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PRISM international

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About

PRISM international is a magazine out of Vancouver, British Columbia, whose mandate is to publish the best in contemporary writing and translation from Canada and around the world. PRISM has published award-winning Canadian writers, such as Margaret Atwood, Michael Ondaatje, Irving Layton, Evelyn Lau, and Robert Kroetsch; prominent international authors, such as Ted Hughes, Jorge Luis Borges, and Tennessee Williams; and the Nobel Prize winners Salvador Quasimodo, Vicente Aleixandre, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and Seamus Heaney.

Fees Notice: This project charges fees (or requires purchases) for some submissions. They charge fees for written work, except for people for whom the fee is prohibitive.
The fee is CAD $3 (below average for magazines that charge).
Want more insight into the editors' preferences? Read our interview with the editor(s).

Country of Publication & Year Established

Canada
Established in 1959

Publication Medium & Frequency

Print Publication Print Publication
Published 3 x per year

AI Policy

Unknown AI policy

Statistics Synopsis

Slower
PRISM international's overall average response time is slower than most magazines.
More Challenging
PRISM international's overall acceptance rate is lower than most magazines.
Less Responsive
PRISM international's overall rate of non-response is higher than most magazines.

Collapse section Fiction Open Fee-based

Dates:

Open to fee-based fiction submissions through 15 November 2026* (approx. 61 days from now).

1

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience, including: Canadians.

Genres:

General

Lengths:

Flash Fiction: Up to 1,000 words; Up to 3 pieces.
Short Story: 1,000 - 4,000 words.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics including...
Other: May vary.

Payment:

Professional payment (5 or more US cents per word) Provides free copy/copies Professional payment. Provides free copy/copies. Details: CAD $40 per printed page.

Submissions:

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

Collapse section Nonfiction Open Fee-based

Dates:

Open to fee-based nonfiction submissions through 15 November 2026* (approx. 61 days from now).

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience, including: Canadians.

Lengths:

Essay: Up to 1,000 words; Up to 3 pieces.
Essay: 1,000 - 4,000 words.
Narrative Nonfiction: Up to 1,000 words; Up to 3 pieces.
Narrative Nonfiction: 1,000 - 4,000 words.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary. Excluding: Academic.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics including...
Other: May vary.

Payment:

Professional payment (5 or more US cents per word) Provides free copy/copies Professional payment. Provides free copy/copies. Details: CAD $40 per printed page.

Submissions:

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

Collapse section Poetry Open Fee-based

Dates:

Open to fee-based poetry submissions through 15 November 2026* (approx. 61 days from now).

1

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience, including: Canadians.

Genres:

General

Lengths:

Poem: No line limits known; Up to 4 pieces.

Poetry Forms:

Open to all/most Forms, including: Prose poetry.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics including...
Other: May vary.

Payment:

Semi-pro payment (US$5-49 per poem) to Professional payment (US$50 or more per poem) Provides free copy/copies Pay ranges from Semi-pro payment to Professional payment. Provides free copy/copies. Details: CAD $45 per printed page.

Submissions:

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

Collapse section Visual Art Open

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience, including: Canadians.

Lengths:

Artwork:

Art Media:

Photography.

Art Styles:

Open to all/most Art Styles.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics including...
Other: May vary.

Payment:

Professional payment (US$50 or more per piece) Provides free copy/copies Professional payment. Provides free copy/copies. Details: CAD $300 for cover art.

Submissions:

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

Always check guidelines for details and restrictions. If you aren't familiar with these terms, see our glossary.
* We do not know the time and/or timezone, so we cannot be more precise. Submit early to avoid disappointment.

PRISM international Submission Statistics

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.

Filter:
Accuracy
We have received 70 reports from 66 different members within the past 12 months, not including pending responses (see below). The more responses reported, the more accurate the information.
Days Reported
3 min | 120.1 mean avg | 104.0 median | 419 max days (87.9 std dev)
Responses
84.29 %
Acceptances:
4.29 % of submissions accepted (106.0 avg. days per acceptance) | 4.55 % 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.
Rejections:
80.00 % (111.9 avg. days per rejection) | 26.8 % personal, 55.4 % form, 17.9 % unspecified
Non-Responses
5.71 %
Lost/Returned:
-
Never Responded:
5.71 % (403.3 avg. days before reporting submissions as never responded)
Withdrawals
10.00 % (97.9 avg. days per withdrawal)
Pending
40 responses are pending (4 min | 155.7 mean avg | 130.5 median | 426 max days waiting | 1,019.8 std dev) from 39 different members This only includes pending reports from people who have been active on Duotrope within the past 30 days

Other Information

The editors will try to make a decision within 365 days. (5.7 % of the responses reported to us for this listing have taken longer than 365 days.)
The most common submission fee paid: CAD $3.00. (55.8 % of reports specified whether they paid a fee; of those, 96.6 % paid fees.)
Most submissions are acknowledged on the same day.
Most recent response reported was received on 23 Aug 2026.
Responses have been received for submissions sent as recently as 07 May 2026.
Date compiled: 15 Sep 2026 08:22 UTC (53 minutes ago).
View report of recent responses from this project

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Your Submissions

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The Grouse Grind Lit Prize for V. Short Forms  Charges fees for all submissions
The Jacob Zilber Prize for Short Fiction  Charges fees for all submissions
Pacific Spirit Poetry Prize  Charges fees for all submissions
PRISM international Creative Non-Fiction Contest  Charges fees for all submissions

Before Submitting

We cannot guarantee that the information on this page is correct. It is not unusual for publications to evolve or close without notice. We do our best to keep up, but it isn't always possible. Duotrope listings do not imply endorsement or recommendation of the project being listed. Before submitting, you should use your own judgment to determine whether the project meets your standards.

  • Always read the full guidelines provided by the publisher.
  • Try to read at least one previous publication to get a better idea of what the editor would like to see.
  • Unless the publisher's guidelines state otherwise, always use industry standard manuscript formatting.
  • Be professional, patient, and persistent.

Dates

Last Updated: 06 Sep 2026

We check their guidelines for changes every four weeks, and we audit the listing twice a year.

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