Rough Around the Edges, a journal of writing and art published by the Northern Saguache County Library District is seeking submissions.
We are a Saguache County magazine featuring local writers and artists dedicated to keeping it real. We know it takes a special kind of crazy to thrive in this remote, high desert valley. Contemplatives living in retreat need to attend to how to stay warm to survive the winters. Ranchers who’ve learned to read the weather for a living can feel drawn inward in response to their daily lives. Children need to follow their curiosity to discover the magic in their daily life, or young adults seeking to find their way in an isolated community need to create a place for themselves. All of us can be a place where art thrives, and we invite artists and writers of all ages who embody that rugged introspection to share what they’re living and feeling with us.
We are looking for art in all genres: fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, photography, visual art, minicomics, even genres we haven’t thought of yet.
Fiction
We’re most interested in finding ourselves moved by the people or creatures that inhabit your stories as they go on a journey. That journey can be anything from a car breaking down on T-Road, to a journey from the couch to the refrigerator, or exploring a cave in the mountains that holds dark secrets. We can accommodate works of fiction up to 1,500 words or so.
Poetry
A good poem is very difficult to describe, but here’s some of the things we like in poetry:
To be surprised. If your poem can turn our understanding inside out, this is what excites us. We like poems full of vivid, concrete details that engage the senses, where every word, every syllable quivers with meaning. We like poetry with musicality, a rhythm, a connection of sounds. But a poem doesn’t have to rhyme. And if the rhyme is too predictable, we prefer you let the rhyme go, and reach for the surprise. Most poems fit onto a typed page—but not all. We will consider poems of most any length, but would prefer you to keep your submission to a small bouquet of your best work, five poems or so.
Creative non-fiction
In a word, creative non-fiction is an essay. It can be a reflection or meditation on life, an exploration of memory,
or a story from your life. Try to keep your submissions to 1,500 words or so.
For submissions email the editor at rougharoundtheedges@nscld.org
Art
Most of our pages are black and white, but we do have a color cover which can accommodate four pages of color art and photography, so we do consider some color art. All work must be submitted as a high resolution (300 dpi minimum) file. Jpg or pdf files preferred. For our print magazine, files need to be converted to CMYK, not RBG for color work, or grayscale for black and white.
For submissions email the editor at rougharoundtheedges@nscld.org
*One final note: We’re interested in the work you do yourself. We really don’t care what your AI can do, and if we detect that you used AI to write your piece or create your art, we will not publish it.
Everett Wilson, editor, Patrick Shea, editorial consultant; Stephanie Buehler, Vanessa Garcia, Allison Wonderland, art consultants; Uma Jolicoeur, production design & consulting; Eden Elderberry, website design & consulting