Wailing and Gnashing

About

Wailing and Gnashing was born from Utah’s underground art scene, and we wanted a name that reflected both our origin story as an artistic community, and our collective artistic philosophy. The phrase “Wailing and gnashing of teeth” was often used in biblical parables to describe the cast outs and others deemed unworthy of the kingdom of God, which felt especially appropriate for a magazine run by outsider artists in a largely conservative religious community.
Because of where we come from, we at Wailing and Gnashing know that poetry can take a lot of different shapes. Some poetry is raw, unfiltered, charged, some of it is refined, chewed, and chiseled down to its most essential pieces, but all of it is worthy of celebration. We look to curate poems from a wider variety of artists, styles and forms. Wailing and Gnashing is a space where poems from your local crust punk can sit on a page next to an MFA candidate with a few pushcart prize nominations under their belt, and still feel at home.

Voluntary Fees: This project accepts voluntary fees for expedited responses and feedback.

Want more insight into the editors' preferences? Read our interview with the editor(s).

Country of Publication & Year Established

United States

Established in 2025

Publication Media & Frequency

Electronic Publication Electronic Publication: Published 52 x per year
Print Publication Print Publication: Published 1 x per year

AI Policy

Human-created work only; no AI use allowed

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Statistics Synopsis

Faster: Wailing and Gnashing's overall average response time is faster than most magazines.
More Approachable: Wailing and Gnashing's overall acceptance rate is higher than most magazines.
More Responsive: Wailing and Gnashing's overall rate of non-response is lower than most magazines.

Learn more about our statistics

Poetry Open

Before submitting your poetry, decide whether your submission qualifies as a wailer or a gnasher, and label each poem in your submission with the category that best fits your work based on the descriptions below:
Wailers are raw, unfiltered, and unrefined. These are the poems that didn’t just leap out of your brain, they clawed their way up and out of you to claim a space on the page and now refuse to be moved. Send us your first drafts, you late night ravings fueled by nothing but rage and monster ultra, your hand written love poems-- their pages still wet with dewy heartache, and any of your other work that needs to exist.
Gnashers have been ground down. These are your poems that have been through the gauntlet, forged in the fires of your google drive and tinkered on by wordsmiths until every nook and cranny has been nitpicked and you are sure its sharpest edges have been honed to perfection.
If you don’t know which category to submit to, do not fear! Simply do not label your poems and we will decide what category you will be published under upon acceptance. Labeling your poems upon submission will, however, streamline the editorial process and should expedite our response time.

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Genres:

General

Lengths:

Poem: No line limits known; Up to 3 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: Online form.
Reprints: Reprints are 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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Social:
Instagram @wailingandgnashing

For the Editor(s):
Request Interview
Duosuma Submission Manager
Link to Duotrope

Wailing and Gnashing 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:

Group by submission

Include outliers

Accuracy

We have received 11 reports from 11 different members within the past 12 months, not including pending responses (see below). The more responses reported, the more accurate the information.

Days Reported

2 min | 37.7 mean avg | 38.0 median | 101 max days (27.1 std dev)

Responses

100.00 %

Acceptances:

63.64 % of submissions accepted (32.4 avg. days per acceptance) | 63.64 % of submitters accepted

Rejections:

36.36 % (44.3 avg. days per rejection) | 0.0 % personal, 75.0 % form, 25.0 % unspecified

Non-Responses

0.00 %

Lost/Returned:

Never Responded:

Withdrawals

Pending

3 responses are pending (23 min | 64.7 mean avg | 84.0 median | 87 max days waiting | 161.3 std dev) from 3 different members

Other Information

The editors will try to make a decision within 90 days. (9.1 % of the responses reported to us for this listing have taken longer than 90 days.)
Do not query on the status of your submission before 120 days have passed.
The most common submission tip paid: USD $10.00. (14.3 % reported giving a tip.)
Most recent response reported was received on 30 May 2026.
Responses have been received for submissions sent as recently as 18 May 2026.
Date compiled: 16 Sep 2026 04:10 UTC (4 hours, 7 minutes ago).

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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: 18 Aug 2026

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