EDITORIAL NEWS

February 24, 2019

Indiana Voice Journal is now closed. It has been an honor to work with all of you to help promote the literary arts throughout the world for the past four years. Thank you for all your support. It has truly been a pleasure getting to know all of you! Please enjoy our final issue, and feel free to browse some of our past issues at your convenience. ~Janine Pickett, Founding Editor
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November 19, 2018

Dear Friends, Poets, Writers, and Supporters of Indiana Voice Journal:

As you know we are closed to submissions. I am working on getting the latest issue out-our poetry editor, David Allen had the poems ready for publication as of September, but due to personal issues, I have not been able to work on the publication. I apologize, and I am trying to remedy that, and I ask for your patience at this time. 

David has announced his resignation as poetry editor, and I want to thank him for sticking with me these last couple of years. I wish him only the best of success in poetry and in life, and appreciate all the help and time he has devoted to Indiana Voice Journal.

IVJ will begin reading/accepting submissions again if possible "upon announcement", but right now, I do not have a date to give you. I wish I did. I want you to know that I do care about you, your emails, your poems, your stories, your promotions, and your books...It has been a great four years and an honor to work with all of you. I wish you all the best!

Much Love, 
Janine Pickett, Founding Editor
Indiana Voice Journal






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March 22, 2018 

We are currently accepting submissions for our May/June 2018 issue of Indiana Voice Journal! Send us your best!



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Due to family, health, and personal priorities, not to mention the upcoming holidays, we have decided to close to submissions for awhile. We hope to reorganize and relaunch at a later date. Thank you for your understanding and continued support. Please enjoy browsing through our current and past issues!

Wishing you and your families warm and happy holidays!
~The Editors


Indiana Voice Journal is currently on hiatus.

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September 27, 2017


Indiana Voice Journal is pleased to announce their nominations for the Sundress Publications Best of the Net 2017 Anthology! Congratulations and best of luck to the following nominees!

POETRY


CREATIVE NONFICTION

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August 22, 2017
The September/October 2017 issue is full. Thank you to all who responded to our opening call-out. We are currently reading and deciding on the November/December issue.

Best of the Net nominations will be announced soon.
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August 3, 2017

Acrylics 8 x 10 Canvas


Beginning with the September/October 2017 issue, Indiana Voice Journal is going bi-monthly. We are currently accepting submissions for our September/October issue. Think Fall!

Special needs: Visual Art. We are also accepting Interviews and Reviews written by you about your favorite book or author!
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June 15, 2017
We are currently closed to submissions for the summer! Hope everyone has a good one! 
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January 19, 2017
We are currently accepting submissions for our March 2017 Women's Issue! 
We are celebrating women! In honor of all the women in our lives, and around the world, we are once again hosting a "women only" edition of IVJ. As we participate in International Women's Day, we will be publishing submissions from women only.  Topics are your decisions! We want to hear your voice singing, wailing, shouting, praising, bitching--whatever moves you--from all corners of the globe! Please check out our previous issue for women here:



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Indiana Voice Journal announces Pushcart Prize nominations for work appearing in 2016

The Pushcart Prize is an American literary prize by Pushcart Press that honors the best "poetry, short fiction, essays or literary whatnot" published in the small presses over the previous year. Magazine and small book press editors are invited to nominate up to six works they have featured. Anthologies of the selected works have been published annually since 1976.

Indiana Voice Journal, is delighted to announce their nominations for the Pushcart Prize Award. In a continuing effort to promote creative writing, the following authors have been nominated for their recent work appearing in Indiana Voice Journal. We wish them the best of luck!:




Lullabye-Poem by Isabel Chenot-February 2016

Quiet Within-Poem by Bruce Owens-July 2016

Life-Poem by Gloria G. Murray-August 2016

The Neighbor-Poem by Jenny Kalahar-June 2016

Detached from the body of wind-Poem by Diane Sahms-Guarnieri-March 2016

Adagio For Flute-Fiction by Harry Youtt-March 2016

Janine Pickett, Publisher

Indiana Voice Journal

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 October 17, 2016

Editorial News-Submission Calendar Through March 2017

Indiana Voice Journal is currently closed to general submissions until after the Holiday season. We will begin accepting general submissions January 15, 2017.

Our November 2016 issue is full.

We are accepting Christmas/Holiday/Winter stories, poems, essays, and artwork for our December 2016 issue, and January related content for our January 2017 edition. The deadline for both issues is November 17, 2016. As of November 17th we are closed to all submissions until January 15th, then we will begin accepting for February, March, and our Spring issues.

January 2017--Please write about "January" topics. How do you celebrate the New Year? Write a tribute or a poem for Martin Luther King. What are your January traditions? What do you love about January? Why do you dread January? (Anything about January…you get the idea.)

February 2017--Open to general submissions, although we can always use some fantastic "love" content.

March 2017--We are celebrating women! In honor of all the women in our lives, and around the world, we are once again hosting a "women only" edition of IVJ. As we participate in International Women's Day, we will be publishing submissions from women only.  Topics are your decisions! We want to hear your voice singing, wailing, shouting, praising, bitching--whatever moves you--from all corners of the globe! Please check out our previous issue for women here:


Pushcart Prize Nominations will be announced soon! Stay Tuned!


