Barzakh is currently accepting original fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and art submissions for our upcoming issue:

Spring 2026

YEARNING

For this issue, we want to know the stuff you daydream about. If you could pick one thing, and only one, to have right now, what would it be? Would you choose to return to the house you grew up in, or spend time with your childhood best friend? Do you yearn for your future dream job, that one city you have always wanted to visit, or the feeling of accomplishment you have yet to experience? Maybe, your biggest desire at the moment is simply to lay on the couch after a long workday with your favorite drink and your favorite movie. Nothing is too insignificant; nothing is out of reach.

Open submission period:

September 15 - November 15, 2025.

Genre-specific Guidelines:

• Fiction – Please upload one text file (DOCX, PDF, RTF, etc.) including up to 6000 words total (one long piece or multiple shorter pieces).

• Creative Nonfiction – Please upload one text file (DOCX, PDF, RTF, etc.) including up to 6000 words total (one long piece or multiple shorter pieces).

• Poetry – Please upload one text file (DOCX, PDF, RTF, etc.) including up to 3 poems.

• Visual Art – Please upload up to six image files (IMG, PNG, TIF, etc.). Please include an image list that includes the title, size, medium/ materials, and year of each piece you submit.

• Multigenre/ Hybrid/ Digital Work – If the submission is text-based, please upload one text file (DOCX, PDF, RTF, etc.) including as many as six hybrid pieces. If the submission is image-based, please upload as many as six image files (IMG, PNG, TIF, etc.). If you'd like these pieces to be considered for our visual-art section, please include an image list that includes the title, size, medium, and year of each piece you submit.

Other Guidelines:

• Artists can submit their creative writing and art via our "tip jar" submission option, for $3, to help us cover our website hosting fees.

• Artists can also submit at no cost via the "non-tip jar" submission option.

Submissions from both jars are read simultaneously and readers do not prioritize one over the other. We have a limited amount of non-tip-jar submissions available to us, so please only submit one non-tip-jar submission per reading period.

Simultaneous submissions to other publications are welcome, but please let us know immediately if your piece is accepted elsewhere by emailing us at barzakh@albany.edu. If your work is accepted, Barzakh acquires First Electronic Rights and Non-Exclusive Archival Rights. Barzakh is currently a non-paying market.

If you would like to submit by mail, please send your work to the address below. Typed manuscripts are preferred, but we will also accept handwritten work. Snail mail submissions are always free, but if you would like your manuscript returned to you be sure to include a self-addressed & stamped envelope: