New Zealand Poetry Society

a fine line is the New Zealand Poetry Society’s quarterly magazine. Each issue contains feature articles, poetry book reviews, members’ poems, haiku, art, plus a seasonal featured poet.

We only publish poems written by our members, so we encourage you to join or renew your membership if you’d like to share your work. Non-members are welcome to send work for consideration for other sections of the magazine.

One of the many ways we support NZ poets is to put forward every edition of the magazine for consideration in the annual Best New Zealand Poems.

Submission Guidelines

We publish four themed issues a year of members’ poems, haiku, articles, including a ‘talk poem’ and regional reports, poetry book reviews, art and interviews on all things poetry. Send us contemporary literary work that inspires, intrigues, palpitates the heart and journeys the mind. Please view previous issues in our archive for the kind of work we prefer.

For specific guidelines for each category – poetry, articles, reviews, art, etc, see below.

For enquiries and submissions (except for reviews) please email Gail Ingram editor@poetrysociety.org.nz
For reviews, please email Erica Stretton reviews@poetrysociety.org.nz

Attach a single document in a Word file, using 12pt plain font. Please refer to our style sheet and edit your work accordingly before sending in.

Include in the body of your email:
* bio (strictly 30 words maximum)
* contact details (postal and email addresses)
* renewal date of NZPS financial membership for Members’ Poems and Haiku submissions

Authors retain all rights. However, we would appreciate an acknowledgement of a fine line in any subsequent publication.

Featured Poet

By invitation only.

Members’ Poems

NZPS members may submit poems. We occasionally publish the work of non-members, by invitation only. Poems may be unpublished or previously published.
Specifications: Send up to four poems up to 40 lines each as either one attachment or pasted into the body of the email. If previously published, please include the name of the publication in which they appeared.

Members’ Haiku

NZPS members may submit haiku. We occasionally publish the work of non-members, by invitation only. Poems may be unpublished or previously published.
Specifications: Send up to four haiku, unthemed, as either one attachment or in the body of the email. If previously published, please include the name of the publication in which they appeared.

Feature Articles

We are keen to publish articles that encourage and strengthen readers’ and writers’ relationship with poetry. We would also like to see articles that can assist NZPS’s readership in practical areas, such as poetry publishing or poetry performance. NZPS members include beginner, emerging, and established poets, so the article needs to be of relevance to them. The subject matter is open.
Members’ contributions will have precedence.
Specifications: 750-1500 words, excluding any poetry quotations.

Poetry Book Reviews

We have limited review spots, but please get in touch if you would like to be considered as a reviewer for a fine line. We have a set list of books available that can be requested for review. Once a book has been received by a reviewer, the review should be completed within three months. Reviewers keep the book. We will also consider unsolicited reviews of other books, depending on space.
Specifications: 500-1000 words, excluding quotations — although this is negotiable, depending on the nature of the book under review.
Publishers, please drop us a line at reviews@poetrysociety.org.nz and let us know if you would like to send us a book to review.

Talk Poem

The purpose of the Talk Poem is to introduce readers to new poetry, and to assist readers to improve their understanding of poetry. In essence, it is one poet discussing a poem by another poet, either because it is a favourite of the writer (who will be explaining why), or because it has something to teach the reader about the craft of poetry.
Preference given to NZPS members, though non-members’ submissions are carefully considered, and selected, if of a good standard.
Specifications: Include the poem and name of poet, title and publisher of the book in which it appears (if applicable).

Letters to the Editor

Readers are invited to comment on magazine content, or any other subject of interest to lovers of poets and poetry.
Letter writers need not be members of the NZPS.
Specifications: Length is negotiable, although the letter may be abridged at the discretion of the Editor. Letters are accepted via email and post.

Regional Reports

This is an occasional column reporting on poetry events around the country. Writers may include poems from a reading or workshop they are reporting on, with the poet’s permission. Please be sure to check the accuracy of any poems used, including punctuation, line breaks, and spelling.
Reporters need not be members of the NZPS.

Art

Digital artists are invited to submit art on the season’s theme to be considered for the cover of a fine line or to be used throughout the issue in the headers, alongside poetry from a wide range of writers from Aotearoa. The journal is produced for both digital subscribers in colour and print subscribers in black and white, so your colour images should be able to translate clearly to black and white.
Preference is given to NZPS members, though non-members’ submissions will be considered.
Specifications: Send a selection of high quality digital art images in jpeg or png files suitable for the theme of the issue. Each image should be able to be used in either colour or black and white.

2023 Deadlines and Themes

Autumn edition: deadline 10 March
Theme: History/Tāhuhu Kōrero

Winter edition: 10 June
Theme: Student edition/Open Theme

Spring edition: deadline 10 September
Theme: Art/ Mahi Toi (includes ekphrastic poetry, submissions of art and poetry from poet-artists and poems about art)

Summer edition: deadline 19 November
Theme: Maths and Science/Pāngarau me Pūtaiao (including Fibonnaci and Pi poems, poems inspired by fractals, prime numbers, physics, biology, chemistry)

Don’t miss out! Join or renew your membership to submit your poems to these themes.

Payment to Writers

Selected contributions receive a small payment (NZ book token). General Rate $25 book token per page.

Featured Poet $100 book token for around 4 pages

Featured Article $100 book token for up to 4 pages

Poems $30 book token for first page, $25 per page thereafter

Haiku $10 book token for first haiku, multiple haiku $15

Articles $25 book token per page, up to $75

Reviews $25 book token per page, up to $75

Micro Reviews $30 book token for one page

Cover Art $100 book token

Contributing Art $20 book token per artist

Archives

Kindly note that a fine line only becomes available in the archive three to four months after the current edition is distributed to NZPS’s financial members.

Click here for the archive of Featured Poets.

2022