The average response time for submissions is between 1 and 6 months. If you have not received a response after 6 months, please check on the status of your submission in Submittable. If you encounter any problems, email us at blackwarriorreview@gmail.com
We do not consider previously published work.
Simultaneous submissions are welcome. Please tell us if it is a simultaneous submission, and notify us immediately if the work is accepted elsewhere.
Please do not mix genres in the same submission. Our online issue is currently an exception to this rule.
Past contributors and contest winners, please wait three years from the date of your publication to resubmit work.
Past contributors and contest winners to the print journal may submit after waiting only one year to the online journal. Past contributors to the online journal should also wait a year before submitting to the print journal. We view these journals as separate creatures, having meaningful conversations late into the night.
You may submit to both the online and the print journal.
Students, faculty, staff, and administrators currently or formerly (within four years) affiliated with the University of Alabama are ineligible for consideration or publication.
We especially strive to magnify voices that are traditionally and systemically silenced. Writers of color, queer and trans writers, disabled writers, immigrant writers, fat writers and femmes: you are welcome and wanted here.
We offer a limited number of fee waivers for writers whom the submission fee would present financial hardship, and we offer free submissions for incarcerated writers. Please email feewaiver.bwr@gmail.com to request a fee waiver.
We encourage you to read Black Warrior Review before submitting. Sample issues are available for $15; one-year subscriptions for $25.
Black Warrior Review is proud to announce a special call for submissions for our upcoming issue 51.2, featuring a dedicated portfolio. This portfolio seeks submissions that confront resistance, resilience, and censorship, as well as the devastating realities of warfare and geopolitical violence, with a particular focus on the ongoing crisis in Palestine. The Palestinian experience is often silenced or distorted in public discourse, and through this portfolio, we aim to provide a platform for those stories and perspectives that challenge these dominant narratives. We encourage work that confronts the urgency of these issues and speaks truth to power.
Submission Details:
- Genres Accepted: We welcome submissions across all genres, including poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and hybrid forms.
- Submission Cap: We will close submissions once we reach either 200 submissions, or an amount that we (the BWR masthead) feel is sufficient; whichever number is higher.
- Fee: There is no submission fee for this portfolio.
- Guidelines:
- Poetry: Submit up to 3 poems (combined in a single document).
- Fiction and Nonfiction: Up to 6,000 words.
- Flash: Up to 3 pieces, each no more than 1,000 words.
- Comics & Art: Up to 1 or 2 graphic prose essays or works. When submitting for this category, please kindly use .jpg, .tiff, or .pdf formats.
How to Submit:
- Submissions must be made via our Submittable portal. We do not accept emailed submissions or those sent by post.
- Ensure your submission fits the genre guidelines and adheres to the theme of the portfolio, as detailed above.
Additional Information:
- Publication and Compensation: Selected works will be published in issue 51.2 (Fall/Winter 2025). Contributors will be paid at the same rate as other pieces in the magazine.
- Rights: Authors retain copyright to their work upon publication.
- We welcome contributions from writers of all racial, ethnic, national, and religious backgrounds.
- BWR has always stood by its mission to amplify voices that challenge dominant narratives. With this portfolio, we aim to push back against the forces of censorship and oversimplification that too often stifle honest discussions about Palestine and similar geopolitical struggles. By featuring diverse perspectives, we hope to contribute meaningful dialogue to these conversations, especially within the context of U.S. and Western discourse. We look forward to reading your submissions and thank you for trusting us with your work. For any questions or further information, please do not hesitate to contact us at managingeditor.bwr@gmail.com or blackwarriorreview@gmail.com.
Black Warrior Review exists in part because of your continued and generous support. Your donations here are applied directly to our endowment, which supports contributor and artist payments.
Please note that a donation through this portal will not be tax deductible. If you would like to make a tax-deductible donation to BWR, please visit this link. For submitting work to BWR, please see our other forms. This is not a portal to submit your work to BWR.
To show our gratitude for your gift at the patron ($50) and guarantor ($100+) levels, you will receive a one-year subscription and recognition in upcoming issues of BWR.