Arrowhead

For a limited time, The Arrowhead is accepting fall semester submission for its annual issue! This special submission window will be open for the first three weeks of November. The fall deadline to submit is November 20, 2026 by the end of the day.  Submissions will re-open in the spring.

• To submit to The Arrowhead you must be a student, staff, or faculty member at Catawba College.

• Previously published submissions and those forthcoming at other publications cannot be considered. This includes work that has been self-published online, on personal websites, or other publishing platforms.

Submit your poetry, prose, and artwork as an attachment to arrowhead@catawba.edu. You will receive an email confirming receipt of your submission from an editor.

• Acceptable submission formats include Word (.docx), Google Document, JPEG (for visual art).

• In the subject line of your email, include the category of your submission, poetry, prose, photos, or artwork. 

• Do not include your name on the attached submission.

• In the body of the email, include your contact information, including your name, phone number, e-mail address, and title of the work(s).

• Do not send submissions to the individual editors — these will not be considered.  

• Save or name your submission document with the genre and the title of the piece.
  For instance: Poetry_The Road Not Taken.docx
  
  
• In the subject line of your email, include the category of your submission: poetry, fiction, nonfiction, photos, or artwork. 

• Submit up to five poems; poems should be less than 60 lines.
• Submit up to two pieces of prose; each piece of prose must not exceed 1,500 words. 
• Submit up to five photos or visual artwork pieces.
• Prose should be double spaced.
• Poetry can be single spaced.
• Please use a standard 12-point font for poetry and prose submissions.

NOTE: Submissions that fail to meet any of the guidelines will NOT be considered for publication.

If you have any questions, please email the editors at arrowhead@catawba.edu. 

Contest Theme

This year’s theme is Not As It Seems…

Things are not always as they appear to be. Beneath familiar places and ordinary faces lie contradictions and unexpected verities. For this year’s contest, we invite you to explore the contrast between appearance and reality, to examine hidden truths, to consider invisible forces, to scrutinize the usual and the unusual. Above all, we encourage you to take a closer look at what appears to be “normal.” 

We are looking for your original creative writing inspired by this theme—poetry, short stories, or creative nonfiction. Take this theme in any direction you want; we are looking for your creativity and originality. For the contest, we are not accepting photography or visual art; however, we are open for general submissions in all categories.

First place winner will receive a $50 gift card!  Second place winner will receive $20, third place will receive $10.  All submissions will be considered for publication in our Spring 2027 issue.

Who Can Enter?

The contest is open to all current Catawba students. 

Submission Deadline

The deadline to submit is Monday, November 23 by 11:59pm.

Complete Contest Guidelines

• Must be a current Catawba student to enter.
• Email your contest submission as an attachment to arrowhead@catawba.edu. 
• Acceptable formats are a Word document (.docx) or a PDF.
• In the subject line of your email include “Contest Submission” and the genre of your work, for instance “Contest Submission: Poetry.”
• Contest submissions are limited to one piece per entrant; that is, you may not submit in multiple genres. Send us your best work!
• Submissions should be no more than 1000 words long.
• Prose should be double spaced, poetry can be single spaced.
• Do not include any identifying material on the submission itself
• Contest will be judged anonymously by faculty members.

NOTE: Contest submissions are separate from general submissions. If you submit to the contest, you may still submit work in any genre for general consideration. We are accepting general submissions this fall from November 1-20.