Call for Submissions: Blanket Gravity Magazine

Our submission period for the second issue opens on Sept 22, 2025. We will consider works through Jan 10, 2026, with potential for extension as needed.

What We're Looking For

Blanket Gravity Magazine is a journal for fiction, creative nonfiction, and visual art. We are interested in moments of emotional intensity, and how their effects ring out in the bigger picture of our identities. We are looking for writing and art that explore mental health or emotional life. By "mental health," we mean art that tries to make sense of emotional struggle or uncertainty, as well as our thoughts about who we are, what other people mean to us, and the nature of the world.

For nonfiction, we hope to receive personal essays by people with lived experience of mental illness or emotional struggle.

We curate submissions for writing and art that will offer readers experiences outside their emotional pain, or a moment of interest or connection. We're not trying to erase or replace negative moods—we’re trying to show an expression of care.

How to Submit

You can read our first issue to get a sense of writing and art we are interested in.

Complete the online form for fiction and nonfiction works. We are open to simultaneous submissions, but please let us know immediately if your work has been accepted elsewhere. We accept previously unpublished writing only. Writers retain copyright after granting non-exclusive First World Electronic Rights to Blanket Gravity Magazine. The maximum length we consider is 5,000 words. Writers may indicate if they want to publish under a pseudonym or anonymously.

Payment upon publication is $40 USD per accepted submission. Unfortunately, we are not considering poetry. Works must be developed and written without use of AI.

For visual art, please email 3-7 high-quality attachments to blanketgravitymag@gmail.com, as well as a link in the body of the email to the artist's portfolio if available. Blanket Gravity Magazine asks for non-exclusive license to reproduce the artwork in the online and digital magazines and social media. Artists may indicate if they want to publish their artwork under a pseudonym or anonymously.

Payment upon publication is $40 USD per accepted piece. Works must be developed and created without use of AI.

Optional Theme

For the second issue, we welcome fiction and nonfiction works that explore the optional theme of "Technology and Love." Selected pieces will be featured in a special collection within the issue.

Prompt: A snippet of old text history kicks off memories of an extinguished friendship. The nightly video call between a long-distance parent and their kids. A college student confides details about romancing their crush into ChatGPT. Technology has become the site of intense shared moments, in some cases fully an additional participant in a relationship. We are looking for fiction and creative nonfiction pieces that explore the role of technology in intimate relationships today, whether by facilitating connection or misunderstanding, capturing a moment in time, or other imaginative forms of engagement. How are we molded by the people we choose, and how has technology shaped the ways we love them?

Complete the submission form for fiction and nonfiction here. 

For visual art submissions, please email directly to:

blanketgravitymag@gmail.com

Call for Submissions: Flash Frog

WRITERS:

• Flash Frog publishes flash fiction only (no poetry or CNF please).

• 1,000 words maximum.

• Please email stories to:

flashfroglitmag@gmail.com

• Please attach the story as .doc, .docx, or .rtf.

• Please use this format as the subject: SUBMISSION — Story Title

• Cover letters are okay, but please do not explain or set up your story. Let it speak for itself.

• Please do include a third-person bio (100 words max) in the body of the email.

• Simultaneous submissions are encouraged, but please email to withdraw your piece as soon as it has been accepted elsewhere. We’d love to congratulate you!

• Multiple submissions are not okay. Please send only one story at a time and wait until you hear back before sending another.

• All submissions should be the author’s original work and not previously published elsewhere (this includes blogs, social media, etc.)

Publication rights: We ask for the right to display the work for the duration of the journal. Copyright remains with the writer in all cases. If your work is subsequently reprinted elsewhere, please acknowledge Flash Frog as the site of first publication.

Response time: Typically within a week, but occasionally longer. Please do not inquire about your submission until 3 months have passed.

Payment: Flash Frog pays $25 per story upon publication. Payments are issued via PayPal. To help ensure we can remain a paying market, please consider a small donation. Every dollar helps!
If you publish in Flash Frog, please wait 6 months from your publication date before submitting again.

 

ARTISTS:

 

Flash Frog is always looking for new artists to help create original artwork to accompany each story.

 

Please email:

 

flashfroglitmag@gmail.com

 

with a link to your work or include a couple samples in the email. Open to all media. Please indicate your level of availability and interest. Please be aware that deadlines are a real thing. We would ask for the rights to use the art for the duration of the journal. Copyright remains with the artist.

 

Payment: Flash Frog pays $25 per piece of art upon publication. Payments are issued via PayPal. To help ensure we can remain a paying market, please consider a small donation. Every dollar helps!

Writer-in-Residence: The James Merrill Writer-in-Residence in Stonington, CT

We are accepting applications for 2026-2027 from October 1, 2025- January 12, 2026.

James Merrill Writer-in-Residence Application Process

Selection Criteria:

Eligibility: Writers or scholars with a specific project of literary or academic merit, committed to a full-time 2 or 4 or 6 week residence in Stonington.

Genres Accepted: Poetry, fiction, non-fiction, and plays. Please note that the residency is not intended for the completion of one’s dissertation.

Community Contribution: Applicants should be willing to engage with the community, which may include a reading or a workshop. We also film each writer for our archive in the Studio 107 series. We welcome suggestions from applicants on how to reinforce the community’s ties to writing, poetry, and James Merrill’s legacy.

Integrity and Responsibility: Candidates must demonstrate the ability to be entrusted with the Merrill Apartment and its contents.

Overview:

The Writer-in-Residence program includes a stipend of $1,100 per month, prorated according to the length of stay. We offer six residencies for 2 or 4 or 6 weeks each.

Applications:

We accept applications for the 2026-2027 residencies from October 1, 2025 to Monday, January 12, 2026. Decisions will be made by mid-March.

A complete application includes the following documents:

• A resume of four or fewer pages.

• A writing or work sample of ten or fewer pages.

• A statement of your plan of work while in Stonington, CT.

• Two letters of reference (due by the deadline)

Submit your application here. 

• If applicable, a brief biographical sketch of a spouse or partner who will reside in the apartment with you. Please note that we do not allow pets or children, and the apartment is located on the third floor, accessible only by stairs.

• A $30 application fee. Unfortunately, we do not allow fee exemptions.
  

Please direct inquiries about the application process or application status to:

jmhprograms@gmail.com

Call for Submissions: Post Road Magazine

 

Post Road will begin accepting submissions in fiction, nonfiction, poetry and theater on September 15, 2025. Simultaneous submissions are acceptable, but we ask to be informed immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere.

Fiction and Nonfiction 

• The word limit for prose is around 6500 words. 

• Work must not be previously published in any form, and, if accepted, must not be published anywhere else before appearing in Post Road. 

• Rights revert back to the author upon publication.

• Simultaneous submissions are absolutely fine, but please contact us immediately and withdraw your work if it's accepted elsewhere.

