The Cortland Review

About

Founded in 1997 in Cortland, New York, by filmmaker, producer, director, and ardent supporter of literature Guy Shahar, The Cortland Review was not only one of the first online literary magazines, but a trailblazer in the use of audio recordings of contributors reading their own work.
Over the past 23 years, The Cortland Review has built a reputation for excellence, publishing everyone from Pulitzer Prize winners to exciting, emerging voices. Writers published in The Cortland Review have appeared in Best American Poetry and been nominated for Pushcart Prizes, and the journal has received accolades such as Best of the Web citations from Forbes magazine.
We pride ourselves on the diverse range of truly remarkable work we publish. Each issue of The Cortland Review curates a journey through different styles, experiences, and subjects, and through poems we find to be fresh and surprising. Poems that offer new ways of perceiving experience and the world. We remain committed to amplifying the voices of Black writers and the work of writers of color as we continue to learn and grow and fulfill our mission. We also believe in strong, collaborative relationships not only with our contributors, but with our talented, dedicated staff. Whether poetry, art, audio, design, or reviews, everyone brings unique skills and perspectives to each issue.
Through all these exciting developments and those to come, we strive to bring to our cherished readers and those just discovering us, work that will stop them in their tracks and show them something new.

Country of Publication & Year Established

United States

Established in 1997

Publication Medium & Frequency

Electronic Publication Electronic Publication: Published 2 x per year

AI Policy

Unknown AI policy

410 members set this magazine as a Favorite.

Statistics Synopsis

Slower: The Cortland Review's overall average response time is slower than most magazines.
More Challenging: The Cortland Review's overall acceptance rate is lower than most magazines.
More Responsive: The Cortland Review's overall rate of non-response is lower than most magazines.

Learn more about our statistics

Expand section Fiction Closed

Expand section Nonfiction Closed

Collapse section Poetry Temp Closed

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Genres:

General

Lengths:

Poem: No line limits known; Up to 5 pieces.

Poetry Forms:

Open to all/most Forms.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics.

Payment:

No monetary payment No monetary payment.

Submissions:

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

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

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The Cortland Review 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.

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Accuracy

We have received 33 reports from 33 different members within the past 12 months, not including pending responses (see below). The more responses reported, the more accurate the information.

Days Reported

50 min | 124.3 mean avg | 96.5 median | 249 max days (214.2 std dev)

Responses

96.97 %

Acceptances:

6.06 % of submissions accepted (244.0 avg. days per acceptance) | 6.06 % of submitters accepted

Rejections:

90.91 % (112.5 avg. days per rejection) | 33.3 % personal, 43.3 % form, 23.3 % unspecified

Non-Responses

0.00 %

Lost/Returned:

Never Responded:

Withdrawals

3.03 % (69.0 avg. days per withdrawal)

Pending

1 response is pending (261 days waiting).

Other Information

The editors will try to make a decision within 120 days. (24.2 % of the responses reported to us for this listing have taken longer than 120 days.)
Most submissions are acknowledged on the same day.
Most recent response reported was received on 03 Sep 2026.
Responses have been received for submissions sent as recently as 16 Jan 2026.
Date compiled: 15 Sep 2026 02:10 UTC (7 hours, 36 minutes ago).
View report of recent responses from this project

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Before Submitting

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Dates

Last Updated: 02 Sep 2026

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