What do we look for in submissions?

Under the Rain by Jason Galub

Every literary magazine has a different vision for what kind of writing and art they want in their publication. Élan specifically strives for literary, nuanced, and introspective pieces. But what exactly does this mean? How do the staff members determine if the writing they are presented fit that criteria?

  There are two rounds of voting Èlan goes through after submissions close. There’s the initial vote where everyone on staff gives their voice on what pieces they like, and then there’s the second vote that is specifically for Genre Editors where the final pieces are selected. Élan receives hundreds of art and writing submissions, and this setup guarantees that each piece gets a proper chance at publication.

For a piece to survive this process, they must stand out in some way. However, standing out can mean different things depending on the person. A few Élan staff members answered the question, “What qualities do you look for in art and writing submissions in order to decide what should be published in Élan?” and their responses may serve as helpful advice for anyone planning to submit.

            Editors-in-Chief

Jeneva Hayes - "I look for pieces that overall can fit together and work together in a book. Of course, we focus on that individual piece and want them to have their own story and original ideas. But we also want the emotions to correlate so that Élan feels like a book rather than just a selection of pieces, which it is, but we want it to relate to each other. So, when looking, I’ll often search for pieces with a deeper emotion to it, not just a setting or an event. We also just look for pieces that are written well. A piece can have a lot of emotional value, but if it’s poorly written and lacks technique, we can’t publish it."

Deidra Curtis - "We look not only for the quality of writing, but the intention. Intention is heavy."

            Genre Editors:

Cameron Pickering - "Élan means enthusiastic vigor and liveliness, so I look for pieces that embody that spirit. Maybe not literally… but we want things that stand out from the pack like any good literary magazine would! We want things that are lively in different ways. So, play with form, play with theme, make it so that your theme is embodied through your form."

Caitlin Spinner - "We are probably looking through hundreds of pieces so when we see something different, that is definitely something we want to look into. Also, I would say people who put careful attention into revising their work. Having bad grammar won’t automatically disqualify your piece, but it is good to show that you’ve revised because we want to showcase people who have a lot of passion and care for their craft."

Hannes Duncan - "Ambiguity. Overall weirdness. We look for pieces where people are coming out of their comfort zone. We don’t like publishing the same thing over and over again, so we mainly look for variety."

            Community Engagement:

Jamie Lohse - "The first thing is school appropriateness. There’s a lot of really good pieces we had to turn down because it mentioned something that, as a school-run magazine, we can’t publish."

Lila Hartley - "I read the pieces out loud and listened to how they sounded. That was one of the ways that I felt connected to a piece and got a feel for its art.”

            Art Directors:

Marcus Holley - "For the [essence] of Élan, it’s all very focused on what gives the work that originality, that creative feel that you can just look at and know that it has a heart and a soul to it, and it’s not just copy paste, copy paste. You can tell it has more meaning. There’s a story in all of writing, and that’s the point of pairing the art and writing together. It’s to give the art a voice that maybe originally you couldn’t see just by looking at it."

Charlotte Parks - "You can have a self-portrait of someone, but what is the underlining meaning behind it? What is the background telling us? What is the emotion in her face telling us? Are there emotions pulling out of it? When you read something is this the face that you see while you’re reading it? It’s not just, 'Oh this is a pretty painting, and I really like this poem!' What can pairing these two pieces bring out of each other?"

Colson Gomez - "Usually, a lot of it is up to interpretation, but I think a really successful and creative piece has this universal quality to it that is what makes it easy to pair with other writing that has that same universal quality."

I hope this advice is helpful but remember, Élan is not the end-all, be-all decider of if your writing is good. Selections are subjective, don't be discouraged if we don't publish you. Keep submitting, keep revising!

Signed,

Olivia Sheftall, Junior Layout and Design Editor