Call for Submissions
Heritage is the thread that ties us to where we come from, even as we build lives far from it. It is the language of our fathers and ancestors, the recipes that survive translation, the stories retold at family gatherings, the objects, names, and rituals we inherit without asking for them. It can be a source of pride, a burden, a puzzle we spend our lives trying to solve, or all three at once.
For this edition, The Iroko Quarterly is looking for creative work that explores heritage in all its complexity. We want writing that sits with the tension as much as the celebration: what is passed down freely, what is lost, what is reclaimed, and what is reinvented for a new generation.
We welcome submissions that explore themes such as:
- Ancestry, lineage, and family history
- Cultural identity and belonging, especially across borders or generations
- Oral traditions, folklore, and inherited storytelling
- Language, naming, and what gets lost or kept in translation
- Diaspora life and the negotiation between “home” and “away”
- Rituals, food, clothing, or objects that carry memory
- The weight of tradition against individual choice
- Reclaiming or reimagining heritage on one’s own terms
Whatever heritage means to you — an inheritance, a question, a reinvention — we want to read it. Send us your poems, essays, short fiction, or hybrid work that wrestles honestly with where you come from and where you’re headed.