Publication Submission Response Times

Poetry submission is like ice-skating in a competition on a rink with which you're only vaguely familiar. You never know who the other competitors are until it's too late, and you find out your scores four months after the event. The actual judging criteria are never disclosed. - Whimsy

The table below contains the average time for publications to respond.  These data are compiled from information provided by contributors and represents hundreds of submissions over a couple of years.

All data are in number of weeks.    The "Still Out" ones are the number of weeks since a submission was sent.  It may be assumed that the submissions coded "Never Responded" were out on the order of a year before the poet decided that a response was never forthcoming.

An analysis of the data has shown that some of the larger average response times are skewed by slow response in the summer months -- even when a publication indicates that it accepts in summer.

Publications that are associated with large-ish "Count" values are expected to be more reliable measures of actual response time, though you can expect your mileage to vary.  

An entry such as 15.5 (3) means that the average response time for that category was 15.5 weeks, based upon a sample of 3 submissions.

The average response times are color-coded as follows:

Green Average response was 4 weeks or less
Blue Average response was 8 weeks or less
Black Average response was 16 weeks or less
Red Average response more than 16 weeks


 

 

Publication Acceptance Rejection Not Accepting Still Out Never Responded Total Count
26 15.0 (1) 16.0 (3)   19.0 (1)   5
32 Poems 3.4 (9) 4.3 (22)   111.0 (1)   32
3d Bed 22.5 (2) 16.0 (4)       6
88 15.0 (1) 21.7 (3)       4
AGNI   3.5 (25) 1.7 (3)     28
Alabama Literary Review   22.5 (6)     (1) 7
Alaska Quarterly Review 11.7 (3) 12.9 (26)       29
American Letters and Commentary 15.5 (4) 18.6 (5) 10.0 (2)     11
American Literary Review 6.0 (3) 8.9 (9) 2.0 (1)     13
American Poetry Journal 3.0 (1) 5.7 (3)       4
American Poetry Review 24.0 (1) 9.0 (17)   2.0 (1) (1) 20
American Scholar   14.5 (2)       2
Amherst Review 7.0 (1) 9.0 (1)     (1) 3
Anon   12.0 (1)       1
Another Chicago Magazine 11.0 (1) 17.0 (8) 1.0 (1) 157.0 (1) (5) 16
Antietam Review 31.0 (1) 24.0 (3)       4
Antigonish Review   16.0 (1)       1
Antioch Review 14.5 (2) 7.3 (18) 2.5 (2) 111.0 (1)   23
Arabesques Print Review 9.0 (1)         1
Arshile   5.5 (4)       4
Ascent 17.0 (1) 15.5 (2) 3.0 (1)   (2) 6
Asheville Poetry Review 35.0 (1) 28.0 (2)     (1) 4
Atlanta Review 13.5 (2) 4.7 (24)     (1) 27
Atlantic Monthly 6.0 (1) 6.8 (12)   5.0 (1)   14
Aufgabe 18.0 (1)         1
Backward City Review   11.0 (2)       2
