Persimmon Tree’s mission is to bring the creativity and talent of women over sixty to a wide audience of readers of all ages. We are looking for work that reveals rich experience and a variety of perspectives. Each issue of the magazine will include several fiction and nonfiction pieces, poetry by one or more poets, and the work of one or more visual artists. The magazine is published quarterly.
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IMPORTANT SUBMISSIONS REQUIREMENT:
Subscriptions to Persimmon Tree are free, but, for your work to be considered, you must be a subscriber. Sign up for your subscription here:
Fiction and Nonfiction:
We welcome previously unpublished pieces under 3,500 words, written by women over sixty. Submissions may be sent to us any time during the year. Multiple submissions are accepted. If you want to send more than one piece, put them in separate emails.
Submissions should be in Word, double-spaced, with 12-point type and numbered pages. At the top of the first page please enter author’s name, address, telephone number, and email address.
Please send your submission as an attachment to us at: editor@persimmontree.org. Type the title of the piece, labeled fiction or nonfiction, in the subject line. Include a brief biographical statement (less than 50 words) and a headshot in your email.
Art and Illustrations:
Although the artists who are featured on our dedicated art page are chosen by our art editor, we welcome submissions of work in all media for display and illustration throughout the rest of the magazine. You are invited to send no more than five samples of your work (in jpg format), a headshot and a short biographical statement (less than 50 words) for us to put on file. Submissions should be addressed to publisher@persimmontree.org and may be sent any time during the year. Please do not expect a response from us unless we plan to use your work.
Poetry:
We accept submissions of poetry twice a year when we hold competitions; we publish the winning poems submitted from poets who live in a specific geographical region. While we permit simultaneous submissions, we do request that you inform us immediately if anything you have submitted is accepted elsewhere.
Summer 2023 (estimated publication date June 15, 2023)
Eligibility: Poets living outside the United States
Submissions accepted: April 10, 2023, to May 10, 2023
(Please do not submit earlier or later than those dates.)
Guest judge: TBA
To be eligible for the competition, you must be a woman over 60. You may submit up to three poems, all of which should be previously unpublished. Your submissions should be in a Word document; be sure your name, address, and email address are in the document. Email it to poetry@persimmontree.org. The subject line of the email should read “Poetry Competition.” Include a headshot and a short (no more than 50 words) bio in the email. We regret that the volume of entries may make it impossible for us to acknowledge receipt of your email.
Short Takes:
Short Takes are usually short pieces, fiction or non-fiction (250-500 words), but can also be topical poetry, sometimes even drawings or photography. We’re especially interested in hearing about your experiences, but you can include your thoughts, dreams, ideas and opinions. Humor and irony are always appreciated!
Topic for the Summer issue: Verbal Lightning
Lightning is the perfect theme for summer, with its hot days and nights, and the thunder storms that may or may not bring cooler air, but will almost certainly bring lightning. But we’re talking about metaphorical lightning as well – as in “lightning struck and I was changed forever” – or “the words my father said (“You can be anything you want to be”) hit me like lightning and affected my entire life”. Think about – write about – how words affect the receivers of the lightning – but also how they affects the givers.
Open period for the Summer issue: April 27 to May 19, 2023.
(Please do not submit earlier or later than those dates.)
Submissions should be in a Word document; be sure your name, address, and email address are in the document. Email it to publisher@persimmontree.org. The subject line the email should read “Short Takes.” Include a headshot and short (no more than 50 words) bio in the email. We regret that the volume of short takes entries may make it impossible for us to acknowledge receipt of your email.
Forum:
Persimmon Tree invites brief (no more than 200 words) comments from our readers on important topics of the moment. The topic for the summer issue will be posted here. Do check back.