Poets who are caregivers, broadly defined (including care for children, elders, partners, friends, or community members with disabilities, chronic illness, neurodivergence, or complex needs).

No disclosure of diagnoses or personal details is required.

What We’re Looking For

Inside Care means we want you to peel back the layers and bring us inside the rooms you are in, those undiscovered spaces you usually hold close to the vest. Show us your truth, not glossed over, but lived. We want:

Strong literary craft
Emotional honesty without sentimentality
Complexity without moral simplification

We are especially interested in work that resists:

“Caregiver as hero” or inspirational framing
Redemptive or simplified narratives
Overly medicalized or clinical language

Note: We request first publication rights, which may be reverted back to you after publication, depending on the publishing pathway we take.

Email us with questions: insidecarepoetry@gmail.com

Submission Guidelines

Submit 1-2 poems (maximum of 4 pages total)
We are looking for your original work. No AI-generated pieces permitted. Previously published work is welcome, but only if it is from your personal blog.
Simultaneous submissions are allowed. Please notify us if accepted elsewhere.
We anticipate selecting 40–60 poets

These are blind submissions, so your 50-word bio will not be read until all poems are selected. Please submit your poem(s) in PDF or Word format, using Times New Roman, size 12 font.

Timeline For Submissions

We open submissions on September 8, 2026 and will close on December 31, 2026.

We will announce selections after June 1, 2027 and notify you via email.

We ask $5 for 1-2 poems. A Tip Jar for an additional $5 donation will be offered, but you are not obligated to pay beyond the required $5 submission fee, and tipping will not affect the outcome of your submission.

Submit 1-2 Poems for $5

Who We Are

‍ ‍
Chris B. is an award-winning published poet, caregiver, and dad to his son Brayden (Bray Bray). When he’s not writing, caregiving, or working, you can find Chris on the pickleball and beach volleyball courts of Long Island, NY, where he resides with his wife Melanie and Bray Bray. Chris is very active on Substack and invites you to follow along as he shares his life adventures as the working parent of a child with many needs, whose enduring smile lights up the world. You can find Chris on Substack as Chris B. Writes: https://chrisbwrites.substack.com
‍ ‍
Jeannie Ewing is a nationally recognized speaker and author of seven books that explore how grief and life transitions shape one’s identity. Through emotionally rich storytelling, she helps audiences embrace life’s contradictions. She has been a freelance editor, writing consultant, and mentor for ten years. Her work has been published in HuffPost Personal, Brevity Blog, Chicago Story Press, and Complex Child Magazine. She and her husband Ben live in northern Indiana with their five kids, including Sarah, who was born with a rare genetic diagnosis called Apert syndrome. Connect at jeannieewing.com and read her work at jeannieewing.substack.com

Chris B. with his son Bray Bray

Jeannie Ewing with her daughter Sarah