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August 10, 2016

 Congratulations, and "thank you" to Jennifer Criss, our new visual art editor! She has graciously agreed to take over the art and photography department for IVJ. She will be finding photographs and artwork to accompany your features each month, and corresponding with artists and photographers regarding their visual art submissions.  I know she will do a fantastic job in this position. You can reach Jennifer, and submit you visual art, at ivjartwork@gmail.com

In other news:

We are still needing Indiana Bicentennial related poetry, art, memoirs/essays for our September 2016 Bicentennial Issue.

We are currently reading and accepting poetry, art, fiction, and nonfiction submissions for our October, November, and December issues, so think Fall/Winter/ Holidays when writing and submitting.




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July 17, 2016

Submission Call-Out!
Deadline: August 15, 2015
Accepting submissions for our September issue. We will have a special section devoted to Indiana's Bicentennial celebration. Looking for poems and creative nonfiction/essays about Indiana. You do not have to live in Indiana to submit. No length requirements. We look forward to reading your work!






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April 25, 2016

Very excited to announce Indiana Voice Journal is listed as a woman run press at VIDA: Women in Literary Arts, as a resource of interest to women. http://www.vidaweb.org/vidaweb-resources/indiana-voice-journal/#

About VIDA: VIDA’s mission as a research-driven organization is to increase critical attention to contemporary women’s writing as well as further transparency around gender equality issues in contemporary literary culture.
Each year The VIDA Count compiles over 1000 data points from the top tier, or “Tier 1” journals, publications, and press outlets by which the literary community defines and rewards its most valued arts workers, the “feeders” for grants, teaching positions, residencies, fellowships, further publication, and ultimately, propagation of artists’ work within the literary community.


April 3, 2016

We are currently accepting submissions for our special July issue! The theme is "Freedom"-what does it mean to you? The deadline is June 12, 2016. We hope you'll join us in all the celebrating by adding your voice to the mix. We are seeking poetry, fiction, nonfiction and visual art. This issue has already been advertised on WHBU public radio, so don't delay...send us your best! All work published online will also be considered for a future print edition of Indiana Voice Journal.


July 2016 Freedom Issue





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2015 Best of the Net Anthology Released from Sundress Publications
Knoxville, TN—Sundress Publications is pleased to announce the release of the 2015 edition of the Best of the Net Anthology! This year's anthology includes poetry, fiction, and nonfiction published in 27 different journals and features work by Claudia Emerson, Chen Chen, Jennifer Givhan, Rachel Eliza Griffiths, Sandra Meek, Eric Tran, Harmony Neal, Jesse Goolsby, Kimi Traube, and many more!
This year's judges included Bruce Bond, Brian Oliu, and Kate Schmitt.
Bruce Bond is the author of fourteen books including five forthcoming: Immanent Distance: Poetry and the Metaphysics of the Near at Hand (University of Michigan Press), For the Lost Cathedral (LSU Press), Black Anthem (Tampa Review Prize, University of Tampa Press), Sacrum (Four Way Books), and The Other Sky (Etruscan Press). Presently he is Regents Professor at University of North Texas.
Brian Oliu is originally from New Jersey and currently teaches at the University of Alabama. He is the author of three full-length collections, So You Know It's Me (Tiny Hardcore Press, 2011), a series of Craigslist Missed Connections, Leave Luck to Heaven (Uncanny Valley Press, 2014), an ode to 8-bit video games, & Enter Your Initials For Record Keeping (Cobalt Press, 2015). essays on NBA Jam. i/o (Civil Coping Mechanisms), a memoir in the form of a computer virus, is forthcoming in 2015. His works in progress deal with professional wrestling and long distance running (not at once).
Kate Schmitt's Singing Bones won the 2013 Zone 3 Press Creative Nonfiction Book Award. A writer and visual artist, Kate Schmitt has an M.F.A. and a Ph.D. from the University of Houston's Creative Writing Program. Her work has been published in a number of anthologies, including Earth Shattering Poems (Holt, 1998), Light Gathering Poems (Holt, 2000), I Just Hope It's Lethal (Houghton Mifflin, 2005), and The Weight of Addition (Mutabilis Press, 2007), as well as the literary journals Paradigm, Birmingham Poetry Review, Southern Poetry Review, and Louisiana Literature. She was a nonfiction editor of Gulf Coast and served on the journal's Board of Directors in 2008-2009. She has also edited and written for the companion website to a pilot television series created by Shelley Duvall, a wind energy company, and most recently for the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. Her courses include nonfiction and poetry workshops, 20th-century literature, young adult literature, and Chinese literature in translation.
You can read the newest edition of the anthology online at http://www.sundresspublications.com/bestof/
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February 6, 2016



Dear Poets: To better serve the large poetry community, and to streamline the entire submissions process, we've created an additional email address just for you. Please send all poetry submissions to ivjpoetry@gmail.com  For further reference please visit our guidelines page.

