Voiceworks is now open for submissions to Issue #131, 'Strike'!
Theme: Strike
You fantasise about swift action; an arm slicing through water, utter refusal. A sharp, unmistakable call. Brood in the non-place between thinking and doing. The run before the leap. The leap before the landing. Prepare yourself for the thwack wallop of realisation. Check your periphery. Wear your shin pads.
It’s a hushed judgement, a snarky email, a roll of the eyes in the staff kitchen. “No big deal.” Push it away, brush it off, back to business as usual. But each microaggression is a strike on the scoreboard, building to action. Will it be a warning or a final blow? How many strikes until you’re they’re out?
Outside, you hear rumbling. Voices from the underbrush, smoke in the distance, strength in numbers. A match has been struck. They can try and blow it out, diminishing the flame, but a burnt scorched match doesn’t go back in the box. Throw it away, try to erase it, but a charred tip won’t go back to its original red. A tit for tat.
When all action is reaction, how do you strike a balance? Caught between blunt force and desire, can you strike a deal?
— Thanks to EdCommers Tiia Kelly and Helen Karakulak for the blurb.
Print Guidelines
Voiceworks accepts fiction, poetry, nonfiction, art and comics, but before you send your work our way, here are some rules:
We are only able to publish writers and artists who are under the age of 25 (that is, 24 and under) at the time of submission.
We only accept work by people living in Australia (including international students) or by Australians living overseas.
We only consider previously unpublished work.
Each category has its own submission page with specific guidelines, but here are the basics:
Fiction: send no more than two stories, each no more than 3,000 words.
Poetry: send no more than three poems, each no more than 100 lines. We recommend reading our poetry guide here before sending us your work.
Nonfiction: we recommend that you pitch your nonfiction work before sending it to us. Head here for advice on how to construct your pitch and write good nonfiction. For completed work, send no more than two pieces, each no more than 3,000 words.
Art and comics: please keep in mind, we print in duotone (only two colours of ink) and our page dimensions are 170 x 245 mm. We recommend you pitch your comics before sending them to us. For advice on how to pitch your comics, check out our handy guide here. Please send no more than three artworks or comics.
We encourage you to submit across genres, but please send us no more than four submissions in total (excluding comics and art).
Deadlines
Nonfiction pitches—Sunday 15 October, 11:59PM AEST
Fiction, completed nonfiction and poetry—Sunday 22 October, 11:59PM AEST
Art, comics and comic pitches—Sunday 5 November, 11:59PM AEST
Rates of pay
$100 for written work and art
$150 for multi-page comics or suites of art
Please read the information carefully and contact Voiceworks Editor Selina Moir-Wilson if you have any questions or concerns.
Remember, you don’t have to stick to the theme! Our themes are a prompt more than a selection criteria—a springboard to get the creative ideas flowing. Most of all, we just want good work.