Theme: Noise
Noise is what we hide behind when silence is too honest.
Words have the power to provoke imagery that's personal and unique to an individual. It's what makes reading an experience, one that's vibrant and intimate.
At Navy Pen we understand the bond of art and word, and we are looking for cover and general art submissions for our fifth issue. Just as the prompt is up to limitless interpretation, we are open to all digital and physical forms of art. This includes, and is not limited to photography, illustration, painting, collage, and ceramics.
Please note, we cannot accept any form of video, audio, motion graphics, or animation at this time.
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Cover Art Guidelines: For Cover Art submissions, should you choose to include text, please only use: "Navy Pen", "Issue V", and "Noise," but including this text is NOT a requirement.
- Accepted File Types: JPEG, PSD - (If submitting artwork with text please provide two versions: one with and one without).
- Dimensions: 1920 x 2880px (1:1.5 ratio), no less than 1800 x 2700px (2:3 ratio)
- Resolution: at least 350dpi
General Art Guidelines: For General Art submissions, any visual/readable text is not allowed.
- Accepted File Types: JPEG, PDF, PSD - (if submitting a physical media piece you must submit it as a photograph or scan).
- Dimensions: 1080 x 1350px (4:5 ratio), this is a suggestion not a requirement.
- Resolution: at least 300dpi
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We are looking for original pieces that have not previously been published. Absolutely no AI-generated, plagiarized, or explicit work will be considered.
Should a selected piece not align with the listed specifications it may be subject to cropping, resizing, or other formatting manipulation in order to fit the dimensions of our physical and digital release.
Theme: Noise
Noise is what we hide behind when silence is too honest.
It takes shape as sound, internal chatter, distraction, interruption, and the volume people create before something difficult can be said. It is the subtext beneath conversation, and the pressure of living in a world that makes endless demands. We live inside it so continuously that we often tune it out.
But noise can also be a declaration. Proof that someone was there. A refusal to disappear. Sometimes what is dismissed as noise is the most direct communication available, while what gets called signal is often simply what has been most carefully controlled.
This issue is interested in what gets heard, what is ignored, and who gets to decide the difference. We invite work about private noise and public noise, noise as avoidance or resistance, noise created by grief, desire, technology, memory, family, crowds, bodies, institutions, or the mind itself.
We are drawn to writing that listens closely, not only to what is said, but to what remains unsaid. Writing that explores the difference between what is merely loud and what carries weight.
A piece does not have to be about sound to be about noise. It has to know what it is trying to drown out.
Guidelines: Short Stories: Up to 4,000 words. Please limit submissions to one story at a time. Poetry: Up to 5 poems per submission, each poem no longer than 3 pages. Essays: Up to 3,000 words. Submit only one essay per submission window.
We encourage concise, polished work that fits comfortably within these limits. Submissions that go slightly over may still be considered, but please respect the spirit of the guidelines.
The Navy Pen editorial team will be providing brief personalized feedback for each submission.