Call for Submissions – Magma 96: The Antarctic

Submissions window open 1st March – 31st March 2026

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The Antarctic

There is a continuous, mutual impact between the Antarctic and our daily lives, yet the majority of us will never physically be there. Imagined centuries before it was discovered, Antarctica is an idea as much as a geographical place. Owned by no one, it belongs to us all.

Documenting her personal journey to the Antarctic, writer Jenni Diski described it as a place 

so untroubled by itself that the heart ached… truly a dream place where melting and movement seem[ed] only to increase immutability. Nothing stays the same, but nothing changes.

Antarctica is a paradox, a blank space, a white continent that harbours a dark subglacial world hidden from sunlight for millions of years, a place where all time zones converge, a place of connection, a natural laboratory, an archive in the ice. 

This distant frozen landscape has been storied variously by mythic imagination, heroic endeavour and extraordinary scientific discovery. We encourage you to plunge its hidden depths through your poetry. We are excited to read poems which are formally inventive and full of wonder, poetry that takes us on a journey, not just to the Ice, but to a hoped-for future or a place within. 

In the words of poet, activist and educator Nikki Giovanni, 

We have sent photographers, engineers, other science folk to Antarctica. It’s time for writers to serve… We need poetry. We need dreams.

Cheryl Moskowitz, Branwell Roberts, Elizabeth Lewis Williams                                                                                  Editors Magma 96: The Antarctic

Cheryl Moskowitz is a US-born, London-based writer and educator, and an editor at Magma Poetry. Her poetry collection The Fossil Issue is forthcoming from Black Cat Poetry Press in 2027. Wayward Thoughts, a CD of her poetry with lutenist Sam Brown, was released in 2025 (EPFH Records). A Proper Goodbye (Troika Books), a middle grade novel, will be published 2026.

Elizabeth Lewis Williams, PhD is a Norwich-based writer and teacher and the author of two books of Antarctic poetry: Deception Island and Erebus (Story Machine 2021, 2022). She is currently completing a work of creative non-fiction that brings together British Antarctic research and personal history.

Branwell Roberts is a British poet living and working in nipaluna/Hobart. They write poetry about Antarctica history, working towards a creative practice PhD at the University of Tasmania. Branwell’s Antarctic writing has recently appeared in The Association of Polar Early Career Scientists anthology Tales from the Poles.

HOW TO SUBMIT 

• The submissions window for ‘The Antarctic' is open 1st March – 31st March 2026
• We welcome poems that have not been previously published in print, online, or broadcast.
• We accept simultaneous submissions, but please withdraw your submission or contact us if it is accepted for publication somewhere else first.
• You may submit up to 4 previously unpublished poems: ONLINE via Submittable in a single Word document, OR BY POST to Magma 96 Submissions, 23 Pine Walk, Carshalton, SM5 4ES. Postal submissions are accepted from the UK and Ireland only. Postal submissions are not acknowledged until a decision is made.
• Please read full Submissions Guidelines here.

Welcome to the Magma Open Poetry Pamphlet Competition 2026, judged by Marjorie Lotfi.

Deadine: 1 July 2026

THE PRIZES

• First Prize: publication of the winning pamphlet + launch reading
• Poets on the shortlist of 10 will each get a paragraph of feedback from the judge
• The winner and 3 others will have a poem published in Magma
• All shortlisted poets will have a poem published on our website 
• Marjorie Lotfi will read 50 entries selected by Magma editors.   

OUR JUDGE 

Marjorie Lotfi is the author of The Wrong Person to Ask (Bloodaxe Books, 2023), which won the 2024 Forward Prize for Best First Collection and a James Berry Award. It was also shortlisted for the Saltire Prize for Best Book of Poetry and was a Poetry Book Society Special Commendation. Marjorie’s poetry has been published widely, including on London’s Poems on the Underground.

She says:

I’m looking for crafted poems that grab my attention and won’t let go. Usually, these are poems I return to because they surprise me, saying something new or something I thought I already knew. Because this is a pamphlet prize, I’malso looking for poems that speak to one another – the impact of any single poem will be broadened by the overall body of work.

Believe in something: your hands pressed                                                                                                                                   together, palm to palm, are my body folded                                                                                                                                 into the namaz; each of us maps ourselves                                                                                                                                 in the mirror, measures what we already know.

from Maman Bozorg by Marjorie Lotfi   

HOW TO ENTER

• NB Please make sure you have read all competition details and rules on the Magma website before entering. We advise entering in good time to avoid any last minute technical problems. 
• Marjorie and the Magma team look forward to reading your pamphlet, which should have 18-20 pages of poems. Remember that entries must be anonymous - please don’t put your name or contact details on any of the pages.
• Please fill in the form below and put the title of your pamphlet (but not your name) in the title box. In the contact details box list your name, address, email and phone number.
• Upload your pamphlet where it says "choose files". Your file may be in pdf, doc, docx, rtf, or odt formats. You will be given the option to pay by credit or debit card or PayPal. Payment must be in pounds sterling. Entry costs £22, or £16 if you are a Magma subscriber. Non-subscribers may pay the subscribers’ rate if they take out a subscription when they enter.
• Concessions: We are offering a limited number of free entries for those for whom the entry fee would be unaffordable. Please see the website for details.

COMPETITION RULES

• Please send us 18-20 pages of poems
• Poems should be typed in single spacing and in 12 font
• Start each poem on a new page. Maximum 40 lines per page. If you include a poem sequence in which the poems are 14 lines long or less, then you may put two on a page
• All poems must be your original work. They may have been published in magazines (paper or online) and anthologies but not in a pamphlet or collection
• Poems must be in the English language or any of its dialects. They must be for adults and must not be translations of someone else’s work
• Your pamphlet must have a title which should appear on each page. Please make a title page at the front of the document with the pamphlet title and list of contents
• Entries must be anonymous: no name or contact details on any page. Also do not include any previous publication credits or acknowledgements.
• The winner will be expected to take part in a launch for the pamphlet
• Anyone may enter unless they advise or work for Magma
• Simultaneous submissions are allowed but please let us know straight away if your pamphlet has been accepted elsewhere. The fee is not refundable
• No changes can be made once you have submitted the pamphlet
• In case of unforeseen circumstances Magma reserves the right to change the judge
• Deadline: Midnight UK time at the end of the day Monday 1 July 2026