We are currently accepting submissions for the April & May 2016 Spring Issues. Needs: Poetry, Fiction, Nonfiction, and Visual Art.
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January 10, 2016

I am so humbled and thankful to all our supporters. The Indiana Voice Journal website has grown so much this past year. Since May we've been consistently hitting 5,000-6,500+ page views a month. I get many letters from new authors thanking me for giving them a chance and for being the first one to publish their works. That is the reason IVJ exists...to open doors previously shut. To give voice to writer's who've struggled with gaining publication credits. It was my desire to take IVJ in a direction to promote the many talented folks, experienced and new, out there deserving of recognition regardless of age, background, publishing history, academic experience, etc...You don't need a degree to write for us, you need heart and spirit!



A few excerpts from letters I've received this year:

"Since you and I last conversed, I've had several more stories published. But, I must say, Indiana Voice Journal remains near and dear to my heart, and always will. You were the first to agree to publish one of my stories, and that email remains indelibly etched in my memory.

Thank you, Janine. You have given a platform for so many voices. All the best in 2016."
___


"Dear Janine,

you were the first in the US, who carefully read my poems.
Thank you very much.
Your sincerely"
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"My granddaughter has an article in your August edition.  Can you tell me where I can buy a copy of that edition.  The article is just heart-warming and means a great deal to my husband, her Papa!"
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   "Dear Janine:
I am equally elated to be selected to be among your fine group of writers.
It is an honor to be associated with IVJ and I am encouraged to keep writing whenever I make
the time for myself.   You are one of those rare few Editors who holds to solid standard to enforce
a quality of life and vision for our earth and connectedness with all beings.
I have so much respect for you."
___

"Dear Janine,  thank you for accepting my poem.  It means so much to me to know
some of them are being read.  Since the first day I read your journal, I felt it was like coming home for me."
____

"Dear Janine,
Thank you for your gracious note. The website and journal are really beautiful! And I'm so glad to be included.
I've enjoyed reading others' contributions, and was especially impressed with....."
I think all this is pretty darn good for a journal that's only been around for a little over a year!
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WE ARE CURRENTLY OPEN FOR SUBMISSIONS!


MARCH-THEMED ISSUE: MUSIC



How has music changed your life? Are you a band member? What role does music play in your world? Do you sing in the shower, in your car, at work? Do you play an instrument on the streets? On a mountain in worship? On the porch with your dog? Send us your stories, tap out a poem or a lyric or two...We're looking for weird, wild and wonderful! Accepting fiction, nonfiction/essays, poems, and art related to music.

The January Issue is full.

We have space for a few essays on "love" for the February Issue.

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PUSHCART PRIZE ANNOUNCEMENT:


Indiana Voice Journal is pleased to announce their nominees for the Pushcart Prize. The editorial team had a tough job to do and we took this opportunity very seriously. There were many worthy submissions this year so we had to reduce a  large list down to "top finalists", and then eventually through a voting, re-reading and re-voting process, we had to come into an agreement on six. We believe the authors who made the top finalist list should be acknowledged and congratulated as well as the nominees. Listed below is our Pushcart Prize Nominees and our top finalist list. Congratulations to all, we wish you the best! ~Janine Pickett, Shirley Pearson, Jennifer Criss



PUSHCART PRIZE NOMINEES:

On The Mountain--Poem by Cecilia Soprano, August 2015 Issue


Revelation--Poem by Andrew Hubbard, November 2015 Issue


The Work of Our Hands--Poem by Amy Nemecek, November 2015 Issue

Lie--Poem by Jessica Wiseman Lawrence, May 2015 Issue


Violet the Baker--Flash Fiction by Gwendolyn Kiste, May 2015 Issue


The One Thing We’ve Got--Fiction by Adam Renn Olenn, October 2015 Issue


TOP FINALISTS:
 
Hancock County Pilgrimage -  Oct. 2015- poem by Lucia Robinson
Strange Blood-May 2015- poem by Rachel Watson
Somehow - Nov. 2015 - poem by Elizabeth Brooks
Children of the Sky - Nov. 2015- poem by Anna Keeler
oomaka  tokatakiya  (last ride)-March 2015- Poem by Dan Jacoby
The Homeless Man-Feb 2015-Poem by Prerna Bakshi
You May Applaud Now-May 2015-Poem by Elizabeth Brooks
Nude Male With Echo #63-July 2015 Poem by Darren C. Demaree
Every Breath-November 2015 Poem by Scott Thomas Outlar
Unspeakable Joy-November 2015-poem by Bruce Owens
Serengeti Tangent-August 2015-Poem by Cindy Bousquet Harris
Been Everywhere by Robert Wexelblatt- Fiction, September 2015

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November 9, 2015

 




Due to a backlog of submissions, new directions in editorial staff, and the desire to make changes to the submission guidelines and the website, we have decided to halt all incoming submissions until further notice. If you have a submission waiting for a response, you will be hearing from us soon.  We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work to make IVJ a "better home" for everyone involved.


