First, go to one of the following websites to research a particular literary journal that appeals to you. Read the publisher’s description, excerpts from recent issues, and visit the magazine’s website. You’re looking for a publication that best aligns with your style and voice. When in doubt, look for journals that you would want to read.
https://newpages.com/
https://www.clmp.org/
https://duotrope.com/
https://www.pw.org/literary_magazines?&perpage=*
Now, choose a publication (ideally with a piece of fiction you can link to so we can read!). Write a brief description of your chosen publication, providing the name, website address, and the kind of work you think they’d be interested in. Tell me why you think your work, in particular, would fit nicely within that publication. Finally, tell me what their submissions guidelines are, and when/how they are accepting submissions.
Corbin Knapp
The literary magazine that I chose is Apparition Literary Magazine. I was having trouble finding a literary magazine that was still publishing in 2018 and also had short stories to read. This site first started publishing it’s magazines in 2018 and accepts science fiction and fantasy short stories and poems based around themes that they choose. It is published four times a year and the next theme is “Vision.†I think they’d be interested in science fiction and fantasy. Their vision is to include original unpublished fiction that is strange and provokes thoughts in their readers. They also want a lot of diversity in their stories.
Their website address is https://www.apparitionlit.com/. I think they might include my short story “Human†because if I submitted it. It would still be under the theme of “Vision†and my story would apply to that because it is a vision of the future.
Their Submission guidelines are to:
-Format the story using the Shunn manuscript
-Retain all proper formatting marks and keep font italicized and bolded.
-Only use Times New Roman or Arial font in the document.
-Save as an RTF file and attach to an email.
-In the text of the email, provide a brief cover letter that includes the author’s name, the title of the short story, word count, and any relevant publications.
-Edit the email’s subject line so it reads:Â SUBMISSION: Title of your Story.
-Email the formatted email and short story manuscript to submissions@apparitionlit.com.
-Add Apparition Lit to your Safe Senders list so you can receive their auto-response emails.
The next opportunity for submissions is May 15-31, and if accepted will be published in July of 2018.
Aundrea Pierce
Corbin,
This sounds exciting! You should take all of the feedback from “Human” that you got, make whatever changes you feel work, and submit it. Good luck to you!
Sierra Russell-McCollum
The Literary Magazine I choose is Jersey Devil Press. I chose this magazine because their short stories they featured were similar to my writing style and overall I was very fascinated with the short stories. The website is kind of weird looking don’t get me wrong but the way they draw people in is quite funny. For example, they say “Please note the recommended tea pairings for the pieces in our ninety-ninth issue, each of which possesses a lovely, quiet oddness and is perfect for reading to your cat.†This definitely drew me in.
The URL is https://www.jerseydevilpress.com/ . They have different types of submissions and different writing styles featured, so I believe anyone could post their short story. The artwork they have as covers are unique and interesting. Their writing style they accept is mainly flash fictions and poetry. They are mainly an unpublished business and encourage young writers to submit their works to them. Another thing about this magazine is that they do not curve their language, so if you a proper human being and don’t like curing then this may not be for you. Their submissions guidelines are pretty easy to follow.
For fiction:
-Only submit one story at a time.
-Wait at least a month until you submit another story.
-Should be less than 4,200 words.
-Include a third-person bio in the ballpark of 100 words with all submissions.
For Poetry:
-Submit up to 100 lines* of poetry (excluding titles and spaces) in a single file.
-Wait at least a month after receiving a response before submitting more poems.
-Please refrain from sending poems with wonky formatting.
If you are looking for a fun/accepting environment I recommend checking them out. The environment is very welcoming and fun, and the stories that are submitted are very well written. And another positive thing about Jersey Devil Press is that they don’t have deadlines for submitting stories. As long as you follow their guidelines you are free to submit every month if you wanted.
