By the WAYE is an independent biannual print magazine of poetry and visual art.

WAYE Small Press is a poetry initiative designed to highlight a talented community of poets––locally, nationally, and globally––in a biannual print publication of poetry and visual art called By the WAYE. The magazine is modeled after our in-person poetry/open mic events we've been hosting at Sure Things Vintage in Jersey City, New Jersey, since 2022.

And “WAYE” stands for “We Appreciate Your Enthusiasm,” the infamous first line of every rejection letter you’ve ever (or haven’t yet) received.

By the WAYE is funded in part by a grant from the Jersey City Arts and Culture Trust Fund. Issue 01 sold out, and is now in it's limited second printing run. The magazine was also a finalist in the Community of Literary Magazines and Presses (CLMP)'s Firecracker Awards for "Best Debut" in the Magazine category.

Discover the all-time most submitted-to poetry literary magazines. These publications have consistently attracted a high volume of poetry submissions.

Most Submitted-To Poetry-Only Literary Magazines of All Time

By the WAYE Magazine

WAYE Small Press is now accepting poetry submissions for By the WAYE Issue 04. <div><br></div><div><b>About WAYE Small Press</b></div><div>WAYE Small Press is a poetry initiative designed to highlight a talented community of poets––locally, nationally, and globally––in a print magazine modeled after the in-person poetry/open mic events hosted at Sure Things Vintage in Jersey City, NJ, since 2022.</div><div>“WAYE” stands for “We Appreciate Your Enthusiasm,” the infamous first line of every rejection letter you’ve ever (or haven’t yet) received.</div><div><br></div><div><b>About By the WAYE</b></div><div>By the WAYE is an independent biannual print magazine of poetry and visual art.</div><div><br></div><div><b>Who May Submit</b></div><div>While we are a Jersey City-based reading series and small press, we are seeking poetry from all walks of life and from all over the world. We do prioritize poets from New Jersey, though, since WAYE Small Press is funded in part by a grant from the Jersey City Arts and Culture Trust Fund, and we especially welcome works from BIPOC and LGBTQIA2S+ poets.</div><div><br></div><div><b>What We Want</b></div><div>We are looking for quality above all else. Poems that speak of the lived experience; that make us feel something in the pit of our stomachs; that cause us to think and to question; that will keep us up nights or have us coming back for another read. We want poems written with not only content, but a careful attention to craft in mind; poetry that plays with language and says things in a way that only you can. Poems that will make us remember your name as a poet because the poem is unabashedly a manifestation of your being. </div><div><br></div><div>While we are interested in poetry from all walks of life, we are especially excited to read work from poets who identify as part of a marginalized group or community.</div><div>In short, we’re looking for objectively good poetry of any length (but please, no epic poems), so send us your bangers. #goodshit</div><div><br></div><div><b>What We Don’t Want</b></div><div>We are not looking to publish poems that preach hatred and violence, and poems that are overtly pornographic. (Basically, we don’t want anything that would require a content warning.)</div><div><br></div><div>Please read the guidelines in full on our Duosuma page, and we look forward to reading your work!</div><div><br></div>

General Poetry Submission Call

WAYE Small Press is now accepting poetry submissions for By the WAYE Issue 04's featured poet spot. <div><br></div><div>The featured poet spot in By the WAYE is much like the feature at the reading series/open mic we run––it’s the main event, a showcase of between 15 and 20 poems connected in some way (how loosely or how tightly is up to you) that introduces us to who you are as a poet.</div><div>Think of it like a music album, in which each poem can stand out on its own, but when organized in a particular way and read as whole, it creates a sharp throughline into the lived experience and human consciousness and connection.</div><div><br></div><div><b>About WAYE Small Press</b></div><div>WAYE Small Press is a poetry initiative designed to highlight a talented community of poets––locally, nationally, and globally––in a print magazine modeled after the in-person poetry/open mic events hosted at Sure Things Vintage in Jersey City, NJ, since 2022.</div><div>“WAYE” stands for “We Appreciate Your Enthusiasm,” the infamous first line of every rejection letter you’ve ever (or haven’t yet) received.</div><div><br></div><div><b>About By the WAYE</b></div><div>By the WAYE is an independent biannual print magazine of poetry and visual art.</div><div><br></div><div><b>Who May Submit to the Featured Poet Spot</b></div><div>Because being the featured poet for By the WAYE Issue 04 also means getting a feature at a special launch edition of our WAYE Poetry Reading Series, we are only accepting submissions from within the tristate area (New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut) and Philadelphia, PA. Furthermore, prospective featured poets must be willing to travel to Jersey City, NJ, at their own expense and be available to do a 20-minute feature set at the By the WAYE No. 04 Drop Party scheduled for Wednesday, November 18th, 2026.</div><div><br></div><div><b>What We’re Looking For in a Featured Poet</b></div><div>We are seeking quality above all else in the poems, both individually but also as a cohesive body of work. We want poems that speak of the lived experience; that make us feel something in the pit of our stomachs; that make us think and question. Poems that will keep us up nights, or keep us coming back for another read. Poems that work together the way a classic music album plays out seamlessly. Poetry that plays with language and says things in a way that only you can. Poems that will make us remember your name as a poet because the poem is unabashedly a manifestation of your being.</div><div><br></div><div>Overall, we’re looking for not only objectively good poetry, but your best work as a poet, so send us your bangers. #bestshit</div><div><br></div><div>That said, we ask that your poems adhere to these additional requirements:</div><div><br></div><div><ul><li><b>Attention to Craft</b> – not only seeing poetry as expression, but also a certain style, playfulness, and care as to how the piece is written in order to be expressed in the most powerful way possible</li><li><b>Versatility of Work</b> – the work should demonstrate the poet’s ability to play with mood, tone, pitch, and other aspects that will differentiate one poem from another in the submission.</li><li><b>Ability to Perform</b> – an understanding that poetry is performance, not just recitation, and that it takes practice, rehearsal, and fine-tuning to fully express oneself and the work. This is especially important since the featured poet also gets a 20-minute feature at WAYE: A Poetry Reading Series.</li></ul></div><div><br></div><div>While we are interested in poetry from all walks of life, we are especially excited to read work from poets who identify as part of a marginalized group or community, and we especially welcome works from BIPOC and LGBTQIA2S+ poets.</div><div><br></div><div>And as we are a Jersey City-based reading series and small press, we do prioritize poets from New Jersey for the featured poet spot, since WAYE Small Press is funded in part by a grant from the Jersey City Arts and Culture Trust Fund and because the commute is likely easier. (However, By the WAYE’s first ever featured poet hailed from Philadelphia, so it does go to show that we place quality of the work above all else.)</div><div><br></div><div><b>What We Don’t Want</b></div><div>We are not looking to publish poems that preach hatred and/or violence, and poems that are overtly pornographic. (Basically, we don’t want anything that would require a content warning.)</div><div><br></div><div>Before submitting to the By the WAYE Issue 04 featured poet spot, please be sure to read the guidelines in full and make sure you are eligible to submit to this coveted spot.</div><div><br></div>

Because being the featured poet for By the WAYE Issue 04 also means getting a feature at a special launch edition of our WAYE Poetry Reading Series, we are only accepting submissions from within the tristate area (New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut) and Philadelphia, PA. Furthermore, prospective featured poets must be willing to travel to Jersey City, NJ, at their own expense and be available to do a 20-minute feature set at the By the WAYE No. 04 Drop Party scheduled for Wednesday, November 18th, 2026.

By the WAYE Magazine

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