SOUTH Poetry Magazine has earned a special place on the poetry scene. It pioneered a unique system of anonymous poem selection—with different selectors for each issue— aimed at giving all poets the best possible chance of getting published. And it encourages the poets it publishes to get to know each other—by inviting them to take part in public readings that launch each issue.
SOUTH first appeared in 1990, published by Word & Action (Dorset), a theatre and publications group with strong roots in the community arts movement. Its founding principles – still maintained – include having no editor and no competitions, and presenting in each issue a specially written profile of a southern poet, accompanied by a generous selection of poems.

SOUTH was launched as “a poetry magazine for the southern counties of England,” seeking to explore the question of whether they had their own distinct poetic identity. But “for” became “from” as it began to attract poets and readers from a much wider area.

In 2003, when funding from Word & Action ceased, SOUTH was taken over by a new management team. It became fully self-supporting. It has never received official funding or outside sponsorship. It is proud of its independence, and of the support and encouragement it has been able to provide for many well established poets at a crucial stage in their development.

Recent comments from subscribers include:

“I admire your anonymous selection policy very much - much the fairest way to give everyone a chance!” Anne Summerfield,
Chandlers Ford.                                      

“The magazine is put together with such
care and finesse it’s a joy to read.” Anne Born, Oversteps Books.

SOUTH is published in April and October each year. It contains about 60 poems plus reviews and occasional short articles.

Rates within the United Kingdom:

Single copies £5.00, (plus 60p packing and UK postage) 

Annual subscriptions £10 for one year, £18 for two years, post free.

Send cheques (payable to SOUTH Poetry Magazine) to PO Box 3744, Cookham, Maidenhead, SL6 9UY.

Special rates apply to institutional and overseas subscribers. Please contact SOUTH for details.

SOUTH Foundation Memberships are also available. Foundation Membership costs £20 a year. Members receive two post-free issues of SOUTH, discounted rates on extra copies, and free admission for themselves and a guest to the poetry readings that launch each issue of the magazine - benefits currently worth at least £22.

Poetry submissions must be accompanied by a submission form [available from our website southpoetry.org] or by a covering letter giving the poet’s name, address, and the title of each poem submitted.
Send no more than three poems, typed, on separate sheets of A4. Poet’s name and address or any other identifying details must not appear on the back or front of any manuscript.
Articles of around 800 words on poetry-related subjects are also considered.

All work submitted must be previously unpublished, and not currently submitted or accepted for publication elsewhere.

Deadlines for receipt of contributions are November 30 and May 31 for the April and October issues respectively. Work may be submitted at any time, but because of SOUTH's unique selection process, a decision on publication can take up to eight weeks from the deadline. Submitting closer to the deadline therefore means a shorter wait for a decision.

Submissions by email and fax are not considered for publication.