Aundrea Pierce
Sierra,
The name of the Literary Magazine alone draws me in. I like how you’re encouraged to write in the language you feel fits, this helps writers to worry less about holding back, such as with cursing. I also like how there’s no deadline. Score!
Ben Knapp
The magazine I chose is Strange Horizons, which can be found at https://strangehorizons.com/. It focuses on publishing unique perspectives on genres such as fantasy and sci-fi. They seek to continue the tradition of writing, as well as updating it with new ideas and concepts. Their goal is to publish stories that really make the reader think. They also have a focus on giving a voice to groups who have historically been underrepresented.
My work could be considered compatible with this magazine because, although I do use a few common sci-fi themes in my work, I try to combine them in new and interesting ways to avoid creating a less-than original story.
Stories are submitted using their Moksha submission system, so email and postal submissions are not used. Strange Horizons will pay 8 cents a word, or 12 cents a word for translated stories. Stories should be submitted in RFT, DOC, or DOCX, and they are currently accepting submissions.
Michelle Cordova
The literary magazine that I chose is Solstice Literary Magazine which can be found at https://solsticelitmag.org/
They allow you to submit both experimental and traditional pieces of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction as well as photography.
Their guidelines for submission are:
Online submissions Only
Fill out an information form, to include a short bio.
Include name, phone number, and email address (typed at the top of the first page of your piece)
My work would fit in best with this magazine because they encourage new writers to submit their pieces. They do have high standards, but I think with a little more practice, my poetry, or even fiction pieces, could fit in with what they showcase.
This fiction piece https://solsticelitmag.org/content/homecoming/ really stuck out to me. It is a lot like what we have read in class and reminded me of Dorothy Allison’s writing, which I find interesting and dramatic, even if it is a little dark and disturbing.
Andrew Lange
I have elected to use “5×5 Literary Magazine”. This particular publication specializes in poets and writers, along with short pieces which are less than 500 words long. Most of my work is generally much longer than 500 words, so I elected to use one of my poetry pieces.
The particular piece would be compatible with, and likely to be accepted by, this publication as it is short. It is not genre fiction, or a published work of any type, and is less than 500 words, so it would be likely to at least be reviewed.
This publication obviously specializes in short pieces, so the piece I wrote below would likely fit, also being it is poetry:
“A View From Highway 46”
“Sun-baked hillsides
Clay-colored shale adorned with thistles and poison oak
Wind in oak leaves
Rustling faintly
Roots kissing the soil
Hugging the rocky shale
Breeze humming over the hills with a whistle
Gusts whizzing through the underbrush”
Andrew Lange
Also- Their website is the following: https://5x5litmag.wordpress.com
Aundrea Pierce
Adelaide Literary Magazine is simple and well organized! You can submit fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and more. There are also literary contests, which I find is an exciting motivator for writers. Since I’m more drawn to Fiction, I decided to read a few submissions, and they reminded me a lot of how we have written in this class; very clear, simple vocabulary, and with dialogue very similar to many of the writings we’ve done. This is a literary magazine I feel would be a good start for beginners such as myself! While looking through other magazine websites, I was a bit intimidated by the submissions; some I had to use a dictionary to help decipher! I have it saved to my “favorites†list and plan on submitting something soon. To view their website and submission requirements go to https://adelaidemagazine.org/submissions.html
Submission guidelines for Fiction below:
Categories accepted: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Translations, Book Reviews, Interviews, as well as cover art and photography. Submissions are welcome all year-round.
FICTION
Size limit: 5,000 words
We like modern tales with a quality of timelessness: stories with realistic, powerful dialogue and dynamic characters. Please submit one story or excerpt from the larger work, of up to 5,000 words with a brief bio. We do not publish previously published work. The Adelaide Magazine acquires first rights for publication. Upon publication, rights revert to the author.
