We are currently accepting submissions for Vol. 1.1 of Bad Vibes Only: Critique Today (Summer 2026). 

Founded by a collective of PhD students and affiliated faculty at Brown University, BVO is a forthcoming online independent journal committed to fostering critical conversations about contemporary literature, popular culture, and intellectual production. The publication features essays, reviews, and the occasional work of satire or poetry. Contributors include Nebula and Hugo award winners, Yale Drama Award recipients, and emerging writers. If you’ve got a bone to pick and if you believe that critique is an indispensable complement to artistic, cultural, and intellectual production, then this might be the venue for you. 

Topics can include but are not limited to: 

Cults 

Cruising Culture 

Rad Libs 

The MFA industrial complex  

Quan Millz

Las Peliculas  

The Protest Novel 

William Bradford

Gen Alpha

Eco Poetics 

Luigi Mangione Fandom 

Original Sin (broadly interpreted) 

Deadline: May 1, 2026

Critical/ Personal essays should fall in the 2000-3000 word-range 

Reviews should be 1000-2000 words. 

Creative pieces should be 3000-ish words max, though exceptions can be made on a case-by-case basis. 

 Please send all manuscripts and inquiries to: editorbvonly@gmail.com