Submissions

*Montréal Serai* respects access copyright understanding on intellectual property rights. We do not publish without the permission and acquiescence of the writer.

Proposed themes for 2026

To all writers, poets, artists, musicians, essayists and critical thinkers who plan to contribute or send pitches to Montréal Serai in the coming year:

Please note that submissions related to the four themes outlined below will be published progressively over the year, instead of quarterly. The theme descriptions will be completed soon.

Hope has two daughters
Just peace, just healing
Adornment as armour – See theme description below
Bringing the margins to the other margins

Please send us your original, unpublished work along with a short bio, indicating the theme that resonates with your work, using the following submissions form: http://forms.gle/fm7BTUje5X4WCg56A

The Serai Editorial Board will evaluate submissions on a bimonthly basis. The earlier in the year that you submit, the greater your chances of acceptance. Later submissions that enter into dialogue with earlier works on the same theme are most welcome.

First submission deadline in 2026 for all four themes: February 15

If you have any questions, please contact us at seraieditor@gmail.com.

THEMES IN 2026

Theme 1 – Hope has two daughters

Please send us your original, unpublished work along with a short bio, and indicate the theme “Hope has two daughters,” using the following submissions form: http://forms.gle/fm7BTUje5X4WCg56A

Theme co-editors: Clémentine Jérier & Baptiste Edouard

Theme 2 – Just peace, just healing

Please submit your original, unpublished poems, prose, art, music and multimedia pieces, along with a short bio, and indicate the theme “Just peace, just healing,” using the following form:

http://forms.gle/fm7BTUje5X4WCg56A

Theme editor: Himmat Singh Shinhat

Theme 3 – Bringing the margins to the other margins

Please submit your original, unpublished poems, prose, art, music and multimedia pieces, along with a short bio, and indicate the theme “Bringing the margins to the other margins,” using the following form:

http://forms.gle/fm7BTUje5X4WCg56A

Theme co-editors: Lisa Foster & Nicola Vulpe

Theme 4 – Adornment as armour

We encourage contributions that deal with how people use bodily adornment and rituals as protective mechanisms and social identifiers. How do the ways in which we adorn ourselves disrupt the social fabric of our world, from trans peoples’ use of gender gear, to men wearing nail polish, to people accessorising with keffiyehs? What are the ways in which trans people use adornment to affirm themselves in their bodies?

In a time of state transphobia, xenophobia and anti-Muslim racism in Québec that legislates discrimination against hijab-wearing women and turban-wearing Sikhs, we ask contributors to consider the messy boundary between “clothing” and extensions of the body itself. How might trans people’s use of gender-affirming adornments relate to the donning of fabric stigmatised by the state as “religious”?

And what about Indigenous expressions of “adornment as armour”? Can tattooing, beadwear and ceremonial regalia serve as protection? From the Black is Beautiful movement in the ’60s to contemporary struggles for proud inclusion by diverse marginalized communities, how do adornments add to our sense of self, and what do they signal to others? What are the consequences of making ourselves more visible?

Please submit your original, unpublished poems, prose, art, music and multimedia pieces, along with a short bio, and indicate the theme “Adornment as Armour,” using the following submissions form:

http://forms.gle/fm7BTUje5X4WCg56A

Theme co-editors: Sri They’vi & Pasha M. Khan

Submissions: http://forms.gle/fm7BTUje5X4WCg56A
Problems with using the form: seraimtl+submissions@gmail.com
Questions: seraieditor@gmail.com

Snail mail

Montréal Serai
P.O. Box 22516,
Montreal RPO Monkland
Montréal, Québec
Canada H4A 3T4

Submission guidelines

Montréal Serai welcomes your own original, unpublished submissions of art, cartoons, prose, poetry or fiction. Written submissions may not exceed 3,000 words. Audio and audio-visual components are welcome. Submissions published on your personal blog may be considered if you identify them as such and provide appropriate links. Montréal Serai reserves the right to reject any submission that does not meet its standards or mandate, and will not entertain violent or sexually explicit material or material that does not respect human dignity or that offends minorities on the basis of race, gender, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, disability or personal beliefs.

