call for submissions: small press fest publication

Dates:
Wednesday, August 12, 2020, 10:00 amto Wednesday, September 16, 2020, 5:00 pm

This fall, Open Space’s Small Press Fest is taking new shape in the form of a collaborative publication! Following on from the recent video project of the same name, Island-based and regional artists are invited to submit writing or visual art connected to the theme of groundwork. 
 
Since the pandemic hit Lekwungen and W̱SÁNEĆ territories in March, we have been invited to attend to our surroundings in new and deeper ways, noticing our rootedness or our unrootedness as we find ourselves increasingly held in place. Concurrently, the global mobilization of resistance to physical and systemic violence against Black and Indigenous people and People of Colour has ignited a growing desire to build systems of justice and community care that can replace the current ones. 
 
How, then, are we turning towards the ground beneath our feet to find strength, healing, and different ways of being? How are we forming and tapping into rich root networks, passing resources and care through underground pathways? What dis/comfort do we experience in finding ourselves bound to place in this way? How are we learning to be here?
 
Centering print arts as a form of radical gathering and resistance, we are inviting contributions that reflect upon the ground that holds us and ways we can connect to it to stand firmly and with rooted power.
 
Submissions are open to those based on the lands known as Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, and Discovery Islands. BIPOC, LGTBQ2S folks, people with disabilities, and those facing other barriers are especially encouraged to submit. Submission formats can include: poetry, personal essays, letters, visual art, comics, and other forms of printable art. If you are unsure if your work fits the scope of this project, feel free to contact literary[at]openspace.ca.
 
Qualifications:
-   resident of Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, or the Discovery Islands
-   previously unpublished work
 
Please submit:
-   a short (60-word) bio about yourself and your work
-   a write-up about the piece(s) you are submitting, including any relevant context details, thinking, or relation to the theme (max. 300 words)
-   for visual art: up to 5 high resolution .jpgs or .pngs
-   for writing: a Word Doc of up to 3 pages, Times New Roman, 12-point font, or up to 3 poems
to literary[at]openspace.ca with the subject line “Publication.” 
 
Please note, not all submissions will be accepted. Accepted contributions will be paid at a rate of $75/page.
 
Extended deadline: Wednesday, September 16, 2020, 5pm