This publication is being conceptualized and compiled on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the xwməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) nations. We acknowledge that this land was never surrendered, relinquished, or handed over by these nations to Canada or British Columbia. It is sovereign and unsurrendered. 

Submissions Close: July 24, 2025 (11:59pm PST)

An inlet’s tidal flat is filled for development. A city’s so-called ‘undesirables’ are relegated to the edge of a swamp. Over a hundred years later, the basements in the neighbourhood known as “Chinatown” still flood. Water remembers and water remains.

In Chinatown Stories’ first fully bilingual publication, we invite you to explore the complexities of Chinatown through the theme of “潮” or “Tide”.

In the literal sense, Chinatown is marked by the tide. Its history entangled with marginalization of migrant settlers who crossed oceans to arrive and displacement of the Coast Salish peoples who have stewarded the area for millennia. 鹹水埠 (Saltwater City) was the name given to Vancouver by early Chinese settlers. Just as the shorelines of this port city have shifted and changed, the boundaries of Chinatown are fluid and in flux. But it is never as simple as the act of just drawing lines on a map, or filling in the sea and expecting the water to never reclaim it. Who gets to claim Chinatown? Where are its borders permeable? What stories lie beneath this unsettled ground? 

Tides also allude to movements of thought / 思潮. As individual water droplets accumulate and gather, they become powerful forces of nature to be reckoned with. Chinatown is the site of significant activist and organizing initiatives, past and present. It is also a space rich with cultural heritage and artistic production. What tides have you seen turn? What waves / 浪潮 have pulled you in? What trends / 潮流 have you noticed sweeping through the neighbourhood?

The daily rise and fall of the tide / 潮汐 traces the cycle of the moon, marking time, history and memory. Legacies and new beginnings. The cleansing properties of salt. What ebb and flows of Chinatown bring you comfort? What rituals or ways of being have seeped into your pores? Tides erode and they support life. They can drag you under and they can also reveal. What has threatened to drown you? What taste, smell or sounds linger when you surface? What revelations have you discovered washed up on the shore? 

Through forms such as creative non-fiction, interviews, poetry, recipes, visual art, and others, we invite those connected to Chinatown and/or the Downtown Eastside to share stories that engage with these prompts—as well as submissions that interpret the theme in entirely new ways. Examples of stories published in the past are available on the Chinatown Today website and in the five Volumes of Chinatown Stories already published. 

Chinatown does not belong to any one community. We welcome submissions from Indigenous, Black, and other racialized storytellers of all ages. We appreciate stories that challenge and expand the idea of “Chinatown” itself, and stories that can connect Chinatown and the Downtown Eastside, Hogan’s Alley, Paueru Gai, and other communities who share space or a relationship to the neighbourhood.

Eligibility:

• Contributors do not necessarily need to reside within Chinatown or the Downtown Eastside but should have some connection to either, or both, of these communities.
• Submissions can include (but are not limited to) non-fiction or fiction, essays, prose, poetry, interviews, photography illustration, painting, digital art, or any combination thereof. We welcome multimedia (e.g., films, website, audio, etc.) submissions, but Chinatown Stories is first and foremost a print magazine. If you are submitting a piece with a multimedia component, please include a rationale for submission with an explanation on how you intend the project to be adapted for the print medium in your artist statement.
• Both English and Chinese (all dialects) submissions will be accepted in this volume. English language submissions will be translated into standard written Chinese.
• As a community oriented publication, Chinatown Stories is committed to supporting the development of craft by emerging and underrepresented creatives. We are not interested in AI generated work, unless there is specific, justifiable rationale and full disclosure for its use.

General Instructions:

Submissions will be processed through a google form linked at the bottom of this page. In addition to your piece(s), including submissions and pitches, you will be asked to include a brief bio of up to three sentences. If you are submitting multiple pieces, please fill out a separate form for each submission.

Submissions of Completed Work: 

Please ensure that your submission adheres to the following guidelines:

Guidelines for Non-Fiction, Fiction, Prose, Poetry, Recipes, Interviews or Other Written Pieces (online and print):

• No more than 1,000 words per piece.
• Please use 12pt Times New Roman and double-space your submission.
• Please submit in your application form in one Word file named “Your Name_Title_Type of Writing”, unless you have specific formatting constraints, in which case please submit a PDF file using the same naming convention above.

Guidelines for Photography, Illustration, Zines, Painting, Calligraphy, or Other 2D files (online and print):

* Due to page limit constraints longer works such as photo essays or zines may be excerpted in the final volume

• Maximum 9 images in .jpg or .png format.
• 300dpi preferred. 
• Please name each file “Number_Your Name_Title_Medium”
• You may also include an optional artist statement of up to 300 words when you submit your work.

Guidelines for Multimedia / Audiovisual files (online and print):

• Please submit the link to the project in a Word file named “Your Name_Title_Medium”
• Please include a rationale for submission with an explanation on how you intend the project to be adapted for the print medium in your artist statement.

