INTERIOR_VIEW,_SECOND_FLOOR_HALL_FRONT_PORCH_DOOR,_FACING_SOUTH_-_General_Phineas_Banning_Residence,_401_East_M_Street,_Wilmington,_Los_Angeles_County,_CA_HABS_CAL,19-WILM,2-92.tif

Now that we’re all isolated because of the current world crisis, more than ever we need to maintain a connection. It seems like a perfect time to revive the Silver Birch Press blog — with a new call for submissions to all our friends around the world. Since our front doors keep us separated from the world and each other, at least for now, let’s explore this portal — both physically (what it looks like) and metaphorically (what it represents).

PROMPT: Tell us about your front door in a poem (any reasonable length) or prose piece (300 words or fewer — this word limit also applies to prose poems).

WHAT: Submissions can be original or previously published poems or prose. You retain all rights to your work and give Silver Birch Press permission to publish the piece on social media. We are a nonprofit blog and offer no monetary compensation to contributors. If your piece was previously published, please tell us where/when so we can credit the original publisher.

WHEN: We’ll feature the poems and prose in the Silver Birch Press MY FRONT DOOR Poetry and Prose Series on our blog starting in March 2020. We’ll also feature the work on Twitter and Facebook.

HOW TO SUBMIT: Email one poem or prose piece to SBPSUBMISSIONS@gmail.com as an MSWord attachment — and in the same file include your name, email address, one-paragraph author’s bio (written in third person), and any notes about your creative process or thoughts about your piece. Please put all this information in one MSWord document and title the file with your last name. Write “DOOR” in the subject line of the email. If available, please send a photo of yourself and another of your front door (feel free to obscure any identifying information) — or one photo of you at your front door. Send the photos as separate jpg attachments.

SUBMISSION CHECKLIST

To help everyone understand our submission requirements, we’ve prepared the following checklist.

1. Send ONE MS Word document TITLED WITH YOUR LAST NAME (e.g. Smith.doc or Jones.docx).

2. In the same MS Word document, include your contact information (name, email address).

3. In the same MS Word document, include a one-paragraph author’s bio, written in the third person. You are encouraged to include links to your books, websites, and social media accounts — we want to help promote you!

4. In the same MS Word document, include a note about your poem/prose or creative process written in the first person (this is optional — but encouraged).

5. If available, send a photo of yourself as a SEPARATE jpg attachment (not in the MS Word document). Title the photo with your last name (e.g., Jones.jpg), along with a photo of your front door — or a photo of yourself standing at your front door.

7. Email to SBPSUBMISSIONS@gmail.com — and put  “DOOR” in the subject line.

SUBMISSION DEADLINE: Wednesday, April 30, 2020

PHOTO CREDIT: Library of Congress (INTERIOR VIEW, SECOND FLOOR HALL FRONT PORCH DOOR, FACING SOUTH – General Phineas Banning Residence, 401 East M Street, Wilmington, Los Angeles County, CA)