Theatre 

• Short Plays, One-Acts, and Monologues

Poetry 

• For poetry, please submit up to three pieces in one document.

• Should you need to withdraw one or more pieces but wish to leave others for consideration, please mail us and specify which to keep. 

Work must be previously unpublished in any form, and, if accepted, must not be published anywhere else before it is published in Post Road. Simultaneous submissions are fine, but please contact us immediately and withdraw your work if it is accepted elsewhere.

Deadline: Nov. 15, 2025 

Post Road is a paying market (payment unknown).

Submit your work here.

Writing Competition: Anthology Magazine: Personal Memoir Competition

 

Everyone has a story to tell. What’s yours? Authors are invited to share a unique life experience. Whether your memoir recounts a transformative journey, a poignant moment, or a life-altering event, we welcome your story.

The Anthology Personal Memoir Competition is open to original and previously unpublished memoirs in the English language by writers of any nationality, living anywhere in the world. In the spirit of authenticity, there are no constraints on themes or writing styles. Memoirs submitted must not exceed a maximum of 1,500 words. Writers can submit as many entries as they wish. Each submission will require a separate entry form and is subject to a separate entry fee.

It is not a requirement, but is advisable to refer to Anthology magazine or purchase a copy before submitting your work, so that you can see the type of material we publish. Subscriptions and single copies are available to purchase through our online shop.

Anthology is now available in digital format
Purchase Volume 23 Digital here to read the winning story from the Anthology Personal Memoir Competition 2024.

Prizes

The winner will receive a €500 and the chance to see their work published in a future issue of Anthology. 

Submission deadlines and entry fees

Early Bird Fee – €12: September – December 2025

Standard Fee – €15: – January – August 2026 

Terms and conditions

• To enter, submit an original, non-fictional, unpublished personal memoir, written in English with a maximum of 1,500 words.

• There is no limit to the number of entries you can submit. Each submission will require a separate entry form and will be subject to a separate entry fee.

• There is no age limit.

• In order to minimise administrative costs and maintain affordable fees, please note that entry fees are non-refundable.

• Submissions will be judged on their emotional impact, creativity, and the ability to captivate the reader.

• Once selected, the winner will be contacted by email or telephone.

• Copyright remains with the author but Anthology reserves the right to be the first to publish or arrange a broadcast of selected works.

• The winner and finalists grant Anthology the right to use their articles in electronic form or in print for the specific purpose of promoting Anthology and its Awards without restriction in any media.

• Submission of a written piece implies the author’s acceptance of the rules and conditions.

• Prize money will be paid on publication of the winning article in Anthology magazine.

Submit your entry here.

Writing Competition: Bulletin of Atomic Scientists's "Write Before Midnight" Fiction Competition

Announcing the Bulletin's new short fiction contest...

Over the decades, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has published the smartest minds in the fields it covers, including Albert Einstein, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Mikhail Gorbachev, Arthur C. Clarke, Bertrand Russell, Freeman Dyson, George Shultz, Jerry Brown, Fiona Hill, Yoshua Bengio, and Jennifer Doudna, among many others.

But beyond its fact-based focus on science and security, the Bulletin has always had an affinity for and connection to the arts, high and low, from the artistic minimalism of the Doomsday Clock to the high satire of Dr. Strangelove and pop culture verve of The Who and Dr. Who. Now, to start the Bulletin’s 80th year of publication, we are launching a short fiction contest called “Write Before Midnight," which will be judged by acclaimed American science fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson.

Submitted stories can be about any of the existential threats the Bulletin covers: nuclear weapons, climate change, biological and chemical weapons, artificial intelligence, killer robots, doomsday drone submarines, bioengineered zombies, the gray goo of nanotechnology gone wild, and so, so much more. The stories can be dystopian or utopian; pre-, post-, or non-apocalyptic. They can be optimistic as Sesame Street or dark as Edgar Allan Poe’s basement. Entries can be of any genre: high literature and potboiler noir will vie on a level playing field; scifi, fantasy, spy, detective, horror, and even romance tales will be not just allowed, but celebrated. The tales can be comic, tragic, ironic, satiric, or any kind of -ic at all, and they can be of any length—up to 7,000 words. (And not a single word more.)

The stories do, however, need to have some conceivable connection to the Bulletin’s interest in (avoiding) the Apocalypse. The connection doesn’t necessarily have to be central to the story; a porkpie hat that Oppenheimer abandoned in a greasy diner might do the trick. But the existential-threat angle must be clear.

Oh, and to have a chance at winning, the stories have to be very, very good. We’ll be giving real money to the winners: $3,000 for first place, with $500 each to four runners-up. All five of the winning stories will be featured in the January 2026 issue of the Bulletin’s bimonthly magazine.

So, whether they’re porkpies or derbies or hipster fedoras, put on your writing hats and get to work. You have until September 30 to send in your stories. What time on September 30, you ask? Come, come. It couldn’t possibly be midnight, could it?

How to submit your writing

Ready to outrun the apocalypse with your prose? Here's how to toss your (writing) hat into the ring: Send your story as an attachment (PDF or Word document preferred) to:

writebeforemidnight@thebulletin.org

Include your name, email address, and the title of your story in the body of your email
Deadline: September 30, 2025 — and yes, we’ll be watching the clock
Maximum word count: 7,000 words. Not 7,001. We mean it.

There’s no fee to enter, and no genre off-limits—as long as your story clearly connects to the Bulletin’s bread and butter: the business of not ending the world.

Call for Submissions on Theme of "Rites": Rooted Literary Magazine

To be rooted is to be centered in one’s self, environment, and community. Rooted Literary Magazine is a literary platform dedicated to showcasing art, poetry, fiction, nonfiction, spoken word, music, and film that captures the full spectrum of human experience—from the beautiful to the devastating, and everything in between.

Call For Submissions

We welcome work from both emerging and established creators who are unafraid to push the boundaries of form and genre. We are especially drawn to speculative fiction and pieces that challenge conventions, expand perspectives, or reimagine reality. Our goal is to platform voices that resonate deeply, disrupt gently, and leave a lasting impact.

Rooted Literary Magazine is now accepting submissions for a Halloween anthology. Submissions open on September 15th and close on October 17th. We invite writers and artists of all genres (poetry, fiction, nonfiction, visual art, audio, and video).

We’re looking for work that makes us question our convictions, provides us with a fresh perspective, or pushes the boundaries of genre and narrative.

We are especially drawn to speculative fiction and pieces that challenge conventions or reimagine reality. Our goal is to platform emerging voices that quietly demand to be heard. While not required, you can follow our in-house monthly theme for featured content and creators.

Theme: Rites 

Rites follow us through every stage of our lives. They appear as ceremonies, festivals, gatherings, or private traditions—moments that connect us to ourselves, to others, and to something larger.