Pitches for Potential Stories:

We are once again inviting applicants to pitch their ideas for stories to be included in Volume six. We hope this will allow us to work more closely with contributors to support the development of their piece and tailor it to this volume’s theme “潮” or “Tide”.

For contributors interested in pitching, our goal is to provide a minimum of two opportunities to receive direct feedback from the editorial team, which will require having a draft of the piece ready to share at a midpoint check-in, and shortly before the final deadline.

Please ensure that the intended pitch and resulting piece adheres to the existing aforementioned guidelines for completed submissions.

Guidelines for Pitches in Any Medium:

• No more than 400 words per pitch, including a brief description of the final piece, why it fits with this volume’s theme, and how you’d ideally plan to create it. If you are pitching multiple pieces, please fill out a new form for each separate pitch. 
• Please include one example from your portfolio of a past piece of yours that is of the same medium as your pitch. If you do not have an example, please let us know in your pitch document. 
• Please use 12pt Times New Roman and double-space your pitch.
• Please submit in one Word file named “Your Name_Pitch_medium”, indicating which type of medium you intend your finished piece to be completed in (for example, if your name is Chinatown Today, and you are pitching a photography project, the file would be named “ChinatownToday_Pitch_Photography”)

Notes for Contributors:

Because this is intended to be the first fully bilingual (Chinese & English) issue of Chinatown Stories, we are still exploring the possibilities within the translation process. If your work is selected, we will reach out and discuss further what your preference for involvement in the translation process may look like.  

Chinatown Today purchases first North American Serial Rights for published works that revert back to the author/contributor upon publication. We ask that the pieces we publish are appearing in publication for the first time. We accept pieces that have appeared on personal blogs or portfolios. This includes social media platforms such as Twitter and Instagram. We ask that you include a statement of acknowledgment to Chinatown Today in any subsequent reprints.

All accepted submissions will be paid honorariums of $80-$120, dependent on length.

Any collection of personal or personally identifying information will be in accordance with Chinatown Today’s Confidentiality Policy and Privacy Policy.

If you have any questions, please email submissions[at]chinatown.today.

Submission Form

《唐人街故事》第六卷：潮

作品徵稿及提案徵集啟事

本刊物的構思與編輯是在瑪斯琴 (xwməθkwəy̓əm)、史戈米殊 (Skwxwú7mesh) 及斯里華圖 (səlilwətaɬ) 的傳統且未割讓的領土上所進行。我們承認這片土地從未被上述原住民族割讓、放棄或交出予加拿大或卑詩省。這片土地是上述原住民族擁有的主權領地，且從未被割讓。

徵集時間：即日起至7月24日

一處水灣的潮灘因開發之名而被填平；而一個城市中所謂的「不受歡迎者」則被徙置於沼澤邊緣。百多年後，在現時被稱為「唐人街」的社區，該處的地下室仍不時淹水。水藏歲月，繾綣不散。

適逢《唐人街故事》首次以完整雙語出版，我們誠邀你以「潮」這個主題來深入探索唐人街的多重脈絡。

從字面意義上來看，唐人街的存在與潮汐息息相關。它的歷史與穿越重洋而來的移民拓荒者的邊緣化，以及數千年來守護這片土地的沿岸賽里希族 (Coast Salish)原住民們的流離失所相互交織。「鹹水埠」此名字則為早期華人移民對溫哥華的別稱。

有如這座不斷變動海岸線的港口城市，唐人街的邊界亦如水般一直流動、不斷變化。然而，這並非僅僅在地圖上畫幾條線，或填海造地後就能期待海水永不反撲般簡單的事。究竟誰能真正宣稱擁有唐人街？它的邊界又在何處與外界相互滲透、交融？在這片尚未安定的土地下又埋藏著哪些故事？

潮汐就如思潮，象徵著思想的流動與變化。當聚水成涓、匯聚成海，便會激起一股無法忽視的自然力量。古往今來，唐人街不單是無數重要社會運動及社群組織行動的搖籃，也是一個蘊含豐富文化遺產與藝術創作的空間。你可曾目睹過哪些潮起潮落？哪些浪潮曾將你捲入其中？又有哪些潮流目前正在唐人街中悄然翻湧？

每天漲退的潮汐遵循著月亮的軌跡，標記著時間的流逝、歷史的沉積與記憶的延續。潮汐既是歷史的延續，也象徵新的開始。在潮汐當中，潛藏水中的鹽粉亦擁有淨化的力量。在唐人街的浮浮沉沉中，有讓你感到安心或熟悉的時刻嗎？有哪些日常習慣或生活方式，又已悄悄融入成為你的一部份？潮漲潮退，或蝕或養；水能覆舟，亦能載舟。潮汐當中，可否有曾讓你幾乎窒息的時刻？當你重新浮上海面，又有哪些縈繞的味道、氣味或聲音？又有哪些被潮汐悄然帶到你眼前的啟示？

不論是創意記實文學、訪談、詩歌、食譜、視覺藝術，還是其他創作形式，我們誠邀與唐人街或市中心東端有關連的各位來投稿：你既可呼應我們以上的提問，亦歡迎你以嶄新的角度來詮釋本次的主題。如需參考歷年來所刊登的故事範例，請瀏覽今日唐人街的網站或查閱已出版五冊的《Chinatown Stories》。