Baltimore Review   17.2 (5)     (1) 6
Barrow Street 7.0 (3) 9.7 (22)   55.3 (5) (5) 35
Bat City Review 4.0 (1) 42.0 (1)       2
Beacon Street Review 17.5 (2)       (1) 3
Bellevue Literary Review   7.0 (3)       3
Bellingham Review 23.0 (2) 11.5 (6) 2.0 (2)   (1) 11
Beloit Poetry Journal   3.6 (32)       32
Birmingham Poetry Review 7.3 (3) 10.5 (4) 3.0 (1)     8
Bitter Oleander 8.0 (1) 5.1 (7)     (1) 9
Black Warrior Review 15.0 (2) 15.0 (28) 1.0 (1) 58.0 (2) (1) 34
Blackbird 14.0 (1) 26.8 (4)   11.0 (1)   6
Blue Mesa Review   26.0 (2)       2
Blue Unicorn   10.0 (1)       1
Bombay Gin   14.0 (2)       2
Borderlands 17.2 (6) 11.5 (2)       8
Boston Phoenix   2.0 (1)       1
Boston Review 17.5 (2) 11.8 (17) 2.0 (3) 11.0 (1)   23
Boulevard 11.0 (1) 11.2 (13) 1.0 (1)   (2) 17
Brownstone Review   4.0 (1)       1
Burnside Review   10.0 (1)       1
California Quarterly   27.0 (1)     (1) 2
Calyx Journal   12.0 (1)       1
Canary 2.0 (1) 17.3 (4)       5
Canary River Review 3.0 (1)         1
Carolina Quarterly 11.0 (1) 22.0 (1)     (1) 3
Chain   11.0 (1)       1
Chariton Review   5.5 (11)       11
Chattahoochee Review 26.0 (1) 19.3 (8)       9
Chelsea 13.3 (4) 10.7 (13) 5.3 (6)     23
Chicago Review   18.5 (6)     (1) 7
Chiron Review 7.0 (2) 3.0 (2)       4
Christian Century 6.0 (1) 3.7 (3)       4
Cider Press Review 23.0 (2)         2
Cimarron Review 27.0 (1) 5.4 (8)   11.0 (1)   10
Cincinnati Review   5.6 (5)       5
Circumference 10.0 (1)         1
Clackamas Literary Review   17.3 (3)       3
Clark Street Review   3.7 (3)       3
Coal City Review   16.0 (1)       1
Cold Mtn. Review         (1) 1
Colorado Review 4.8 (4) 6.8 (18)     (1) 23
Columbia   14.5 (2)       2
Columbia Poetry Review         (1) 1
Comstock Review 24.0 (1) 8.0 (1)       2
Concho River Review 8.5 (2) 7.5 (3)       5
Conduit 21.3 (3)         3
Conjunctions 9.0 (1) 10.0 (7) 3.0 (2)     10
Connecticut Review   11.2 (11) 2.0 (1)   (1) 13
Court Green 23.5 (2) 17.0 (2)   11.0 (1)   5
Crab Creek Review 24.0 (1) 10.5 (2)       3
Crab Orchard Review 12.0 (1) 10.6 (31) 1.5 (2)     34
Cranky 2.0 (1) 5.0 (1)       2
Crazyhorse 17.5 (2) 15.4 (14)     (1) 17
Cream City Review 19.0 (1) 12.2 (12) 3.0 (2)     15
CrossConnect 35.5 (2) 6.0 (1)     (1) 4
Crowd   6.7 (3)       3
Crucible 19.0 (4)         4
Cue 7.0 (2)         2
Cutbank   15.9 (7)     (1) 8
Dark Horse 28.0 (1)         1
Delmar     34.0 (1)     1
Denver Quarterly 3.0 (2) 10.7 (24)   111.0 (1)   27
Diagram 8.0 (2)         2
Diner 7.0 (1)         1
Distillery   12.8 (4)     (1) 5
Double Room 11.0 (1)         1
Double Take   13.7 (3)     (1) 4
DoubleTake   20.5 (2)       2
Edge City Review 25.0 (1)         1
Eleventh Muse 2.5 (2) 1.5 (2)       4
Elixir         (1) 1
Evansville Review 19.5 (2) 18.8 (5)       7
