The Ugly Collective has opened its call for submissions for the second issue of The Ugly Review, themed “Metamorphosis.” The editors are seeking fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and photography/art that explores transformation in all its diverse, weird, beautiful, violent, and quiet forms.

The theme spans four broad directions: physical transformation tied to the body, illness, migration, gender, or aging; inner transformation rooted in grief, love, faith, or unlearning; social and environmental transformation touching cities, ecosystems, technology, and revolution; and magical or speculative transformation drawing on myth, portals, and the uncanny. The editors are especially interested in voices from Africa and the diaspora, and work that engages language, culture, and spirituality in new ways.

Submissions opened on August 15 and closes on September 15, 2026. Only previously unpublished work will be considered, and simultaneous submissions are allowed provided the editors are notified if a piece is accepted elsewhere. Manuscripts should be submitted as a .docx file in Times New Roman, 12-point font, single-spaced for poetry and double-spaced for fiction and nonfiction.

Full submission guidelines are available at theuglycollective.com/submissions.