Apogee publishes a journal of literature and art that encourages thoughtful exploration of identity at its intersections: race, gender, sexuality, class, and disability status. We publish fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and visual art, as well as reviews, interviews, flash, and more on our digital platform, Perigee.
The word “apogee” denotes the point in an object’s orbit farthest from a center. In turn, we value artistic expression far from the political center, created by artists and writers of oppressed identities who interrogate aesthetic and political status quos through their work. As we do so, we pay tribute to the Black feminist Combahee River Collective in recognition that “the major systems of oppression are interlocking.” To that end, we combat the domination of white, cis-heteronormative, patriarchal, settler-colonial voices that pervade our literary landscape in our celebration of linguistic diversity and our commitment to our community of readers and contributors. We recognize that centrist literary and artistic spheres contribute to genocide and other forms of violence via censorship and political suppression. We aim to uplift the work of those writing against genocide and would like to extend an invitation to Palestinian, Lebanese, Congolese, and Sudanese writers in particular to share their work during this reading period.
We look for work that centers the experience of marginalized perspectives. We want to foster work that addresses the politics of identity, such as migration, diaspora, multiculturalism, privilege, hierarchy, oppression, though these themes are not a requirement for publication. We believe the exploration of perspectives and voices that are mostly unheard and ignored is a political act itself. To read our mission statement, please visit this page.
Check out our past issues to get a sense of the journal before sharing your work with us. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, and if you have any questions email us at editors@apogeejournal.org. We look forward to reading your work!
Apogee is a journal of literature and art that engages with identity politics, including but not limited to: race, gender, sexuality, class, ability, and intersectional identities. We are a biannual publication featuring fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and visual art, as well as a digital platform for reviews, interviews, flash, and more. Our goals are twofold: to publish fresh work that interrogates the status quo, and to provide a platform for underrepresented voices, prioritizing artists and writers of color.
We often receive work from over-represented perspectives whose primary goal is to interrogate its privilege or come to terms with the “other.” Please note: this is not the work we seek to elevate at Apogee. We look for work that centers the experience of marginalized perspectives. We want to foster work that addresses the politics of identity, such as migration, diaspora, multiculturalism, privilege, hierarchy, oppression, though these themes are not a requirement for publication. We believe the exploration of perspectives and voices that are mostly unheard and ignored is a political act itself. To read our mission statement, please visit this page.
Guidelines for Submission
Flash
We define flash as any prose piece under 1,000 words. Please send up to two flash pieces for consideration at a time (submit each separately) and we will aim to get back to you within 6 weeks—we may take longer as we are currently working towards launching the flash section in summer 2023. Submit flash via our submission manager here. The contributor fee for flash is $65 per piece.
Book Reviews
We are currently closed for review submissions. Please pitch us at reviews@apogeejournal.org. In your pitch, include the name and publisher of the book you’d like to review, its anticipated release date, and what makes you want to review this particular work. Your pitch should be 3-5 sentences in the body of your email, with the subject line of the email stating: “Review: [Name of Book] by [Name of Author]”. Please include 1-2 samples of your writing, published or unpublished, as links at the bottom of your email or as an attachment.
We accept pitches for two kinds of book reviews: books published anytime in the past that you think should be unearthed now, that are calling to you at this specific moment, and that you think deserve (more) attention; and books set to be published in the near future, especially debuts or works by emerging writers with marginalized identities. For the latter, we can support you in obtaining an advance review copy!
If you’re seeking inspiration, see this list of books that we are especially excited about reviewing. We pay $90 for reviews.
Interviews
We are currently closed for interview submissions. Please pitch us at reviews@apogeejournal.org. In your pitch, tell us a little bit about why you want to interview this writer/artist/editor/organizer. We are excited about all different kinds of interviews—a back and forth between the founding editors of two small presses, a q&a with a public librarian working in outreach, and of course, interviews with writers who have books coming out in the near future. For the latter, we can support you in obtaining an advance review copy.
Please submit a pitch of 1-2 paragraphs in the body of your email, with the subject line of the email stating: “Interview: [Name of Artist]”. Please include 1-2 samples of your writing, published or unpublished, as links at the bottom of your email or as an attachment. We pay $90 for interviews.
Check out our past issues and browse our reviews, interviews, and folios to get a sense of the journal before sharing your work with us. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and if you have any questions about publication on our digital platform, email us at perigee@apogeejournal.org. We look forward to reading your work!
