Submission Guidelines

For our inaugural issue, we’re bending the bars wide open and are excited to discover fresh and surprising voices. As an experimental literary magazine, we encourage innovative, boundary-pushing texts of all kinds — the indescribable, prototypes, inversions of traditional form, and anything that feels urgent, playful, or unexpected.

Length guidelines:

• Each poem should fit comfortably on one page (40 lines of text maximum) for an ideal layout.

• We’re looking for work that reaches beyond a haiku — (5-line minimum) but longer is wonderful.

Formatting & Submission Requirements:

• Up to 5 poems per submission.

• Send everything as one .docx or .pdf file (clearly titled and with each poem separated).

• Use a 12 pt, legible font; line spacing is by artist's choice.

• Remove any identifying personal information from the manuscript itself (we read blind).

• A short third-person bio is optional (no suggested guidelines)- for your literary audience.
  

Rights and Compensation:

• The Columbus Review acquires First North American Serial Rights for all accepted work.

• All rights revert to the author immediately upon publication.

• As a budding non-profit preparing our inaugural issue, we do not currently offer monetary compensation.

We only accept previously unpublished work.

Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please notify our editors at /TCR/ right away (thecolumbusreviewsubmissions@gmail.com) if any of your pieces are accepted elsewhere. 

Our team aims to respond to submissions within 4-8 weeks.

Memento Mori and Excelsior!

For our inaugural issue, we’re bending the bars wide open and are excited to discover fresh and surprising voices. As an experimental literary magazine, we encourage innovative, boundary-pushing texts of all kinds — the indescribable, prototypes, inversions of traditional form, hybrid narratives, flash pieces, and anything that feels urgent, playful, or unexpected.

Length Guidelines:

• Each piece should roughly be 5 to 15 double-spaced pages when formatted in a standard 12 pt font.

• We especially love sharp, concise work — flash fiction or nonfiction around 3,000 words is highly encouraged. But pieces up to 5,000 words maximum will be considered if the energy and experimentation demand the extra length.

Formatting & Submission Requirements:

• Up to 3 prose pieces per submission.

• Send everything as one .docx or .pdf file (clearly titled with each piece separated).

• Use a legible 12 pt font; double-spaced.

• Remove any identifying personal information from the manuscript itself (we read blind).

• A short third-person bio is optional (no suggested guidelines) — for your literary audience.

Rights and Compensation:

• The Columbus Review acquires First North American Serial Rights for all accepted work.

• All rights revert to the author immediately upon publication.

• As a budding non-profit preparing our inaugural issue, we do not currently offer monetary compensation.

We only accept previously unpublished work.

Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please notify our editors at /TCR/ right away (thecolumbusreviewsubmissions@gmail.com) if any of your pieces are accepted elsewhere.

Our team aims to respond to submissions within 4–8 weeks.

Memento Mori and Excelsior!

For our inaugural issue, we’re bending the bars wide open and are excited to discover fresh and surprising voices. As an experimental literary magazine, we encourage innovative, boundary-pushing texts of all kinds — the indescribable, prototypes, inversions of traditional form, hybrid scripts, one-act plays, short screenplays, and anything that feels urgent, playful, or unexpected.

Length Guidelines:

• Each script should generally be 20 pages or less when formatted in standard script format (Courier 12 pt, 1-inch margins).

• Excerpts taken from a larger work are welcome (for example, a single scene from a full-length play or screenplay).

Formatting & Submission Requirements:

• Up to 2 scripts per submission.

• Send everything as one .docx or .pdf file (clearly titled with each script separated).

• Use Courier 12 pt font (preferred) with 1-inch margins.

• Remove any identifying personal information from the manuscript itself (we read blind).

• A short third-person bio is optional (no suggested guidelines) — for your literary audience.

Rights and Compensation:

• The Columbus Review acquires First North American Serial Rights for all accepted work.

• All rights revert to the author immediately upon publication.

• As a budding non-profit preparing our inaugural issue, we do not currently offer monetary compensation.

We only accept previously unpublished work.

Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please notify our editors at /TCR/ right away (thecolumbusreviewsubmissions@gmail.com) if any of your pieces are accepted elsewhere.

Our team aims to respond to submissions within 4–8 weeks.

Memento Mori and Excelsior!

For our inaugural issue, we’re bending the bars wide open and are excited to discover fresh and surprising voices. As an experimental literary magazine, we encourage innovative, boundary-pushing texts of all kinds — the indescribable, prototypes, inversions of traditional form, razor-sharp satire, absurdist rants, grotesque humor, and anything that feels urgent, playful, or brilliantly unhinged.

Length Guidelines:

• Each piece should generally be between 3 and 12 double-spaced pages (approximately 1,000 – 3,500 words) when formatted in a standard 12 pt font.

• We especially love short, explosive hits — pieces around 2,000 words are highly encouraged. But stronger absurdist or satirical work up to 12 pages will be considered if the bite is strong enough.

Formatting & Submission Requirements:

• Up to 3 pieces per submission.

• Send everything as one .docx or .pdf file (clearly titled with each piece separated).

• Use a legible 12 pt font; double-spaced.

• Remove any identifying personal information from the manuscript itself (we read blind).

• A short third-person bio is optional (no suggested guidelines) — for your literary audience.

Rights and Compensation:

• The Columbus Review acquires First North American Serial Rights for all accepted work.

• All rights revert to the author immediately upon publication.

• As a budding non-profit preparing our inaugural issue, we do not currently offer monetary compensation.

We only accept previously unpublished work.

Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please notify our editors at /TCR/ right away (thecolumbusreviewsubmissions@gmail.com) if any of your pieces are accepted elsewhere.

Our team aims to respond to submissions within 4–8 weeks.

Memento Mori and Excelsior!

For our inaugural issue, we’re bending the bars wide open and are excited to discover fresh and surprising artists. As an experimental magazine, we encourage innovative, boundary-pushing works of all kinds — the indescribable, prototypes, inversions of traditional form, razor-sharp satire, absurdist imagery, surreal compositions, experimental photography, digital manipulations, mixed-media experiments, and anything that feels urgent, playful, or brilliantly unhinged.

Additionally, the most beloved piece will be selected to serve as the cover artwork for the magazine’s seasonal issue, accompanied by a dedicated “About the Cover Artist” section.

Submission Guidelines:

• Each submission should consist of standalone, single-image works that will occupy their own full page if accepted. We are not considering series or multi-image sets.

• A separate artist statement is highly recommended for those interested in cover art selection, though not required.

• We especially love pieces that are reminiscent of surreal, figurative, art deco or German expressionist themes.

Formatting Requirements:

• Up to 3 pieces per submission.

• Submit work as one .pdf, .jpeg, or .png file (clearly titled with each piece separated). Images must be high-resolution and formatted to the exact 8.5 × 11 aspect ratio of our standard magazine page (portrait orientation, minimum 3000 pixels on the longest side at 300 dpi).

• A short third-person bio is optional (no suggested guidelines). Please note that artist bios may be overlaid directly on the artwork in the final magazine layout. But the artist name and title of the piece will be displayed regardless.

Rights and Compensation:

• The Columbus Review acquires First North American Serial Rights for all accepted work.

• All rights revert to the artist immediately upon publication.

• As a budding non-profit preparing our inaugural issue, we do not currently offer monetary compensation.

We only accept previously unpublished work.

Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please notify our editors at /TCR/ right away (thecolumbusreviewsubmissions@gmail.com) if any of your pieces are accepted elsewhere.

Our team aims to respond to submissions within 4–8 weeks.

Memento Mori and Excelsior!