Prior publication of all or part of the submitted work must be explicitly stated in the submission. If a contributor is found to have violated Montréal Serai guidelines, the submission will be withdrawn from the issue.

Multimedia requirements

Visual art, Photo essay, reportage
A maximum of eight photographs will be allowed in the case of visual art submissions. Acceptable file formats include .jpg, .pdf, .png and .tif.

Minimum width: 1600px
Maximum width: 3200px
Max file size: 5mb

Audio & video
Videos should be in .mpg or mp4 format. Videos will be published to the Montréal Serai YouTube. Audio can be provided as .wav or .aif and will be hosted and streamed from on our local server.

Visual art, photo essay, reportage
A maximum of eight photographs will be allowed in the case of visual art submissions. Acceptable file formats include .jpg, .pdf, .png and .tif.

Minimum width: 1600px
Maximum width: 3200px
Max file size: 5mb

Please note that once a submission is accepted, all efforts will be made to respect the spirit of formatting, spacing, etc. used in the original submission. However, these aspects cannot always be guaranteed.

The online layout of a particular piece is viewer-dependent and relies (dynamically) on aspects such as the user’s device, screen size, resolution, and other factors. If a specific layout is absolutely necessary, we recommend that the author provide a high-resolution image of the text with the appropriate layout.

Montréal Serai is a digital magazine with universal, free access. Readers may request a free subscription for advance notifications. Although the editorial team volunteers its time, we make it our priority to pay contributors with the remainder of funds from grants from the Canada Council for the Arts (after operating expenses are taken care of). Ex gratia honoraria are provided at the discretion of the editorial board for accepted and published work.

Although we welcome experiments in language and deliberate lapses, contributions will be subject to rigorous standards of editing.

Kindly provide your author’s biography of no more than 75 words, including social media handles and website links. By submitting via email or post, the author is deemed to have accepted Montréal Serai’s terms and conditions.

Snail mail submissions must be signed by the author, otherwise they will not be entertained. They must include an email address for acknowledgement and urgent communication. Photographs and texts will not be returned unless accompanied by a self-addressed stamped envelope.

Policies

Copyright ownership

If reprinted elsewhere, a note crediting original publication at Montréal Serai should be included.
Montréal Serai reserves the right to republish the article in the future. Every attempt will be made to advise the contributor at that time.

Interview guidelines

Right to refuse interviews: A person may refuse to participate in a discussion or interview. Montréal Serai does not require that any reason be given.
Interview use: Prior to an interview, the Montréal Serai interviewer must inform the interviewee about the use of the interview. The interviewee will not necessarily be contacted about further uses of the material. However, where possible, the interviewee will be given the chance to review the article prior to publication.
Notification of the start of the interview: The Montréal Serai interviewer must clearly indicate to the interviewee the start of the interview. Material collected from that interviewee before the start of the interview may not be used without prior consent of the interviewee.
Payment to interviewees: Montréal Serai does not pay interviewees.
Disagreement about publication: Once material has been recorded (digitally, by hand, or by other means) by Montréal Serai, final decisions on publication of the material remain at the discretion of Montréal Serai’s editorial board. It is understood that the interviewee has assented to publication of the material by participating in the interview at the time of recording.

Content permanence

Our website serves as an archive of the work done by Montréal Serai. Any submission will thus be archived for posterity.

Links

Montréal Serai may sometimes provide a link to websites that do not share its editorial view but provide useful insights. Montréal Serai is not responsible for the content on these sites.

Content sharing with other online publications

Montréal Serai content may be linked to other organizations or reprinted with the consent of Montréal Serai’s editorial board, providing that full credit and linking to Montréal Serai is included. Rights to the reprinted pieces remain with the author.

Reprints

Montréal Serai clearly credits other publications when material is reprinted from another source.

Warranties, representations, indemnities

The Writer warrants and represents that:

all of the Work shall be wholly original, except as to matters within the public domain
none of the Work shall infringe upon or violate the rights of privacy or publicity of, or constitute defamation against, or violate any common law or any other rights of, any person, firm or corporation.