Factorial   13.0 (1)       1
Facture   14.5 (2)       2
Faultline 2.0 (1) 5.0 (1)       2
Fence   12.7 (10) 3.0 (1)   (3) 14
Field   6.3 (34)       34
Fine Madness   17.0 (7)       7
Five Points   12.0 (10) 2.5 (2)   (1) 13
Flint Hills Review 8.0 (1)         1
Florida Review 17.0 (1) 11.2 (9)       10
Flyway 20.0 (1) 15.5 (2)       3
Fourteen Hills 15.5 (2) 15.0 (2)       4
Free Lunch   7.3 (3)       3
Fugue   16.4 (5)       5
G.W. Review 17.0 (1) 24.5 (2)     (3) 6
Gargoyle 0.0 (1) 6.7 (3)     (1) 5
Gecko   33.0 (1)       1
Georgetown Review   11.0 (1)       1
Georgia Review 5.0 (2) 11.8 (17)   50.0 (2) (1) 22
Gettysburg Review 29.0 (3) 21.7 (18) 2.0 (1)   (1) 23
Grain 17.0 (1)         1
Grand Street   12.1 (10) 10.5 (2)   (1) 13
Grasslands Review   31.0 (1) 1.0 (1)     2
Green Hills Literary Lantern   6.5 (2)       2
Green Mountains Review 8.7 (3) 14.2 (9) 2.5 (2)   (1) 15
Greensboro Review 7.0 (1) 19.2 (5)     (1) 7
GSU Review 6.0 (1) 4.0 (2)       3
Gulf Coast 8.3 (6) 12.3 (6)       12
Gulf Stream   16.0 (1)       1
Hambone 5.5 (2) 18.5 (2)       4
Hanging Loose   7.6 (5)       5
Harpur Palate 16.0 (3) 14.5 (2)       5
Harvard Review 4.0 (2) 8.7 (11)       13
Hayden's Ferry Review   20.6 (9)       9
Heliotrope 8.0 (1) 77.0 (1)       2
Hiram Poetry Review   11.7 (3)       3
Hotel Amerika 9.0 (1) 6.7 (3)   11.0 (1)   5
Hudson Review 20.0 (1) 19.2 (10) 1.5 (2) 5.0 (1)   14
Hunger Mountain   6.7 (3)       3
Idaho Review   34.0 (1)       1
Image 20.0 (2) 48.3 (3)       5
Indiana Review 16.2 (5) 15.1 (21)   61.0 (2) (1) 29
Into The Teeth of the Wind 17.0 (1)         1
Iowa Review 7.0 (2) 6.0 (11) 4.5 (4)   (1) 18
Journal 14.0 (2) 12.0 (16)   11.0 (1)   19
jubilat   17.4 (19)     (2) 21
Kalliope   8.0 (1)       1
Karamu 23.0 (1) 10.2 (5) 2.5 (2)     8
Kenyon Review 9.8 (5) 9.5 (15) 3.2 (5)     25
Laurel Review 7.0 (1) 10.8 (9) 4.0 (1)     11
Licking River Review   12.0 (1)       1
Light Quarterly   10.0 (1)       1
Literal Latté   20.0 (1)       1
Literary Review   11.5 (2)   157.0 (2)   4
Long Shot   13.3 (4)       4
Louisiana Literature   2.7 (3)       3
Louisville Review   28.0 (1)       1
Lullwater Review   27.3 (3)       3
Lyric 10.0 (1) 10.7 (3)       4
Mad Poetry Review         (1) 1
Main Street Rag 7.0 (1)         1
Manhattan Review   42.5 (4)       4
Mankato Poetry Review 12.0 (1) 24.0 (1)       2
Many Mountains Moving 20.5 (4) 24.6 (5)   140.0 (1) (3) 13
Margie 1.0 (3) 1.7 (6)       9
Marlboro Review   16.0 (6) 1.0 (1)     7
Mars Hill Review 26.0 (1) 48.0 (1)       2
Maryland Poetry Review     6.0 (2)     2
Massachusetts Review 15.0 (1) 7.3 (18)   14.0 (1) (1) 21
Meridian   10.8 (5)       5
Michigan Quarterly Review 4.0 (1) 2.2 (23)     (1) 25
Mid-America Poetry Review 4.0 (1)         1
