WAYE Small Press is now accepting poetry submissions (general poetry and for the featured poet) for Issue 04 of our biannual print publication, By the WAYE.
About WAYE Small Press
WAYE Small Press is a poetry initiative designed to highlight a talented community of poets––locally, nationally, and globally––in a print magazine modeled after the in-person poetry/open mic events hosted at Sure Things Vintage in Jersey City, NJ, since 2022.
“WAYE” stands for “We Appreciate Your Enthusiasm,” the infamous first line of every rejection letter you’ve ever (or haven’t yet) received.
About By the WAYE
By the WAYE is an independent biannual print magazine of poetry and visual art.
GENERAL POETRY SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
Who May Submit
While we are a Jersey City-based reading series and small press, we are seeking poetry from all walks of life and from all over the world. We do prioritize poets from New Jersey, though, since WAYE Small Press is funded in part by a grant from the Jersey City Arts and Culture Trust Fund, and we especially welcome works from BIPOC and LGBTQIA2S+ poets.
What We Want
We are looking for quality above all else. Poems that speak of the lived experience; that make us feel something in the pit of our stomachs; that cause us to think and to question; that will keep us up nights or have us coming back for another read. We want poems written with not only content, but a careful attention to craft in mind; poetry that plays with language and says things in a way that only you can. Poems that will make us remember your name as a poet because the poem is unabashedly a manifestation of your being.
While we are interested in poetry from all walks of life, we are especially excited to read work from poets who identify as part of a marginalized group or community.
In short, we’re looking for objectively good poetry of any length (but please, no epic poems), so send us your bangers. #goodshit
What We Don’t Want
We are not looking to publish poems that preach hatred and violence, and poems that are overtly pornographic. (Basically, we don’t want anything that would require a content warning.)
Submission Guidelines (For General Poetry Submissions)
Submit up to five (5) poems in a single PDF document. (One submission per submission period.) Please follow these guidelines for your submission:
- Begin each new poem on a new page (poems longer than one page are okay, just don’t cram multiple short poems onto the same page).
- Make sure poems have been proofread and appear exactly how you would want them to appear in print. Due to staffing restrictions and a tight schedule, we cannot send proofs of your poems before the magazine is published, and we cannot swap out submitted poems for any revised or updated versions.
- Use 12-point Arial or Times New Roman font.
- Your full name should appear above the first poem. (As a header is fine.)
- Title the PDF with your name and the words “poetry submission” after it. (So, your name_poetrysubmission.pdf.)
- Be sure to list each individual poem’s title in Duosuma when it prompts you to do so; this way, you’ll be able to keep track of the status of each poem.
- Do not submit a cover letter.
A Note on House Style
Our editorial director reserves the right to make decisions and adjustments with regard to punctuation so that usage of special characters like en and em dashes adheres to WAYE Small Press’s house style, which is essentially Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS).
Simultaneous Submissions & Previously Published Work
WAYE Small Press allows simultaneous submissions, though as a courtesy, we ask that you notify us immediately if any poems in your submission are accepted elsewhere. Poetry that has been previously published in print or online by a press will not be accepted. (If you posted it on your personal Instagram, that’s fine.)
The Use of Artificial Intelligence
WAYE Small Press considers any use of A.I. to generate or otherwise augment or edit your poems, in whole or in part, as instantly disqualifying. Any such poems submitted will be rejected.
Submission Fee
There is a submission fee of $5. Whether you submit one poem or up to five, it’s still $5, so submit more than one and up to five. Submission fees are collected so that we can pay our guest readers for their time reviewing your work. (Thank you in advance!)
However, if you absolutely cannot afford the $5 submission fee, please email us at [email protected]; we have a limited number of submission fees we can waive.
Rights
WAYE Small Press acquires First North American Serial Rights, which basically means we have your exclusive permission to publish your poem for the first time in the United States and Canada. Once published, the rights to the poem go right back to you, and you may do what you wish with it.
Payment
You will receive a digital version of By the WAYE Issue 04 and a chance to purchase a copy of the print magazine at a discounted price during the preorder window.
We plan to release Issue 04 of By the WAYE in November of 2026, so you should hear back from our editorial director within two months of submitting your work.
Submission Deadline: Sunday, September 6th, 2026
FEATURED POET SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
Who May Submit to the Featured Poet Spot
Because being the featured poet for By the WAYE Issue 04 also means getting a feature at a special launch edition of our WAYE Poetry Reading Series, we are only accepting submissions from within the tristate area (New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut) and Philadelphia, PA. Furthermore, prospective featured poets must be willing to travel to Jersey City, NJ, at their own expense and be available to do a 20-minute feature set at the By the WAYE No. 04 Drop Party scheduled for Wednesday, November 18th, 2026.
