Unbordered seeks visual art that captures the emotional texture of life across borders—works that carry memory, tension, identity, and transformation in bold strokes and vivid color.

We welcome submissions of:

• Figurative work that evokes a sense of story
• Art that engages with personal or cultural narratives
• Traditional or folk art made while living away from home
• Work that holds color and emotion as central elements
• Digital, painted, drawn, collaged, or mixed media works—with clarity of vision and feeling
• Minimal abstraction—we’re looking for work that speaks directly to experience, memory, and place. 

We accept both scanned/photographed traditional media and digital files, as long as they are high-resolution and publication-ready.

Simultaneous submissions are welcome; please notify us promptly if your work is accepted elsewhere. We ask for first serial rights and the ability to archive your work in our online gallery.

Unbordered welcomes 2–3 original poems per submission from Americans writing from beyond the borders of the U.S.

We are especially drawn to:

• Poems that explore borders—literal or metaphorical
• Work rooted in the sensory, the specific, and the embodied
• Reflections on migration, identity, rupture, and renewal
• Language that challenges, surprises, or refuses easy translation
• Pieces that wrestle with distance: from country, from community, from self

We are not looking for abstract meditations without grounding, or work that treats place as aesthetic without engagement. We want poems that know what it means to leave—and what it costs to stay gone.

What We’re Looking For:

• Up to 3 poems per submission
• Previously unpublished work only
• Any form or style—free verse, prose poetry, experimental, traditional forms
• A maximum total of 6 pages
• Bilingual work is welcome; translations of other authors’ work are not being accepted at this time

Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but let us know immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere. We ask for first serial rights and retain the right to archive your poems on our site.

Unbordered is seeking literary and personal essays of up to 7,500 words from American emigrants exploring the intimate, often unspoken experiences of life beyond the U.S.

This section is for the small stories that illuminate something larger—for writing that traces the contours of identity, dislocation, adaptation, and belonging. We are drawn to essays that build bridges—between past and present, between cultures, between people—while also honoring the moments of rupture, longing, and in-betweenness that define exile and migration.

We’re especially interested in:

• Moments of unexpected connection or deep disconnection
• Stories of navigating new cultural or community dynamics
• Grief, comfort, humor, and contradiction in the everyday
• Reflections on how identity (race, gender, class, disability, queerness, etc.) shapes your experience abroad
• Essays that explore how leaving the U.S. has changed you—your politics, your relationships, your art

We are not looking for generic travelogues or surface-level comparisons between countries. We want layered, honest, and vulnerable storytelling that reflects the lived complexity of this political and personal moment.

What We’re Looking For:

• Voice-forward literary essays with depth, clarity, and texture
• Stories that don’t resolve too neatly—we welcome uncertainty and nuance
• Deeply personal stories that connect us to different systems or ways of being
• A strong sense of place, movement, or transformation

We accept simultaneous submissions, but please let us know if your piece is accepted elsewhere. We ask for first serial rights and retain the right to archive your work on our site.

Unbordered is seeking nonfiction submissions between 5,000 and 10,000 words that offer sharp, thoughtful political or cultural commentary from American emigrants living abroad.

This section is for analysis, argument, and reflection on the forces shaping our world—particularly from those who have crossed borders in response to rising authoritarianism, violence, and disillusionment in the U.S. We’re looking for pieces that reckon with what’s happening back home and what we’re learning from a vantage point outside it.

We are especially interested in:

• Firsthand analysis of U.S. policies from abroad (e.g., healthcare, immigration, reproductive rights)
• Reflections on U.S. imperialism, militarism, or capitalism in a global context
• Observations about the political culture of your new country—comparisons, critiques, insights
• Deep dives into American media, political rhetoric, or cultural shifts
• Commentary on global solidarity, movement-building, or resistance strategies
• Critical responses to public discourse, elections, or current events

We are not looking for generic travel writing or traditional expat essays. This section is about layered, grounded, radical perspectives that reflect the lived complexity of this political moment. We want pieces that challenge dominant narratives, interrogate assumptions, and imagine something better.

What We’re Looking For:

• Voice-driven commentary that blends personal insight with political analysis
• Essays with clear arguments, informed by lived experience or research
• Cross-cultural reflection that resists nostalgia or simplistic comparisons
• Writing that’s intellectually bold, emotionally grounded, and stylistically alive

We accept simultaneous submissions, but please notify us immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere. We ask for first serial rights and retain the right to archive your piece on our site.