We are finishing up the Pushcart Prize nominations! Announcements will be coming soon!

Sincerely, The editorial team ~Janine Pickett, Shirley Pearson, and Jennifer Criss.

 

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Editorial News Indiana Voice Journal

 

 OCTOBER 14, 2015

 

THREE IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS:


NEW TEAM MEMBERS

 

I am super excited to welcome two new team members to Indiana Voice Journal.  Shirley Pearson and Jennifer Criss have joined the staff and will be working in an editorial capacity. I am sure their experience, energy, and passion for writing and creativity will enhance the journal in many ways. I look forward to working with them.


PUSHCART PRIZE

 

I am also happy to announce Indiana Voice Journal will be participating in the Pushcart Prize nominations again this year. The nominations are currently underway. Announcements coming soon!

 

GRACE ISSUE REMINDER

 

The deadline for the November/December Grace Issue is October 18, 2015. You still have time so get them in here!

 

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 October 9, 2015

 

Congratulations and best of luck to author Jim Kjeldsen! He is a finalist for Best Online Short Story 2015 for "The Giant Gila Monster," Indiana Voice Journal, June 2015. Please click the link and go read his story. Many thanks to the editors of Sundress Publications for recognizing Jim's work.


About the author:


Jim Kjeldsen is a historian-journalist who lives in Bellingham, Washington. His previous books include the nonfiction "The Mountaineers: A History" (Mountaineers Books, 1998, still in print) and the forthcoming "The Carnival of Speculation" (WSU Press, due in  2016). He is a finalist for Best Online Short Story 2015 for "The Giant Gila Monster," Indiana Voice Journal, June 2015.

 

Jim has another fantastic story scheduled to appear in the January 2016 issue of Indiana Voice Journal.

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Indiana Voice Journal is seeking submissions for the November/December 2015 Grace Issue.  

We believe God moves supernaturally. He works through people. He works through love. He works through a mighty move of the spirit. We believe you can pray and worship and honor God standing in the woods, or on a mountaintop, or standing in the street or the grocery store just as sincerely, if not more so, than you can sitting in a pew on Sunday.

We are seeking:  

Stories/Poems/Essays/Creative Nonfiction about healing, miracles, signs, and wonders. Stories from the mission field. Whispers and songs from the heart. Stories and poems that will shake the soul and cause the most rigid knee to bow.
Book Excerpts
Prophetic Art
Photography
Interviews

~No negativity. No dry-bones, no finger-pointing, no condemnation. No dry religious works. No political agendas~ 

DEADLINE: OCTOBER 18, 2015 
SUBMIT: indianavoice@gmail.com Attn: Janine Pickett

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 THE "BEST OF THE NET" 2015 NOMINATIONS

Indiana Voice Journal is pleased to announce their nominations for the Sundress Publications 2015 Best Of The Net!

Dear Friends, this was no easy task.  I was blown away by the massive amount of talented work that has found a landing spot in this journal. I know what it's like to work your tail off for little or no pay, and more often than not, little or no recognition. It takes courage and strength and passion to pour out your heart, your soul, your inner voice, and hold it up to the light for the world to see. That act alone is worthy of recognition.  Although there were many worthy selections, I had to narrow the list down to six poems, two fictions, and two pieces of creative nonfiction. The works must have first appeared online between July 1, 2014 and June 30, 2015. 


I'd like to thank our IVJ community of readers for their suggestions, kind comments, and emails regarding the incredible content published in Indiana Voice Journal.  We love you. Please take a moment to congratulate the following nominee's:
 
FICTION


MEMORY
Jennifer Lauchenauer,  December 2014
http://www.indianavoicejournal.com/2014/12/flash-fiction-by-jennifer-lachenauer.html

 

THE GIANT GILA MONSTER
Jim Kjeldsen, June 2015
http://www.indianavoicejournal.com/2015/06/fiction-by-jim-kjeldsen-giant-gila.html


CREATIVE NONFICTION



BETTER THAN FLOWERS
Bill Vernon, September 2014
http://www.indianavoicejournal.com/2014/08/creative-nonfiction-better-than-flowers.html

 


YOU HOPE
Michelle Reinhold, May 2015
http://www.indianavoicejournal.com/2015/05/michelle-reinhold-cnf-you-hope.html#more



 

POETRY



ETERNITY OF EVERYTHING
E.F. Schraeder, May 2015
http://www.indianavoicejournal.com/2015/05/ef-schraeder-three-poems-creative.html

 

CRYSTAL DARK
Allison Grayhurst, May 2015
http://www.indianavoicejournal.com/2015/05/allison-grayhurst-three-poems-crystal.html

 

TRAYVON WHO?
DB Cox, JUNE 2015
http://www.indianavoicejournal.com/2015/06/two-poems-by-db-cox-before-nightfall.html

 

THIS IS HOW EXACTLY
John Grey, June 2015
http://www.indianavoicejournal.com/2015/06/three-poems-by-john-grey-sunset-santa.html


THE MIRACLE
Nels Hanson, February 2015
http://www.indianavoicejournal.com/2015/02/poetry-by-nels-hanson.html

 

LDS VS IN
Hiromi Yoshida, May 2015
http://www.indianavoicejournal.com/2015/05/hiromi-yoshida-three-poems-last-supper.html





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 POETRY CONTEST FOR A CAUSE WINNER

Congratulations to Kay Cheshire for her winning poem "Contentment". The poem will be published in the October Issue of IVJ.


