PFN – Submissions for The Muleskinner Journal Issue 15 are Open. The Theme is Tension

Submission Guidelines

We don’t mean to stress you out, but our theme for Journal 15 is Tension.
It’s the elephant in the room. It’s the lion tamer’s head in the lion’s mouth.
BUT, on the bright side,
it’s also the engine that drives the drama, the abracadabra that makes the magic, and the need that creates the invention.

For Journal 15, we want tension.
We knock on your door and request that emotion come out and play. We pound on your door and demand the truth.
We want the rubber band taut. We want resistance. We want your focus on the gap between where you are and where you want to be, the longing for home, or the need to get away.
Send us the revelations, conversations, and adaptations that spring up. We want to explore tension channeled forward, from the drainage ditch to the river, to the waves and the ocean, to good things hard earned.
We want the bad tension too. Ease our tension with yours. Ease your tension by screaming at us. Turn up the heat. Don’t give us a break.
We’ll keep this fury fast.

We’ll close submissions on Labor Day, September 1, a fitting day to refocus your attention.

What we are looking for…

Muleskinner Journal accepts previously unpublished work only. Please use the following word counts to select a category to submit. Submit in only one category. Send no more than one submission per issue.

• Poetry: Any length or form. (1-3 pieces)

• Flash or Micro Fiction: max. 1000 words each (1-3 pieces)

• Short Story/excerpts from longer (previously unpublished) work: (max. 3000 words) Please include word count on first page

• Creative Nonfiction: (max. 3000 words) Please include word count on first page

We look for writing of all kinds that uses skill, wit, and determination to deliver the goods.  We accept and publish poetry, short fiction, flash fiction, micro-fiction, short scripts, excerpts from longer works, memoir, criticism, craft essays, artwork, journalism, and shopping lists.

We don’t care who you are, as long as you are the author of what you submit.