Welcome to the official blog page of Verge 2012! To start with a little background information, Verge is an annual creative writing/literary publication by Monash University, each year with different editors, and launched at the Melbourne Writers Festival. It is fully refereed and tailored mainly towards publishing Monash creative writing students, though this year we are looking to shake things up by opening publication to outside writers and including a wide range of genres, including some frequently overlooked.
Proposed Genres:
This year the genres will include short stories, poetry, creative non-fiction, essays, photography and comics. There will also be a competition to determine the cover design.
Who Can Contribute:
Entry is open to all Monash students, including those at campuses in India, Italy, Malaysia and South Africa, while outside entries will be allowed from all those holding either Australian citizenship or permanent residency. The majority of the publication will consist of submissions from Monash students, however in each genre the editors will select the best entry overall and this competition is open to all the submitters identified above. Prizes for the open category to follow.
Theme:
Verge 2012 will carry the theme “inverse” and good entries will engage with the theme, but often in playful and interesting ways and not let it overshadow the work. Some examples of this could include Australia’s position in the world as the supposed “upside-down” country, the image of oneself in the mirror and the opposites/doubles this implies, the mathematical inverse function, things that are not usually considered poetic “in verse” or even inverse logic. Unthemed submissions will not be accepted.
Submission Guidelines:
1. All work must be previously unpublished. In this instance “published” includes international and online appearances, whether self-published (e.g. on a blog) or not.
2. Monash students may submit two entries per genre. Outside entrants may submit one per genre.
3. No more than 5% of an entry may be in a language other than English.
4. All entries must engage with the theme of “inverse”.
5. All submissions must be sent as an attachment to vergeannual@gmail.com. Please include your full name, your Monash student number if applicable (if not please just put “open entry”) and a bio of 30 words or less.
6. Please send all work as either a .doc (written entries) or .pdf (visual entries). All visual entries must be at least 300 dpi at actual size and all cover entries must be created using InDesign.
Some things to consider:
This is not a blind submission process, however all work shall be refereed by reputable sources who are not the editors.
This is not a paid publication. All successful submitters shall receive a complimentary copy of the journal and an invitation to the launch.
If submitting a cover design, please make sure to include “Verge” “2012” and “Inverse”. If chosen as the cover, designs may be modified by the editors or Monash University Press depending on production issues, however as designer you shall be consulted.
Deadline for submissions:
Monday, 12th March 2012 at 5pm AEDT.
Good luck!
