % (283.3 avg. days before reporting submissions as never responded)
Withdrawals6.46 % (61.7 avg. days per withdrawal)
Pending13 responses are pending (2 min | 121.0 mean avg | 126.0 median | 270 max days waiting | 85.0 std dev) from 13 different members This only includes pending reports from users who have been active on Duotrope within the past 30 days

Other Information

The editors will try to make a decision within 180 days. (1.7 % of the responses reported to us for this listing have taken longer than 180 days.)
Do not query on the status of your submission before 180 days have passed.
The most common submission fee paid: USD $3.00.
Most submissions are acknowledged within one day.
Most recent response reported was received on 15 May 2024.
Responses have been received for submissions sent as recently as 06 Mar 2024.

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Your Submissions

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Black Warrior Review Contest Charges fees for all submissions
Black Warrior Review Creature(s) Contest CLOSED Charges fees for all submissions
BWR Online: Boyfriend Village Charges fees for some submissions

Dates

Last Updated: 02 May 2024
Last Audited: 29 Apr 2024. (We audit each active listing twice a year. Learn more at link.)
Date Added: 02 Aug 2005
Listing may be deactivated on:
31 May 2024 This listing is currently being reviewed for a qualification issue.

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