Reading through submissions has reminded me of the privilege I’ve had in being mentored in the poetry world. When I first started, it felt confusing and overwhelming. No one hands you a manual. No one explains the unspoken rules. In reviewing submissions, I’ve noticed how much of the frustration comes down to unfamiliarity with publishing norms. The literary world can feel like a secret club no one told you the password to. 

You open Duosoma.
You scroll through journals you may or may not recognize.
You read submission guidelines three times.
You panic about fonts.

Take a breath.

Publishing is, by and large, a numbers game. You cannot control taste. You cannot control trends. But you can control the presentation of your work. And presentation signals professionalism.

Formatting Basics

Industry standards for poetry submissions follow some basic guidelines: 

• Single-spaced
• Left-aligned title and body
• Each poem starting on its own page
• Title bolded
• Standard 11-12 pt font

Use accessible fonts: Times New Roman, Arial, Calibri, Georgia. Avoid decorative fonts, and do not italicize your entire submission unless there is a clear stylistic reason to do so. If your submission is difficult to read, some journals may not read it at all. 

These standards are not about conformity. They are about clarity. They remove distractions so the poem can stand on its own, and they show respect for the editors’ time. 

In the same vein, revise your work carefully before submitting. As someone who did not always do this, I urge you to make sure spellcheck is on. Proofread for any typos, formatting inconsistencies, and small mechanical errors. A strong poem can lose impact if it appears rushed.  

One small but surprisingly helpful editing trick: turn off auto-capitalization in your writing software. When every new line automatically capitalizes, it can interfere with how you see and revise your poem, especially if you are working with enjambment or unconventional syntax. 

Disabling this feature allows you to make intentional choices about capitalization rather than fighting the software. 

Google Docs: 

Tools > Preferences > General > Automatically Capitalize Words

Word: 

File > Options > Proofing > AutoCorrect Options > Capitalize first letter of sentences.

Follow the Guidelines

Some journals have very specific submission requirements. I recently applied for a fellowship that required ten pages of double-spaced poetry. This clearly goes against the standard formatting mentioned above, but it is directly what they asked for.

Always give the journal what it is asking for. 

Not following submission guidelines is the quickest way to get your work declined. Editors receive a high volume of submissions. If a piece does not meet the stated requirements, it may not move forward regardless of its quality. 

With this, always pay attention to requests for blind submissions. A lot of journals, ours included, want the work to speak for itself. We are publishing poems, not resumes.  

If a journal specifies blind review, remove all identifying information from your submission. So remove your name from the document header, the file’s name, and anywhere it appears in the poem. We have had to reject pieces that were promising because their name was all over their work. Help editors maintain fairness. 

At Mouthful of Salt, we do our best to look through any nonstandard submission and treat them equally to standard poems. We feel that experience should not be a barrier to good art finding its home. 

Knowing the standards isn’t about putting yourself in a box. It’s about understanding the baseline so that any deviation is intentional. Once you know the “rules,” you’re no longer guessing. You’re choosing. And there is power in that.