Postage Increase Reminder and Revised Guidelines

The U.S. Postal Service recently announced that its rates are set for an increase effective May 12. The new rates will include a one-cent rise in the price for mailing first-class letters, which will cost 42 cents. The 17-cent price for each additional ounce will remain the same. As many may remember, the last rate increase occurred in May of last year, when the price of a stamp rose from 39 cents to 41 cents.

Therefore, this seems like a good moment to remind those submitting work by postal mail to any journals that the enclosed self-addressed stamped envelope now should reflect the new rate, since responses from most magazines probably will happen after the May 12 deadline. Please note that the “Forever Stamps” can still be bought at the current rate, and they will continue to be good after any future rate changes.

In addition, I would like to point out that Valparaiso Poetry Review has accepted e-mail submissions since its inception in 1999. Indeed, although the majority of submissions at first were sent by postal mail, about two-thirds of the nearly 6,000 poems received in the last year were sent by e-mail. Curious about the relationship of submissions to acceptances, I noticed that exactly two-thirds of the works in the latest issues also were submitted electronically, suggesting no subconscious editorial bias toward either form of submission.

Increasingly, a number of literary journals, including some print journals, have discovered the ease, manageability, and savings allowed by e-mail submissions for both authors and editors. Indeed, in their guidelines a few literary magazines have turned to limiting submissions to the electronic format. As I was working today on construction of the upcoming issue of VPR, due out in a couple weeks, I realized the journal’s description and submission guidelines have never been revised since they were established nine years ago. However, believing it necessary to further emphasize an openness to e-mail submissions, I have revised slightly the submission guidelines as they will appear when the next issue of VPR is released.

The new guidelines will read as follows:

Valparaiso Poetry Review presents new, emerging, and well-known voices in contemporary poetry alongside one another, and this literary journal offers another opportunity for more readers to discover young or established poets whose writings deserve an even larger audience.

Due to the large number of submissions and the competitive level of excellence displayed in so many poems received each year, Valparaiso Poetry Review will be highly selective in choosing pieces for inclusion in each issue, accepting only accomplished, quality poetry. Indeed, a number of works that first appeared in VPR have been nominated for special commendation by outside organizations, and some have received honors or been chosen for inclusion in award anthologies.

Postal submissions and e-mail submissions are equally encouraged. Unsolicited manuscripts are read year round. Valparaiso Poetry Review accepts submissions of unpublished poems, book reviews, author interviews, and essays about poetry or poetics that have not appeared online and for which the rights belong to the author. In rare instances, previously published material will be considered if it is unavailable anywhere else online. If a submission has been previously published in a print journal or book, the original publication must be identified.

Valparaiso Poetry Review has been recognized over the years with inclusion in acknowledgments for scores of poetry volumes, anthologies, and collections of critical essays where works first published in VPR have subsequently appeared. Since its initial issue in 1999, this electronic journal has been meant to serve as a complement to print issues of literary magazines and poetry collections, not as a replacement for those traditional and greatly valued publications.

Unsolicited book reviews are welcome. Please check the VPR list of “Recent and Recommended Books” for possible subjects of reviews. Publishers and poets are urged to send books for review consideration to the postal address below.

Submit an essay, book review, interview, or no more than five poems at a time, and include biographical information. Postal submissions should contain a SASE, and should be sent to the following address:

Valparaiso Poetry Review
Edward Byrne, Editor
Department of English
Valparaiso University
Valparaiso, IN 46383-6493

If possible, please include an e-mail return address with any postal submission. Authors of postal submissions sometimes may be contacted by e-mail for a Word document copy of the work.

E-mail submissions, inquiries, or correspondence should be sent to the following:

VPR@Valpo.Edu

Since typographical characteristics occasionally are lost when a poem is included within the text of e-mail, authors are encouraged to send a Word attachment of the submitted work in electronic submissions or to include a Word attachment in addition to the text of submissions appearing in the body of the e-mail.

Simultaneous submissions are permitted; however, confirmation of acceptance is regarded as a commitment to publication, and it is expected that the manuscript will not be later withdrawn for placement with another publication. Also, should a submission still pending be accepted elsewhere, the courtesy of immediate notification is expected. All rights remain with the author. Due to the heavy volume of submissions Valparaiso Poetry Review receives, response times may vary; nevertheless, VPR attempts to respond to all submissions within two months of receiving the work.