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Statement of Purpose • Submission Guidelines
‘Ōiwi: A Native Hawaiian Journal is the first journal dedicated to the mana‘o (thoughts) and hana no‘eau (works) of Hawaiians, a historical landmark in the revival of the rich and ancient literary heritage of nā ‘ōiwi o Hawai‘i nei - the native people of Hawai‘i. All the authors and artists in ‘Ōiwi, as well as the entire ‘Ōiwi staff, are Native Hawaiian. ‘Ōiwi's inaugural issue features mele, oli, poems, an excerpt from a play, mo‘olelo, photographs, drawings, essays, kanikau, reprints from Hawaiian-language newspapers of the last century, and testimony by more than 30 writers and artists. The title of the issue comes from an editorial that appeared in the Hawaiian nationalist newspaper Ke Aloha ‘Āina on August 13, 1898, the day after the forced annexation of Hawai‘i to the United States. "He Oia Mau No Kākou," the editor wrote. We go on.
The purpose of the journal is to give nā ‘ōiwi a venue for literary, scholarly, and artistic expression. ‘Ōiwi is partly in response to the claim that there exists no "real" body of contemporary Hawaiian literature, just a few scattered voices. ‘Ōiwi knows this is not true, as the native eloquence of our people can be heard and seen all over these islands: in speeches, testimonies, prayers, conversations, music, dance, film, art. We want to gather some of these voices in book form, to provide one more place where our community can meet artistically, intellectually, socially, politically, spiritually, and culturally, like our ancestors did in the Hawaiian-language newspapers of the 19th century.
You could think of ‘Ōiwi as dealing in the familiar genres of "poetry," "fiction," "essays," etc. But the ‘Ōiwi staff has a vision broader than those labels, mostly because the usual assumption is that only "writers" write real literature. ‘Ōiwi is looking for expressions of ke 'ano Hawai‘i that can be put down on paper. In other words, instead of worrying about the limitations of categories, na ‘ōiwi are invited to focus on expressing in words or images their experience of the world. In the same spirit, we are also inviting na keiki to participate. ‘Ōiwi is looking for na ‘ōiwi of all ages, backgrounds, education, genealogy. We are also not confined to our own era - we are actively seeking things from the past to republish (such as materials printed in the Hawaiian-language newspapers of the 19th century). Even though ‘Ōiwi is about ‘ōiwi expression of ke ‘ano Hawai‘i, submissions do not have to directly address the issue of "Hawaiianness." In other words, the subject does not have to be about being a Hawaiian. What we are looking for when we make our final selections is a sense of a human being; that the human being is Hawaiian speaks for our contemporary condition as a nation and a people. Regarding language: the choice of language (ka ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i, English, pidgin, etc.) is left to the writer. This includes the choice to translate a text or submit a bilingual text. We have English-language and Hawaiian-language editors who review all manuscripts. If there is anything the editors question in terms of grammar, spelling, or fact, or if there are ways we think the piece can be made stronger, the author will be consulted. However, our position is that the author has final say about revision decisions. The policy holds for the use of any language the author wishes to use. Submissions are accepted all year round. The journal is projected to be published once a year, although this may vary. Materials submitted after deadline will be considered for future issues. When sending your work, please include your mailing address, phone number, and e-mail address. Submissions may be sent to:  P.O. Box 61218 Honolulu, Hawai‘i 96839-1218 tel:
(808) 956-3031
‘Ōiwi: A Native Hawaiian Journal is published by Kuleana ‘Ōiwi Press, a non-profit organization. "Payment" to artists and writers whose work is accepted for publication is in the form of two complimentary copies of the issue the work appear in. We look forward to receiving your submission! And please tell your ‘ohana and friends, too. |