Reading Period: Jan 1 to Dec 31
Reporting Time: Less than 3 months
Charges Reading Fee: No
Accepts Electronic Submissions: Yes
Accepts Simultaneous Submissions: No
Accepts Unsolicited Submissions: Yes
Number of Debut Authors per Issue: 2 to 3
Payment: No payment
Mekayla
The Copper Nickel is a literary magazine that is published by the University of Colorado Denver. They accept submissions of fiction, non-fiction, poetry and translations. I read a few submissions and fell in love with how unique and beautifully written each one was. The featured pieces are all written by obviously talented writers, and the purpose of this magazine is to showcase rising talents in literature. This is a magazine I would, and probably will, buy a subscription to. I hope I can become practiced enough to find myself on it someday. The website of the literary magazine is linked below.
https://copper-nickel.org
Submission Guidelines:
– Accepts submissions of poetry, fiction, essays, and translation folios from September 1 to December 15, January 15 to March 1.
– Must submit four to six poems, one story, or one essay at a time.
– For a translation feature: five to ten poems or a piece of prose (fiction or nonfiction). If accepted, they’ll ask for an introductory essay of 500-1000 words.
– They accept simultaneous submissions, but would like to be informed if your work is accepted elsewhere.
– To withdraw stories, essays, or translation folios, please withdraw through submittable.
– To withdraw individual poems or flash pieces, please email editor/managing editor, indicating which piece you would like to be withdrawn.
I was drawn to one story in particular: “How to Draw Human Figures,†by Gianni Skaragas. https://copper-nickel.org/how-to-draw-human-figures/
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
Leah Rego
New Millennium Writings is a literary magazine designed to promote and reward emerging writers. They are interested in “vibrant and imaginative†storytelling. I believe my story necropolis would fit well with their publication due to it’s visually descriptive nature and storyline.
Submission Guidelines:
No restrictions on style or subject matter.
Entrant retains copyright ownership of work.
Multiple and simultaneous submissions welcome.
Previously published works accepted if: Print circulation was under 5,000, or the work was published online only.
Fiction – 6,000 words or less
Nonfiction (all types welcome) – 6,000 words or less
Flash Fiction (aka: Short-Short Fiction) – 1,000 words or less
Poetry – each entry may include three poems, up to five pages total.
Anonymous Judging: Submission file should contain only the title and text of the story, essay, poem(s). Cover letters are optional and may be uploaded separately.
Submit by June 30, 2018 deadline, $20 entry fee, online submission, or submit by mail.
Caitlyn Williams
I chose to share the magazine, Another Chicago Magazine. The link to this magazine can be found below. I chose this because right off the bat, I found it interesting. The genres it shares are Creative Nonfiction, Fiction, and Poetry. The sub genres, I thought, were my style. They included:
Micro-poetry
Autobiography/Memoir
Feminist
Flash Fiction
LGBT
Literary Fiction
Narrative Nonfiction
The variety of sub genres was one of the reasons why I chose Another Chicago Magazine. This magazine’s goal is to publish work that is on the edge, and beautiful at the same time. I feel that my work would fit in this magazine because I am passionate about the LGBT community. The main reason I chose this magazine was because it has a non-traditional theme. The works in this magazine were really creative, different, and modern.
In between publishing issues, ACM publishes various art, and various sources of text ranging from Collage Essays, to Political Ruminations. This Art / Power category really peaked my interest. Below, I will link 2 short stories by one author, as well as a story about children from immigrant families growing up in the USA. I think that this story is an important one to tell because it is from the perspective of immigrant children and their parents.
The publication magazine I chose would be interested in non-traditional, political, exceptionally creative work. A lot of my work includes these aspects, and I would be inclined to enter submissions to ACM in the future. Another Chicago Magazine submission guidelines are as follows:
To enter a submission to The Loop: Email anotherchimagazine@gmail.com and be sure to label the subject as The Loop.
To enter a submission for Translations, Interviews, and Artwork:Email anotherchimagazine@gmail.com and be sure to label the Subject line with whatever you’re inquiring. (Translations, Interview, Artwork)
To enter a submission for Book Reviews & Review-Essays: Shoot an email to anotherchimagazine@gmail.com and write BOOK REVIEW in subject line.
