How is it that in this hyper-connected society, when we are constantly “located” via GPS and social graphs, we nevertheless feel lost? We live in virtual worlds that remember everything but feel nothing. We are the most communicative generation in history, yet we are also the most tormented by a profound sense of exile.
At Zeba Books, we feel that poetry is the only architecture capable of accommodating all of this. And today, we’re excited to launch the open call for our Summer 2026 anthology of poetry, “The Architecture of Absence.”
The Mission: Why “Aspiring” Voices Only?
In the literary world, the same old familiar faces are often the ones who dominate the scene. “The Architecture of Absence” is different from the start. We maintain a hardline “no veterans” policy for this anthology. We are seeking the quiet observers, the late-night writers, and the digital poets whose work has the sincerity and depth that technical skill has yet to compromise.
Thematic Pillars: What We Are Looking For
We are looking for works that focus on three core pillars of existential longing:
- Saudade: From Portuguese; the presence of absence; a deep emotional state of melancholic longing for an absent something or someone that one cares for.
- Ibasho ga nai: From Japanese; having no place to belong; the psychological state of having no place where one feels at ease, at home, or truly belongs.
- Ghuraba: From Arabic; the strangers; the concept of the “Stranger”, that is, those who are alienated from the mundane world while being tethered to a deeper, often spiritual, reality.
The poems in this anthology can be clubbed under several wide heads, some of which may include:
- Personal
- childhood
- school
- family
- love
- Social
- outsiders
- marginalized voices
- immigration
- diaspora
- Existential
- feeling alien in the world
- loneliness in pursuit of love
- searching for meaning
Submission Guidelines
- Eligibility: Open strictly to aspiring poets whose full-length solo collection has yet to be published.
- Format: Submit upto three poems in a single .docx document.
- Submission Period: 06 March, 2026 to 23 March, 2026.
How to Submit?
We utilize Google Forms to make submissions as easy as possible. Whilst filling the form, please have your .docx file and a brief 2-sentence “Statement of Intent” ready.
Click Here to Access the Submissions Form.
Note that there is no fee for submission; and furthermore, simultaneous submissions are not accepted.
Additional Info
For further queries, please write to letters@zebabooks.org