We mark rites of passage when we blow out birthday candles, earn our driver’s license, or endure heartbreak for the first time. Funerary rites help us say goodbye to those we’ve lost. Marital rites bind people together, though they can be broken as swiftly as they are spoken.

But rites are not always comforting. Some are born of blood, secrecy, or sacrifice and are violent in nature as they bind us in ways we do not always choose. History is steeped in rituals of exclusion and control; rites are used to preserve power as much as they are used to celebrate life.

For October, we invite you to explore Rite in all its forms: sacred or secular, celebratory or unsettling, personal or collective. What happens when a rite is denied, disrupted, or transformed? Explore the power that rituals hold over us when the candles burn low and we think no one is watching.

We accept pieces from each category to be featured in a special Halloween Anthology in the following categories:

• Poetry

• Fiction

• Nonfiction (Essays, Reviews)

• Creative Nonfiction

1. Visual Art

• Audio (Spoken Word/Music)

• Video (Short Form)

Formatting Guidelines

• Flash Fiction: 1000 words or less

• Short Stories: 5000 words or less

• Poetry: Up to 3 poems (2 pages max)

• Nonfiction: 2000 words or less

All written work should be submitted as a PDF, Word, .docx

12 Pt. Times New Roman Double-Spaced. *Poetry can be single-spaced

 All submissions must be original and unpublished.

•  Visual Art: Up to 3 pieces

Visual Art should be submitted as JPEG or PNG

• Audio: Up to 4 Minutes

Audio should be submitted as MP3 files

• Video: Up to 5 Minutes

Video should be submitted as MP4 files

Other Restrictions

• Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please let us know if it is accepted elsewhere by emailing:

 info@stayrootedent.com

• Any work created entirely, in part by, or with the assistance of AI will be rejected.

• All submitters must be 18 years or older at the time of submission.

Publication Rights

First Electronic Publication Rights: You grant Rooted Literary Magazine exclusive rights to publish your work online for the first time, whether in text, image, video, or audio form.

Archival Rights: After publication, we may keep your work archived on our platform indefinitely.

Non-Exclusive Rights: Following the initial publication, you are free to submit the work elsewhere or republish it.

Promotional Rights: We may use your work for promotional purposes (e.g., social media, newsletters, and website promotions) during and after publication, with proper credit given.

Compensation: Accepted contributors for digital anthologies will be paid a one-time stipend of $10. Accepted contributors for print anthologies will receive a free physical copy of the print Anthologies upon release.*

Anthology/Compilation Rights: If Rooted Literary Magazine decides to create an anthology or print collection, you grant Rooted the right to include your work, with proper compensation to be discussed at that time.

*There is no financial compensation for accepted monthly features

Amendment (09/15/2025): There is no financial compensation for accepted monthly features submitted before September 15th. 

Call for Submissions: Kismet

 

How to Submit

The best way to know if your work is a good fit for Kismet is to be familiar with Kismet. We’re not prescriptive about things like length and form—we publish style-forward writing with an interest in mystical, spiritual, and religious elements, broadly interpreted. To find out more about our approach, please read “Spirits of the Times,” an introductory note from Kismet 001.

That said, here are some specifics:

• We publish essays, fiction and poetry.

• From 2026, Kismet will publish 3 annual print editions.

• We accept submissions on a rolling basis.

• Please send one prose piece at a time.

• We publish poetry folios, not individual poems—please submit a selection of up to 5 poems, in one document.

• We prefer essays that expand beyond the personal, that persist beyond the news cycle—i.e. stretch beyond reported pieces.

• We love work in translation; please ensure you are in touch with the rights holder.

• All contributors are paid for their work.

• Submissions (in a Word doc) should be sent to:

 info@kismet-mag.com

We’re a very small team. We’ll endeavor to read and respond to all submissions within each issue cycle. But if you don’t hear from us, please forgive us—even if the gods don’t—and consider it a respectful pass.

Pitching Book Reviews

Beginning in October, Kismet Magazine will publish one book review online per week.

We review the kind of books that fit with the magazine’s ethos, as described above: style-forward writing with an interest in mystical, spiritual, and religious elements, broadly interpreted.

We are currently accepting pitches for books forthcoming from December 2025 onward. All reviewers are paid $250 per review. And reviews should be between 1500-2000 words in length.

Guidelines for Reviewers:

• Books must be forthcoming (not already published).

• A lead time of at least 2-3 months is preferred.

• Please briefly outline the relevance of the proposed title to the Kismet readership.

• Please include a brief contributor bio and links to up to 3 relevant bylines.

• We ask that reviewers do not pitch the work of friends, family, or close acquaintances.

Guidelines for publicists:

Please consider if the title you are pitching is a fit for Kismet before sending promotional materials.

Pitches should be sent to:

info@kismet-mag.com

Call for Submissions: The Penn Review

 Deadlines

We are currently open for submissions! Our Fall Reading Period for submissions of poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and art will run until November 7. There is no fee to submit.

The Penn Review only accepts submissions during our biannual reading periods: the Fall Reading Period (September 10 – November 7) and the Spring Reading Period (February – March). Please submit your work to us using our Submittable platform. Submissions received outside of these reading periods or through e-mail will not be read.

Response Time

We aim to respond to all general submissions within two weeks, and usually reply within 1-2 days. Currently, we are listed as one of the 25 Fastest Poetry and Fiction Markets on Duotrope. Our editorial team works hard to fully deliberate over each work while ensuring that our submitters are not left waiting for months on end without a reply. We respond to every single submission, so an extended delay in response time means your work is still under consideration by our editorial team. If you haven’t heard from us within 30 days, you may query.

Please help us by reporting our response time on Duotrope.

Submission Guidelines

We accept submissions in the categories of Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, and Art. Individual submission guidelines for each category can be found on our General Submissions Form. Submissions that do not adhere to these guidelines will not be considered. Submissions that are not received through our Submittable platform will also not be considered. Please do not e-mail us your submissions, as they will not be read.

Submissions are always open to the general public, there is no minimum age requirement or fee to submit. All submissions are read blind by our editorial team. For more information about the kind of work that we are looking for, you can refer to this interview.

Simultaneous Submissions

We accept simultaneous submissions, but please specify them in your cover letter and notify us immediately if your submission is accepted by another magazine.

Multiple Submissions

Please submit up to 5 poems, 3 short stories or nonfiction pieces, or 10 works of visual art at one time. As a general rule, fiction and nonfiction pieces should not exceed 2500 words in length. In addition, if you have received a rejection letter, please wait a week before submitting again.

Reprints

We don’t accept work reprinted from other magazines. Unfortunately, this includes submissions that have been published on a personal website or blog.

Rights

We require First North American Serial Rights. Following publication, all rights revert to the author, but we ask that The Penn Review is credited in subsequent reprints. In addition, we reserve the right to edit submissions in accordance with the rules of our style guide.

