Southword - submissions now open

A quick note to say that my new role as Fiction Ed for 2010 of Southword, Munster Literature Centre's esteemed literary journal, has begun, and submissions are now open. I have copied and pasted the Submission Guidelines are as follows (please don't submit directly to me):

Submission Guidelines

Southword has published the likes of Haruki Murakami, James Lasdun, and Colm Toibín if you would like to join their esteemed company carefully read the directions which follow.

1 All manuscripts must be sent via email to the appropriate editors, during open reading times only. Email addresses will be made available during open reading times on this page. (See item #6). Submissions are no longer accepted by post, as Southword is now an online journal.

2. Work should be submitted as an attached document. The end of the Microsoft Word file name should read ' .doc' ONLY. Please be aware that if you have the most recent Microsoft Word program, it will automatically save as a ' .docx ', which we do not accept. Please manually save the file using 'Save As' as a 'Word 97 - 2003 Document'. If you are a Mac user, please send us an ' .rtf' file or paste your work into the body of an e-mail.

3. If submitting poems and prose simultaneously they will be considered by different editors at different times, so to be sure of a response please email the appropriate editor. To submit poetry, please e-mail poetryeditor@munsterlit.ie. To submit short fiction, please email fictioneditor@munsterlit.ie.

4. There is a strict submission limit of 5 poems or 3000 words in short stories. If submitting multiple poems, they should be contained within one document please.

5. Attach an up-to-date biographical note with a cover letter, keeping with the document format instructions in point #2.

6. Both Poetry and Fiction are considered between January and March 15th each year for our summer issue. Poetry alone is considered between July and September 15th for our winter issue. PLEASE NOTE after the close of the submission date the poetry editor will make a selection. Because of the number of submissions it may not be possible to reply individually. If no response has been received by the end of September please assume that your submission has been unsuccessful.

Visit Southword online to read the current issue. But in terms of my personal tastes, I am open to everything from the very tiny right up to 3000-word stories as long as you surprise me, you never give me a minute to think, Hmm, do I want to carry on reading this? I love experimental work, but not for the sake of it. It's still got to be a great short story. Is this helpful? Probably not! I read so many short stories for review for The Short Review, so much that I would never have read because it is shelved under some "genre" or other, that I would never say that there is any type I won't read. My mind is open. Delight me.