Submissions for their next issue open Jan. 15, and close June 15th, so get your work in soon if you’d like to be published! Below are the links to the website, and the stories!
Another Chicago Magazine
The Frog and the Bird / The Woman, the Letter, the Mirror, and the Door by Ben Loory
Children of the World by Randi Freundlich
Caitlyn Williams
The links on bottom seem to have gotten lost, sorry about that!
Aubri Stogsdill
The lit mag that I chose is called “A Public Space”. I feel that my writing style would fit into this mag because I feel that I write very honestly… and the writers on here seem to be true to what they feel in their writing. At the same time, they are very creative and artistic pieces. They do a lot of photography with their writing, which is something I would like to get into as well. You can submit poems, photography, and essays.
Guidelines for Submitting Work
Please submit only one (​1) story or essay at a time; or up to five (5) poems. Additional submissions will be returned unread. Only previously unpublished work will be considered. Simultaneous submissions are allowed, but if your piece is accepted elsewhere we ask that you please withdraw it from our system. Novellas and novel excerpts are always welcome. Translations are welcome, but it is the translator’s responsibility to secure rights to the work before it is submitted. Reading an issue or two of the magazine before submitting is strongly recommended.
submissions to the magazine from September 15—April 15.
Katherine Whelchel
The literary magazine I chose was Alice James Books. The website is alicejamesbooks.org. I believe that this lit mag is interested in new, modern work with a fresh feel and unique storylines. The main focus is on contemporary poetry, which is a style that I love to do. The website was clean and focused directly on the writing, which shows a quality over quantity focus. I love to write in a modern way; I prefer all things fresh and unique. Because of this, I believe that I would fit into this lit mag.
The guidelines for submitting work is based on the Alice James award. The following section describes how a winner is chosen for the award.
About AJB’s Screening Process:
Manuscripts submitted to the AJA are screened anonymously. During the screening process, every manuscript is read by a minimum of two people, at least one of whom is a board member (the other is either an outside screener or another board member). With the assistance of screeners, submissions are winnowed to a group of finalists from which the editorial board chooses a winner. Manuscripts in the finalist group are not read anonymously. Our screeners, with very few exceptions, are published poets and/or MFA students.
Our Winner Selection Process:
AJA finalist manuscripts are read over a period of weeks by the Editorial Board in preparation for the finalist meeting where the winner is chosen.
Monica Gallagher
First of all, I had no idea there were so many literary journals out there! WOW.
https://www.805lit.org/
Okay, I chose 805 Lit + Art, the journal publishes fiction, nonfiction, poetry and art for free. It’s a quarterly journal that welcomes emerging artists and they accept submissions throughout the year. Each issue has 4-6 short stories, 1-2 creative non-fiction stories, 3-4 poems and 5-10 pieces of art. It was started by a college professor along with writers and librarians and has been active since 2015. Not only is it free to submit work but it’s free to read as well, which is awesome.
805 is the Dewey Decimal number for literary journals, so that’s where they got the name. It’s a really quirky and wild journal that does not seem pretentious at all. The journal seems very welcoming to writings coming from all walks of life and it doesn’t seem like they would censor the writing. A lot of the pieces that they’ve showcased in their previous issues are edgy and kind of out there. I think they appreciate and celebrate the weird, odd and hopelessly awkward. That is the feel of the journal.
I think my poetry would fit in pretty well with what this journal has going on. My poetry leans towards the dark side and it tends to not have very clean edges. Some of it doesn’t make sense and is semi chaotic. The emotion of it and the mystery pair in well enough for a journal like 805.
The submission guidelines are basically 3 poems per submission and you have to agree with their publishing agreement, which is kind of horrifying.
I, the undersigned author/artist, confirm that the work(s) submitted to 805 is original, of my composition, and as of this date unpublished in any format including book, journal, magazine, website, or social media.
