The Bridge Editions
There’s nothing like collaboration and we absolutely excel at it.
The Bridge Editions is a new series by ManicWorld Magazine, in which each edition is made in collaboration with another literary magazine with a single open call and submissions read by editors on both sides.
This will be published as a special edition in print and digital formats under the name ‘The Bridge Editions“.
The first issue of The Bridge Editions will be published in collaboration with The Bookends Review. The Bookends Review is an independent creative arts journal founded in 2012 and dedicated to publishing the best original fiction, CNF, poetry, interviews, essays, book reviews, and visual/musical works from around the world.
What are we looking for?
There isn’t a set theme for this since what we are looking for is work that stays true to what both magazines offer, which is the best in original fiction, poetry and creative blends between these two. The series does take its name from bridges though, so if you feel inspired by this, we’d love to read how you spin that on the page metaphorically or literally.
Guidelines
We are looking for work that fits into poetry, short fiction and hybrid work
Poetry: up to 40 lines per poem.
Short fiction: up to 3,000 words.
Hybrid work: pieces that move between poetry and prose, including prose poetry and stories with poems inside them, up to 3,000 words. For hybrid work, the word limit applies rather than the line limit.
How many: one piece per writer
Who can submit: writers worldwide, must be 18+
Simultaneous and previously published work: Not accepted
Each submission is read anonymously. Please remove any identifying information from the document itself. An editor from each magazine will read each piece and the final selection is agreed by both teams.
Our standards
We publish PG-rated work only, and any submission created with the help of AI will be rejected.
Dates
Submissions open: Tuesday 1 December 2026.
Submissions close: Thursday 31 December 2026 at 23:59 US Eastern Time (04:59 GMT on 1 January), or as soon as 200 submissions have arrived, whichever comes first.
Decisions: by the end of January 2027.
Publication: Sunday 28 February 2027, in ebook and print.
Because the call closes at 200 submissions, sending your work early is the surest way to make sure it gets in.
How to submit
Submissions are free and are managed through Duosuma (Duotrope). Visit the submission page here when it opens.
If your work is chosen
Your piece will appear in The Bridge Editions No. 1, credited to you, alongside the names of both magazines.
Copyright stays with you, but we ask for first world English-language rights in print and ebook, exclusive for six months after publication, and the non-exclusive right to keep the book on sale after that.
Contributors will also receive a discount on print copies of the book and a free copy of the ebook, but will not be paid.
Want your work to be featured in our online library instead? Please visit Become A Manic Author.