UPDATED Jan 26th, 2024: They are now closed for submissions.
The Courtship of the Winds is an online literary journal that published their first issue in 2016. They have a lovely website, with a clear and distinct title that goes along with their name. They publish two issues a year, and the work they publish includes photography, art, poetry, fiction, essays, as well as short dramatic pieces and short pieces of music. You can get a feel for what they’ve published most recently here.
Beyond reading a few pieces before submitting I also encourage you to check out their editor’s desk note. The editor’s desk note by William V. Ray does focus on poetry and ends on the line, “I can only be clear about my attempt in The Courtship of Winds to publish work of lasting value.” I appreciate that on their submission guidelines Ray includes a note that says “We are interested in publishing “unknowns,” as well as well-established writers. A writer who has published absolutely nothing will be read the same way as a prize-winning “name””.
Please only submit if you like the work they publish and the note resonates with you. Not all publications are the right fit for all writers
They use Submittable for all submissions. They ask that writers do not submit work in a particular genre more than once in a six-month period. They try to respond to all submissions within six months. They are only interested in work that has not been previously published.
Prose writers should submit one piece that does not exceed 10,000 words. Poets can submit up to six poems at a time. Simultaneous submissions are allowed as long as you withdraw via Submittable right away.
To learn more, please visit their submission guidelines here.
Emily Harstone is the author of many popular books, including The Authors Publish Guide to Manuscript Submissions, Submit, Publish, Repeat, and The 2023 Guide to Manuscript Publishers. She regularly teaches three acclaimed courses on writing and publishing at The Writer’s Workshop at Authors Publish. You can follow her on Facebook here.
