Fiction and poetry submissions to Channel are now closed. Thank you to everyone who submitted work for Issue 10 – you can expect a response from us by the end of March. Essay and visual art submissions remain open year-round.


Channel’s aim is to provide a home for Irish and international writing that contributes to building rich, mutually sustaining relationships between human beings and the natural world. In all uses of the word, a “channel” exists to facilitate connection – to allow something, whether it be water, an electronic signal or a spirit, to pass through or towards something else. This journal exists to provide a passage through which ideas about human relationships with our environment, expressed and embodied in creative work, can flow.

We publish two print issues annually, usually in April and October each year. Each of these features a range of poetry, fiction and prose non-fiction (which may include interviews and commentary on creative work or community-based environmental projects, as well as essays and narrative pieces). We also regularly publish non-fiction on the Channel blog.

Poetry and fiction submissions are invited during a dedicated submission window ahead of each print issue. Non-fiction/essay submissions, which will be considered for publication either in print or online, are welcomed year-round. We also welcome submissions of visual art, to be featured on the covers of future print issues, at any time.

What We Publish
We publish new, previously unpublished work that engages with the natural world.

Although we draw inspiration from local and international traditions of nature writing, as well as from the many dedicated platforms for writing on climate and ecology that exist today, much of what we publish falls outside common definitions of nature writing and eco-writing. We love work that speaks directly of a writer’s bond with and fear for our planet, and work that takes a local landscape, or a local flower, as its subject; equally, though, we love work that draws on an aspect of nature as setting, image or metaphor. We believe that all writing relies to some extent on historical engagement with nature, in that all human language has been shaped by our embeddedness in our shared environments. The kind of work we want to publish is the kind that takes this seed of connection and runs with it, revelling in its potential and exploring how it might grow. The best way to understand the range of work we’re interested in is to read our current print issue or some of the work available on our blog.

We accept written work in English and Irish. Pieces written in Irish will be published bilingually, with an accompanying English translation by our Irish Language Editor, which will be shared with each piece’s author for approval before publication.

Although based in Ireland, Channel welcomes international submissions. We also welcome submissions in Irish or English translation. In the case of translated works, our arrangements for payment and publication will be made with the person – author or translator – who submits the piece. It is the responsibility of the submitter to make appropriate arrangements with anyone else who holds rights to the work.

We believe that creative work should be free to occupy as much space as is needed for its full development. With this in mind, we place no strict limit on the length of pieces that may be submitted for publication. Bearing in mind the limited space within each print issue, though, we are unlikely to offer a home for prose pieces of over 6000 words or poems of over 300 lines.

How to Submit
Poetry and fiction should be submitted only during our open submission windows.

Please submit your work as a Word document or PDF attachment to the relevant email address as listed below:

Essays/Non-fiction – essay@channelmag.org
Fiction – fiction@channelmag.org
Poetry – poetry@channelmag.org

Due to the volume of work we receive, we ask that writers submit no more than one essay, one short story and/or four poems per submission window. If you have an essay submission currently awaiting a response from us, please wait until you hear from us before submitting another essay.

Please do not include your name or any identifying information within your submission file. Although you are welcome to introduce yourself and to include biographical information within the body of your email, this is not a requirement. All submissions will be given equal consideration, and submissions by new writers, as well as by writers from backgrounds or communities currently underrepresented in Irish publishing, are particularly encouraged.

We aim to showcase a wide variety of voices within Channel. For this reason, we ask that if your work has been accepted for publication in Issue 9 you wait one issue before submitting again.

We welcome simultaneous submissions, but ask that you let us know as soon as possible if your work is accepted for publication elsewhere.

Visual Art Submissions
We are also seeking visual art (in any medium) to feature on the covers of our upcoming issues. As we wish to provide a showcase for local artists, we are currently accepting visual art submissions only from artists based on the island of Ireland. Please tell us a little about your practice, and submit a sample or samples of your work that you believe could become engaging cover art, at info@channelmag.org.

Payment & Rights
We believe in paying writers, and are working to increase the fees paid to our contributors.  At this time we can offer a fee of €35 per printed page, up to a total maximum of €250 per piece and with a minimum fee of €50 for single-page works. For work published online, we pay €35 per 400 words, up to a maximum of €250 per piece and with a minimum fee of €50. The artist whose work is featured on each of our covers will receive a fee of €250. All contributors to our print issues, including cover artists, will also receive a copy of the issue in which their work appears.

