Submissions
Dream Catcher welcomes submissions of poetry, short stories, and creative non-fiction from writers at any stage of their career, from unknown to well known. We are not restricted to any style, theme or genre, and seek to publish a broad range of high quality work. We aim to build on the solid foundations of this long standing and respected magazine and to encourage a diverse range of writers and artists without losing the friendly, eclectic nature of the publication. We are keen to encourage submissions from under-represented communities.
The best way to discover what we like to publish is to read our magazine. Dream Catcher depends entirely on sales and subscriptions and would not be published without the regular generosity of our loyal subscribers. The publishers have been able to keep the subscription rates at £15 per year since 2013 and would like to maintain this rate for as long as possible. Please consider becoming a subscriber – not only are you helping to keep the magazine alive but will help us to broaden the appeal of Dream Catcher to other arts disciplines. Please look at our Subscriptions page for further information.
Submission Windows
We have informal submission windows which help to reduce the administrative workload on the editor, and ensure the speediest response to your work. That does not mean we will reject submissions received outside these window, only that submissions will not be looked at until the next window opens.
The window for the June/July (odd numbered) issue is December through February. The submission window for the December/January (even numbered) issue is June through August. We will send an email acknowledgement by the end of the submission window, and a decision no later than two months after the window closes. Each submission will be read by the editor and two other members of our editorial panel, and if two of us like it, it’s in with a chance. We are not able to enter into any correspondence as to why work may not be accepted.
Guidelines
- Submissions should be made by mail to the address below. Electronic submissions are unfortunately not currently accepted.
- Please submit a maximum of 6 poems of any length or 3 prose pieces.
- Prose pieces should be a maximum of 2,000 words.
- All submissions must be your own original work, and not previously published in print or as part of a curated website or e-book. Work published on personal social media, community forums etc. is acceptable.
- Simultaneous submissions (i.e. work that is also being considered by other magazines or publishers) are acceptable, but please let us know if a piece is selected for publication elsewhere so that we can withdraw it.
- Translations are welcome, as long as you have the permission of the original author.
- Please include a cover letter which includes a list of the submitted items, your name, your address, and your email.
- Please do not identify individual poems with your name address or email.
- We will email you to notify you of the progress of your submission, and to ask for an electronic version if a piece is accepted.
- An SAE is not needed unless you require the return of the originals or if you do not have access to email. Please bear in mind your copies may be annotated by the editorial team so may not be useable on return.
The address for submissions is:
Dream Catcher Editor
109 Wensley Drive
Leeds, LS7 2LU
United Kingdom
Contributor Copies
Contributors can buy up to two copies of the issue of the Dream Catcher in which they are published at the special price of £3.50 each (£4.00 if ordered online), which includes UK postage. European and international contributors will be asked to contribute to postage. Contributors will be sent details of how to do this shortly before publication.
Reviews
Books for review should be sent to the reviews editor:
Dream Catcher Reviews Editor
109 Wensley Drive
Leeds, LS7 2LU
United Kingdom
Please note that we receive many more review requests than we can accommodate in the magazine, so cannot guarantee a review of your book. For the same reason, unsolicited reviews are unlikely to be published.
All reviews must include the following information:
- Book title;
- Author(s) name;
- ISBN;
- Number of pages;
- Publisher and year of publication;
- Your review.
- Please follow the style adopted in Dream Catcher for the layout of your review.
We would like reviews to be objective and detailed, giving a sense of the style as well as content. No more than 300 words, please. For preference, we ask that you do not review books written by your friends as this puts at a disadvantage those people who do not have friends in the publishing business. By all means encourage them to submit to the pool and we will see if anyone else wants to review it from a more impartial perspective. We aim to publish a wide mix of reviews, from emerging talent to experienced writers. Self-published books are unlikely to be selected for review.