Submissions Are OPEN For Exist Otherwise Literary Journal
A Claude Cahun Inspired Journal of Cancelled Confessions
We are a journal of creative writing and photography inspired by the gender-nonconforming writer, artist, and activist, Claude Cahun.
Claude Cahun was a French gender-bending writer, artist, and activist in the first half of the last century. Her creative and political work centered on identity and opposition to cultural conformity. She was part of the surrealist movement, performed acts of symbolic cultural protest, and was imprisoned for her work in the French Resistance.
Cahun was primarily a self-portraitist. She used personas and created tableaus, confessions, scripts, collages, montages, and sculptures that challenged cultural norms and expectations, particularly regarding gender and art. Her work included many surrealistic references, influences, and imagery.
We are seeking almost any kind of creative writing and black-and-white photography.
Our Interests
Identity
We are interested in works about identity, the self, and the personal. How do we, as unique individuals, navigate a world that doesn’t necessarily conform to us? What does it mean to be an individual in a society?
How many are you? Are you a single person with a single identity, or do you have the capacity to embody multiple personas? How do you present yourself to the world? To your friends? Co-workers? Lovers? Are you even you?
Gender
We are curious about gender. What is it? How can we move away from the restrictions inherent in gender duality? How important is our gender to our sense of self? Is gender fixed, fluid, or subject to change? Why is gender important? Is it?
Trauma & Recovery
What’s your trauma? The question isn’t facetious or ironic. No one here gets out unharmed. Whether as a child or an adult, whether slight or grievous, all of us have been harmed. How has that shaped you? In particular, how has that shaped your sense of self?
What obstacles or challenges have you overcome? What obstacles stand in your way? How has society pushed you down, and how have you gotten back up? Have you gotten back up? If not, what do you seek or need to be whole?
Creative Expression
Why write? Why take photographs? Where does the artistic impulse come from? Does art have a purpose beyond its existence? Is it self-expression? If not, then what is it?
Intuition & Dreams
What are they? Where do they come from? Are these two phenomena related? Do they inform or influence you or your work? Are they integral to your survival as a human being?
Regarding Form
We are not heavily invested in categories, forms, or formats. In fact, we like work that makes us go, “huh?” We use the categories: poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, essay, and script loosely. Mix it up. We will consider visual poetry, photography that incorporates text, or other kinds of mash-up. Think otherwise!
Submissions are Open through October 31, 2022.
