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 Work must be previously unpublished and formatted in a single Word document (doc.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. 
  • Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please notify us immediately (by sending a message or withdrawing the submission) if your work is accepted elsewhere.
  • 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.)
  • Work can be in English, or 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 four months, you're welcome to query. 
  • 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, illustrated work, 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$35 for the first page and NZ$25 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. We appreciate the acknowledgment of takahē as the first publisher if your work is subsequently republished. 
  • We do not issue publication contracts, even by 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 notify us 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. 
  • Work can be in English, or in Te Reo Māori with English translation.
  • Include a bio of up to 50 words. 
  • Payment for published work is NZ$75. 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.
We use Submittable to accept and review our submissions.