For updates on reading periods and issue publications, you can follow us on Facebook. 

Submit your work here.

Writing Competition: The Hazel Rowley Prize for First-Time Biographers

$5,000 Prize for Best Proposal from a First-time Biographer

The Hazel Rowley Prize rewards a first-time biographer with: funding (the $5,000 award); a careful reading from an established agent; a year’s membership in BIO (along with registration to the annual Biographers International [BIO] conference); and publicity for the author and project through the BIO website, The Biographer’s Craft newsletter, etc. The prize is a way for BIO—an organization of biographers, agents, editors, and biography devotees—to advance its mission and extend its reach to talented new practitioners.

The prize is given in memory of Hazel Rowley, born in London, educated in England and Australia, and a long-time resident of the United States. A BIO enthusiast from its inception, Rowley understood the need for biographers to help and support one another. Before her untimely death, she had written four distinguished books: Christina Stead: A Biography; Richard Wright: The Life and Times; Tȇte-à-Tȇte: Simone de Beauvoir and Jean-Paul Sartre,; and Franklin and Eleanor: An Extraordinary Marriage. Her award-winning and critically acclaimed biographies have been translated into twelve languages. Rowley was a passionate advocate for the art and craft of biography, a writer of exacting standards, and a generous friend to fellow biographers.

The prize is given annually at the BIO Conference.Eligibility

The prize is open to all first-time biographers anywhere in the world who are writing in English, who are working on a biography that has not been commissioned, contracted, or self-published, and who have never published a book-length biography, autobiography, history, or work of narrative nonfiction. Biography as defined for this prize is a narrative of an individual’s life or the story of a group of lives. Innovative ways of treating a life (or lives) will be considered at the committee’s discretion. Memoirs, however, are not eligible.

Applicants should:

Complete the on-line entry form. (Please note that the form can be tricky. When filling out one’s address, for example, “city” and “state” go in the boxes above the words, not below.)

Upload a proposal, writing sample, and resume in one document totaling no more than 20 pages. The proposal and writing sample should be double-spaced, with 12-point type and standard margins. The proposal should include a synopsis, a proposed table of contents, and notes on the market and competing literature. The document must be a PDF. Please include your name in the file name of the PDF that you submit.

Sign the online entry form by checking the box affirming your understanding of the rules and procedures.

Submit $25 for the application fee using a major credit card or by check. Payment instructions are on the entry form.

You will receive an acknowledgment of your entry within several days. If you do not, please contact BIO’s awards administrator.
Terms and Conditions

The deadline for entries is March 1. Application forms will be available after September 1. Receipt of all applications will be acknowledged by email. Thereafter, only applicants on the final shortlist for the prize will be contacted. Formal announcement of the winner will be made at the annual conference.

In submitting this prize entry form, you agree to all the terms and conditions of the BIO Hazel Rowley Prize. You affirm that the proposal you are submitting is not (and will not be) under consideration by any publisher until after the winner has been announced in May. Only one entry per applicant. In submitting this entry form, you affirm that you are the sole author (or, if co-authored, authors) of the proposal. You also affirm that in the event of winning the prize, you will make your best effort to market your proposal for publication as a book and that you will acknowledge BIO’s support in any publications that result from the Rowley Prize. BIO also requires that you submit a brief paragraph reporting on your progress within a year after receiving the Prize. All decisions by the judges are final.

Call for Submissions from Black Women: midnight & indigo

midnight & indigo is a literary platform dedicated to short fiction and narrative essays by
Whether you're just starting out or have already been published, we want to hear from you!

Our digital platform, midnightandindigo.com features a diverse array of voices that connect readers to content featuring strong female lead characters or a Black female POV; across the spectrum of experience. We also publish 2-3 multi-author literary journals each year.

As a Black woman-owned start-up, we're so excited that you chose us as a potential medium for your voice.The next deadline is September 30th for our Short Stories and Personal Essay submissions
Speculative/Horror short stories are accepted year-round
Calls for Submissions for Short Stories and Personal Essays are held 4x per year
Special editions: Speculative/Horror issue and Anthology
We do NOT accept poetry or manuscripts. Please do not submit them, as they will not be reviewed

To increase your chances of being published, please review our current content to gain insight into the types of stories that resonate with our readers and Editorial team. Check out our online publication and print issues.

Fiction

Are you a Black woman writer passionate about crafting beautifully written, character-driven short stories?

We’re looking for previously unpublished short stories that capture the essence of the human experience. Literary fiction delves deep into the human condition, exploring themes of identity, relationships, and the intricate nuances of everyday life. These stories should resonate emotionally, offering readers a window into the world’s complexities and the richness of personal experiences.

Subject matter and plots can run the gamut, but we want emotion, grit, soul, and writing that forges an immediate connection with the reader. We want to celebrate the artistry and depth of Black literary fiction through your work.

Need context? Check out our short story section and previous issues.

General Guidelines

• Word count: Minimum: 1,500. Max: 7,000

• We pay for all accepted pieces. Our rate is $0.07 per word for Short Stories. Rates and word count based upon the final, edited piece. We pay upon publication

• Submissions should be submitted in proper short story manuscript format with your name, email address, and the story’s total word count on the first page. For our purposes, you do not need to include a mailing address or phone number. Click here for an example of proper short story manuscript format.

• All submissions will be considered for publication on midnightandindigo.com, in our print literary journal or in our upcoming long-form anthology (est. December 2025)

If you are submitting a Speculative/Horror piece, please DO NOT use this form. Click HERE for details.

We accept only previously unpublished work. Responses will be provided by December 31, 2025.

Personal Essays 

Are you a Black woman writer with a story to tell that’s bursting with emotion, grit, and soul? We want to hear from you!

midnight & indigo is excited to announce an open call for submissions for personal essays. We’re looking for previously unpublished, personal, and evocative first-person essays that forge an immediate connection with readers.

Personal essays offer a window into the soul, capturing the raw, unfiltered essence of individual experiences. They provide a powerful platform for Black women to share their truths, challenges, triumphs, and everything in between. We want to celebrate and showcase writing that resonates on a deep level.

Need context? Check out our previously published essays.

General Guidelines

• Essays must meet our minimum 1,200 word count requirement.

• We pay for all accepted pieces. Our rate is $150 for Essays accepted for publication. Rate based upon the final, edited piece. We pay upon publication.

• Submissions should be submitted in proper manuscript format with your name, email address, and the story’s total word count on the first page. For our purposes, you do not need to include a mailing address or phone number. Click here for an example of proper manuscript format.

• We accept only previously unpublished work. Responses will be provided by December 31, 2025.

Speculative Fiction and Horror

Are you a Black woman writer with a passion for speculative fiction and horror?

