Meridian is an annual literary magazine produced at the University of Virginia in conjunction with the university’s MFA in Creative Writing Program, whose students serve as the magazine’s editors.
Founded in 1998, Meridian has featured the works of numerous Pulitzer Prize Winners, National Book Award Winners, and established writers including Rita Dove, Charles Wright, Yusef Komunyakaa, Gregory Pardlo, Seamus Heaney, Lydi Conklin, Ann Beattie, George Garrett, Heather McHugh, Richard Bausch, Bonnie Jo Campbell, Celeste Ng, Laura van den Berg, Mark Strand, Cathy Song, and Eric Pankey. But don’t let the big names fool you. As a magazine edited by early career writers, we value nothing more than showcasing tomorrow’s talent, often publishing a new author’s first story or poem. We welcome and carefully read every submission that comes our way.
Meridian poetry and prose has appeared in Best American Poetry, Best American Short Stories, Best American Essays, the Pushcart Prize anthology, and New Stories from the South. Our stories have also been short-listed for the O. Henry Prize, and our fine authors and poets have won many awards.
In addition to fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, Meridian also features author interviews and book reviews.
The winner of our annual Editors' Prize in Prose will receive $1,000 and publication. The winner will be announced in March.
Guidelines:
- Please do not put your name on your submission or in the file name. We read these submissions blind.
- Prose writers may submit one story or essay of 5,000 words or fewer in each submission.
- No previously published work, including self-published work, will be accepted.
- You may submit a maximum of two entries per genre—no more than two prose submissions and/or two poetry submissions.
Other Eligibility Rules:
- UVA MFA students, UVA MFA alumni, and former Meridian staff are NOT eligible.
- Current UVA students, staff, and faculty are NOT eligible.
- Friends, relatives, and former teachers and students of current Meridian staff or its advisor are not eligible.
- Former Meridian Editors’ Prize winners are not eligible to enter, even if their win was in another genre.
- Authors with two or more published books are not eligible. This does NOT include chapbook publication but does include self-published books. (If it’s been for sale and it was not a chapbook, it counts as a publication!) You may enter our prose contest if your published books were in poetry, and vice versa.
The winner of our annual Editors' Prize in Poetry will receive $1,000 and publication. Winners will be announced in March.
Guidelines:
- Please do not put your name on the submissions or in the file name. We read these submissions blind.
- Poets may submit up to four poems that do not exceed ten total pages. Please put all the poems in one document. No previously published work, including self-published work, will be accepted.
- You may submit a maximum of two entries per genre—no more than two prose submissions and/or two poetry submissions.
Other Eligibility Rules:
- UVA MFA students, UVA MFA alumni, and former Meridian staff are NOT eligible.
- Current UVA students, staff, and faculty are NOT eligible.
- Friends, relatives, and former teachers and students of current Meridian staff or its advisor are not eligible.
- Former Meridian Editors’ Prize winners are not eligible to enter, even if their win was in another genre.
- Authors with two or more published books are not eligible. This does NOT include chapbook publication but does include self-published books. (If it’s been for sale and it was not a chapbook, it counts as a publication!) You may enter our prose contest if your published books were in poetry, and vice versa.