The moon is a universal talisman for poets, the night sky being perhaps
the oldest map for the human desire to read meaning into the natural
world.The moon, an ancient lamp, reflects and illuminates, causes waves with its magnetism; it stands for the poet.

“Mah” in MahMag means “moon” in Persian as well as Urdu, my mother
tongue. It is also the prefix of Mahnaz, the name of the founding editor
with whom I share the vision of congregating here, in these pages, from
all corners of the world as bearers of distinct cultures and philosophies,
partaking in the spirit and art of poetry.

The City Issue

Poets featured here question the city’s walls, shake up the brick and mortar icons of superpowers, trans-posit the ironies and dilemmas of life onto the surrounding cityscape. Included, also, is art based on our theme.

In future issues, we will explore this theme further: marketplaces, old and new, souls lost in the hustle and bustle, cities of fantasy, cities in despair, border cities, forgotten cities, cities under siege. We hope to see deeper, darker, brighter and larger truths emerge from this mosaic of city poems.

Read The City Issue 

What kind of work is MahMag looking for?

MahMag accepts submission of poetry, short story, articles on philosophy, reviews, art portfolios and any other original pieces of your creation including music pieces.  Due to the large volume of submissions we cannot give you individual criticism of your work.

Does MahMag accept previously published material?
Yes, only if it has not been published online.

How do I submit my work to MahMag ?
Submissions must be emailed to publisher@mahmag.org . Please also include a 3-sentence biography of yourself along with a preferred image in a jpg format.  All submissions must be the final versions of the work.

What file types can I submit?
Please submit files in the following formats only:

Word document (.doc) files
Images in jpg (.jpg) files

Poetry guidelines: Please submit between 3 to 6 poems, with one poem per page.

Short Story and Article (reviews, etc.) guidelines: No more than 4-pages single spaced.

When can I submit to MahMag?
We accept submissions year round.

How soon can I expect to hear about my submission?
If your work has been picked for publication you will be notified within 6 weeks.

Please note: All submissions are final and will not be returned to sender, or withdrawn after publication.

publisher@mahmag.org

See Submissions page for submission guidelines

Our Mission

Dr. Mahnaz Badihian – Editor-in-Chief

Dr. Ali Rezai - Webmaster

Pirooz Ebrahimi - Editor – Italian

Cristina Contilli – Editor – Italian

Mahvand Sadeghi – MahMag, Inc. Director

Andrés Alfaro – Editor-Spanish

Soroush Alizadeh-contributor to Farsi  section(short story)

Yadollah Moughen – Philosophy Editor-Persian

Hamzeh Kuti – Editor – Arabic Section

Shadab Hashmi – Editor – The Issue

*All opinions expressed on this site are those of the authors and not necessarily reflect those of MahMag, Inc.

MahMag is happy to announce we have received non-profit 501 (c) 3 status

Your tax-exempt donation helps MahMag continue to give a voice to writers and artists around the world.

To make a take deductible donation please click :

Dr. Mahnaz Badihian, at the time a practicing dentist, published poet, and mother, conceived of the idea for an online Persian language literary magazine in 1999 in an effort to connect the cultures of the world. The original site was created with the technical help of Dr. Ali Rezai, who was a computer expert before many of us had heard the word ‘computer’ and was a practicing medical doctor and professor of Nuclear Radiology at the University of Iowa.

The original online magazine was called World Poetry Web, ‫شعرجهان. This was the very first Persian literary magazine online. The site was still being improved but went live immediately. Unfortunately due to the untimely death of Dr. Badihian’s mother, the site dwindled away over the course of two years. The original site can be viewed here http://www.mahmag.org/wpw/

Since the creation of the first site, MahMag has expanded and changed in response to readers and technology, while continuing to promote the original values established by Dr. Badihian:

• Open borders between peoples of all cultures and languages through the proliferation of the arts and humanities
• Freedom of individuals to express their unique voices and perspectives
• Giving voice to emerging writers, thinkers and artists
• Literature as a tool for education

The current version of MahMag was created in 2004 with expanded sections and languages which now include English, Italian and Spanish, in addition to the original Persian. MahMag is considered the largest literary magazine online on the subject of Persian literature with over 50,000 unique visitors a month. It is also the most censored literary website in Iran which means Iranians are eager to read this site and we are eager to continue adding new and exciting submissions.  To view the most recent archives visit http://mahmag.org/english/