Submissions Thank you for your interest in Bridge, Chicago's independent, intersectional not for profit organization for art and public scholarship. We welcome submissions in poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction, visual art, cultural criticism, design, and hybrid work from established as well as emerging writers and artists. We also have editorial departments for music, dance, architecture (unless design) and philosophy, couture and others that we do not accept submissions for here -- please pitch ideas for these departments to us directly at bridge.editors1@gmail.com.

We are especially interested in work that embraces the world and continues, however subtly, the ongoing global conversation about culture and society that Bridge has championed from its beginning in 1999. We also accept reviews and interviews, which we publish throughout the year at our online magazine, bridge-chicago.org.

Back issues are available in our member's area archives. A free membership is required for access.

How to Submit: We accept all submissions through Submittable, an online submissions system. There is no charge to create a Submittable account, but please note that we do charge a small reading fee to help cover the costs of the software and some operating expenses. We do not accept mailed or emailed submissions. As a periodical, we publish when we have sufficient material to justify it, and accept submissions year-round.

The deadline for submissions to be considered for the next volume of the Bridge Journal (V24 N1) is 11:59pm on October 1, 2023. This is for our regular "annual" journal, organized by members of the Bridge artistic collective, who also serve as section editors. This is also the deadline for open submission categories that may be published prior to this deadline, such as in our weekly seasonal magazine, the member's area of our website, or through our Bridge Books division.

CURRENTLY ACTIVE CATEGORIES

- For Poetry and Literary Fiction submissions to the Bridge Journal:

Please include in your cover letter the title, year, author and any other information, including a short bio on the poet or author. Submissions are read by their respective Bridge section editors and, in the case of editors at-large, by the Editor-in-Chief. We do also accept literature in translation, so long as copyright from the original author or poet, their estate, or current rights holder has been obtained, and written proof can be provided.

Please refer to the Poetry and Literary Fiction sections for details on submission requirements for each individual category.

- For Bridge &c -- Magazine & Member's Section Submissions (bridge-chicago.org): 

Please include in your cover letter the title, year and any other information, including a short bio. Other specific criteria as listed within the submission form are also requested. Categories within this submission include:

               - The Readings Archive

               - Zine Reading Room

               - Reviews

               - Photographer's Chapbook

               - Flash Fiction

               - Your Turn

Please refer to the &c submissions page for details on submission requirements for each individual category.

- For Ephemera, Marginalia & Comics:

Please include in your cover letter the title, year and any other information, including a short bio. Other specific criteria as listed within the submission form are also requested. Categories within this submission include:

               - Spot Illustrations

               - Marginalia

               - Comics

Please refer to the Ephemera, Marginalia & Comics for details on submission requirements for each individual category.

-For Design, Visual Art & Visual Poetry submissions: 

Please include with your cover letter an itemized list of submissions and an explanation of the included content. ALL submissions must be print quality images, minimum 300 dpi, minimum 4x5", and must include all relevant caption information, including: artist name, year, materials, and all relevant credits for those pictured, as well as any photographer credit. Please also indicate if the work has been shown in public previously. 

Please refer to the Design, Visual Art & Visual Poetry section for details on submission requirements for each individual category.

- Bridge Books encompasses three distinct presses: Bridge Books, its specialty imprint StepSister Press, and Hurm Editions, a transgressive pulp fiction press. For submissions to these presses:

Please include in your cover letter which press you are submitting for, the title of your submission, year and any other information, including a short bio. Other specific criteria as listed within the submission form are also requested. Categories within this submission include:

                BRIDGE BOOKS

               - Artist's Monographs

               - Book-Length Monographs of Literary or Poetry Criticism / History / Theory

               - Book-Length Poetry Collections

               - Arts Practice & Theory for the following focus areas:

                                 - Essays for an anthology exploring the history & present of cinepoetry

                                 - Essays / short book-length titles on dance and performance art

                 STEPSISTER PRESS

               - Book-Length Monographs on Museum Studies & Art Educational Topics

               - Book-Length Young Adult Fiction

                 HURM EDITIONS

               - Graphic Novels

               - Transgressive literary and pulp / genre fiction

Please refer to the Bridge Books page for details on submission requirements for each individual category.

INACTIVE, BUT FEEL FREE TO WRITE US (WE MAY ALSO OPEN THESE SOON, STAY TUNED)

Television, Architecture, Comedy & Cult Crit Portfolios 

For planning purposes, please plan to provide the following: a cover letter including the title and your completed submission, AND a summary of the idea (maximum 300 words), and any other relevant information, including a c.v., and short bio. Please note that for any essays or other writing requiring permissions to produce or reproduce any images or supporting materials are entirely the responsibility of the author. Confirmation of permissions must also be provided prior to publication.

Please also include a mailing address and 250-word or less bio with all submissions.

We do accept simultaneous submissions, except where otherwise noted. You can withdraw or edit your submission at anytime by logging into your account. To learn more about Bridge and our mission as a periodical, please refer to our masthead page.

Bridge is honored to be supported by public and privately funded grants including from the Evanston and Illinois Arts Councils, DCASE and the City of Chicago, and by funding from the Hyde Park Art Center's Artist'Run Fund and the National Endowment for the Arts.