Submission Guidelines

We consider submissions via mail and Submittable; see below for details. For poetry, submit no more than five poems in one batch. For short fiction or essay, submit a single piece or a suite of smaller pieces, i.e., flash fiction. We also accept visual art, for use on the cover, and comics; please submit these via Submittable in the form of a PDF. We do not publish literary criticism or book reviews, or writing intended for children and young adults.

Electronic Submissions

We are open for electronic submissions only during the months of August and January. Each submission costs $3, and a portion of each fee, after processing costs, is donated to the Cornell Prison Education Program, which provides courses leading to college degrees for people incarcerated in upstate New York prisons. There will also be a free-submission weekend during each submission period; follow us on Bluesky for the dates.

Click here to Submit via Submittable

Mail Submissions

Mail submissions are accepted anytime, but be aware that we only read them in September, October, February, and March. You’ll get a quick turnaround if you submit at those times, a slower one if you submit outside them. Your mail submission MUST INCLUDE A SELF-ADDRESSED, STAMPED ENVELOPE OR POSTCARD for a response. Please address your submission to the appropriate editor: e.g. Fiction Editor, Poetry Editor, Essay Editor. There is no fee for mail submissions.

Please include your street address and e-mail address on your mail submission. Send to:

EPOCH
251 Goldwin Smith Hall
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14853-3201

Payment

Our payments vary from year to year depending on our funding. We presently pay between $100 and $500 for poetry, prose, and comics, depending on length, and $350 for cover art.