It's that time--time to announce the winner of the Short Verse Poetry Contest! The winner is Kay Cheshire for her poem "Contentment". Thank you Janine Pickett, publisher and editor of Indiana Voice Journal, for helping with judging. It was not hard to decide on a winner. We both loved Kay's wonderful poem. Kay shows what a poet can do with their words with this beautiful piece. Following is a short excerpt from her poem that shows her talent and what I am talking about.
"rest in an oak's shadow while butterflies carry away the hurt".

Congratulations Kay! Her poem will be published in a future issue of Indiana Voice Journal and on the popular blog, Whispers.
Not near as many entries were received for this contest as the last contest, but $126 was raised for As Wings of Eagles. I am sure they will be glad to receive that and it will help get them a step closer to building a new enclosure for the bald eagle, Belle. Thank you to all of you who entered and a big thanks to those who sent a donation for As Wings of Eagles. It is truly appreciated!

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September 6, 2015

Nominee announcements coming soon! I am pleased to announce Indiana Voice Journal will be nominating six poems, two stories, and two works of creative nonfiction for consideration in The 2015 Best of the Net Anthology via Sundress Publications qualification guidelines which can be viewed here:
 http://www.sundresspublications.com/bestof/submit.htm

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IMPORTANT INFO:

August 31, 2015
The September Issue of Indiana Voice Journal will be out later this week.
IVJ is temporarily closed to submissions. Due to medical issues with my hand, I have been unable to respond quickly to the massive amount of emails and submissions gathering in my inbox.  I appreciate your patience while I try to get caught up on everything, including book reviews. If you have sent a submission in, I will be getting back with you as soon as I possibly can.  Thanks, Janine Pickett, Editor-In-Chief
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Due to a medical situation IVJ is unable to correspond at this time. Editor Janine Pickett has temporarily lost the use of her right hand due to a torn ligament and a massive infection. She will hopefully be back at it in a couple weeks. We appreciate your understanding as she takes this time off to focus on getting well.  Thank you. Brittny Pickett, Janine's daughter.

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Editor Stacy Savage is seeking submissions for a short verse poetry contest. Poems can be up to 20 lines and about any subject. No limit on number of entries submitted. Previously published works are acceptable. There is a $1 per poem entry fee. All proceeds will go to As Wings of Eagles, Inc. to help pay for a larger enclosure for the organization’s resident eagle, Belle.

Send submissions, along with the entry fee and a cover sheet with name, address, email address, and titles of poems submitted, to: Short Verse Poetry Contest, 3121 Mounds Road, Anderson, Indiana, 46016.

Make check payable to: Stacy Savage.

Prizes: The winner will receive a copy of the 1865 antique book: Enoch Arden by Alfred Tennyson, the winning poem published in the online journal, Indiana Voice Journal, and on the poetry blog, Whispers, a 5x7 photo signed by As Wings of Eagles, Inc. of Belle, and $30.  


Deadline for entries is: August 31, 2015. The contest judges are Stacy Savage and Janine Pickett. The winner will be announced on the Facebook page, Poetry Contests for a Cause, on September 16.

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Indiana Voice Journal is happy to announce the nominations for the 2015 Million Writers Award :storySouth have been submitted. Decisions were based on a combination of factors: Story quality, honesty, emotion, imagery; and the rules/guidelines provided by storySouth. Please click on the link above to read the award requirements. 

Readers participating in the selection process were CN Hueston (July Issue), and Janine Pickett.
We wish the nominees the best of luck!

 
Muhammad Nasrullah Khan: "Only Nada Lives On The Other Side Of Mountains"
Peter Fraser:  "Mimmi and Me in Paradise"
Carroll Susco:  "The  Tree"

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REMINDER: Only 10 days left to submit for the August Environmental/Nature Issue!
DEADLINE: July 18, 2015

We are currently accepting submissions for the August 2015 Environmental/Nature Issue of Indiana Voice Journal.
Please send your submissions to indianavoice@gmail.co 
Poems: Up to 3 per submission
Flash Fiction:  200-1,000 words
Short Fiction: 1,000-3,000 words 
Creative Non-Fiction and Essays: Up to 3,000 words 

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RAGGED OLD FLAG


I walked through a county courthouse square,
On a park bench an old man was sitting there.
I said, "Your old courthouse is kinda run down."
He said, "Naw, it'll do for our little town."
I said, "Your flagpole has leaned a little bit,
And that's a Ragged Old Flag you got hanging on it.
He said, "Have a seat", and I sat down.
"Is this the first time you've been to our little town?"
I said, "I think it is." He said, "I don't like to brag,
But we're kinda proud of that Ragged Old Flag."