When a piece of written work is accepted for publication, Channel buys first serial rights. Work published in our print issues will also be included in any digital editions of the issue in which it appears, including the digital archive currently available to our patrons. Short extracts may be featured across our website and social media for promotional purposes. All other rights remain with you and you are welcome to republish your work following the launch of the issue in which it appears. We would be grateful if you mention Channel as the place of first publication.

When we pay for cover art, we are buying the right to reproduce the selected work on an issue’s cover, as well as on any promotional materials surrounding that issue. All other rights remain with the artist.

Is í an aidhm atá ag Channel baile a chur ar fáil i gcomhair scríbhneoireacht Éireannach agus idirnáisiúnta chun caidreamh luachmhara agus comhchothaithe a thógáil idir dhaoine agus an nádúr. I ngach úsáid den bhfocal, tá “channel” ann chun nasc a éascú – chun cuidiú le rud éigin – uisce, comhartha leictreach nó spiorad – a dul tríd, nó i dtreo, áit eile. Tá an iris seo ann chun pasáiste a chur ar fáil inar féidir smaointe faoin gcaidreamh idir dhaoine agus an timpeallacht, léirithe in obair chruthaitheach, a shruthú. 

Foilsímid dhá eagrán clóite in aghaidh na bliana, de ghnáth i mí Aibreáin agus mí Dheireadh Fómhair. San ionad, bíonn filíocht, ficsean agus prós neamhfhicsin (ina measc, agallaimh agus tráchtairacht ar obair chruthaitheach nó tionscadail phobalbhunaithe a dhíríonn ar an timpeallacht, chomh maith le haistí agus píosaí insinte). Foilsímid neamhfhicsean go minic ar bhlag Channel, freisin. 

Glactar le filíocht agus ficsean i rith tréimshí áirithe roimh gach eagrán clóite. Tá fáilte ar neamhfhicsean/aistí don bhliain ar fad. Glactar le saothair amhairc-ealaíne freisin, le bheith úsáidte ar chlúdaigh na n-eagrán ag aon am ar leith.

Cad a fhoilsímid
Foilsímid obair nua, neamhfhoilsithe, a bhaineann leis an dúlra.

Cé go bhfaighimid ionsparáid ó thraidisiúin áitiúila agus idirnáisiúnta i scríbhneoireacht nádúrtha, agus óna hardáin dhíosgraiseacha atá bunaithe ar an aeráid agus an éiceolaíocht atá ann faoi láthair, tá cuid maith den obair a fhoilsímid dírithe ar shainmhíniú neamhchoitianta ar scríbhneoireacht nádurtha agus éiceaolaíochta. Is breá linn obair a labhraíonn go dhíreach faoin gcaidreamh idir an phlainéid seo agus an údar, agus an imní a bhraitheann le seo, obair a thógann an tírdhreach áitiúla, nó bláth áitiúla, mar ábhair; agus go háirithe obair a dhíríonn ar an nádur mar shuíomh, mar íomha nó mar mheafar. Creidimid go mbraitheann gach píosa scríbhneoireachta ar an nasc stairiúil sin leis an dúlra, go bhfuil an dúlra fite fuaite i ngach teanga. Foilsímid an saghas obair a thógann an nasc seo agus a rithinn leis, ag ceiliúradh an cumas a bhfuil aige a fhás. An tslí is éasca an réimse oibre ina bhfuil suim againn a fheiceáil ná ár eagrán is déanaí, nó an obair atá againn ar bhlag Channel, a léamh. 

Glacaimid le saothair i mBéarla agus i nGaeilge. Beidh an obair lena nglactar foilsithe i struchtúr dátheangach, trí Ghaeilge, agus le aistriúchán Béarla curtha ar fáil ag an t-Eagarthóir Gaeilge, le cead an údair, roimh fhoilsitheoireacht. 

Cé go bhfuil Channel bunaithe in Éireann, cuirimid fáilte roimh obair idirnáisiúnta. Cuirmid fáilte roimh obair aistriúcháin i nGaeilge agus i mBéarla. Sa chás seo, beidh socruithe déanta againn i gcomhair íocaíocht agus foilseachán leis an duine – údar no aistritheoir – a chuireann an píosa isteach chugainn. Is é cúram an aistritheora atá ann é a réitiú le aon duine eile a bhfuil cearta foilseachán acu. 

