submission guidelines (crib sheet)
Next submission/reading period for bottle rockets issue #51 is
April 1 - May 15, 2024.
Please do not send any submissions before reading the new submission guidelines. Submissions sent outside of the reading period will not be considered or returned.
These rules are strictly enforced to avoid any chaos. Any chaos received will not be welcomed, considered or returned to the author. It will be discarded without notice and the world will be a better place.
We reserve the right to close the submission reading period when we have reached the publication limit.
Please include a little note or cover letter. (Does not have to be elaborate.) You are writing to a poetry journal, not an automated Bank machine. Politeness goes a really long way in life.
Please include your name, address, phone #, and email in the top right hand corner of EVERY page.
One submission = up to 10 haiku/poems per reading period/issue. See below what types of poems we consider.
Please put 5 poems on a page. No double-sided pages please.
Submissions must be typed. No hand-written submissions will be considered. Nothing on napkins, toilet paper, hamburger wrappers, etc.
Submissions must be on 8.5”x 11” standard office/computer paper. (Nothing on napkins, toilet paper, hamburger wrappers, etc. )
SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope): All submissions within the USA must be accompanied by a self-addressed-stamped-envelope (SASE) that is a size #10 (4" x 9.5"). The standard size #10 is required. Correct postage is required for the SASE. Postage is always going up. Including an e-mail does not void this requirement. Submissions without a SASE will be discarded without notification.
No SASE is required for poets outside the USA only. Everything else is exactly the same — minus having to include a SASE.
Send submissions only via snail mail to:
Stanford M. Forrester, Editor
bottle rockets press
PO Box 189
Windsor, CT 06095 USAsubmissions outside the USA (Same guidelines minus the SASE) should still snail mail the submission.
No SASE is required for outside the USA.
The editor’s will reply via e-mail/only poets outside the USA.
What we are looking for: haiku, senryu, very short haiku-like poems (no more than 7 lines), tanka, and cherita. We are not looking for any other forms.
Please do not send unsolicited manuscripts.
No simultaneous, previously published material, and/or work that has "appeared" anywhere in the universe for any reason. (That means in newsletters, websites, e-zines, blogs, discussion groups, contests, programs, flyers, anything you can possible think of.) Even if it is printed somewhere and the editor of that publication doesn't consider it "published," WE DO. If it has "appeared in public" or been published, do not send it. If you have read the poem in public, it can be submitted as long as it did not "appear" in any type of print.
For avoidance of doubt, any submission to bottle rockets is acknowledgement that your work was created exclusively by a human, without artificial intelligence technologies or similar, and that artificial intelligence or similar was in no way utilized to generate the text or images contained in your submission in any manner whatsoever. Your work must be your own.
No submissions will be returned; accepted or rejected. Please make a copy of your submission for your own records
Payment for accepted work. We are once again paying the contributors within the USA with a token payment—a specially made wooden nickel. (This payment can't be accepted for discounts or purchase of publications from bottle rockets press.) We wish we could pay contributors outside the USA, but we can't. US currency is generally worthless anyway and goats, sheep, and rocks are too costly to mail. We also reserve the right to change the type of token payment or no payment at all. This all depends on the financial condition of the publication. Our staff is considering pebbles or grains of sand as possible future alternatives . . .
These rules are strictly enforced to avoid any chaos. Thank you!
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Please read all of the following information carefully.
bottle rockets is a publication made of poetry, ink, and paper.
We are not an e-zine.
bottle rockets leans very much away from the outdated grammar school model of 5-7-5 haiku. Therefore, please do not send any 5-7-5 "haiku." It will surely be rejected and it will be a waste of your stamps and of our time.
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Books Received Listing NEW
bottle rockets now reserves a place for poets and publishers to send in a copy of their latest book or chapbook to have listed. You can never have enough outlets!
Requirements for entry:
Fill out the online form here in its entirety. Consists of book citation details & author writes the listing info they wish (40 words to detail pertinent info on their book, such as theme and ordering info).
Send one (1) copy of the book to HQ:
Stanford M. Forrester, Editor
bottle rockets press
PO Box 189
Windsor, CT 06095 USA
Unfortunately no eBooks or PDF books will be considered at this time.
The fine print: bottle rockets reserves the right to edit any author listing information provided and reserves the right, for any reason and without explanation, to not post a book. Any book sent will not be returned if it has been listed or not. Please visit bottle rockets press website for more information.
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Call to Artists/Submission Guidelines for Haiku Art NEW
bottle rockets press will be accepting haiga and haiku related art starting on April 1st.
We are looking for a wide range of art that visually reflects the high standard & styles of poetry that bottle rockets has been known for these past twenty-five years; therefore, we suggest you familiarize yourself with the feel/vibe that bottle rockets: a collection of short verse exudes. Seeing the publication before you send in a submission will help you gauge what type of submission with be a match with our publication. For an idea, please visit the website: at bottlerocketspress.com.
Preparing your submission:
Option 1: Sample issues are available for purchase on the site—best idea—support the publication and really become familiar with what we publish.
Option 2: There are also some samples of previously published work online—free option.
Contact: Johnette Downing, Art Editor of bottle rockets
E-mail: artsubmissionsbr@gmail.com
Submissions for bottle rockets issue #51 is April 1 - May 15, 2024
Guidelines
Each art submission should be a finished piece that includes both an image and a poem. bottle rockets page size is 5 ½” x 8 ½;” therefore, vertical/portrait orientation is required. We reserve the right to reformat, if needed. Submissions can be in black & white or in color. Art submissions must not have previously appeared in print or online anywhere—this includes discussion groups. All parts of the submission, the poem & artwork, must be free & clear in regards to proper rights and permissions to be considered. Please note that all images must be originals. NO STOCK IMAGES OR AI ALLOWED PLEASE.
Incomplete submissions will not be reviewed or returned.
E-mail in submission to: artsubmissionsbr@gmail.com
Subject line: br Art Submission
Attachment files of art with a cover letter are expected.
If original artwork is mailed to bottle rockets press, it will not be considered or returned.
We can't be responsible in any way for the loss or damage of original art.
We accept: pdf, tiff, or jpeg files
Artists/poets will be contacted via e-mail by the art editor within 4-6 weeks of the submission.
Upon acceptance, a high resolution file and a description of the size and medium will be requested.
*Important
Art submissions follow the same standards, guidelines, reading periods, and deadlines as poetry submissions. (See above.)
brp reserves the right to decline any submission for any reason. brp also reserves the right to close the submission window at any time as accepted submissions will be few and highly competitive.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact art editor Johnette Downing via e-mail.
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THANK YOU FOR YOUR INTEREST IN BOTTLE ROCKETS!