What We’re Looking For in a Featured Poet
We are seeking quality above all else in the poems, both individually but also as a cohesive body of work. We want poems that speak of the lived experience; that make us feel something in the pit of our stomachs; that make us think and question. Poems that will keep us up nights, or keep us coming back for another read. Poems that work together the way a classic music album plays out seamlessly. Poetry that plays with language and says things in a way that only you can. Poems that will make us remember your name as a poet because the poem is unabashedly a manifestation of your being.
Overall, we’re looking for not only objectively good poetry, but your best work as a poet, so send us your bangers. #bestshit
That said, we ask that your poems adhere to these additional requirements:
- Attention to Craft – not only seeing poetry as expression, but also a certain style, playfulness, and care as to how the piece is written in order to be expressed in the most powerful way possible
- Versatility of Work – the work should demonstrate the poet’s ability to play with mood, tone, pitch, and other aspects that will differentiate one poem from another in the submission.
- Ability to Perform – an understanding that poetry is performance, not just recitation, and that it takes practice, rehearsal, and fine-tuning to fully express oneself and the work. This is especially important since the featured poet also gets a 20-minute feature at WAYE: A Poetry Reading Series.
While we are interested in poetry from all walks of life, we are especially excited to read work from poets who identify as part of a marginalized group or community, and we especially welcome works from BIPOC and LGBTQIA2S+ poets.
And as we are a Jersey City-based reading series and small press, we do prioritize poets from New Jersey for the featured poet spot, since WAYE Small Press is funded in part by a grant from the Jersey City Arts and Culture Trust Fund and because the commute is likely easier. (However, By the WAYE’s first ever featured poet hailed from Philadelphia, so it does go to show that we place quality of the work above all else.)
Submission Guidelines (For Featured Poet Spot)
Please submit between 15 and 20 poems in a single PDF document. (One submission per submission period.) Please follow these guidelines for your submission:
- Begin each new poem on a new page (poems longer than one page are okay, just don’t put multiple short poems on the same page).
- Make sure poems have been proofread and appear exactly how you would want them to appear in print. Due to staffing restrictions and a tight schedule, we cannot send proofs of your poems before the magazine is published, and we cannot swap out submitted poems for any revised or updated versions.
- Use 12-point Arial or Times New Roman font.
- Your full name should appear above the first poem. (As a header is fine.)
- Title the PDF with your name and the words “featured poet” after it. (So, your name_featuredpoet.pdf.)
- Do not submit a cover letter.
Video Link
As mentioned above, because being By the WAYE No. 04’s featured poet also means being the featured poet at the drop party in November, we need to see you perform, so please include in the last page of your submission two or three links to video performances you’ve done. (The more recent, the better.)
Short Bio
Also on the last page of your submission, please include a brief bio (100 words max) written in the third person, outlining any poetic achievements, prior features, and publishing credits, if applicable.
Collaboration Is Key
If selected as our featured poet for By the WAYE No. 04, you will work closely with both our editorial director and creative director. The creative director will schedule a photo shoot for the magazine, and the editorial director may ask for other poems and swap out some you submitted for other work to better curate the featured poet spot.
A Note on House Style
Our editorial director reserves the right to make decisions and adjustments with regard to punctuation so that usage of special characters like en and em dashes adheres to WAYE Small Press’s house style, which is essentially Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS).
Simultaneous Submissions & Previously Published Work
WAYE Small Press allows simultaneous submissions, though we ask that you notify us immediately if any of the poems in your submission for the featured poet spot are accepted elsewhere. Poetry that has been previously published in print or online by a press will not be accepted. (If you posted it on your personal Instagram, that’s fine.)
Use of Artificial Intelligence
WAYE Small Press considers any use of A.I. to generate, augment, or edit your poems, in whole or in part, as instantly disqualifying. Any such manuscripts submitted will be rejected.
Submission Fee
There is a $15 submission fee. Submission fees are collected so that we can pay our guest readers for their time reviewing your work. (Thank you in advance!).
PLEASE NOTE: you are welcome to submit to both the featured poet and our general call for poetry for By the WAYE Issue 04, but you will have to submit and pay separately.
Rights
WAYE Small Press acquires First North American Serial Rights, which basically means we have your exclusive permission to publish your poem for the first time in the United States and Canada. Once published, the rights to the poem go right back to you, and you may do what you wish with it.
Payment
If selected as the featured poet for By the WAYE No. 04, you will receive a $250 honorarium, a digital version of the Issue 04, and one print contributor copy of By the WAYE No. 04.
Response Time
You should hear back from our editorial director within two months of submitting your work.
Submission Deadline: Sunday, September 6th, 2026.
To learn more about our editorial committee and guest readers for Issue 04, please visit our website after August 5th.
PLEASE NOTE: This submission call is to submit to By the WAYE Issue 04’s featured poet spot. For general submissions, please see our general submission guidelines here.
WAYE Small Press is a proud member of the Community of Literary Magazines and Presses (CLMP), and By the WAYE was a finalist in the CLMP’s 2026 Firecracker Awards in the category of “Best Debut Magazine.”
