Thanks to Theresa Cancro for the following information posted on Inkstone Poetry Forum.
Submission guideline details for the three current Tanka Society of America publications/ features: Ribbons (the official print journal of TSA), Tanka Hangout (members-only feature within Ribbons), and Laurels (the online journal of members' work). Note that the submission deadline for the Fall/Winter 2024 issue of all of these is June 30, 2024.
Tanka Society of America
I. Ribbons Submission Guidelines
Submissions to Ribbons, the official Tanka Society of America journal, are open to TSA members and nonmembers alike. Your submissions must not be under consideration elsewhere, submitted to any contest, or previously published anywhere at any time, including online. However, tanka posted to online workshop lists or on Facebook are permissible. All rights revert to authors upon publication, except that the TSA reserves the right to reprint content from its publications on TSA social media sites and its website.
Ribbons seeks fresh material of the highest standard to present to our readers. Any tanka with a sensibility that distinguishes the form will be considered. Therefore, we welcome different syllable counts, varying individual styles and techniques, and are open to diverse yet appropriate subject material. We also welcome essays that offer fresh insights and information. As our space for essays and interviews is limited, please query the editor with a summary before writing your essay in full.
We also publish a twice-yearly members-only online journal, Laurels, which requires separate submissions. (Guidelines for Laurels are provided below.)
Submission Deadlines
Ribbons submission deadlines are in-hand no later than the following dates:
January 31: Spring/Summer issue
June 30: Fall/Winter issue
The Ribbons editors will respond to all submissions within one month of each submission deadline.
Tanka
For each issue, you are welcome to submit either up to ten original, unpublished tanka or two tanka sequences (not more than six tanka per sequence) or one tanka sequence and up to five tanka. From among these, one individual tanka or a sequence may be selected. Email submissions are preferred (please include all text in the body of each email; no attached files, please, unless requested). Please submit to: ribbonseditor@gmail.com with the subject heading "Ribbons Submissions." You can also submit by postal mail:
Susan Weaver
Ribbons Editor
127 N. 10th St.
Allentown, PA 18102 USA
Tanka Prose
Please send one tanka prose piece to Liz Lanigan, our tanka prose editor, at tankaproseeditor@gmail.com. Please put "Ribbons Submission" in the subject line. The prose should not exceed 300 words. The number of tanka is flexible (within reason and when in service to the whole). Please include a creative title.
While submissions by email are preferred, you may also submit tanka prose by postal mail:
Liz Lanigan
Ribbons Tanka Prose Editor
38 McClure Street
EVATT ACT 2617, Australia
Book Reviews
Please query Ribbons editor Susan Weaver (at ribbonseditor@gmail.com or at the following postal address), before sending your book for review:
Susan Weaver
Ribbons Editor
127 N. 10th St.
Allentown, PA 18102 USA
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II. Tanka Hangout - Members-only feature in Ribbons, edited by Ken Slaughter
TSA members are invited to send one original, unpublished tanka on the assigned prompt for each edition of the Tanka Hangout (NOTE: The prompt for the Fall/Winter 2024 issue is "poetry" -- see further info about the prompt below). Restrictions are few, and almost any treatment of the tanka form is acceptable, but please submit your very best effort. The tanka will be read for thematic content, the depth and layering of meaning (often called "dreaming room"), vivid imagery, and suggested emotion. Any comments that accompany your submission may also be considered, in part or in full, for publication, but please be sure your tanka does not rely on these comments.
Send your single tanka submission, in the body of an email, to Ken Slaughter at tsahangout@outlook.com with the subject heading "Tanka Hangout." He will acknowledge receipt of all email submissions, and if your poem is selected for publication in Tanka Hangout, he will notify you within a month after the submission deadline.
We prefer email submissions, but you may also submit by postal mail:
Ken Slaughter, Tanka Hangout Editor
24 Briarwood Circle
Worcester, MA 01606 USA
Please, include your full name as you wish it to appear beneath the poem, followed by your town or city of residence and its location (state/province and country).
In-hand submission deadlines are as follows:
January 31: Spring/Summer issue
June 30: Fall/Winter issue
Member's Choice Tanka
In each issue, the Tanka Hangout honors one poet with the Member's Choice Tanka award of $25, chosen from tanka published in the previous issue. The winner is invited to select the next Member's Choice Tanka and commend another two or three, offering comments on the tanka and the reasons for choosing them.
Prompt
Each edition of Tanka Hangout seeks tanka inspired by a prompt, presented here and in Ribbons.
For the Fall/Winter 2024 issue
(submissions due by June 30, 2024)
Prompt -- Poetry: If you love writing about poetry, and about the process of writing, this prompt is for you. Think about your own creative journey, or about poems written by others. You might write a tanka about a poetic song or even about a songwriter, such as Bob Dylan.
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III. Laurels Submission Guidelines
Laurels is the twice-yearly online publication of the Tanka Society of America, launched in 2024, for members only (nonmembers and members are welcome to submit to our print publication, Ribbons). Each issue of Laurels focuses on an announced theme, with members serving as guest editors. Laurels is for individual tanka only, and does not include sequences, tanka prose, essays, or reviews, and will accept no more than one poem per member per issue. We invite members to submit up to three unpublished tanka for each issue. Please, no simultaneous or multiple submissions (submit only once).
Laurels Submission Deadlines
Laurels submission deadlines are in-hand no later than the following dates:
January 31
June 30
Each Laurels guest editor will typically respond to all submissions within one month of each submission deadline.
Laurels #2 Submission Guidelines for members only
Guest editor: Michael Ketchek
Theme: Kyōka
Don't be upset if you've no idea what kyōka means. I didn't till a short while ago. As I found out, I've been writing them for years. As defined by the website Poem Analysis, "Kyōka is a traditional Japanese poetic form that emerged in the 15th century. It is a playful and humorous variation of the tanka." Kyōka literally means "mad" or "crazy poem." It often parodies, puns, or mixes high language with everyday words and subject matter. Here are two kyōka examples:
the limp windsock
reminds him
of the side effects
of taking prozac
but who cares
Michael Ketchek
Hamlet at the Globe
then dinner at the George
where Shakespeare drank
the only question is
to beer or not to beer
Charles Harmon
Submissions (TSA members only): Please submit by June 30, 2024 using our online submission form. The form should work correctly for nearly everyone, but if it does not work for you, please try accessing it using a different device. If it still does not work correctly for you, please inquire with Michael Ketchek at mketchek@frontier.com.
Link to the online submission form for Laurels #2:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIp ... w/viewform