"You see, we got a little hole in that flag there
When Washington took it across the Delaware.
And it got powder-burned the night Francis Scott Key
Sat watching it writing _Oh Say Can You See_.
And it got a bad rip in New Orleans
With Packingham and Jackson tuggin' at its seams."

"And it almost fell at the Alamo
Beside the Texas flag, but she waved on through.
She got cut with a sword at Chancellorsville
And she got cut again at Shiloh Hill.
There was Robert E. Lee, Beauregard, and Bragg,
And the south wind blew hard on that Ragged Old Flag."

"On Flanders Field in World War I
She got a big hole from a Bertha gun.
She turned blood red in World War II
She hung limp and low by the time it was through.
She was in Korea and Vietnam.
She went where she was sent by her Uncle Sam."

"She waved from our ships upon the briny foam,
And now they've about quit waving her back here at home.
In her own good land she's been abused --
She's been burned, dishonored, denied and refused."

"And the government for which she stands
Is scandalized throughout the land.
And she's getting threadbare and wearing thin,
But she's in good shape for the shape she's in.
'Cause she's been through the fire before
And I believe she can take a whole lot more."

"So we raise her up every morning,
Take her down every night.
We don't let her touch the ground
And we fold her up right.
On second thought I DO like to brag,

'Cause I'm mighty proud of that Ragged Old Flag."
Written by Johnny Cash
HAPPY 4th of JULY !
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 Submission call-outs for August 2015 Issue IVJ

 
June 13, 2015
We are currently accepting submissions for the August 2015 Environmental/Nature issue of Indiana Voice Journal.
Please send your submissions to indianavoice@gmail.co 
Poems: Up to 3 per submission
Flash Fiction:  200-1,000 words
Short Fiction: 1,000-3,000 words 
Creative Non-Fiction and Essays: Up to 3,000 words 

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 JUNE 7, 2015
Important announcements concerning staff, themes, submission call-outs, and changes to monthly issues!

STAFF:  

Many of you know I was thinking of discontinuing book reviews in the near future. I am pleased to announce Jeremiah Ashcraft has joined the staff as our new editorial assistant and our new Book Review editor. I believe Jeremiah's energy, enthusiasm and professionalism will revitalize this section of IVJ. Please see our guidelines page to find out how to submit your review requests to Jeremiah.

BEGINNING IN AUGUST

IMPORTANT CHANGES TO MONTHLY ISSUES:  

Monthly issues of Indiana Voice will contain no more than 6-8 poets, 3-4 essays, and 3-4 fictions. Most of these will need to fit a current theme. This means a lot more rejections, so send only your best. We will continue to use visual art in each issue, and I'd like to focus more on publishing an occasional interview. 

CONCERNING REPRINTS:  

I will continue to publish reprints if they are of exceptional quality, fit a theme, and/or haven't been published online in the last 6 months. Most of you are great about telling me in advance if your work is a reprint or not, and where is was first published. I deeply appreciate your integrity and honesty. Your reprints will still be considered for publication.

To the few authors who intentionally try to pass reprints off as originals without saying a word, and to the ones who gain an acceptance and then send me links to all the recent online magazines their story currently appears in, I have something to say to you, too:
"I am not giving up precious time with my family to sit up until 4 am republishing your work that has been massively reproduced around the internet for months. Send something fresh and new, or don't submit.

SUBMISSIONS ARE BEING READ FOR THE AUGUST ISSUE OF IVJ

THEME: ENVIRONMENTAL/NATURE 

Accepting poems, stories, essays, and visual art about nature, animals, and the environment.

HAVE A GREAT DAY!
Janine Pickett, Editor


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May 30, 2015: "Coming Soon"

The June issue of Indiana Voice Journal should be live on the website within the next few days. We're trekking to Milan, Italy to meet the B'Boys. Street dancers aka: Natural Force Crew and K-One. We are also serving up some fantastic poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and quite a few amazing Indiana authors in this issue, so stay tuned!

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May 10, 2015:
Currently reading submissions for the July and August issues of Indiana Voice Journal.
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REMINDER: April 18th is the deadline for the MAY 2015 women's edition of Indiana Voice Journal. We have eighteen talented female authors appearing in this issue so far...so get in here! We want to hear your voice as well!
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March 20, 2015
Editor's Note: If you have a submission or email waiting for my attention, please be patient. I've been sick this week but will get back to you asap. Thanks, Janine
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Seeking Women Authors for the May 2015 Issue of Indiana Voice Journal 

DEADLINE: APRIL 18, 2015 


IVJ is dedicating the MAY 2015 Issue to women authors and artists everywhere. We're celebrating the power of being a woman with stories, essays, poems, artwork, photographs, memoirs, secrets, and really great lies.

Join the tribe ladies... line-up, circle, village, network, dance, rumble...whatever you choose to call it!  But hurry, this issue is filling up fast and I'm pretty sure I can hear the beginnings of a distinct "ROAR!"

Any subject, any style. Word limits and guidelines still apply. 

