Payag Habagatan: New Writings from the South, a countercanonical literary journal of contemporary literatures from the southern Philippines, is now open for contributions to its Special Issue on Transgender Writings and Art. The issue editor, award-winning transwoman poet and photographer Arian Tejano of Surigao del Sur and Dumaguete City, is looking for the following transgender-themed works of literary and visual arts by Filipinx trans and trans allies:
  1. Poetry written for the page or for performance (2 to 4 poems, no more than 80 lines each);
  2. Fiction such as short stories, a chapter from a novel, or flash fiction (200 to 5000 words);
  3. Creative nonfiction or literary essays such as nonfiction memoir, travel writing, personal essay, literary journalism, lyric essay, cultural critique, and other hybridized forms, or micro-essays (200 to 5000 words);
  4. Drama such as one-act play, short screenplay, or an excerpt from a full-length play or screenplay (up to 30 pages);
  5. Reviews of books, plays, and films (1000 to 2500 words);
  6. Critical essays in Philippine literature and art (2000 to 4000 words);
  7. Digital photography (2 to 8 digital pieces with captions, maximum of 50 words each);
  8. Painting, comics, sketches, illustrations, graphic design, and typography (2 to 8 digital or scanned copies with caption, maximum of 50 words each);
  9. Author/artist interview (1500 to 3000 words);
  10. Diary and journal entries (600 to 2000 words);
  11. Activists’ manifestos from trans rights and allied groups (500 to 1500 words).
Literary works in English and in Binisaya are welcome. Those written in other Philippine languages must be accompanied with a translation to either English or Binisaya. Send manuscripts (in MS Word format) and/or artworks (in JPEG/PNG format) to payaghabagatan@gmail. com with the subject heading “PH Trans issue” before Oct. 30. Include full name, home address, mobile number, and a short bionote in English in the email’s body. (pr)