Do you dream of worlds beyond the ordinary? Stories that defy the laws of nature, bend time, or take readers to the edge of their imagination?

If so, we want to hear from you.

We’re looking for previously unpublished, character-driven short stories that transports readers to the unknown. Whether your story delves into the eerie, explores dystopian futures, unveils supernatural wonders, or unfolds in fantastical realms, we’re here for it.

Speculative fiction is a broad genre encompassing elements that transcend the boundaries of our everyday reality. These stories have the power to captivate and provoke thought.

Check out our Speculative Section and past issues to see how m&i writers have contributed to the genre—and then make it your own.

• Word count: 2,000-7,000

• All submissions will be considered for publication on a rolling basis on midnightandidigo.com or in our Speculative fiction special issue (online and/or print).

• We offer $0.07 per word for Short Stories accepted for publication in our annual Speculative issue and on midnightandindigo.com. Rates and word count based upon the final, edited piece. We pay upon publication

• Submissions should be submitted in proper short story manuscript format with your name, email address, and the story’s total word count on the first page. Click here for an example of proper short story manuscript format.

• We accept only previously unpublished work. Responses will be provided in 3-4 months.

midnight & indigo - 2025 Online teaching position inquiry

Thank you for your interest in teaching at midnight & indigo!

Are you a writer, editor, teacher, or aspiring contributor with a knack for instruction and storytelling? If that's you, we'd love to hear from you. We launched our online class platform in January 2022, focused on offering writing, craft, genre-based, and workshopping classes to writers of all experience levels (beginner, intermediate, advanced). You may view upcoming offerings here.

Our instructors have a wide range of teaching, writing, and experience levels — we encourage you to fill out this form even if you are new to or are looking for teaching experience. We recommend reviewing our published works at midnightandindigo.com for a sense of our content and the writer population we serve.

We are interested in course proposals based on:

• Short story writing

• Novel writing

• Craft (Character development, plot, dialogue, scene, etc.)

• Genre-based courses (Speculative, Romance,

• Speculative

• Essay Writing

• Editing

• Book Analysis and discussion (works by Black and POC writers only)

• Workshopping

• Also open to your ideas!

All classes will be held via Zoom.

We are currently accepting applications for courses starting between now and November 2025.

This is a paid opportunity; the per-hour pay scale will be discussed with chosen applicants upon receipt of the query; and based upon curriculum and time commitment. This is a contract, not a salaried position.

Please fill out the online form. If you seem like a good fit for our program, we’ll follow up to request additional information within 4-6 weeks. If selected, you will be asked to submit formal course proposal, and participate in a truncated mock class as a component of the interview process.

General Guidelines

• Classes must focus on craft, with intentionality around helping writers to become more confident, skilled, and effective in their prose

• Classes should include a combination of lecture/instruction, writing exercises, and in-class discussions

• Our class offerings will include 1-day, 2-day, 2-week, 3-week, and 4-week seminars

• Individual class sessions will run for a minimum of 90 minutes to a maximum of 3 hours each

• The application will remain open until positions are filled

Have questions? Please message us via your Submittable account or email us at:

classes@midnightandindigo.com

More information and submission portals here.

Poetry Fellowship: Olive B. O'Connor Fellowship in Creative Writing

Colgate University: Office of the Provost of the Dean of the Faculty (PDOF): Division of Arts and Humanities: English Department

Location: Hamilton, NY

Open Date: Sep 10, 2025

Salary Range or Pay Grade: $58,800

Deadline: Jan 12, 2026 at 11:59 PM Eastern Time

Description

Colgate University invites applications for the Olive B. O'Connor Fellowship in Creative Writing. This year we invite applications for a fellowship in poetry. Writers who have recently completed an MFA, MA, or PhD in creative writing, and who need a year to complete their first book, are encouraged to apply. The selected writers will spend the academic year (late August 2026 to early May 2027) at Colgate University in Hamilton, New York. The fellows will teach one multigenre creative writing course each semester and will give a public reading from the work in progress. Fellows may be asked to co-supervise one or more honors theses. The fellowship carries a stipend of $58,800 plus travel expenses; health and life insurance are provided. Fellows will have the option to assist with the Colgate Writers Conference in early June for additional compensation. Colgate will not sponsor any visa or work authorization for this position.

Complete applications, due by January 12, 2026, consist of a cover letter; CV; three letters of recommendation, at least one of which should address the candidate's abilities as a teacher; and a maximum of 20 single-spaced pages of poetry. The writing sample may be a completed work or an excerpt from something larger. Colgate strives to be a community supportive of diverse perspectives and identities. All applications should speak directly to the candidate's ability to work effectively with students across a wide range of identities and backgrounds.

Colgate is a vibrant and leading liberal arts university of 3,200 students situated in central New York State. The Colgate faculty is committed to excellence in both teaching and scholarship. Further information about the English department can be found at http://www.colgate.edu/academics/departments-and-programs/english.

Applicants with dual-career considerations can find postings of other employment opportunities at Colgate and other institutions of higher education in upstate New York at Upstate NY HERC Jobs.

Application Instructions

All materials, including recommendation letters, must be uploaded to Interfolio at https://apply.interfolio.com/173660 by January 12, 2026.

Call for Submissions on Theme of "PARA/SOCIAL": Exposition Review

 

Exposition Review is an independent, multi-genre literary journal that publishes narratives by new, emerging, and established writers in the genres of fiction, flash fiction, nonfiction, poetry, scripts for stage & screen, experimental narratives, visual art, film, and comics (see guidelines below).

Wondering what to submit to us? We like to be surprised; we like writing that is razor-sharp, immediately transporting us with a strong voice and sense of place. We like work that’s thoughtful and cathartic, work that embraces conflict and isn’t afraid to take risks. We love pieces that blur the boundaries of genre. To get a better idea of what we look for in submissions, please read our previous issues. You can also follow the Expo blog to get news about latest submission and contest openings.

ANNUAL ISSUE SUBMISSIONS:

Every issue has a theme from which writers and artists can draw inspiration. We encourage those who submit to think outside the box; we look for stories that fit the theme yet make us think about it in different ways; we want work that satisfies and challenges traditional forms of storytelling.

The theme for our tenth annual issue is "PARA/SOCIAL."

Read more about how to submit below!

PARA/SOCIAL:

Issue XI begins with an infinite tension.

Para – altered, beside, beyond, against.
Social – the networks of intimacy, recognition, and belonging we carry with us.

Joined together, these words suggest closeness without reciprocity; connection without contact. We hear it most often in the context of celebrity, cashiers, counselors, and colleagues – unreturned attachments we form out of unmet needs.

But what if PARA/SOCIAL is more than a warning label? What if PARA/SOCIAL signals possibility?

