In anticipation of its upcoming 40th anniversary, The Caribbean Writer (TCW) is issuing dual call for submissions under the theme: “40 years of The Caribbean Writer: A Spectrum of Representation.” We invite contributors to explore this theme in all its permutations with works of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, essays, or one-act plays.
In addition to the usual call for creative works, we are also issuing a Call for Papers focused on the diverse themes explored in The Caribbean Writer over the years, highlighting how our shared humanity emerges through the discourse present in poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. As an international journal, The Caribbean Writer continues to investigate our humanity at home and in the diaspora in an ever-changing world. Through its dynamic publications, it has remained impactful for over four decades. Papers will be presented at the anniversary symposium scheduled for April 2026 and published in an anniversary supplement of The Caribbean Writer.
Abstracts will be reviewed by a scholarly panel of seven. Successful papers will be published in a TCW supplement while selected authors will be invited to present their papers at the Conference to be held at the University of the Virgin Islands, St Croix campus.
Using the TCW journal as a reference point, authors are invited to explore the themes, subjects, motifs, and topics over the 40 years of The Caribbean Writer and present a scrupulous analysis in one of the following contexts:
1. Building Regional Community, Connections and Transformations
2. Calypso and Conflict: Music and Politics in the Literature
3. Voices of the Diaspora: Migration and Belonging
4. Negotiating Nuances of Legacy, Ethnicity, Hybridity, Identity
5. Masculinity as a Navigational Theme in Caribbean Communities
6. Rewriting History: Literature as a Tool for Social Change
7. How Language Shapes Meaning in Caribbean Text
8. Myths, Monsters, and Morality: Universal Archetypes
9. The Art of Protest: Caribbean Literature as Resistance
10. Women, Sexuality, and Identity
11. Negotiating Borders and Walls: Expressions in the Literature
12. The Caribbean Writer as a Force of Representation
13. Themes Across The Caribbean Writer
14. Visual Art as a Channel for Caribbean Literature
15. Governance and the Complexities of Power Dynamics
16. Disruption as a Motif in the Literature
17. Memory as a Force in the Literature
18. How Environment, Nature and Land Development Shape Property Ownership
19. Food as a Translation of Fellowship, Community and History
20. Contemporary Musings: Literature, Academia and the Canon
IMPORTANT DATE CHANGES
The proposal’s abstract (or summary) should be no more than 300 words. Abstracts are due by October 31, 2025. Kindly note that submissions for volume 40 will be accepted until November 30. Submit Word files at www.thecaribbeanwriter.org/online-submissions/
Papers should be based on the analysis of the journal’s published works. We invite you to visit the websites below to reacquaint yourselves with our publications, beginning with the first issue released in 1987:
Digital Library of the Caribbean
Volumes 1 through 30 (free to view)
The Caribbean Writer website
https://www.thecaribbeanwriter.org/product-category/volumes/
Volumes 31 to 38 (available for purchase in digital or hard copy format)
As always, contributors may submit works of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, essays, or one-act plays around the theme “40 years of The Caribbean Writer: A Spectrum of Representation,” exploring the ideas resonating within the region and its diaspora. The Caribbean should be central to the work or reflect a Caribbean heritage, experience, or perspective. Prospective authors should submit all creative works, drama, fiction, and poetry manuscripts in Word format through the online portal ONLY at www.thecaribbeanwriter.org/online-submission. Note that TCW does not accept hardcopy submissions. Submissions for volume 40 are accepted immediately through to November 30, 2025. Submit Word files at www.thecaribbeanwriter.org/online-submissions/
Individuals may submit poems (3 maximum), short stories (2 maximum), and personal essays (2 maximum) on general topics and themes. The maximum length (for short stories and personal essays) is 3500 words. Only previously unpublished work will be considered. The term “previously published” covers print and electronic publication —including on social media platforms and self-published items. The Caribbean Writer does not accept simultaneous submissions (items being considered for publication elsewhere). On a separate page in that submission, the prospective author should provide contact information, including mailing address, phone number, any professional affiliations, and brief biographical information (no more than 100 words and such as appears under the “Contributors” section of the journal). If the author’s contact information changes, the author should make all updates by logging into the online account.
Artists interested in having their artwork considered for use by TCW should submit electronic files in vertical format as PNG or JPEG files with a resolution of 300 dpi or greater. The journal also accepts black-and-white art (line drawings, sketches, block prints, etc.) but does not accept graphic poetry or narratives.
Before submitting, the writer should carefully edit and proofread the manuscript, adhering to publication-ready details, as well as standards of proofreading such as spelling, grammar, punctuation, formatting, and consistent language, along with the elimination of typographical errors, and with a focus on the overall quality of the work.
The Caribbean Writer is a refereed journal. There are no fees payable to submit or publish in this journal. All submissions undergo an initial anonymous review by the editor. Creative works, such as fiction, poetry and drama, after editorial review, are advanced by the editor to the double-blind peer review process. In this process, reviewers’ and authors’ identities are concealed from the reviewers and vice versa throughout the review process.
Literary Prizes
All submissions are eligible for these annual prizes:
The Daily News Prize of $600 was awarded to a resident of the US Virgin Islands or the British Virgin Islands.
The Marvin E. Williams Literary Prize of $500 is awarded to a new or emerging writer and donated by Marvin’s widow, Dasil Williams, in honor of her late husband, who served as the editor of The Caribbean Writer from 2003 – 2008.
The Vincent Cooper Literary Prize of $300 is awarded to a Caribbean author for exemplary writing in Caribbean Nation Language (Kamau Brathwaite) and donated by UVI (University of the Virgin Islands) Professor Vincent Cooper, PhD.
The Anacaona Prize of $500 is awarded to anyone published in the respective volume for their interpretation of the theme, level of technical skill, and originality. It is donated by a distinguished TCW Advisory Editorial Board member who wishes to remain anonymous. (Anacaona was a female cacique, poet, and composer. She is memorialized in contemporary art and literature across the Caribbean region. A statue commemorating her legacy is in Leogane, Haiti.)
For more information, contact The Caribbean Writer at [email protected].