I grant 805 first world electronic rights to publish the work(s) online in a digital format. I grant permission for the work(s) to remain indefinitely on 805’s website, the Manatee County Public Library System (MCPLS) website, OverDrive ebooks website, social media and any other digital archive 805 might use.
I grant 805 the right to use my work in promotional materials including but not limited to print and digital adds, bookmarks, posters, flyers, business cards, email blasts, etc.
I acknowledge that 805 gives permission for the issue containing my work(s) to be freely distributed for educational purposes and printed by individuals.
I acknowledge that 805 does not monetarily compensate contributors for their work(s). I agree to any and all editorial alterations and abridgments including, but not limited to, re-formatting, grammatical correction, and cropping.
I grant 805 the non-exclusive anthology rights to my work(s) and understand that the work(s) might be selected for an 805 print anthology. I grant 805 permission to nominate my work(s) for literary and arts prizes and awards, and I understand that such possible nominations may result in my work(s) being published by awards committees and organizations and thus subject to their publication requirements, which is not established within this agreement.
I agree that if my work(s) is published elsewhere after publication in 805, I will cite 805 as the first publisher.
It surprised me how detailed their agreement is considering how laid back and open that I perceived them to be with how the journal is outlined. They obviously know their technical stuff, which I appreciate and I’m sure that there is a significant reason for all of their publication guidelines. It’s disheartening in a way though, because it seems like once you submit that it’s not yours anymore. It will have your name on it but it’s their poem. They decide what they can do with it without any input from you whatsoever. It seems very impersonal when writing is so personal.
Jessica Honebein
The literary magazine that I chose was title “32 Poems Magazine.” The web address for this is https://32poems.com/. The work that they seem to be mostly interested in is poems that are descriptive and you have to read thoroughly to truly understand the meaning. One poem that I really liked from the current edition was “Private Room,” here is a link to it: https://32poems.com/poem/jim-daniels/. Along with this on their web page they have essays that you can read as well all about different aspects. They also have a prose that the author writes as well. I think that out of these I would be most interested in the poetry, however the short essays peaked my interest as well. I think that my work fits in this category because I feel that I will be able to express myself freely while given a hidden meaning in the story/poem would be perfect.
The submission guidelines for the poems are very simple. They accept work to read through daily. They do not have any certain requirement on what the content has to be about. However they do ask that you keep it to under a page, and make exceptions for those that they feel are outstanding poems. They accept the poems through e-mail and as often as you want to send them in. They also get back to you within few weeks to let you know if your poem will be put on there literary magazine or not. For the essays and prose it is about the same guidelines, however they want the writing to be 1000+ words.
Cassidy Kramer
The literary magazine that I chose is “Alaska Quarterly Reviewâ€. The magazine is from the University of Alaska Anchorage, and there are two issues per year titled with the season and the year, for example the most recent issue is “Winter/Spring 2018â€. The URL is https://aqreview.org/ . Their writing style are creative literary traditional and experimental stories. I think my writing would fit nicely with AQR because I like to write about my experiences with doing traditional activities. I don’t know if that is what they meant by traditional, but by looking at the types of stories they publish it seems like it.
Submission Guidelines:
Fiction- Short stories and novel excerpts in traditional and experimental styles (generally not exceeding 50 pages).
Poetry- Poems in traditional and experimental styles but no light verse (up to 20 pages).
Drama- Short plays in traditional and experimental styles (generally not exceeding 50 pages).
Prose- Literary nonfiction in traditional and experimental styles (generally not exceeding 50 pages).
Photo Essays- Query us before submitting.
All manuscripts must be typed and accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE) or an e-mail address for notification. Unless a SASE or e-mail address is enclosed with your submission, you will not hear from us unless we are interested in publishing your manuscript. We try to reply within six to 16 weeks.
Unsolicited manuscripts are read between August 15 and May 15.