Zingara Poetry Picks seeks submissions of previously unpublished poems (on-line or in print) of 40 lines or fewer for 2017 picks. New, emerging, and established poets are encouraged to submit and all submissions will be given careful consideration.

Please keep the following in mind when submitting your best poems to Zingarapoet@gmail.com:

• Reading period for Zingara Poetry Picks for the second part of 2017 (June – December) is OPEN until July 31, 2017.
• There are no fees to submit.
• The title of your poem(s) should appear in the email subject line. Poems should be attached as unprotected word documents and mailed to zingarapoet@gmail.com.
• The body of the email can include a brief cover letter and a professional biography of 50 words or fewer written in the third person.
• Attach a word document with no more than three poems of 40 or fewer lines
• Only one submission at a time (please wait to hear back before submitting more poems).
• Simultaneous submissions are fine, but please let Zingra Poet know immediately if submitted work is accepted elsewhere.
• Published poets receive bragging rights and the chance to share their work with a diverse and ever-growing audience.
• Poets who are published on Zingara Poetry Pick should wait 12 months before submitting again.
• Submissions which do not follow these guidelines will be disregarded.
• If accepted work is later published elsewhere, please acknowledge that the piece first appeared as a Zingara Poetry Pick.

What I look for in a poem:

Like all editors, I like to see interesting poems that do what they do well. Whether traditional, conceptual, lyrical, or formal, they should exhibit the poet’s clear understanding of craft and, just as importantly, revision. Very elemental poems that have not undergone effective revision will probably not make the cut. Likewise, poems which are contrived, sacrifice meaning for the sake of rhyme, feel incomplete, do not risk sentimentality (or are too sentimental), or lack tension when tension is needed, will also be dismissed. I am a fan of rich and vivid imagery, cohesive discursiveness, and surprising metaphors. Finally, poems which perpetuate harmful stereotypes of gender, race, or class will most certainly not be considered.

For a very good discussion on the elements of effective poetry, take a look at Slushpile Musings by James Swingle, publisher and editor of Noneucildean Cafe’

A note on formatting:  While I am learning more and more HTML every day, poems that contain lines which are flush with the left margin are much easier to format and post than are poems with exceptionally unusual spacing and indentation. Sometimes a poem’s spacing is what ultimately determines whether or not it is accepted.

Response time is 2-4 months