To write into PARA/SOCIAL is to explore:The tenderness of feeling known by someone who does not know you.
The estrangement of being “with” people while remaining apart.
The creative sparks that fly in parallel play — lives brushing close, never fully merging.
The edges where community becomes illusion, and illusion shapes community.

For this issue we invite work that traces the edges of intimacy and illusion. We seek longing projected across distance, the distortions of connection, and the gifts of being alongside – with or without perception and recognition.

This theme is not a verdict, but an invitation: to consider how we live beside each other, how we build connections through shadow, screen, and story, and how we might reimagine the boundaries of the social altogether.

Let PARA/SOCIAL pull you, softly or wrenchingly, in opposite directions. Let the word unravel and remake itself through your work. 

Submissions for Vol. XI will be open September 15–December 31. 

All work is read and given fair consideration by our editorial staff. Guidelines for individual genres are as follows:

• Fiction. Short stories and stand-alone novel excerpts up to 5,000 words.

• Flash Fiction. Up to three pieces of flash or microfiction. Each piece should be no more than 1,000 words; there is no minimum word count. The shorter, the better!

• Nonfiction. Memoir, personal essays, and creative nonfiction up to 5,000 words.

• Poetry. Up to three poems of any form and in traditional or experimental styles. Translations are accepted as well.

• Stage & Screen. One-act plays, scenes, or short film and screenplay excerpts up to 15 pages. Please format according to the standard unpublished playwriting or screenwriting format.

• Experimental Narratives. We love narratives in all forms. Whether it’s digital poetics, a video, or a genre-bending transmedia piece, if it tells a good story, creates compelling characters, and/or tickles our literary senses, we want it. Consider the limits of other categories and our online platform for length guidelines.

• Visual Art. Up to five pieces of art and/or photography per submission. If submitting more than one piece of art, please compile into one file (PDF or otherwise). Please include a brief artist’s statement or statement about the work (1–3 paragraphs), and include appropriate credit lines for all pieces (Artist Name, Title of Work, Year. Medium, Dimensions.)

• Comics. Comics should be self-contained, up to three pages per piece, with no more than three pieces per submission.

• Film. Short films in live-action narrative, documentary, or animation up to 15 minutes in length. Please include a brief summary and credits list in the cover letter of your submission.

Author receives $50.00 USD for accepted work. All submissions received by October 31 will receive guaranteed feedback from editors.

Submit your work here. 

Call for Submissions: The Capilano Review

 

Open Call for Submissions: September 15–30, 2025

The Capilano Review is pleased to invite submissions of new and previously unpublished work for consideration in the forthcoming 2026 publication year.

We welcome submissions of boundary-pushing, innovative writing across a variety of genres and forms, including but not limited to: poetry, experimental fiction, personal/poetic essay, creative nonfiction, and hybrid forms.

Writers are also welcome to pitch ideas for long-form critical essays (1500-2500 words) on contemporary art or artists, ideas for our online see to see section—reviews of recent or forthcoming literary/art books (500 words)—and ideas for feature interviews with authors and artists that may be of interest to our readership.

TCR seeks to redress historical inequity in the literary and visual art publishing spheres by prioritizing creative work from individuals from historically marginalized communities, including Black, Indigenous, and people of colour; queer and trans people; working-class and underemployed people; women, femme, and non-binary people; disabled people; and emerging artists. Writers are welcome to self-identify in their submission to be prioritized in our editorial process.

Submission Guidelines:

• Submission period: September 15-30, 2025

• Submit your work through submittable.

• Please take time to familiarize yourself with the magazine and the kind of work we publish before submitting.

For writing submissions:

• Please submit a maximum of 6 pages in a Word doc file. If you have a specific vision in terms of layout, please include a PDF as a layout guide.

All submissions:

• Include a one-paragraph description of your project and a 50-word biography with your submission. Writers from historically marginalized groups may choose to self-identify in their biography and/or project description, although this is always optional.

For pitches:

• Please describe your proposed interview/review/critical text in a single paragraph within a Word doc, with links to any contextual images/information as necessary. Please also include 1-2 writing samples of relevant work.

Questions? Email us at:

contact@thecapilanoreview.com 

in advance of the submission deadline. Please note we work Monday to Thursday, and therefore will not be able to respond to inquiries over the weekend.

Our editorial team will aim to respond to selected submissions by early December.

Submission to our open reading period is free. We are grateful for all the ways community supports this magazine; please consider reading and sharing the journal with your networks, purchasing a subscription for yourself or a friend, or making a one-time or monthly donation to allow us to continue to publish innovative work such as yours.

Accepted submissions of poetry and prose will be compensated at a rate of $60 CAD per page upon publication. Flat rate fees for commissioned interviews and critical texts range from $200–$500 CAD depending on length and scope and will be discussed upon acceptance of a pitch.

Submit your work here.

Call for Submissions from Women 50+: Certain Age

 

Certain Age is looking for gorgeous essays, fiction, poetry, art, photography and video work from creative women "of a certain age" and a lot of attitude.

Sound like you?

Submissions open September 1, 2025.

Nonfiction

We're interested in works of up to 2500 words that explore big ideas, small wonders, topical issues, cultural happenings, and profiles of fascinating people. Looking for a strong voice and an uncompromising commitment to factual accuracy. Please take a look at the articles we have published to get a feel for the tone and length.

Fiction

We welcome literary-leaning fiction, short stories or stand-alone novel excerpts, that use narrative to explore the full realm of human experience. Max length is 5000 words. While we welcome all topics, we will decline pieces that feature gratuitous depictions of violence, sexual exploitation, or the exploitation of children or animals.

Poetry

We are drawn to poems that illuminate the human by offering fresh ways to see, feel, know, and alchemize experience to insight. All types of poetry will be considered, including formal and experimental verse, up to two pages in length.

Photographs, Illustrations, Video

We are eager to showcase the work of photographers, illustrators, designers, and videographers.

Certain Age does not accept:

Work that has been previously curated (published in books, magazines or journals, in print or online). Writing may be self-published on social media, blogs, or message boards. (Learn more in “Uncurated: The Case for a New Term of Art.”)

Work that has been generated by artificial intelligence.

Simultaneous submissions are expected and welcome. But please alert us if the piece your submitting gets accepted elsewhere.

We pay $75 or equivalent in local currency upon publication.

Certain Age Magazine asks for first-time rights and acknowledgement as the first place of publication. Because published pieces will appear and be archived on the website and may be promoted through our social media outlets, we also require non-exclusive electronic rights.

Response Time

We are committed to fast turnaround on all queries and submissions.

More information here.

Call for Submissions from Undergraduate Students: The Blue Route

 

The submission window for the next issue of The Blue Route will be open from September 15 to November 15, 2025.

The Blue Route is an online undergraduate literary journal run by students and faculty at Widener University. We publish short fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction written by undergraduate writers from any school other than our own.

NOTE: We do not accept AI generated work.

