VOICES

Journal Submission Information 2018

Image

KRCC is pleased to announce the second issue of Voices, a literary journal recognizing and presenting creative talent from the Kentucky River region and beyond. Our journal exists to give a voice to those who often go unheard, particularly those in the mental health community. KRCC staff and clients, as well as writers, artists, and photographers from throughout the region and across the country, are invited to submit their best prose, poetry, photography, and artwork by June 15, 2018.

All submissions of photography and artwork will be automatically entered into a competition for our second issue’s cover art!
Note: You do not have to have a mental health issue, mental illness, or substance use disorder to submit to our journal. For instance, your fiction might feature a character dealing with a mental health issue or substance abuse disorder (i.e., alcoholism, depression, drug addiction, bipolar disorder, trauma after rape, etc.).

Voices Celebratory Reading 2017 from HORIZEN at KRCC on Vimeo.

Submissions

Submissions should be sent to [email protected]

Click to submit to Voices
Submissions from KRCC Staff & Clients
Send submissions to KRCC Multimedia Writer Mindy Miller at [email protected]. If KRCC clinicians or members of KRCC staff need to mail submissions on behalf of clients, please send submissions to Mindy Miller at the old Reclaimed store (1133 North Main Street, Hazard, KY 41701) through the agency mail courier. If you have questions, call 606-435-8234.

For Artwork/Photography:

Deadline for Submissions Extended: June 15, 2018

What We're Looking For

We are seeking artwork and photography that speak, in some way, to the affects of living with mental illness (schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, etc.) or a mental health issue (depression, anxiety, etc.) - whether directly or indirectly - addiction, suicide, rape, societal and health/wellness challenges related to being part of the LGBTQ community, disability, grief, loneliness, homelessness, and economic concerns. Our goal is to showcase art and writings from Appalachian Kentucky and beyond that not only give people a voice, but also provide more understanding of what it’s like to live with these challenges.

Submissions must be solely the work of the artist. Reproductions or alterations of other artists’ works are not permitted. Images submitted should be digital files and should follow these guidelines:

Up to 3 entries in total may be submitted. Submissions may be any art medium such as painting, drawing, or collage. Along with the submission, please include:

  • Name of piece
  • Physical description of piece (ex. "ink on paper," "charcoal," etc.)
  • Name of artist & brief bio
  • Artistic summary of the work submitted (optional)
  • Please include a complete mailing address, phone number, and email address so that we may contact you about the status of your submission. We will notify you after the June 15 deadline about whether or not your submission has been accepted.

Note: If you have questions about how to submit artwork, please contact us.

For all photos/digital images: Color or Black & White entries accepted. Up to 3 entries in total may be submitted.

Acceptable file formats include: .jpg, .tif, .pdf, and .psd. Cell phone images are not high resolution and will not be considered if submitted. 

Along with your photography submission, please include:

  • Name of photographer & brief bio
  • Title/short description of photo (optional)
  • Please include a complete mailing address, phone number, and email address so that we may contact you about the status of your submission. We will notify you after the June 15 deadline about whether or not your submission has been accepted. 

 

Cover Art Competition!
Selected artwork and photos will be automatically entered into a competition for the issue’s cover art! All submissions will be considered for publication in our journal.

Writing

What we're looking for:

We are seeking writing that speaks, in some way, to the affects of living with a mental illness (schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, etc.) or a mental health issue ( depression, anxiety, etc.) - whether directly or indirectly - addiction, suicide, rape, societal and health/wellness challenges related to being part of the LGBTQ community, disability, grief, loneliness, homelessness, and economic concerns. We want to see writing that is insightful, surprising, inspiring, dark, gritty, full of hard truths and observations, and creative. Our goal is to showcase art and writings from Appalachian Kentucky and beyond that not only give people a voice, but also provide more understanding of what it’s like to live with these challenges. We believe it’s important for the world to hear these stories, to see and feel the reality of these struggles, as well as the beauty that comes from finding help, support/acceptance, and new life in recovery.

Categories:

Poetry: up to 5 poems per submission 

Fiction: manuscripts up to 16 double-spaced pages (or 4,000 words)

Flash Fiction: manuscripts up to 4 double-spaced pages (or 1,000 words)

Creative Nonfiction: manuscripts up to 20 double-spaced pages (or 5,000 words)

First-Person Accounts: true stories about living with, surviving, or overcoming a mental illness, substance use disorder, or homelessness; manuscripts up to 6 pages (1,000 to 3,000 words)

Novel Excerpts: manuscripts from 1,500 to 6,500 words (up to 25 double-spaced pages) 

Note: We prefer to receive unpublished material; however, we will consider previously published pieces so long as the writer has either retained or has had the rights revert to them. If you do submit previously published work, alert us to that fact in your cover letter or email.

