Calls for Submissions
Essays and illustrations
Triangular Prism is open for essays submissions for its inaugural issue, scheduled for Spring of 2026.
We are looking for original literary essays that are centered on one or more particular works of cinema, or on other creations of sequential storytelling akin to cinema, such as comics.
We seek to publish insightful writing that examines and calls attention to the distinctiveness and the beauty of the artworks under discussion.
We are not looking for any kind of critiques or reviews, historical overviews, or broad generalisations. Pieces should be personal reflections revealing a full engagement with the thematic core of each work, and must not be the offshoot of fashions, ideologies, or any preconceived narratives and formulations.
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Additionally, we are looking for illustrations relating directly to the films and/or themes discussed in the essays we feature. A call for illustrations will open immediately after the release of an issue, requesting submissions of imagery relating to the contents of that issue. The call for illustrations for Issue Zero is open during the same period of the call for essays for Issue #1.
GUIDELINES
All submissions must be sent via the submissions management platform, linked below.
Please note that, to submit, a fee of €2 is required.
Guidelines for essays submissions:
Essays should be strictly between 1000 and 4500 words and written in the English language. We strongly discourage the use of either footnotes or endnotes.
All work must be original and previously unpublished. We do not publish work that has appeared previously in any form, on paper or online. (If you are submitting simultaneously to several venues and are accepted elsewhere, please notify us immediately or simply withdraw your submission via the platform.)
We read blindly. Your document should not include any personal identification, cover letter, or bio.
Only one submission per person is accepted per submission period.
We will try to respond in 3 to 4 weeks. We are not able to follow up on submissions individually, and will use the platform to respond. If your work is not accepted it may be for any number of reasons (especially the limited number of essays we publish) and not necessarily a reflection of the work’s quality.
Triangular Prism offers a payment of €15 per essay selected for publication. (Payments are made exclusively via PayPal or Stripe.) In addition, contributors will be offered free access on the site to the full issue in which they appear.
If selected for publication, writers will be asked to agree to the following conditions:
Being available to work with an editor to prepare their work for final publication. Editing may vary from minimal to extensive.
Granting Triangular Prism first serial rights and publishing exclusivity for one year. If the work is later reprinted elsewhere, we kindly ask the author to acknowledge its first appearance in Triangular Prism.
Granting the rights to republish the piece in any future Triangular Prism anthologies in print, such as the planned end-of-each-year print issue (in the event of being selected for that effect).
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Guidelines for illustrations submissions:
We will feature 1 illustration for each essay, displayed on the essay’s page, credited on that page and with a link to the artist’s site or social media profile.
Illustrations must be specifically about one of the films (or other works) that are the subjects of the essays appearing in the issue in question. Artists interested in submitting can refer to the contents page of the issue, where the titles of the films that are the subject of each piece are clearly mentioned.
For Issue Zero, we are looking for illustrations relating to the following films: All Is Lost; Grand Canyon; Life Lessons; Waking Life.
However, we will not be interested in featuring illustrations that are directly culled from the visuals of the film in question, but prefer imagery that relates to it by its theme, or is even inspired directly by one specific essay, i.e., by the writer’s own approach to the themes of the film. (Note: for Issue Zero, all the texts are open access. After issue #1, only one essay per issue will be open access.)
Only one image per person is accepted per submission period.
Any 2D visual can be submitted (drawing, painting, photography, mixed media, etc.) and any technique , traditional or digital. Files should be .jpg or .png in the highest quality possible (we may ask for a different file later if the work is selected to appear in print). The title of your file must be the title of the film that your illustration relates to.
We will respond in a few days after the end of the call period. We are not able to follow up on submissions individually, and will use the platform to respond. If your work is chosen, we will contact you for the follow up after sending the response via the platform.
Triangular Prism offers a payment of €10 per illustration selected for publication. (Payments are made exclusively via PayPal or Stripe.) In addition, contributors will be offered free access on the site to the full issue in which they appear ( Since Issue Zero is open access, artists chosen for this issue will be offered free access to Issue #1).
If selected for publication, artists will be asked to agree to the following conditions:
Being available to work with an editor on the adjustments needed for publication. Adjustments to the visuals will naturally be minimal or none at all.
Granting the rights to republish the work in any future Triangular Prism anthologies in print, such as the planned end-of-each-year print issue (in the event of being selected for that effect).
Submit art for Issue Zero here
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