Mid-American Review 7.0 (1) 9.0 (21)   48.0 (1)   23
Midwest Poetry Review   13.0 (1)     (2) 3
Midwest Quarterly 4.0 (4) 5.5 (4)       8
Minnesota Review   9.0 (1)       1
Mississippi Review   11.0 (7) 3.0 (4)     11
Missouri Review   7.0 (17)     (1) 18
MÖBIUS 11.0 (1)         1
Nation   7.2 (5)       5
National Poetry Review 4.0 (2) 3.0 (7)       9
Natural Bridge 10.0 (1) 14.5 (2)       3
Nebraska Review   13.9 (8) 1.3 (4)   (1) 13
New American Writing 20.5 (2) 4.3 (8) 2.0 (1)     11
New Criterion 10.0 (1) 10.5 (6)       7
New Delta Review   6.3 (3)       3
New England Review 15.0 (1) 8.3 (22) 11.5 (2)     25
New Laurel Review   22.0 (2)       2
New Letters   19.0 (2)       2
New Letters Magazine   23.0 (1)     (1) 2
New Orleans Review   8.7 (6)     (1) 7
New Republic 4.0 (1) 11.6 (8)   7.0 (1) (1) 11
New York Quarterly   7.0 (2)       2
New Yorker   27.2 (9)   8.0 (1) (4) 14
New Zoo Poetry Review   8.0 (1)       1
Nimrod 16.0 (1) 5.3 (4)       5
Ninth Letter 4.5 (2) 5.3 (3)       5
No   18.3 (4)       4
North American Review 26.0 (3) 25.0 (6) 10.0 (1)   (1) 11
Northwest Florida Review   27.5 (2)       2
Northwest Review 7.0 (1) 9.2 (6)       7
Notre Dame Review 10.0 (2) 8.5 (4) 2.0 (3)     9
Octopus 2.0 (1)         1
Ontario Review   7.8 (5)     (1) 6
Oyster Boy Review   14.0 (1)       1
Pacific Review 8.0 (2) 13.0 (1)       3
Painted Bride Quarterly   39.7 (3)     (1) 4
Palo Alto Review   20.0 (1)       1
Paris Review   15.2 (23) 19.5 (2)   (1) 26
Parnassus   4.0 (2)       2
Partisan Review 19.0 (1) 3.0 (1)       2
Pearl   6.5 (2) 27.5 (2)     4
Pebble Lake Review 4.3 (3) 8.0 (1)       4
Petroglyph   9.0 (2)       2
Pikeville Review   13.0 (1)       1
Pinyon Poetry   17.0 (2) 1.0 (1)     3
Plainsongs 5.5 (2) 17.0 (1)       3
Pleiades 5.2 (5) 9.1 (22)   13.0 (1)   28
Ploughshares 12.2 (6) 12.6 (31) 1.4 (5) 49.3 (3) (2) 47
Poet Lore 8.5 (2) 10.2 (5)       7
Poetry 9.5 (2) 6.2 (38)       40
Poetry Northwest   5.8 (6)       6
POOL 3.7 (3)         3
Portland Review 8.0 (1) 17.3 (4)       5
Post Road 12.5 (2) 22.0 (1)     (1) 4
Potomac Review   16.8 (4)     (1) 5
Potpourri 6.0 (1)         1
Prairie Schooner 12.0 (1) 14.2 (18) 6.5 (4)     23
Primavera   24.0 (1)       1
Puerto del Sol   9.0 (2)       2
Quarterly West 19.5 (4) 16.1 (12) 3.0 (3)     19
Rag Mag         (1) 1
Raritan         (1) 1
Rattapallax 2.0 (1) 11.3 (7)     (1) 9
Rattle 5.3 (4) 6.3 (12)       16
Red Cedar Review   19.5 (4)       4
Red River Review   12.0 (1)       1
Red Rock Review   22.0 (2)       2
Redactions 3.0 (2) 8.7 (3)       5
Rhino   12.4 (5)       5
Rivendell 1.0 (1) 20.0 (1)       2
River City   11.2 (5)       5
River King Poetry Supplement 12.0 (1)         1
River Styx   22.3 (15) 1.3 (3)   (2) 20
Roanoke Review 22.0 (1)       (1) 2
Runes 11.0 (1)         1