WHO CAN SUBMIT: Undergraduate Students: Only previously unpublished work of current undergraduate writers will be considered. In order to verify your status as an undergraduate, we ask that with your submission you send along the email of a faculty member from your department. Until we gain confirmation of undergraduate status from this reference, we will not be able to publish your work.

Statement on Inclusion. While we gladly welcome works from all undergraduate writers (besides Widener), we specifically encourage submissions from underrepresented groups, including BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and neurodivergent writers, as well as writers with disabilities.

Note to Widener Students: At this time, work from Widener students will not be accepted. Widener students are invited to submit their work to Widener Ink, the university’s print journal.

Frequency of Submission: If your work has been published in The Blue Route, please wait at least one issue before submitting again.

WHAT TO SUBMIT:

We want good, highly imaginative writing about contemporary life as you see it. We’re not interested in romance, detective, horror, sci-fi, and other genres, unless the piece somehow rises above the conventions associated with those types of writing. We’re also not interested in writing that clichéd, overly influenced by TV or film, features flat characters, emphasizes end rhyme above all else, and/or exhibits a general insensitivity to the beauties and subtleties of language. No pornography. No racism. No sexism. If you use profanity, remember a little goes a long, long way.

As stated above, we DO NOT accept previously published work. However, we DO accept simultaneous submissions, but please notify us immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere. Our response time is about three months.

PROSE: Submit 1-3 pieces of fiction or creative nonfiction totaling no more than 2500 words. Payment: 25 dollars.*

OR

POETRY: Submit up to 3 poems. Payment: 25 dollars.*

*An important note about payment: Payment is issued through our university’s business office in the form of a check. We are sorry to say that we are unable to provide payment in any other form.

To increase your chances of acceptance, be sure to 1) carefully follow submission guidelines and 2) read a few recent issues of The Blue Route to get a sense of the kind of work we publish.

HOW TO SUBMIT:

Please write “Poetry–Your Name” or “Fiction–Your Name” or “Creative Nonfiction–Your Name” or “Artwork-Your Name” in the subject line of your email.

In a similar manner, please make your name as well as the genre of the piece clear in the title of the file(s). Send your work in an attachment in .docx format.

PLEASE DO NOT put your name anywhere on your submission. Instead, in your submission email, provide the following information: Name (First and Last)
Pronouns
School (full name of college or university you currently attend)
Title of Submission(s)
Name and Email of Faculty Contact for Enrollment Verification
A Brief Biography (No more than 100 words and written in the third person.)

Send all poetry and prose submissions to:

wutheblueroute@gmail.com

Submissions that do not follow the directions above may be deleted.

Call for Submissions: The Berlin Literary Review

 

Who We Are

All work must be original and unpublished.

If your work is accepted by us for publication, you consent to giving The Berlin Literary Review first serial rights, after which, all rights automatically revert back to you. Should you choose to republish elsewhere, we kindly ask that you acknowledge us as the original publisher.
All submissions are for the online magazine.

Please submit your work in a Microsoft Word .doc or .docx document, double-spaced and 12-point text.

Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but please withdraw your submission if your work is accepted elsewhere.

We aim to read and respond to your submission within three months. Rest assured, we will get back to you. Please do not email us about the status of your submission until at least three months have passed.

Beginning September 2025, one work per submission period will be chosen as our issue’s Centrepiece, presented first and most prominently. The author of this work will receive a €25 honorarium.

We proudly nominate standout work for the Pushcart Prize and other respected literary awards.

Please refrain from submitting your work if you are a racist, a homophobe, a sexist, or an asshole.

Submit here.

Fiction

We are interested in Literary Short Fiction and Flash Fiction.

There is no word limit, although anything over five thousand words will be a hard sell.

Please include a brief bio (100 words max).

 ***

Submit here.

Poetry

Submit no more than five poems at once. Copy all poems into the same .doc or .docx attachment.

Please include a brief bio (100 words max).

***

Submit here.

Non-Fiction

Travel-related essays are particularly encouraged.

From September 2025 onwards, we welcome well-argued, thought-provoking opinion pieces that engage with current events, societal issues, or cultural phenomena.

There is no word limit.

Submit here.

Call for Submissions on Theme of :"Resistance: Grit, Rebellion, and Dissent": Santa Fe Literary Review

The Santa Fe Literary Review (SFLR) is published annually by the Santa Fe Community College. An in-print literary journal, SFLR features work by local, national, and international writers and artists. We use Submittable, an online submissions platform, for all submissions.

From July 15 to November 1 each year, we invite submissions of poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, and visual art. In recent issues, we’ve proudly featured the work of such writers as Tommy Orange, Layli Long Soldier, Kirstin Valdez Quade, and Darryl Lorenzo Wellington.

Our submissions period opens July 15, 2025, and closes November 1, 2025.

Our suggested theme for our 2026 issue is “Resistance: Grit, Rebellion, and Dissent.” SFLR accept submissions of poetry, dramatic writing, fiction, creative nonfiction, and visual art. SFLR editors notify writers and artists of editorial decisions by December 25 each year. If you’ve submitted work and have not heard a reply by January 1, feel free to email us at:

sflr@sfcc.edu 

to request an update.

During our submissions period, we accept submissions for free through Submittable, but first, please review the SFLR guidelines for prose, poetry and visual art.

Deadline: Nov. 1, 2025 

Submit your work here. 

Call for Submissions: Five Points: A Journal of Literature and Art

Five Points welcomes unsolicited submissions of fiction, poetry, flash fiction, literary non-fiction, and translations in these genres. We encourage you to send us your work. The best way to learn about what we are looking for is to order sample copies of the magazine through our website.

GENERAL GUIDELINES:

Include a cover letter with your submission. Simultaneously submitted works are permitted. Prose pieces should be typed double-spaced on one side and be no longer than 7500 words total. Submit one prose work per submission. Submit up to three poems per poetry submission. Each poem should be no longer than fifty lines. Poems should be individually typed either single- or double-spaced on one side of the page. Please make sure your name appears on all of the pages of your manuscript. See Submittable for further guidelines.

DEADLINES: Submissions will open for poetry, fiction, and nonfiction on September 1, 2025. Please visit our Submittable site for our most recent guidelines and reading period dates.

Current deadline: Dec. 31, 2025

Reading Fees: $3.00-$5.00 

NOTIFICATIONS AND QUERIES: Our response time varies and may range from four weeks to four months or more. We receive a high volume of submissions and appreciate your patience. Please do not query us until five months have elapsed; we are unable to respond to email inquiries concerning the status of a manuscript any sooner than this. We thank you for your patience.

Our submission process for general submissions and our poetry contest is handled exclusively online via Submittable. We are unable to consider manuscripts or queries sent via the post office and cannot return mail that has been sent to us.

Submit your work here. 

