ARTISTS’ GUIDELINES
Welcome to the new East on Central Application for Submission process for 2026. Read through each page carefully, answer all required questions, and follow directions. You will upload and pay seamlessly as those functions are now integrated into the application itself.
GENERAL REQUIREMENTS AND PROCEDURES
You must be 18 years of age or older.We accept only material that has not been previously published. Copyright remains with the creator.
There is a required submission fee of $10 per person.
If you wish to submit both written work and visual art, there is a separate $10 fee for each category.
All submissions must be original and wholly created by the artist.
Submitted work must not be subject to any license, copyright, or other restrictions that would prevent its publication in the journal.
Simultaneous submissions are allowed, but it is incumbent upon the submitter to inform us immediately if their piece has been accepted elsewhere so we can withdraw it from consideration.
We will send you an email to confirm receipt of your submission.
GUIDELINES FOR ARTISTS
Visual artists may submit up to 4 entries.
Artwork must be an original creation by the artist.
Files must be in a JPG or JPEG format.
Images with a landscape orientation must be at least 1200 pixels wide. Images with a portrait orientation must be at least 1800 pixels tall, sending the file in the largest possible size.
Images should be publication ready.
Every entry must have a unique title.
File names should be in the following format: Artist's last name, Artist's first initial – Title of Work. Example: Doe, J – Sunflower.jpg
For artwork other than digital or film photography, we require the dimensions of the piece. This should be for the artwork itself without any framing. Dimensions should be given in inches, rounded to the nearest inch.
No changes to the contributor biography will be accepted after submission, unless revisions are requested by the editor.
No emailed submission will be accepted. Submissions MUST be made through this upload process.
You will be asked a series of questions for each entry you are planning to submit. All questions must be answered, after which you will upload the specific work you have just completed describing. Repeat this process for each entry. You must complete the payment process before your work can be accepted.
We strongly suggest you organize your files IN ADVANCE, being sure they are named properly and easily accessible on your device.
COLLABORATIONS
In the case of work submitted by a writer and a visual artist together as a collaboration, writers and artists need to submit their work separately, indicating that the piece is part of a collaboration. The work will be judged by both literary and visual art committees, and must be accepted by both, unless either contributor indicates publication of his/her individual part of the collaboration alone is acceptable. The editors may choose not to accept all of the collaborative pieces.
ACCEPTANCE AND PUBLICATION
You will be contacted once our decisions have been made. Please do not contact us to ask about the status of your submission. Entries are due by February 28, 2026; you will be notified if your work is accepted by May 31, 2026. Publication will be in the fall of 2026
PLEASE NOTE:
The first set of questions have asterisks * indicating they are required fields. You must complete these same questions for each planned entry.
WRITERS’ GUIDELINES
Welcome to the new East on Central Application for Submission process for 2026. Read through each page carefully, answer all required questions, and follow directions. You will upload and pay seamlessly as those functions are now integrated into the application itself.
GENERAL REQUIREMENTS AND PROCEDURES
You must be 18 years of age or older.
We accept only material that has not been previously published. Copyright remains with the creator.
There is a required submission fee of $10 per person.
If you wish to submit both written work and visual art, there is a separate $10 fee for each category.
All submitted work must be original and wholly created by the writer. Any work generated in part or as a whole by AI will not be accepted.
Submitted work must not be subject to any license, copyright, or other restrictions that would prevent its publication in the journal.
Simultaneous submissions are allowed, but it is incumbent upon the submitter to inform us immediately if their piece has been accepted elsewhere so we can withdraw it from consideration.
We will send you an email to confirm receipt of your submission.
GUIDELINES FOR WRITERS
Writers may submit up to 4 entries.
Prose entries are limited to 1,500 words.
Submissions must be in final form, including title of work.
Files must be in a DOC or DOCX Word format.
You must submit a separate file for each entry of prose or poetry.
Every entry must have a unique title.
File names should be in the following format: Writer's last name, Writer's first initial – Title of Work. Example: [Doe, J – Sunflower.doc] or docx.
Do not include your name and phone number within the files.
Do not use pagination, headers or footers.
No changes to the work or contributor biography will be accepted after submission unless revisions are requested by the editors.
No emailed submission we be accepted. Submissions MUST be made through this upload process.
You will be asked a series of questions for each entry you are planning to submit. All questions must be answered, after which you will upload the specific work you have just completed describing. Repeat this process for each entry.
We strongly suggest you organize your files IN ADVANCE, being sure they are named properly and easily accessible on your device.