Salmagundi 2.0 (3) 8.7 (3) 14.0 (1)   (1) 8
Salt Fork Review   2.0 (2)       2
Salt Hill 8.0 (1) 19.6 (7) 5.0 (1)   (1) 10
Seattle Review   40.7 (3)       3
Seneca Review 12.0 (2) 11.9 (14)       16
Sentence 44.0 (1) 15.0 (2)   25.0 (1)   4
Sewanee Review   5.9 (10)     (1) 11
Shade     2.0 (1)     1
Shenandoah   5.3 (23) 2.5 (2)     25
Shiny   9.0 (1)       1
Sierra Nevada College Review 3.0 (1)         1
Skanky Possum     2.0 (3)     3
Slate   7.0 (1)       1
Small Spiral Notebook   5.0 (1)       1
Smartish Pace   21.8 (5)     (2) 7
Smiths Knoll   3.0 (1)       1
Snow Monkey 2.0 (1) 30.0 (1)       2
Sonora Review   38.0 (1)       1
South Carolina Review 7.0 (1) 9.0 (3)     (1) 5
South Dakota Review   16.5 (4)     (2) 6
Southeast Review   12.0 (5)     (2) 7
Southern Humanities Review   9.0 (1)       1
Southern Humanities. Review 4.0 (1)         1
Southern Indiana Review   14.0 (1)       1
Southern Poetry Review 24.3 (3) 12.4 (8)       11
Southern Review 5.7 (3) 5.3 (29) 0.0 (1)     33
Southwest Review 13.0 (1) 6.0 (22) 3.0 (2)     25
Sou'wester 13.0 (1) 15.0 (1)     (1) 3
Spillway   4.0 (1)     (1) 2
Spindrift 10.0 (1) 32.5 (2)       3
Spinning Jenny   18.0 (1)       1
Spoon River Poetry Review 7.5 (2) 10.7 (12) 2.0 (1)     15
Spoon River Review   16.0 (2)       2
Square Lake   6.0 (1)       1
storySouth 27.0 (1)         1
Subtropics 5.0 (2) 1.0 (1)       3
Swink   21.5 (2)       2
Sycamore Review 15.3 (4) 8.7 (7)     (1) 12
Talking River Review 30.0 (1)         1
Tampa Review   27.0 (1) 2.0 (1)     2
Tar River Poetry   3.9 (7)       7
Texas Review   9.2 (5)     (3) 8
The Hat 25.5 (2)         2
The MacGuffin         (1) 1
The Rialto   26.0 (1)       1
Third Coast   15.6 (13)   11.0 (1) (1) 15
Threepenny Review   3.5 (13) 2.0 (2)     15
Tin House 21.0 (1) 14.4 (5)     (2) 8
TriQuarterly 5.6 (5) 12.4 (8) 1.5 (2)   (1) 16
Turnrow   12.3 (3)       3
Two Rivers Review 14.0 (1) 4.8 (5)       6
Typo 2.0 (1)         1
Underwood Review         (1) 1
Verse 5.0 (2) 12.6 (12) 1.0 (1)     15
Virginia Quarterly Review 6.7 (3) 14.9 (9) 3.0 (1) 11.0 (1) (2) 16
Volt 8.0 (1) 15.0 (1) 8.0 (1) 39.0 (1)   4
Washington Square   21.0 (6)       6
Water-Stone Review   23.5 (2)     (1) 3
Weber Studies   36.5 (2)       2
West Branch 10.0 (3) 6.7 (6)       9
Western Humanities Review   9.5 (8) 4.0 (1)   (1) 10
Westview 24.0 (1)         1
Whetstone   8.0 (1)       1
Willow Springs   18.7 (3)       3
Wind         (1) 1
Windhover 8.0 (1) 15.0 (1)     (1) 3
Wisconsin Review   7.0 (1)       1
Witness   16.0 (4) 4.0 (1)     5
XCP   18.0 (1)       1
Yale Review 3.5 (2) 10.4 (16)     (1) 19
Yalobusha Review         (1) 1
Yankee   3.0 (1)       1
Yemassee 22.7 (3) 5.0 (1)       4
Overall 11.9 (309) 11.4 (1714) 4.3 (115) 49.5 (40) (115) 2293