Journal Issue 4

Submissions open from 1st September until Midnight on Sunday, 3rd of October, 2026

Submissions are Free to Subscribers...

A single £3 (GBP) reading/submission fee to NON-Subscribers.

Click for Non-Subscriber Submission Fee

To find out what our editors like we can send you Issue 1 and Issue 2 for £12, post free UK.
If you buy a 2026 subscription you qualify for free submissions to Issue 3 and 4.
Click the link below for Subscription Options.

Subscription Choices

• Share your words with us in any form: poetry, prose, flash fiction, or short story. Surprise us, we like a twist.

• Submissions for issue 3 are free to 2026 subscribers and are eligible for selection for the third printed issue of The Jawbone Journal.

• Want to be challenged? Extend your craft? Each issue of The Jawbone Journal has a section called 'Write on Form' that is devoted to a particular poetry form. In issue three the theme is still "In this moment..." and this issue the poetry form is the Villanelle (Wikipedia - Opens in new tab).

General Guidelines...

• The Jawbone Journal is an A5 - 64 Page, Perfect Bound print publication limited to a maximum print run of 500 copies, colour cover, monochrome interior.

• We ask that you do not submit simultaneously... We will always try to respond quickly to submissions, if you haven’t heard from us your work is still being considered.

• We will respond to all submissions within 1 month from closing date of submissions.

• Depending on the quantity and quality of submissions we reserve the right to close submissions until the next edition. This will be announced on the website.

• All copyright remains with the author.

• On being published: In the event of subsequent publication elsewhere please mention Jawbone Journal as 'first published by' for your work.

• If your work is accepted and scheduled, there can be no editing requests for that work, unless we spot a typo. In that event we will contact you with any editing issues.

• The Jawbone Journal is entirely funded by subscriptions. There is currently NO payment or subscriber's copy for accepted work. We will promote the work of contributors on our social media channels.

• Submissions outside the submission window will be automatically rejected. Anything offensive will, of course, also be rejected.

• We are a female centric organisation and subscribe to all the tenets of diversity, equity and inclusion. We will never accept abuse of our staff or volunteers in any form.

• Whilst an editor may feel moved to comment or respond to a particular piece, that is a personal choice, we do not generally give feedback and the editor's decision is final.

  Poetry - 1 to 4 pieces

  Maximum total line count of 80 lines - including titles and stanza breaks.

  A single Long Form Poem up to the maximum line count accepted - Make it good!

  Flash Fiction

  1 to 3 pieces - Total Word Count across all pieces not to exceed 600 words.

  Flash (upto 400 words), Micro Flash (less than 100 words).

  Short Fiction

  Maximum 600 words

  - Space limitations make this our ceiling currently.

  Bio-Prose

  Maximum 600 words

  True life prose - this could be biographical, or a tale of a lived experience.

  Short Factual

  Maximum 600 words

  This can be a review, reportage, documentary, observational or satirical. Make it personal and heartfelt, a high bar was set in Issue one and two.

Send your submissions in a single attached document...

• We accept Pages, Word, RTF, or PDF

• Your pieces should all be in a single document

• The attachment file should be named 'SurnameForename-poetry' or 'SurnameForename-flash'

• The first page should include your name, mail address, email, phone number and titles of your submissions. Also a 50 word bio in the third person.

• Each poem or story should be on a separate page with a page break between pieces.

• Font should be 10pt Arial, Helvetica, or Times New Roman.

• Single spacing between lines. 

• Blank lines between stanzas.

• The Jawbone Journal is A5 size so long line lengths and titles will not fit. We will use line breaks and indents on long lines.

• Original work only, No Translations

• AI poetry is not accepted in any form.

• Email subject line should say
  "Submission - Journal Issue Four"

• Email to: jawbonejournal@gmail.com

• NON-Subscribers can pay the £3 reading fee here. In your submission, quote your email order number from Wessex Media... ie: Order #234

Subscribe to the Jawbone Journal

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Starting With Basic