Pleiades

ABOUT

Pleiades: Literature in Context has been published since 1991 out of the University of Central Missouri, where it has long served as one of the more editorially ambitious general-interest literary magazines in the Midwest, mixing poetry, fiction, essays, interviews, and — distinctively — a robust book review section that gives sustained critical attention to small-press and independent poetry collections often overlooked by larger outlets. The magazine runs regular themed folios (recent examples include a Missouri Writers folio and a 'Black Dolls' folio in conversation with the Deborah Neff photography collection, edited by guest editors like Jennifer Maritza McCauley), and it administers the Robert C. Jones and Prufer Poetry Prizes, the latter judged in recent years by poets such as Sarah Ghazal Ali.

The print magazine now runs as double issues (e.g., 45.2 + 46.1, Fall 2025–Spring 2026), supplemented by an active online-exclusives track for poetry and fiction and a steady stream of book reviews and interviews published between issues. Submissions for poetry, fiction, essays, and reviews are typically handled through a reading-period system (details and any fees are on the site's submissions page rather than the front page), and the annual Prufer Poetry Prize is a separate contest with its own entry fee and deadline. As with most university-affiliated journals of its size, expect a multi-month response window, payment status not advertised on the homepage, and the clearest signal of editorial taste to be the review section — poets targeting Pleiades should read a few of its book reviews before submitting to gauge the kind of small-press work the editors are already paying attention to.