Hope to hear from you soon, Janine
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NEWS:
The March Issue of IVJ is coming soon!(We are running a tad bit late due to the Special Issue #2 just published, but hopefully within the week if all goes well!) I am so excited to get this issue into your hands, I mean, onto your desktops...it is packed full of great, fun, meaningful content. 
March 1, 2015
IVJ has been invited to participate in the Write Well Award sponsored by the Silver Pen Writers Association. I will nominate three short fiction stories published in 2014 in Indiana Voice Journal.
The Write Well Award seeks to recognize excellence in published short fiction in both print and electronic magazines.

Publishers may submit up to three short stories for consideration.
This award is sponsored by the Silver Pen Writers Association. Entries will be judged by the editors of the various Silver Pen magazines and by outside judges. After the final selection of winning entries is made, they will be published in an anthology by 13Thirty Books in both e-book and print formats and made available through various online retailers.
For the 2014 awards, we will be accepting nominations through April 30, 2015. The winners will be announced by August 1, 2015.
 http://www.writewellaward.com/
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EDITORIAL UPDATES:
February 21, 2015
Photograph © Helen Hill
We have a few things we are still working on for the Special Issue on Homelessness, Poverty and Hunger. I am hoping to go live with this issue very soon. To everyone involved, your patience is appreciated. We have fantastic stories, poems, essays, artwork, and black and white film photography from the streets of New York City to share with you. Our goal is not to exploit, but to bring an awareness to the plight of many of our homeless neighbors across the United States and beyond. We want to break stereotypes, tear down walls, and restore people with dignity, grace and love. Many people and organizations are doing just that, and they need our help. They are bringing light into the dark places. Raising awareness, funds, and hope...where there is none. 

THE MARCH AND APRIL ISSUES OF IVJ  ARE PACKED FULL OF GREAT CONTENT AND ARE CLOSED TO SUBMISSIONS.  THE MARCH ISSUE IS BEING FINALIZED AND READIED FOR PUBLICATION.

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 Monday, January 19, 2015
© David J. Thompson
COMING SOON!

THE FEBRUARY 2015 ISSUE OF IVJ  INCLUDES AN OUTSTANDING MIX OF POETRY, FICTION, NONFICTION, AND VISUAL ART.



POETRY

PHILLIP BROWN, WITTY FAY, RYAN FRISINGER, NELS HANSON, BELINDA HUBERT, SASHA KASOFF, ROSS KNAPP, DR. MEL WALDMAN, AND GEORGE ZAMALEA

CREATIVE NONFICTION/ESSAY:

RAYMOND GREINER  "THE GRACE OF COMPANIONSHIP"
MADGE KAPLAN "VOCAL EXERCISE"
LIZ GILMORE WILLIAMS "APRIL LOVE"

FICTION:

DAVID DOMINE "LUCILLE IN LINE"
DAN FIELDS "CACHETTE"
NELS HANSON "THE GOOD BOY"
BELINDA HUBERT "NEMESIS"
NANCY LANE "TALES OF MEANDER"
ADAM MATSON "DAIRY QUEEN" 
BRAD SIDES "ACHIEVED DREAMS"

VISUAL ART

 DAVID J. THOMPSON

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Saturday, January 10, 2015

We are happy to announce Indiana Voice Journal has joined ArtsWORK Indiana

We welcome the opportunity to promote emerging and experienced Hoosier authors and artists with disabilities... We want to hear their voice!

About ArtsWORK Indiana:

ArtsWORK Indiana is an informal, statewide group of individuals and organizations who seek to increase arts related professional opportunities for people with disabilities. Our mission is to facilitate access to careers in the arts for people with disabilities through awareness, education, and encouragement.
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We are also happy to announce Indiana Voice Journal will be included in two editions of DUSTBOOKS. The International Directory of Little Magazines and Small Presses, and The Directory of Poetry Publishers.
    
About Dustbooks:
 
The International Directory of Little Magazines & Small Presses lists almost 4,000 book and magazine publishers of literary, avant garde, cutting-edge contemporary, left wing, right wing and fiction to non-fiction essays, reviews, artwork, music, satire, criticism, commentary, letters, parts of novels, longpoems, concrete art, collages, plays, news items and more!

 The Directory of Poetry Publishers is a must for poets, librarians and critics. It features some 21 pieces of information on each of the more than 1,900 book and magazine publishers of poetry worldwide -- including university presses and e-zines. Because of this breadth of coverage it has been called "simply indispensable!" by Choice and "invaluable" by Booklist.
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FRIDAY, JANUARY 2, 2015

              Happy Six Month Anniversary Indiana Voice Journal!



We are a global journal publishing art and literature from around the world. Our authors originate from Saudia Arabia, Pakistan, Italy, India, Cuba, London, Canada, Poland, France, New Zealand, Germany, and USA

We've published many new and emerging authors as well as experienced writers in our short six months of literary life. It's been a great journey with an amazing group of  people...all of you. I'm excited to watch us grow.

Magazine page views as of today: 11,583

We are listed at Duotrope, Poets & Writers, Every Writers Resource, Authors Den, and She Writes.

