Tar River Poetry was born in 1978, which means they’re coming up on their fortieth anniversary! Produced at East Carolina University in Greenville, Tar River Poetry publishes twice each year.
The Spring 2017 issue featured a review of Peter Makuck’s collection Mandatory Evacuation, as well as poems by NCWN regional reps Catherine Carter and Karen Paul Holmes, as well as Susan Laughter Myers and many others.
To get a taste of what Tar River Poetry publishes, their website offers several sample poems by Claudia Emerson, Jack Granath, Lee Robinson, and more.
Past contributors include Sherman Alexie and North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame inductees A.R. Ammons and Betty Adcock.
Subscriptions run $12 for one year, $20 for two years (two issues each year). Single back issues are $7. To subscribe, or purchase an old issue, click here.
Poets should send no more than five (5) previously unpublished poems. If you purchase a back issue with your submission, this qualifies you for an “expedited” response, and Tar River Poetry editors will get back to you with a “Yes” or “Sorry this does not meet our needs at this time” within one week.
The Fall submission period ends September 30. The Spring submission period runs February 1 and March 1.
To submit, click here.
The first 300 writers who submit get to do so for free, but Tar River Poetry has maxed out their free submission allotment for this reading period, so they are only accepting fee-based submissions through the end of the month.
For current news and communications, their Facebook page is the best bet.