Bacopa Literary Review: North Florida’s Best-Kept Secret — A World-Class Journal in Your Backyard

Most writers in North Florida have heard of the Writers Alliance of Gainesville. Fewer know about its crown jewel. The Bacopa Literary Review is an annual print journal that has been quietly building an international reputation since 2010, and right now, the timing could not be better to read it, join the organization behind it, or submit your own work.

This is your invitation.

What Is Bacopa Literary Review?

Bacopa is a real, printed book. Not a website, not a newsletter, but a bound volume published every year by the Writers Alliance of Gainesville (WAG). It covers five categories: Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Free Verse Poetry, Formal Poetry, and Visual Poetry. The journal accepts blind submissions from writers worldwide, offers cash prizes in every category, and has published authors from all 50 states and dozens of countries including India, Australia, Japan, and across Latin America.

The 2025 edition is the journal’s 16th volume. It received 353 submissions and selected about 50 pieces for publication. The cover art, Secrets in the Salt Marsh by Gainesville artist Lori Anne Butler, was created in gouache, oil pastel, and cyanotype on watercolor paper. Every design detail is considered. This is not a casual publication.

Fresh Leadership, Fresh Energy

The 2026 edition brings a new editorial team. Stephanie Seguin, who served as Creative Nonfiction Editor for several years, is now Editor-in-Chief. She studied English Literature and French at the University of Florida, has published humor, short fiction, and personal memoir, and brings 15 years of freelance editing experience to the role.

Joining her as Creative Nonfiction Editor is Aliesa Zoecklein, who won the Best of WAG award in Free Verse Poetry for the 2025 edition. Zoecklein taught composition, literature, and poetry writing at Santa Fe College for 25 years, and her chapbook At Each Moment, Air won the Peter Meinke Poetry Prize. The poetry editors, Oliver Keyhani, Grayson May, and Susan Ward Mickelberry, round out a team that is both locally rooted and nationally credentialed. Fiction Editor Wendy Thornton, a Pushcart nominee and founder of WAG itself, continues in her role.

New leadership often brings fresh openness to expanding a journal’s community. If you have been on the fence about submitting, this is the year to try.

Why North Florida Writers Should Care

The journal is international, yes. But its roots are right here. The editorial team reads submissions blind, which means your Gainesville, Alachua, or Levy County address is not a disadvantage. It is also not an advantage. Your writing is.

WAG added a “Best of WAG” award in 2025, one in each of the five categories, specifically to spotlight the work of local members. WAG member Charlotte M. Porter won Best of WAG in Creative Nonfiction. WAG member Aliesa Zoecklein won in Free Verse Poetry. WAG member Bonnie T. Ogle took the Fiction prize. These are your neighbors, and the award returns for 2026.

How to Read It, Join, and Submit

A WAG membership costs $40 per year and includes a free copy of the most recent Bacopa Literary Review. When you consider that comparable literary journals sell for $15 to $20 an issue, the membership pays for itself on day one. You also get access to critique pods, monthly programming, the Marketing Coalition, the Speakers Bureau, and fee-free Bacopa submission status.

Non-members can submit for just $2. Hardship waivers are available; email bacopaliteraryreview@gmail.com to request one. Submissions close April 30, 2026, so the window is open now. Authors may submit to only ONE category; submitting to more than one can result in disqualification.

You can purchase back issues on Amazon by searching “Bacopa Literary Review Writers Alliance of Gainesville.” The journal is also on Facebook and Instagram at @bacopaliteraryreview and on Twitter at @BacopaLitReview.

A Journal Worth Supporting

The entire journal is produced by volunteers. Hundreds of hours, dozens of readers, one printed book. Outgoing Editor-in-Chief J.N. Fishhawk put it simply: “It’s our gift to the local community and to our fellow members of the Writers Alliance of Gainesville and to the world.”

The Sunshine State Book Festival, WAG’s other signature project, drew over 150 readers and writers to Santa Fe College in January 2026. The same community that builds the festival builds Bacopa. If you attended the festival, you have already been in the same room as the people who make this journal happen.

Bacopa Literary Review has been building something extraordinary for 16 years. Read it. Tell a writer friend. Submit before April 30. And if you are not yet a WAG member, now is the time.

Jolene MacFadden is a North Florida writer, digital marketing consultant, and member of the Writers Alliance of Gainesville. She maintains the North Florida Writers Tour at NorthFloridaWritersTour.com, an ongoing directory of authors living and writing across the North Florida region. She leads the WAG Marketing Coalition and presented at the 2026 Sunshine State Book Festival.

Note From Editor

We would encourage any North Florida Writers who would like to Guest Post on this site “North Florida Writers Tour” then please get in touch using our CONTACT US form. Our site has an excellent monthly Newsletter that contains exclusive content. Join in on the fun! CLICK HERE!

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