Creidimid gur cheart d’obair chruthaitheach a bheith chomh fada nó chomh gearr mar is cóir, agus de bharr seo, níl líon focal againn i gcomhair do chuid oibre. Níl ach spás teoranta ag Channel, áfach, agus de bharr seo, de gnáth bímid ag foilsiú píosaí próis nach bhfuil níos mó ná 6000 focal, agus dánta nach bhfuil níos mó ná 300 línte. 

Conas do chuid oibre a chur isteach
Ní mór duit filíocht agus ficsean a chur isteach i rith na dtréimshí áirithe ina bhfuil muid oscailte. 

Le do thoil, chur do chuid oibre isteach mar dhoiciméad Word nó ceangal PDF, go dtí an seoladh ríomhphoist oiriúnach anseo:

Aistí/Neamhfhicsean – essays@channelmag.org
Ficsean – fiction@channelmag.org
Filíocht – poetry@channelmag.org

De bharr an méid oibre a fhaigheann muid, iarraimid gan ach aiste amháin, gearrscéal amháin agus/nó ceithre dhán a chur isteach in aghaidh an bhabhta. 

Le do thoil, ná chur d’ainm nó aon eolas aitheantais i do chomhad. Cé go bhfuil fáilte romhat tú féin a chur in aithne agus eolas beathaisnéise a chur i do ríomhphost, ní gá duit. Beidh gach píosa léite go neamhchlaonta, agus molaimid do scríbhneoirí nua, agus daoine ó ghrupaí faoi ghannionadaíocht i bhfoilsitheoireacht na hÉireann ach go háirithe, a gcuid oibre a chur isteach. 

Tá sé mar aidhm againn guthanna éagsúla a thaispeaint i Channel. Dá bharr seo, má tá saothar foilsithe agat san naoú eagrán, iarraimid ort fanacht go dtí an chéad ceann eile chun do chuid oibre a chur isteach arís. 

Amharcealaín
Chomh maith le seo, táimid ag lorg amharcealaín (in aon mheán) chun úsáid ar ár gclúdaigh i gcomhair na heagráin atá le teacht. Toisc go bhfuil muid ag iarraidh ardán a chur ar fáil d’ealaíontóirí áitiúla, nílimid ach ag glacadh le obair amharcealaíonta ó daoine atá bunaithe ar oileán na hÉireann. Le do thoil, inis dúinn beagán faoi do chleachtadh, agus seol chugainn cúpla samplaí oibre a chreideann tú a bheadh oiriúnach mar ealaín clúdaigh. 

Íocaíocht agus cearta
Creidimid in obair íochta, agus táimid ag deanamh ár ndícheall an íocaíocht seo a mhéadú. Faoi láthair, is féidir linn €35 a thabhairt go scríobhneoirí le haghaidh gach leathanach clóite, suas go €250, agus €50 ar a laghad d’obair aon-leathanach. I gcomhair obair foilsithe ar-líne, íocaimid €35 in aghaidh gach 400 líne, suas go €250, agus €50 ar a laghad. Gheobhaidh gach scríbhneoir, agus ealaíontóir, cóip den eagrán ina bhfuil a gcuid oibre foilsithe. 

Nuair a ghlactar le píosa, ceanaíonn Channel cearta an chéad fhoiseacháin. Beidh obair atá foilsithe san eagrán priontála curtha san áireamh san eagrán digiteach freisin, agus sa chartlann digiteach atá ar fáil dár bpátrúin. Tá seans ann go roinnfimid sleactha gearra ar ár suíomh greasáin agus ar ár meáin shóisialta le haghaidh poiblíochta. Fanann gach ceart eile leatsa, agus tá fáilte ort do chuid oibre a athfhoilsigh tar éis seoladh an eagráin sin. Bheimis buíoch díot má luann tú Channel mar áit an chéad fhoilsithe.

Nuair a íocann muid as ealaíon chlúdaigh, táimid ag ceannach na cearta chun an obair seo a athchruthaigh ar chlúdach an eagráin, agus ar aon ábhar poiblíochta a bhraitheann leis an eagrán sin. Fanann gach ceart eile leis an ealaíontóir.