唐人街並不屬於任何單一社群。我們歡迎所有年齡層的原住民、非裔人士及其他有色族群的創作者來投稿。我們尤其重視能挑戰並延伸「唐人街」既有定義的作品，以及能串連唐人街與市中心東端、霍根巷、鮑威爾街及其他社區空間或歷史關係的故事。

投稿資格:

• 投稿者無需居住於唐人街或市中心東端，但應與其中一地或兩者均有連結、故事或記憶。
• 歡迎各類型作品投稿，包括（但不限於）：記實文學、小說、論文、散文、詩歌、訪談、攝影、插畫、繪畫、數位藝術，或上述形式的混合創作。
  • 本卷接受英文和中文（所有方言）投稿。英文稿件將被翻譯成標準書面中文。
  • 「唐人街故事」致力於支持新興和代表性不足的創作者的工藝發展。我們對人工智能產生的作品不感興趣，除非有具體、合理的理由並完全公開其使用情況。
• 我們亦歡迎多媒體稿件（如影片、網站、音訊等）。但請注意，《唐人街故事》主要以紙本雜誌出版。如你投稿的作品包含多媒體內容，敬請於創作者聲明中簡述你的投稿動機，以及你打算如何將作品以印刷形式呈現。

投稿須知：

請透過本頁下方的 Google 表單投稿。除提交你的作品（已完成作品及創作提案皆可）之外，請同時提供一段三句句子內的個人簡介。如欲投稿多件作品，請為每件作品分別填寫表格。已完成作品之投稿規範：

請確保您的投稿符合以下格式要求：

適用於記實文學、小說、散文、詩歌、小說、食譜、訪談或其他文字形式創作（含網路及印刷形式）：

• 每篇作品字數限一千字內。
• 請使用 12pt Times New Roman 字體及雙行間距。
• 請將作品以整合於一個Word 檔中提交，並將Word檔命名為「你的姓名_作品標題_文字作品類型」。若因格式排版需求無法使用 Word 檔，請改以 PDF 檔提交，檔名格式同上。

適用於攝影、插畫、小誌、畫作、書法或其他二維平面類作品（含網路及印刷形式）：

*因篇幅所限，攝影專題或小誌等長篇作品可能僅節選刊登於最終版本。

• 最多提交 9 張以格式為 .jpg 或 .png的圖像。
• 建議解析度為 300dpi。
• 請將圖檔命名為「序號_你的姓名_作品標題_作品媒介」。
• 如有需要，投稿時可附上一段三百字內的創作者聲明。

適用於多媒體或影音類作品（含網路及印刷形式）：

• 請以 Word 檔提交你的作品連結，並將Word檔命名為「你的姓名_作品標題_作品媒介」。
• 請於創作者聲明中簡述你的投稿動機，以及你打算如何將作品以印刷形式呈現。

故事提案徵集：

我們再次誠邀投稿者為第六期的故事提案。我們希望藉此機制來與創作者們更密切合作、協助其創作作品，並讓其作品內容更貼合本卷「潮」的主題。

對於有意提案的創作者，我們期望至少提供兩次與編輯團隊直接交流的機會。因此，請於創作中期及截稿前準備好草稿以便交流。

請注意，你的創作提案與最終成品仍需遵守上述列出的投稿規範。

其他媒介的提案徵集：

• 每則提案字數限400字內，提案應包含作品簡述、如何呼應本卷主題，以及你預計的創作方式。如欲投稿多個提案，請為每則提案分別填寫表格。
• 請從你的過往作品中附上一件與本次提案有相同媒介的作品以作參考。如你沒有類似過往作品，請在提案中註明。
• 請使用 12pt Times New Roman 字體及雙行間距。
• 請將提案以 Word 檔提交，並將Word檔命名為「你的姓名_Pitch_作品媒介」。於「作品媒介」中請註明你預計作品所使用的形式（例：若你的名字為 Chinatown Today，提案為攝影項目，請將檔名命名為「ChinatownToday_Pitch_Photography」）。

投稿備註：

由於本卷《唐人街故事》將首次以完全雙語（中文及英文）方式出版，我們仍在探索翻譯流程中的各種可能性。若你的投稿入圍，我們將與你聯繫並討論有關參與翻譯流程的方式。

今日唐人街將購買所刊作品的北美首發連載權，而該權利將於刊物出版後即歸還於所刊作品之作者或投稿者。我們要求投稿作品為首次正式發表。我們接納曾出現在個人部落格、作品集，或社群媒體平台上（如 Twitter 或 Instagram）的作品。若該作品日後另行再版，請於再版時註明原刊登於《今日唐人街》。

所有入選投稿均獲稿酬，酬金為 80 至 120 元不等，視作品長度而定。

所有個人或可識別身份的資訊收集，將依據《今日唐人街》 的保密政策與隱私政策處理。

如有任何疑問，請來信聯絡：submissions [at] chinatown.today.

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