Orbis Quarterly International Literary Journal was set up in 1969, so not far off celebrating its 40th birthday. And the fact that it has long been considered one of the top 12 Small Press magazines in the UK (OK, Top 20, depending which survey you read).

Carole Baldock meanwhile is heading for her 6th year as Editor, having taken over from Mike Shields in 2002.

And you are welcome to join the Orbis group online:
www.facebook.com/n/?group.php&gid=53636000056

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Few UK Small Press publications are able to offer feedback, or any payment,
but Orbis provides proofs with editorial suggestions,
and helps to alleviate suffering for Arts’ sake via the Readers’ Award votes.

£50 for piece receiving the most votes
Plus £50 split between four, or more, runners-up,
with 4 poems submitted to the Forward Prize

Jury, by Mary MacRae, joint winner of the Orbis 138 Readers Award,
was selected for The Forward Book of Poetry 2007

I Filled the Bath with Coty L’Aimant, by Ros Barber, joint winner
of the Orbis 126 Readers Award, selected for The Forward Book of Poetry 2005

Full sample issue of Orbis, #132, can be studied online at the Poetry Library website:
http://www.poetrymagazines.org.uk/magazine/index.asp?id=52

For more information, please email carolebaldock@hotmail.com

Requirements

Besides poems, and occasionally upbeat doesn’t come amiss, Orbis welcomes

Prose, 500 to 1000 words

Suggestions for cover artwork and features. NB, ideas in first instance, not completed articles: eg the Past Master Section, or indeed, Past Mistress. 500 to 1000 words

Subjects for discussion, technical, topical etc:

‘Use often becomes abuse, just as allusive turns into elusive’

‘When you rewrite verifiable fiction, how far do you go?’

In particular, having been involved for some time with Social Inclusion projects and encouraging access to the Arts, eg South Asian Showcase for Liverpool’s Dead Good Poets Society, I am interested in work from all such communities, especially young people, under 20s and 20somethings.

Even with women writers; although magazine subscriptions are around 50% each, submissions are still a good third less than those from men.

All help with promotion gratefully received.

Brief round-up of latest guidelines follows, to publish, post, pass on, tell all your friends. And inwardly digest.

Orbis Quarterly Literary International Journal

84 pages of news, reviews, views, letters, features, prose
and quite a lot of poetry.

Readers’ Award: £50 for piece receiving the most votes in each issue
Four winners selected for submission to Forward Poetry Prize, Single Poem Category

Plus £50 split between four, or more, runners-up.

Featured Writer receives £50. NB, work commissioned: 3 to 4 poems or 1500 words

Submissions

By post: four poems; two prose pieces, 500 to1000 words
Please enclose SAE with ALL correspondence
Overseas: 2 IRCs; 3 if work is to be returned

Via email, Overseas only: two poems or one piece of prose in body. No attachments

Please note, although priority and hopefully a swift response is given to first time enquiries, subsequently, replies can take a lot longer due to the volume of mail.
Subscribers usually receive an answer re submissions in 3 months at the latest, ie with the following issue of the magazine.

When work is returned with an invite for further submissions, please do not interpret ‘in due course’ as by return of post. And with email, it does not mean send more within the next half hour either.

If work is already being held on file, further submissions cannot be considered.
After publication, contributors are requested to wait about 12 months before sending more poems.

Subscriptions

Subs pa: £15 for four copies. Cheques payable to Carole Baldock
Overseas: £20; 30 euros or $40 ; $44 , airmail

Single issue: £4. Overseas: £5; 10 euros or $12, all including post and packing: $13, airmail

Review copies

Magazine review copies for the Orbis Poetry Index to Ade Jackson:
backtothemachinegun@hotmail.com

Publishers please note, press releases about review copies to be sent in first instance, rather than the actual book:

Associate Editor/Orbis Reviews Editor, Nessa O’Mahony: nessaomahony@iol.ie