SUBMISSION GUIDELINES for the PATERSON LITERARY REVIEW (PLR) 

The Paterson Literary Review will be transitioning in 2026 to submissions using SUBMITTABLE online.

The following types of work will be considered:

• Poems: each under 2 pages, high quality, in any style;

• Art: black & white, line drawings, woodcuts, lithographs 8 ½" x 11" or smaller;

• Photographs: 8 ½ x 11", black & white glossies;

• Short stories: under 1,500 words, high quality, no formula stories.

• Memoir: no more than two pieces; two pages maximum.

• Book Reviews: up to 1000 words

If your work is accepted for publication, you will be notified by e-mail (please provide) and asked for a biographical statement of under 50 words.

For accepted poems, payment is a single contributor copy of the magazine, which will be mailed after publication. PLR is printed and distributed annually in the spring.  You may purchase additional copies of the latest issue and select back issues.

By submitting work to the Paterson Literary Review, the author grants us First Serial Rights to publish the accepted work in our print and/or online editions. Upon publication, all rights revert to the author. If the work is reprinted elsewhere, we request acknowledgment of the Paterson Literary Review as the place of first publication.

Please do not send more than five poems, one story, or a memoir.

We do not return poems or stories. 

Include a cover page, contact information, including your mailing address and email, on each poem in the upper right-hand corner.

Simultaneous submissions are considered, but please notify us immediately if another publication accepts any of your poems.

SEND SUBMISSIONS TO:

The Paterson Literary Review
Passaic County Community College
One College Blvd.
Paterson, NJ 07505-1179