About WAYE Small Press
WAYE Small Press is a poetry initiative designed to highlight a talented community of poets in print. “WAYE” is short for “We Appreciate Your Enthusiasm,” the infamous first line of every rejection letter you’ve ever (or haven’t yet) received.
Funded in part by a grant from the Jersey City Arts and Culture Trust Fund, WAYE Small Press produces By the WAYE, a biannual print-only publication of poetry and visual art.
This project is a product of the WAYE poetry reading series and open mic hosted at vintage shop/used bookstore, Sure Things, in Jersey City, New Jersey, that’s been running strong since 2022.
Meet our Editorial Team.
NO OPEN CALLS AT THIS TIME
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NO OPEN CALLS AT THIS TIME ☺
Submission Guidelines
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We are looking for quality above all else. Poems that speak of the lived experience; that makes us feel something in the pit of our stomachs; that causes us to think and to question; that will keep us up nights or have us coming back for another read. We want poems written with not only content, but a careful attention to craft in mind; poetry that plays with language and says things in a way that only you can. Poems that will make us remember your name as a poet because the poem is unabashedly a manifestation of your being.
While we are interested in poetry from all walks of life, we are especially excited to read work from poets who identify as part of a marginalized group or community.
In short, we’re looking for objectively good poetry, so send us your bangers. #goodshit
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The featured poet spot in By the WAYE is much like the feature at the open mic we run—it’s the main event. It’s a showcase of 15 or 20 poems that shows your range and introduces us to who you are as a poet
We are seeking quality above all else in the poems, both individually but also as a cohesive collection of work. We want poems that speak of the lived experience; that make us feel something in the pit of our stomachs; that make us think and question. Poems that will keep us up nights, or keep us coming back for another read.
Think of it like a music album, in which each poem stands out alone, but when organized in a certain way and read as whole entity, it creates a sharp throughline into the lived experience and human consciousness.
That said, we ask that your poems adhere to these additional requirements:
Attention to Craft – not only seeing poetry as expression, but also a certain style, playfulness, and care as to how the piece is written in order to be expressed in the most powerful way possible
Versatility of Work – the work should demonstrate the poet’s ability to play with mood, tone, pitch, and other aspects that will differentiate one poem from another in the submission.
Ability to Perform – an understanding that poetry is performance, not just recitation, and that it takes practice, rehearsal, and fine-tuning to fully express oneself and the work. This is especially important since the featured poet also gets a 20-minute feature at WAYE: A Poetry Reading Series.
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There is a fee of $5 for general poetry submissions and a $15 fee to submit and be considered for the featured poet submission.
PLEASE NOTE: you are welcome to submit to both the Featured Poet and our general call for poetry for Issue 01, but you will have to submit and pay separately.