Literary and Art Submissions
Thanks for your interest in MER! We publish creative work on mothers, mothering, and motherhood, in all its forms. You need not be a mother to submit, as long as your piece is focused on motherhood.
Submissions for MER Online Opening
A new short call for submissions will open 11/1-11/11 for an online folio themed “Mother/Writer-Artist.”
For a mixed genre online folio on “Mother/Writer-Artist,” we will seek unpublished poems (up to 2 in one document), short fiction or creative prose (to 750 words) related to the conflicts and confluences, inspirations, and other relationships and intersections of those two worlds.
Submissions will be via Google form (linked below). Submissions will close 11/11, (Eastern time). Questions? Email us at [email protected].
Submit Mother/Writer submissions here.
Submissions for the print issue are currently closed. In addition, we offer several “short calls” throughout the year for online quarterly folios published on our website, merliterary.com. The calls are advertised on our website and social media (Facebook, Instagram, etc.), on Chill Subs, Duotrope, and through our free newsletter, which you can sign up for here:
We also publish book reviews (of literary works that focus on motherhood or women’s lives) throughout the year. We have lists of books available for review and also accept queries. If you would like to write a review for MER, check out some of the current reviews on our website and then email us at [email protected]. Lastly, we always accept pitches for craft essays, which can be submitted at [email protected].
Contact: [email protected] (Please be sure to add this address to your email program so that you can receive correspondence from us). We will add all submitters to our mailing list (we send a bimonthly newsletter) but you may unsubscribe if you wish.
Terms of publication
You represent that you created the piece, you own the rights to the piece, and allow us to publish it. If you collaborate with anyone or thing (eg. AI) in creating the piece, you must note that on the page. MER acquires first-time publication rights to the piece. We also reserve the right to republish it in a future electronic and/or print collections. Back issues are archived indefinitely. Rights return to the authors after publication; after the contributions have appeared in MER, the authors may republish their pieces in any manner they wish but it is requested they acknowledge prior publication in MER.
We are a volunteer organization, and are unable to pay for pieces at this time. A complimentary PDF contributor copy of the complete issue will be emailed to you prior to the launch date. You will also have the opportunity to purchase hard copies at reduced contributor rates if you wish.
Thanks for submitting to MER.
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