I’m now accepting submissions for In Conversation, In Critique, a new series here on my personal author site, and part of PIL: Promoting Indie Lit. This feature offers something often missing from today’s literary coverage: a meaningful space where poets and their work are taken seriously, not solemnly, and where being read matters more than being praised.
Each feature will include two core elements: an in-depth written interview and a candid, considered critique. If you’ve recently published a chapbook, pamphlet, or full-length collection and want more than a pull-quote or a pat on the back, this is for you.
This isn’t a platform for easy applause. It’s a space for dialogue, for real, reflective engagement between poet and reader. The review won’t be cruel, and it won’t be careless. But it will be honest. I’ll highlight what’s strong, and I’ll point out where things falter, always with care and without ego. My aim isn’t to have the last word, but to offer a thoughtful one.
Who Can Submit
I’m currently accepting submissions from poets who:
- Have published a chapbook, pamphlet, or full collection within the past three months
- Are working with independent or small presses
- Are seeking serious, engaged feedback rather than promotional fluff
- Come from any background, with a particular welcome to those often marginalised or overlooked in mainstream publishing
What You’ll Receive
Each selected poet will be featured in:
- A written interview, asking about your process, intentions, influences, and how you see your work
- A critical review, written with care and clarity, engaging with your poems on their own terms, not to dismiss or diminish, but to read deeply and respond honestly. Previous reviews I have written are available here.
The point isn’t perfection, it’s conversation. Poets deserve to be heard, not just applauded. If your work is recent and you want it read with the seriousness it deserves, I want to read it.
How to Submit
This is straightforward, complete this form.
Submissions are free and open on a rolling basis. Response time may vary depending on volume.
We grow not by being told we’re brilliant, but by being listened to, and by having someone reflect back what they see, with care and clarity.
That’s what In Conversation, In Critique is here to do.
Let’s talk. Let’s read. Let’s take poetry seriously.