Guidelines continue below!

Deadline for Submissions Extended: June 15th

For fiction, flash fiction, creative nonfiction, first-person accounts, and novel excerpts, please keep your submission to one per genre. (For example, if you want to submit poetry and fiction, we'd prefer that you send those submissions separately. Send one email with up to five poems and a separate email with your fiction attached. Remember: these are separate submissions, so you must fulfill the guidelines for each.)

We’d prefer all submissions to be typed and all prose double-spaced, pages numbered, and with 1-inch margins. Please make sure your name is on each piece you submit.

For typed submissions, please use a normal, easily readable font (e.g., Times New Roman, Calibri, etc.). If we can’t read it, we won’t read it. Also, please use a 12-point font. Our eyes will thank you! Exceptions will only be permitted for submissions originating from clinicians or KRCC staff submitting on behalf of clients. In some cases, these will be hand-written submissions, which is fine.

Upload each entry as one document. We accept .doc, .docx, .pdf, and .rtf files. We will also accept Pages documents. Please do not send originals or the only copy you have of your written work. Submissions will not be returned. While we encourage self-expression, we will not accept pieces with excessive sexuality, vulgarity, or profanity.

With your submission, please send:

1. Cover Letter: Please note the names/titles of your submissions in your letter, word count, and genre (fiction, nonfiction, poetry, etc.).

2. A Brief Bio: In addition to providing details about yourself, indicate your status as a person who lives with a mental illness, mental health issue, or substance use disorder, family member/friend of a person who lives with a mental illness, mental health issue, or substance use disorder, KRCC staff, or a writer who has produced a submission in keeping with our theme and purpose.

3. Contact Information: Please include your name, complete mailing address, phone number, and email address so that we may contact you about the status of your submission. We will notify you after the June 15 deadline about whether or not your submission has been accepted.

Friends & Family
At KRCC, we know and understand that mental illnesses, mental health issues, and substance use disorders affect not only the person facing those challenges, but also that person's friends and family. That’s why we encourage submissions from those living with these issues whether directly or by association. If you’re a friend or family member who’d like to send a submission to Voices, your submission should be related to your experience with mental illness, mental health issue, or a substance use disorder as the friend or family member. Example: You write a poem or first-person account about your feelings and/or experiences supporting a friend who’s struggling with alcoholism.

Special Considerations

We ask that you do not use the actual names of real-life individuals in true stories or poems. If you are submitting a first-person account or nonfiction piece, please use false names or initials to ensure privacy. Please let us know that you have indeed changed the names by noting that in your cover letter. If you desire anonymity or wish to use a pseudonym (pen name), please note it on your submission as well as in your cover letter.

Selection Process

We will accept submissions of writing, artwork, and photography through June 15th. After June 15th, we will enter our reading and art/photo selection period and go through a final round of review, during which time the editors' decision is final. At that time, we will begin notifying all those who have submitted as to whether their submission has been accepted for publication or not. Note: All written submissions are subject to editorial correction.

Publication

A release date for the second issue of Voices will be announced in the summer of 2018. If your submission (writing, artwork, or photography) is selected for publication, you will receive two complimentary contributor’s copies. You will retain your copyright.

Ready to Send in Your Submission?
Once again, please send all submissions – following the above guidelines – to [email protected]. All questions and inquiries can be directed to Ms. Miller by emailing her or calling 606-435-8234.

Click to submit to Voices

Editors

Artwork and Photography

Charles Parker Boggs

Charles Parker Boggs, KRCC’s Chief Information Officer, is a multimedia artist with an MFA in painting from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where he was awarded the Holderness Fellowship and the Howard Scholarship. He has exhibited widely with shows in New York, Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Charles has taught drawing, design, serigraphy, and painting at Averett University, as well as the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He has previously worked as a curatorial assistant at the Danville Museum of Fine Art and History, where he was responsible for the display of numerous works of art including pieces by Ansel Adams, Howard Finster, and works by many of the WPA artists. Most recently, he was a visiting artist and guest lecturer at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Writing

Mindy Beth Miller

Mindy Beth Miller, KRCC’s Multimedia Writer, lives in Hazard, Kentucky, where she was raised and her family has lived for generations. She is a graduate of the MFA in Creative Writing program at Spalding University. She was the recipient of the 2008 Jean Ritchie Fellowship in Writing, the largest monetary prize for Appalachian writing, and an Artist Enrichment Grant from The Kentucky Foundation for Women in 2012. Her creative work has also been featured in Appalachian Heritage, The Louisville Review, Still: The Journal, and Degrees of Elevation: Short Stories of Contemporary Appalachia. Her nonfiction work has been published in The Journal of Kentucky Studies. She is currently writing her first novel.

2017 Voices Reading