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DECEMBER 15, 2014
Coming In The January Issue Of IVJ! 
JANUARY 2015 FEATURES INCLUDE:

POETRY
Nabeela Altaf, Jeremiah Ashcraft, Brycical, Colin Dodds, Paco Jones, John Sierpinski, Mel Waldman, Barry Yeoman
VISUAL ART  
ALLEN FORREST

CREATIVE NONFICTION/ESSAYS
Veronica Toth "The Taste of Belonging"
Adreyo Sen "The Boarding School Protagonist"
Charles E.J. Moulton “Defender of the Faith”
John C. Spiegel  "Cocoons"
Scott Archer Jones  "A Love Letter to Bonnie Raitt"

FICTION 

Phillip Brown "Combat"
Lisa Fontaine " Foreign Body"
Clive Gill “Cezar's Story"
Eric Hill "Flim-Flam Man" and "The Bottom"
Mike Pemberton "Harvest Rain"
Gary Roberts "A Steady Arm"

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Indiana Voice Journal is currently accepting submissions for a special themed issue covering homelessness, hunger, and poverty.  We need poems, fiction, nonfiction and visual art. If you would like to be a part of this special issue, please send your submissions and/or questions to indianavoice@gmail.com
 
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November 20, 2014 
COMING SOON:  DECEMBER ISSUE 
Features Include:

POETRY:  Simon Perchik, Heather Rose, Atri Majumder, Oliver Rice, James Maxwell, Bruce Owens, Tom Sheehan

FICTION:  Tom Sheehan, Raymond Greiner, Eric Hill, Jennifer Lachenauer, Carroll Susco, Nasrullah Khan,  J. Michael Dashiell

ARTWORK:  Watercolor Paintings by Heather Rose

CREATIVE NONFICTION / ESSAYS: John Spiegel, Donna Downs, Stephen Mead, Lance Turner


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PUSHCART PRIZE ANNOUNCEMENT!


 NOVEMBER 13, 2014

Janine Pickett, publisher of Indiana Voice Journal, is delighted to announce her nominations for the Pushcart Prize. In a continuing effort to promote diverse writing, the following authors have been nominated for their recent work appearing in Indiana Voice Journal:



Richard Fein, A Tryst Of Eyes, November Issue

Mitchell Grabois, Battery, October Issue

William Keckler, Roseophilia, October Special Poetry Issue

Steve Klepetar, Just To Let You Know, October Issue

Heather Rose, Opal Lake, December Issue (forthcoming)

Tom Sheehan, The Semaphore in Sunlight Flew, November Issue


CONGRATULATIONS AND GOOD LUCK!!

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COMING SOON... NOVEMBER FEATURES


POETRY :  RICHARD FEIN, WIN HARMS, TOM SHEEHAN, MARGARET SKALBANIA AND CHANGMING YUAN

FICTION: CAROL ANNE ADAMSON, DALLAS GORBETT, RAYMOND GREINER, BELINDA HUBERT, DESIREE JUNG AND KERSIE KHAMBATTA

PHOTOGRAPHY: DAVID J. THOMPSON 

 October 20, 2014

I want to thank everyone for their warm comments regarding Indiana Voice Journal. In particular, The Heart Of The Poet issue. My inbox is flooded with your kindness! I am especially grateful to the many amazing artists who have contributed their talents and their time to IVJ...you are precious!

September 13, 2014 

Currently reading submissions for the winter issues...December, January and February 



MUSIC REVIEWS  Exciting changes happening at Indiana Voice Journal. We've expanded to include an additional website linked to IVJ covering Music Reviews by CN Hueston...this will coincide with Indiana rocker John Mellencamp's new release, "Plain Spoken" due out Sept. 23, 2014.  Click the Music Review button for additional information and to read the latest Reviews.

OCTOBER ISSUE
The October issue of Indiana Voice features a book review of  "The Biology Of Luck" by Jacob M. Appel. New essays by Raymond Greiner and R.J. Fox.  A showcase of  poetry by Steve Klepetar, Chris Roe, A.J. Huffman, Gale Acuff and RW Drake. Featured short fiction includes stories by Muhammad Nasrullah Khan, Scott Archer Jones, Mitchell Grabois and Peter Fraser. Visual art includes paintings by W. Jack Savage and nature photography by Duane Locke. FANTASTIC ISSUE...You don't want to miss it!

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September 1,  2014
Happy Labor Day Weekend!

I've really enjoyed putting together the September Issue of Indiana Voice Journal.  I am grateful to everyone for submitting content for possible inclusion, and I regret that I can't use everything sent to me.  A big thank you to everyone that contributed, supported, and read the journal. The October and November issues are filling up rather quickly with new amazing content, contests, interviews and reviews. So stay tuned!

Janine Pickett
Editor, Indiana Voice Journal


The September Issue...

Poetry Feature by Dan Jacoby  
Poetry Feature by John Grey 
Poetry Feature by Valentina Cano 
Fiction by William Cass
Creative Nonfiction by Bill Vernon
Interview with author Lorene Stunson Hill
Photography Gallery by Mary Clark






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