Crazyhorse

"Crazyhorse's mission is to publish the entire spectrum of today’s fiction, essays, and poetry—from the mainstream to the avant-garde, from the established to the undiscovered writer.

Crazyhorse was founded in 1960 by the poet Tom McGrath. Since that time, it has published esteemed writers such as John Updike, Raymond Carver, Jorie Graham, John Ashbery, Robert Bly, Ha Jin, W. P. Kinsella, Richard Wilbur, James Wright, Carolyn Forché, Charles Simic, Charles Wright, Billy Collins, Galway Kinnell, James Tate, and Franz Wright. In our pages, you’ll find some of the finest writing being published today: Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winners, Guggenheim fellows, NEA fellowship recipients, and authors with awards from the O. Henry Prize, Pushcart Prize, and Best American anthologies."

Prose Rejections

Standard

2018

Dear [First Last],

Thank you for sending us "Title of Story." While we weren't able to accept your work for publication at this time, we hope that you will consider submitting your work to us in the future.

Crazyhorse welcomes general submissions of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry from September 1st through May 31st, with the exception of the month of January, during which we only accept entries for the Crazyhorse Prizes, and the month of July, during which we only accept entries for Crazyshorts!, our annual short-short fiction contest. We ask that submissions of fiction and nonfiction be between 2,500 and 8,500 words in length. In the past, we have accepted work outside of this range, but it is an uncommon occurrence. For poetry, please submit a set of 3-5 poems.

We are happy to consider simultaneous submissions, but please notify us if your work has been accepted elsewhere. For prose, withdraw your submission in its entirety. Should any of your poems be accepted elsewhere, please add a note to your submission to alert us that they are no longer available. We will be happy to consider the remaining pieces.

Our response time is typically 16 weeks. If your work is under serious consideration, it may take longer.

As mentioned above, the Crazyhorse Prizes in Fiction, Nonfiction, & Poetry accepts entries from January 1st to January 31st. Submit short stories and nonfiction of up to 25 pages or a set of 1-3 poems. Winners in each genre receive $2,000 and publication. The entry fee includes a one-year subscription.

The Crazyshorts! Contest accepts entries from July 1st to July 31st. Submit 1-3 shorts of up to 500 words each. Each entry is considered for publication, and the entry fee includes a one-year subscription. The winner receives $1,000 and publication. Three runners up will be announced.

For more information, please visit our website: http://crazyhorse.cofc.edu

Wishing you the best of luck with your writing,

The Eds. Crazyhorse

2013

Dear Writer:

We appreciate the opportunity to read your work, but unfortunately this submission was not a right fit for Crazyhorse.

We wish you the best of luck placing your work elsewhere.

Sincerely,

The Editors of Crazyhorse

Higher Tier

Thank you for sending your manuscript "——," number —, to us here at Crazyhorse via the online submission manager. We are sorry this particular manuscript (with emphasis on "this particular") was not selected for publication in Crazyhorse. We hope you will send us another soon, though. We could not publish Crazyhorse without the fine writing we receive. And while we regret that the large number of submissions we receive makes it difficult for the editors to respond personally, we want to stress that an editor personally read your manuscript. Devoted reading is part of the Crazyhorse editorial mission; it is also our own personal one.

Thank you for supporting the journal with your reading, writing, and subscribing!

Higher Tier

Thank you for sending your manuscript "XXXXXX," number XXXX, to us here at Crazyhorse via the online submission manager. Ultimately, the manuscript was not selected for publication, but we want you to know that we very much enjoyed reading your work. The manuscript was one of the best we've read recently. It was difficult to say no.

We hope you will send us another manuscript to consider soon. Since we enjoyed this one, we hope to read more and to give your next manuscript our highest consideration.

If this manuscript was a prize entry: we are sorry this prize entry was not selected for the Crazyhorse fiction or poetry prize or for publication in Crazyhorse. We receive many fine prize entries, so it was a difficult decision to make. Thank you for sending us your manuscript to read, and thank you for supporting the nonprofit Crazyhorse with your entry's subscription. By the end of May we will announce the prize winners and finalists on the Crazyhorse website, by e-mail list, and by SASE if you included one with your entry.

Poetry rejections

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Dear NAME,

Thank you for sending your manuscript "POEMS," number XXXXXX, to us here at Crazyhorse via the online submission manager.

We are sorry this particular manuscript was not selected for publication in Crazyhorse. We hope you will send us another soon, though. We could not publish Crazyhorse without the fine writing submitted to us. While we regret that the large number of submissions we receive makes it difficult for the editors to respond personally, we want to emphasize that an editor personally read your manuscript. Devoted reading is part of the Crazyhorse editorial mission; it is also our own personal one.

If this manuscript was a prize entry: we are sorry this prize entry was not selected for the Crazyhorse fiction or poetry prize or for publication in Crazyhorse. We receive many fine prize entries, so it was a difficult decision to make. Thank you for sending us your manuscript to read, and thank you for supporting the nonprofit Crazyhorse with your entry's subscription. By the end of May we will announce the prize winners and finalists on the Crazyhorse website, by e-mail list, and by SASE if you included one with your entry.

Thank you for supporting the journal with your reading, writing, and subscribing, The Editors

2019

Dear first&last,

Thank you or sending us your poems. We appreciate the opportunity to read your work. While these particular poems don't fit our current needs, we hope you will consider submitting your work to us in the future.

[Note about annual poetry prize]

Wishing you the best of luck with your writing, The Eds. Crazyhorse

Higher Tier

Thank you for sending your manuscript xxx to us here at Crazyhorse via the online submission manager. Ultimately, the manuscript was not selected for publication, but we want you to know that we very much enjoyed reading your work. The manuscript was one of the best we've read recently. It was difficult to say no.

We hope you will send us another manuscript to consider soon. Since we enjoyed this one, we hope to read more and to give your next manuscript our highest consideration.

If this manuscript was a prize entry: we are sorry this prize entry was not selected for the Crazyhorse fiction or poetry prize or for publication in Crazyhorse. We receive many fine prize entries, so it was a difficult decision to make. Thank you for sending us your manuscript to read, and thank you for supporting the nonprofit Crazyhorse with your entry's subscription. By the end of May we will announce the prize winners and finalists on the Crazyhorse website, by e-mail list, and by SASE if you included one with your entry.

Yours, The Editors