As a semiannual literary journal, The Cost of Paper advocates for arts and letters as a civic force: an intellectual commons where writers support writers and where ideas are treated as catalyst, not commodity.
The weight of words for the cost of paper.
History
The Cost of Paper is a unique journal, sold for only the cost of the paper in your hand, or free online at pastforward.org.
The title itself is our thesis. Be it the material cost of producing literature in an era of constrained resources and structural challenges, or the metaphorical cost of writing truth in a divisive world, The Cost of Paper affirms the written word has the power to disrupt, inspire, and demand change.
The Cost of Paper debuted exclusively for the inaugural California Bookstore Day (now Independent Bookstore Day) on May 3, 2014. We published five volumes and two special editions featuring hundreds of writers until March 2020. Since then, our communities have been fighting for education, justice, and rights. We return to this work to document the concerns shaping our environment, economy, and civil liberties.
In our second edition, editor William M. Brandon III wrote the following introduction:
“It is often difficult to find examples of selfless passion. Even the most creative endeavors can be marred by a stain of profit and reek of the hurried rush to market. Beneath the surface there still exists a sense of community, a feeling of family, and a drive to create for creation’s sake. Underground currents are powerful and they silently erode the settled and stagnant surface, changing the landscape, changing the shape of our world, and reshaping the way we view ourselves and one another. This anthology is a collection of currents, a collaboration of our most powerful tributaries, flowing together into a vast and revolutionary sea.”
“The current cannot be stopped.” —Walt Whitman, The Signal, February 1888
Submissions
The journal publishes essays, monologues, poems, and stories, reinvesting all submission fees into awards and contributor payments to cultivate a sustainable ecosystem for emerging and established voices.
Essays: Ideas that push public thought, engage civic argument, and offer cultural critique. Length: 1,000–2,000 words (4–10 minute read)
Monologues: A single voice with clarity and intention, creating immediate human connection. Length: 500–1,200 words (3–8 minute read)
Poems: Feeling and insight expressed through concentrated language and deliberate form. Length: 150-400 words (2–4 minute read)
Stories: Imaginative work that disrupts and reshapes how we see ourselves and one another. Length: 1,000–3,500 words (5–17 minute read)
The Cost of Paper partners with national leaders across journalism, theater, publishing, and academia to select the final honorees in each category. Essays are selected by a leading news outlet known for civic and cultural coverage; monologues, by an award-winning theater company with a track record producing new work; poetry, by a landmark bookstore committed to poet-focused events and publishing; stories, by a prestigious academic institution with a strong creative writing program. Partner names will be announced in winter 2026.
Selected authors from The Cost of Paper have the opportunity to share their work on Past Forward's podcast, reaching new audiences, through How + Why, which documents process and purpose across the visual, performing, and literary arts, and Without Books, which gives authors the opportunity to discuss their writing and current projects. Eligibility varies by award tier, as outlined below.
Category Winner: $200. Author and work featured in the print edition of The Cost of Paper and on the How + Why podcast, with the option of inclusion in the online edition and a 3-minute Microcast reading and/or a Without Books episode.
Category Runner-up: $150. Author and work featured in the print edition of The Cost of Paper and on the How + Why podcast, with the option of inclusion in the online edition and a 3-minute Microcast reading and/or a Without Books episode.
Shortlist: $100. Author and work featured in the print edition of The Cost of Paper, with the option of inclusion in the online edition and a 3-minute Microcast reading and/or a Without Books episode.
Longlist: Author and work listed on the longlist, with the option of inclusion in the online edition and a 3-minute Microcast reading and/or a Without Books episode.
The Cost of Paper releases twice a year. Submissions for the spring volume open September through November, with the issue released each April coinciding with Independent Bookstore Day. Submissions for the fall volume open March through May, with the issue released each November.
Our organization will continue to find additional funding sources to expand and increase prize money to support authors. The Cost of Paper does not accept AI-generated submissions. All work must be written by the submitting author.
Cover artwork
To honor the work within, we commission a new artist for each volume. The first five volumes (2014–2018) featured covers designed by illustrator Konstantin Datz and his Folded Paper Alphabet typography. The two special edition covers were created by Jenikah Joy using papercutting techniques.
Starting in 2027, covers will be created by international letterpress artists and printmakers.
