A Bang and Not a Whimper
Closing the Doors After Six Years
It’s been six years since we had the idea for Orca, and after eighteen issues, 14,000 submissions, more than 1,000 feedback critiques, and about 300 published works we have decided to close our operation this coming June.
The decision was prompted by a variety of developments among the editorial staff. Life changes mostly, as in growing families and growing older, and those factors have significantly decreased the amount of time we can devote to the journal. And it isn’t always easy to face a mountain of submissions every day for that long without a little burnout.
We had a couple of non-negotiable guidelines when we started—to be professional and, simultaneously, devoted to the art of writing. It was always our priority to champion what we believed was the best writing, regardless of whether it conformed to current trends or politics, and we think we’ve been successful at that. We have always tried to be responsible and accountable to our submitters, readers, and to the writing community at large.
We hope to go out with a bang and not a whimper. We will publish two more issues in June. One will be our annual literary-speculative issue, and we’ll also release a final literary issue. Submissions for both issues are open.
Thank you to everyone who has supported us along the way, whether it’s been with a published piece, the purchase of an issue, a submission, or support on social media. Thanks also to the two dozen or so staff members who have helped us read and decide over the years. A special thanks to Kellie Tatem, our assistant editor. And a very heartfelt thanks to our Managing Editor, Renee Jackson, who came on board soon after we started and helped us in so many ways.
- Joe and Zac
Some Important Notes:
Our latest issue is now released. This is a literary issue, and for once we have more poetry than prose. Sometimes it just works out that way. That cover art, by the way, is from an image titled “Axon Pathfinding” by Dr. Greg Dunn, and depicts a representation of brain synapse.
Submissions for both the literary and speculative issues will remain open until April 15. Both issues will be published on June 1.
No-fee submissions are open again. We have 100 free submissions each month, and they usually fill up very quickly. You can also submit anytime for the standard $3, which may give a less fortunate writer a free slot. We’re open for fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.
We will continue to offer basic and in-depth feedback for prose. Both are reasonably priced. Details are available when you submit your work. Find out more here.
We will keep the Orca website online for as long as we can, to allow access to the work we have published, and to promote our writers.
Our Substack private area (behind the paywall) will remain open until the release of the final two issues. Those of you who have paid for subscriptions can request prorated refunds. For example, if you paid $50 to subscribe in August 2024, you will have received six months of access by February 1, and would receive a refund of $25. Those of you who pay on a month to month basis can simply cancel your subscriptions at any time.
Our staff members will not simply fade away. Some of us will move on to new endeavors, and we will pass that news along as it becomes available. Already we can tell you that Senior Editor Joe Ponepinto will begin a Substack blog titled Beyond Craft, in which he will discuss the realities of the creative life and the publishing business from his perspective after two decades. He is looking most of all to getting back to his own creative writing.
