Submit

Check out our About page to see what kind of work we're looking for. We're dedicated to realism and refuse to sugarcoat the reality of our fallen world, but please keep explicit and graphic details as tasteful as possible. We're not looking for shock value, but for vulnerable and true human experience. Please see specific guidelines below, and send all submissions to solidfoodpress@outlook.com with the appropriate subject line: ONLINE JOURNAL SUBMISSION, or PRINT EDITION SUBMISSION.

ONLINE JOURNAL: CLOSED (unless work is Easter-themed); will reopen May 1st

PRINT EDITION: CLOSED

If your work is accepted, you grant us first or second serial rights, and then all rights revert back to you upon publication. We would like to be credited if your work is published here for the first time when/if you submit it again somewhere else. Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please let us know if your work has been accepted elsewhere.

Solid Food's reading period is roughly 4-6 weeks, and only those accepted for publication will be notified. As much as we would love to offer feedback to all submissions, it is just not feasible at this time. Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding!

Poetry

Poems of any length are acceptable
Limit submissions to four pieces
Submit in a single Word document*

Essays and Articles

Word count should be between 500-5000
Limit submission to one essay or article
Submit in a single Word document*

Comics

Limit submissions to a single comic, and please do not exceed 40 panels
Format to .png or .jpeg
Send all files in a single email

Prose

Word count is flexible, but please do not exceed 40 pages
Limit submissions to one story
Submit in a single Word document*

Photography and Art

Limit submissions to four images
Format to .png or .jpeg at high quality
Send all files in a single email

*please note that if your work has a unique formatting, it is better submitted in a PDF. Sometimes Word does not accurately maintain formatting across different devices and their display settings.

Do you accept work that contains curse words and/or other explicit content?

Yes, to a point.* Solid Food is dedicated to both narrative realism and curating a space for vulnerable and authentic emotional expression. We are not interested in sanitizing your work or sacrificing true depictions of reality in an attempt to uphold a utopian fairy tale of the Christian life. The press believes that this hurts our witness to not only the secular sphere, but also to each other as fellow believers. Moreover, narratives about our world will always ring hollow if we attempt to depict it as something that it is not. Paul in Ephesians writes, "Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible - and everything that is illuminated becomes a light" (5:11-13, emphasis added). Therefore, while the press does not condone the glorification of things we as believers consider sinful, it firmly believes that when discussed and brought to light, these things can become a beacon, a way for Christ to reach, heal, and redeem. That being said, we are looking for realism, not shock value. Your word choice and content must serve a purpose and aim to illuminate in some way the grace of Christ. We are also not looking for art and literature that is accusatory or hurtfully proselytizing, but rather that which derives from a humble spirit of acknowledgement that we are all sinners and at different points in our faith journeys. *we will not publish work that is pornographic or that which includes needlessly gory details, violent or otherwise
My simultaneous submission has been accepted elsewhere. How do I withdraw it?

Simply shoot us an email and let us know that the work has been published in another journal, and it will be withdrawn. If, for example, one poem out of a set of four has been accepted elsewhere, please specify which one, and if the other poems in the set are still available for consideration.