General Fiction and Comics Submissions
FOR FICTION:
- Submit no more than 3000 words. This can be a single story or several shorter ones. Work must be previously unpublished and formatted in a single Word document (doc. or docx.), 12-pt Times New Roman double-spaced. No multiple submissions.
- 'Previously published' includes work published in print or digital formats, including personal websites, blogs, newsletters, zines, material behind paywalls, and material previously published and then deleted.
- Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please withdraw your submission if it is accepted elsewhere, or send a note to let us know which piece is no longer available.
- During a given submissions period, please only submit in one category of the following: poetry, fiction, or comics. This is so we can represent as broad a range of writers as possible.
- We publish work that is primarily written in English, with some code-switching/meshing warmly welcomed. We also publish work that is written entirely in Te Reo Māori with English translation.
- Please wait for a response before submitting again. We have a large volume of submissions, we read with care, and response times can be slow. If you haven't had a response within six months, you're welcome to query via Submittable.
- Please take the time to enjoy some back issues of takahē. If you receive several rejections from us, we might not be the best readers for your work.
- We cannot consider novel excerpts or work generated or assisted by AI.
- We occasionally include audio recordings of fiction pieces alongside the text. We do not consider audio-only pieces.
- Guest Fiction places are by invitation only.
- Payment for published work is NZ$45 for the first page and NZ$35 for each page thereafter. No invoice required. Payments are via bank transfer domestically. Payments to contributors outside Aotearoa New Zealand are via PayPal and may not be possible where there are excessive fees.
- takahē acquires first publication rights only. All copyright then reverts to the author. The Takahē Collective Trust reserves the right to archive issues of takahē on its website, takahe.org.nz. We appreciate the acknowledgment of takahē as the first publisher if your work is subsequently republished.
- We do not issue publication contracts, even on request.
FOR COMICS:
- During a given submissions period, please only submit in one category of the following: poetry, fiction, or comics. (This is so we can represent as broad a range of writers as possible.)
- No pitches or multiple submissions. Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please withdraw your submission immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere.
- We prefer work of up to 3 pages. Up to a maximum of 5 is acceptable.
- Submit a single JPEG of around 300ppi.
- We publish work that is primarily written in English, with some code-switching/meshing warmly welcomed. We also publish work that is written entirely in Te Reo Māori with English translation.
- Include a bio of up to 50 words.
- Payment for published work is NZ$100. Payments are via bank transfer domestically. Payments to contributors outside Aotearoa New Zealand are via PayPal and may not be possible where there are excessive fees.
- takahē acquires first publication rights only. All copyright then reverts to the author. The Takahē Collective Trust reserves the right to archive issues of takahē on its website, takahe.org.nz. We appreciate the acknowledgment of takahē as the first publisher if your work is subsequently republished.