Submissions are currently CLOSED!
Please send your submission to this email: submissions@otdlitjournal.com
Issue 4’s theme is:
HUMANE EVILS
The title is inspired by Jonathan Swift’s poem, The Lady’s Dressing Room, and the myth of Pandora’s Box.
Pandora was a woman created by Hephaestus, under the order of Zeus, after Prometheus illegally introduced humans to fire. She was the first woman, made from clay, and was gifted beauty, charm and cunning from the other gods. Zeus bestowed a jar upon Pandora, with strict instructions not to open it. Pandora’s curiosity got the best of her and she opened it, unleashing all the evils and miseries into the world. As Pandora closes the jar, only hope remains trapped inside, a symbol of humanity’s resilience and ability to find strength in the face of adversity.
Submissions will open on the 1st of May, 2025.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
Formatting
We ask that all submissions follow the same style of formatting. Please ensure that your submission is in a Word document, not a PDF. The font should be Times New Roman and the size of the text should be 12pt. When emailing us your submission, please include your name and the title of your piece in the subject line.
Genres
We accept all genres, from romance to historical to contemporary. For every issue, we will provide a theme for inspiration, but you do not need to adhere to it.
Forms
We accept the following forms:
Fiction (including flash) — up to 3,000 words
Non-fiction — up to 3,000 words
Poetry — up to 5 poems of any length
Art — portfolio of up to 5 pieces
Content Warnings
We will not accept submissions that include language or themes that may be found offensive or triggering to our readers and editors. This includes, but is not limited to, racism, homophobia, antisemitism, and misogyny. Of course, if your writing is about bringing awareness to these subjects, that is completely fine.
To protect our editors from any triggering or sensitive subjects, please provide a warning alongside your submission.
Author Bios
Please include a short author bio (1 paragraph) with your submission. If you need any help writing your author bio, please get in touch with us and we will help you! Submissions without an author bio will be rejected.
Edits
We pride ourselves in being open-minded and believe that writers of all skill and experience should be considered for publication. We will not reject a submission if we see a few spelling or grammar mistakes - instead, we will suggest edits, with your permission.