http://sweetlit.com/
The title, Sweet, sounds as if it would appeal to a more female audience, however the topics and contributers are varied, reaching out to both male and female readers. The name is a play on "awesome." The founders of the journal want the readers to be left with something "sweet" when finished reading their issues. I spent time reading several of the issues and really enjoyed many of the pieces. I would start each issue by reading the Editor's Note, which often would allude to the issue's "theme." For instance, Issue 6.1, the latest issue, seemed to hold a theme of loss or impending loss. The Editor's Note also made mention in some back issues that a set of poetry evoked animal images, and Issue 5.1 dealt with topics of "the heart." I also noticed that in Issue 5.3 the essays infused childhood themes; crushes, getting into trouble with parents, etc. I therefore assume as the editorial staff decides on pieces for publication, they not only select pieces that they like, but ask,"Is this piece a good match for our theme in the next issue?"
All of the pieces I read had a reflective tone. They dealt with every day issues which most people can relate; such as death, relationships, family issues, and childhood mistakes. The topics are not political or journalistic in nature and while most have a serious nature to them, others are humorous, and others fall somewhere in between. I think the point is that in real life we have a gambit of emotions at our dispense. Sweet's primary types of creative nonfiction in which they publish are the personal narrative and graphic nonfiction form. Bye Bye Brain (http://sweetlit.com/5.3/graphicNoble.php) is one example of the graphic nonfiction form where the author uses drawings to tell her story, and in Manchester, (http://sweetlit.com/5.1/graphicBennett.php) the sixteen year old author uses photographs to tell her story.
The personal narrative forms are also experimental and varied. Some are written in traditional format, while many others are written in segments that show a flashback and change from past to present such as, Giving Birth (http://www.sweetlit.com/5.2/proseTryon.php). Others use segments to show different scenes to build their points/message. Some authors use pictures as inspiration for their narratives, allowing their stories to unfold around a single photo (http://www.sweetlit.com/5.3/proseBruno.php) or several photos. They even have one writer who creates micro-essays (http://sweetlit.com/3.3/proseKerlikowske.php), while other writers tell their stories through an organized use of subheadings (http://www.sweetlit.com/5.2/proseRooney.php). Needless to say, this venue allows and celebrates writers who submit pieces that are experimental in form. The majority of the pieces are shorter in nature (under 1,000 words), while only a few that I came across would be considered long essays. These pieces are also considered "literary" in that there are literary elements found throughout each such as; a play with irony, repetition of words or symbolic objects, important metaphors that create deeper meaning, etc.
All in all, Sweet, is a good venue for emerging writers, as they do publish those starting out. If you are writing personal narratives in traditional form or in any experimental forms that are self reflective in nature and touch upon real life- every day struggles, this journal may be a good fit for you.
WHAT IF I WANT TO TRY TO PUBLISH WITH SWEET?
Sweet is a venue that only publishes creative nonfiction and poetry. They do not take fiction submissions. The ratio of poetry to nonfiction work is about fifty-fifty. They also pride themselves on taking submissions for anything that falls in between the two genres. They have many graphic nonfiction submissions published as well. They also have a section for fan mail. Many of these submissions read like creative nonfiction. The editorial staff reads submissions all year long, but publish emerging and established writers three times a year, September, January, and May. Simultaneous submissions are accepted. If you do decide to submit to Sweet they prefer you to submit two-three short pieces or one long. Submissions should not exceed 1,500 words total. To submit, one needs to go through their online submission page and include a brief cover letter and a bio.On a side note, Katherine Riegel, one of the co-founders, offers editorial services (for a fee). The information is on the site.
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