We're very excited to share that we're once again open for submissions! This time around, the theme is:
It’s often said that you shouldn’t snack in between meals. Ruins your appetite, they say.
Snacks aren’t essential- but they’re fun. The cool uncle of the meal world, they’re the little meals that give us joy and keep us full in the in between of our days. Too simple or too salty, sweet, sour, hot to be a meal in themselves, these bites get your taste buds going nonetheless, filling a hole in your stomach and your heart.
In our next issue, we want to explore snacks from all around the world, from as many vantage points as possible. We want to know about your favourites; sweet, salty, deep fried, home made, pre-packaged, grab-on-the-go, drunken. About that weird combination snack that only you like, about your favourite thing to snaffle when you cook. Tell us about when you snack, why you snack and what it means to you.
What we're looking for:
What we love publishing is untold stories- one’s that cover issues that don’t get enough coverage in more mainstream food media. Whilst we love food, we’re well aware relationships with food aren’t always plain sailing, so we welcome stories from people who have a difficult or complex relationship with cooking and food, and stories that show us something from a new or personal perspective. The work that really sets our hearts alight is the stuff that’s human- it tells stories of our individual experiences, all their quirks and personality, that work to give us a better understanding of the whole.
We’re open to printing anything, of any medium in the issues, but as some guidance we’d love to see:
Personal writing- stories that tell your own experience and relationship with the topic
Interviews- bearing in mind we’re a magazine that focuses on home cooking rather than restaurants, we’d love to have some pitches for interviews too, either from writers looking to interview someone or from people who’d like to be interviewed and have something to say on the topic.
Recipes- any and all are welcome, but particularly any that are educational (i.e show us how to make something we might not know how to make), flexible and/or affordable
Deep dives- into particular cuisines, ingredients, food cultures
Illustrations
Photography
Who can submit to us?
Anyone! We don't ask for any particular level of experience, and you can be based anywhere in the world. As long as your work responds to the brief in some way, and takes into account our focus on home cooking, you're golden.
How to submit:
We use this simple Google Form to collect all submissions and pitches. We won’t accept anything sent through email (unless you’re having trouble accessing the form).
There are two ways to submit your work to us: either pitch us an idea or send us a completed first or second draft. We’ve introduced pitching to minimise the amount of unpaid labour we ask of you: it didn’t seem fair to ask you to spend your time writing something without the guarantee of it being published. However, please note that we do require at least one sample of previous work from you, to give us an idea of your style.
We pay all our contributors using a Royalties based model- find out more about it here.
Final deadline for submissions is 11.59pm on the 27th of May.
Got a question? Head to the submit section of our website to check out our FAQ's, or drop us an email at hello@potluckzine.co.uk
Need some inspiration? Start here!
Read Lucy Kingett's' piece from Issue 3 on the snacks you nibble whilst cooking: Cook's Treats
Read Snacks to Remember from Whetstone Magazine
Listen to The Walkers Switch; an investigative crisp podcast
Watch this little girl joyfully and passionately demanding snacks