To celebrate the release of Issue Ten, we will have a table at Fall Fest in downtown Penn Yan on October 3rd. Hope to see you there!

To celebrate the release of Issue Nine, we will have a table at Fall Fest in downtown Penn Yan on November 1st. Hope to see you there!

If you’re looking for inspiration and/or help, we hope you’ll consider joining us for our monthly Keuka Writes sessions, which take place on the fourth Monday of each month, at six p.m. at the Penn Yan Public Library. Email keukawrites@gmail.com to be

Submissions for Issue Nine of Bluff & Vine are due by July 31, 2025. We look forward to reading your work!

Our biggest issue ever, it’s filled with stories and poems that will send a chill up your spine. Grab a copy at Longs’ Cards and Books in Penn Yan, or hop over to Amazon. We hope you love this creepy edition as much as we loved putting it together!

So, what are we looking for? First, know that all submissions—including cover art—must still have something to do with the Finger Lakes. That part of our vision hasn’t changed. We still want to read your words and see artwork that captures what this region means, what it has been, and what it might be. But this time, we want you to check under the bed first!

We want to read things that are macabre and mysterious, bone-chilling and spine-tingling, supernatural and suspenseful, ghoulish and gothic, weird and wild! Do you have a ghost story that’s been passed down through the generations? Know a local legend just itching for a fresh retelling? We love ghosts and goblins and skeletons that play the xylophone on their own ribcages, but plain ol’ people can also be scary, too!

A few important notes:

• This issue isn’t about Halloween (although we love it so!), so your work doesn’t have to be set on or be about October 31. Creepy things happen year around, in all seasons, in the dark and in the bright light of day.
• While we are looking for eerie and unusual work, that doesn’t mean we aren’t also looking for funny and even lighthearted poems and stories. Can you make us laugh while we shiver, give us goosebumps and belly laughs at the same time? Bring it on!
• We will not accept work that includes gratuitous violence. If you have to ask, it probably is.
• Bluff & Vine has always been intended for an adult audience, but keep in mind that not everyone has the same tolerance for gore. Spill your blood judiciously!

Now, if this isn’t your thing, fear (see what we did there?) not! We will return to our regular open theme next year. You are welcome to send us your non-horror submissions and we will hold on to them until Issue Nine, but we also know that’s a long time to wait. As usual, we accept simultaneous submissions—just let us know if your work is accepted elsewhere.

Note that submissions for Issue Eight: In the Shadows close on July 31, 2024.

Questions? Email us at bluffandvine@gmail.com.

You’ll find familiar names and new voices in Issue Seven, including several writers who took us up on a challenge to write in a different genre. Inside you’ll find poets writing prose and fiction writes trying their hand at poetry. In all, there are nearly four dozen perspectives on the Finger Lakes region. We’re willing to bet at least one of them will surprise you.

If you’re so inclined, please share a review on Amazon after you’ve finished Issue Seven. Thank you for supporting the creative writing community capturing the beauty, mystery, and singularity of our part of New York.

It features Yates-focused short stories, memoirs, and poetry curated from the first six issues of Bluff & Vine, as well as a foreword from Tricia Noel, who serves as the executive director and curator of the Yates County History Center.

The Summer 2023 issue will be available soon at Longs’ Cards and Books and the Yates County History Center in Penn Yan, and is on Amazon in both print and digital formats. 

And a reminder! Submissions of poetry, memoir, nonfiction, fiction, and cover art, are being accepted until August 15th for our Fall 2023 issue.

Visit the bicentennial page on the county website and the county historian’s Facebook page for inspiration, and then submit your artwork to us. We accept all kinds of art, from photography and fiber arts to painting and collage. What says “Yates County” to you? Show us! Submissions will be accepted until April 15, 2023.

Be sure your submission follows these guidelines:

• The layout of our covers means that we have an unusual size for art: 4.5 inches wide, 9 inches tall. Please consider these dimensions when submitting!
• Art submissions must have some kind of connection to Yates County.
• Art submissions are accepted through email only, at bluffandvine@gmail.com.

We encourage you to include a short cover letter with your art submission. We’d love to know about you and your art, as well as a little about your connection to Yates County. If your work is selected to be on the cover of the bicentennial issue, we’ll also need a short bio of 50 words or less. Please include your name and contact information in your cover letter.

This issue is chock full of history—of the nation, the state, the Finger Lakes, the towns we call home, the places that have made us who we are. Inside this issue, you’ll meet familiar faces, reminisce about significant moments, and make new friends.

Issue Six is available on demand via Amazon (click here) and will be on the shelves at Longs’ Cards and Books in Penn Yan in the next few weeks. You can also ask your local bookstore—big or small—to carry it! And don’t forget to ask your local library for it as well.

We can’t wait to hear what you think of Issue Six. Please post a review on Amazon, on our Facebook page, on Instagram, or in the comments here.

And don’t forget: We’re open for submissions year-round, so send us your best poetry, prose, and artwork for Issue Seven. Check out our submission guidelines, linked above, for all the details.