Call for Submissions on Theme of: "DOUBLE/TWIN": Witness

 

The theme of this issue is: DOUBLE/TWIN. What do you see in a mirror? What is reflected back? What kinds of twins—elemental, emotional—appear in the world around us? We invite you to interpret our theme “Double/Twin” imaginatively, beyond the looking glass, across winding roads that double back yet lead to somewhere new. As always, we seek work that complicates and confounds us, work that makes us see and feel seen; words that bear witness through strange and unexpected lenses.

About the Magazine

Witness seeks original fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and photography that is innovative in its approach, broad-ranging in its concerns, and unapologetic in its perspective. The magazine blends the features of a literary and an issue-oriented magazine to highlight the role of the modern writer as witness to their times.

 

Our mission is to amplify extraordinary voices, feature writers from every part of the globe, and highlight pieces that speak to the present moment in an enduring and distinctive way. The magazine seeks to open up conversations surrounding oppression and transcendence, prejudice and compassion, fear and raw honesty. The editorial team is also proud to feature the work of emerging voices alongside that of established writers.

 

Reading Periods

Witness is published twice a year: a Spring print issue, and a Fall/Winter online issue. Please note: submission windows are subject to change based on submission capacity. Additionally, your submission may be considered for future issues--regardless of the submission window--depending on the volume and quality of work submitted in a single reading period.

 

General Guidelines: 

• We do not accept previously published work. This includes material that has appeared online in any form or format, including personal blogs.

• We do not accept more than one submission per genre, though you may submit up to five poems and three flash pieces as a single submission. We work to respond to all poetry submissions within four months; response times for fiction and nonfiction may be six months or longer, depending on the volume of submissions.

• Simultaneous submissions are allowed, but please withdraw your work promptly if it is accepted elsewhere. If submitting multiple poems or flash, if any of your pieces has been accepted by another publication, please notify us directly by sending a message through Submittable.

• If Witness publishes your piece, we ask that you wait two years following your publication date before submitting to us again. We love our contributors, but seek to platform as wide an array of authors as we can.

• Graduates and current UNLV MFA/PhD candidates or other students affiliated with the university are asked to wait two years post-graduation before submitting work for consideration at Witness.

We pay our contributors $150 for prose and $75 for poetry, whether in the print or online issue. We suggest a reading fee of $3 for a general submission. If you have any questions or requests, please email:

 

witness@unlv.edu

 

Submit your work here. 

 

Deadline: Oct. 2, 2025

Call for Submissions: The Southampton Review

 

Reading period: September 10 – October 15 

We do not accept multiple submissions. Please submit only once per reading period. We do not accept emailed submissions.

WHAT we publish

We encourage submissions from unpublished authors. We’re interested in voice-driven writing that takes risks with structure and content.

fiction

- We accept short stories and novel excerpts.
- 5,000 words max.
- Flash Fiction is welcome!

poetry

- 5 poems max per submission.

nonfiction

- We accept creative nonfiction, memoir, personal essay, and traditional essay.
- 5,000 words max.

fine art / photography
illustration / graphic story
comic

Artwork should conform to the following specifications:
- 10 images max.
- Raster based images (photos/scans) must be 300dpi at 7” wide at least (larger is okay).
- All files should be in CMYK color mode.

Submissions are $3

All submissions will be considered for the print edition or TSR Online.

PRINT EDITION PAY RATES

Prose: $100+
Poetry: $75 per poem
Art Portfolios: $200
Illustration: $100 per page

Every contributor receives one copy of TSR.

TSR Online contributors receive a one-year subscription.
* For reasons related to the university with which we’re affiliated, we are prohibited from paying current students or employees of any SUNY or CUNY institution, or anyone who’s been a student or employee of a SUNY or CUNY institution within the past three years from the date their work is accepted for publication.
* We are prohibited from paying for work published on TSR Online.

cover letter

Please include your name, telephone number, address, and email address.

Internet submission is preferred

We urge all of those who submit work to read copies of TSR or visit TSR Online in order to have a better idea of our editorial range. The Southampton Review is published twice each year. Annual subscriptions are $25. Individual copies are $15.

Purchase a copy of TSR or subscribe here.

Submit your work here.

Call for Submissions on Theme of "Arts & Crafts": Last Stanza Poetry Journal

 
The theme for Last Stanza Poetry Journal, Issue #22, is Arts & Crafts. The cover is a portrait of Gertrude Jekyll, the most influential Arts & Crafts garden designer of the early 20th century. Let her inspire you to write of gardens, design, or any arts or crafts.

The deadline for submissions is September 30th, 2025.

A single $100 award will be given for an outstanding poem.

There is never a reading fee. An interview with the Editor’s Choice Award winner will be published in the same issue (optional).

Poems may be any style, but preferably non-rhyming. Submit up to three poems, each no longer than 64 lines, to:

laststanza@outlook.com

as a single Word document or within the body of an email. There is no budget for author copies, as proceeds are used to purchase copies for libraries. Published poems will be considered for a Pushcart Prize nomination. Authors retain all rights to their poems. Reprints are no longer accepted.

Last Stanza Poetry Journal is published worldwide in ebook, softcover, and color-illustrated hardcover editions. It is available primarily from Amazon, but some issues are also available via these and other sites: Barnes & Noble, Walmart, Book Depository, Blackwell, and Powell’s.

Call for Submissions: Booth

 

We are currently open to new submissions until midnight on November 30, 2025.

Our next submission period runs from January 1, 2026 until midnight, April 15, 2026.

See below for more information and happy writing!

General Submission FAQs

Q:What do you pay your writers?

A: We pay $50, regardless of length. This will be issued via Paypal after the online publication of your work.

Q: What kind of stuff can I send?
A: Poetry, fiction, nonfiction, comics, lists, and audio files. Especially the last four. We want more of those.

Q: Simultaneous submissions okay?
A: You bet. But you should know that if your work is accepted elsewhere and you don’t bother to withdraw it from our submission manager, your name goes on the Secret Blackball Wiki shared by every lit mag editor on the planet. If you’re submitting Poetry, please add a “note” to your submission with the title of the piece you’re pulling so that we can still consider your other two submissions.

Q: How about multiple submissions? I’ll send you my whole collection, and you guys can pick which villanelle you like.
A: With poems, send up to 3 and with flash, send up to 2 of 500 words or less. With everything else, just send one thing at a time, please. If we kick it back, you can send us something else right away.

Q: If accepted, will my work go into the print issue?
Maybe. We publish around 48 pieces a year online. Twice a year we design and release print issues, which are curated from material that appeared on the web .

Q: Do you take submissions during the summer?
A: We are open to new submissions from September through half of April, with a December, coming-up-for-air break. We continue to read existing submissions from April to June. Once July hits, we put our brains in the chest freezer so we can pursue other interests.* Look for our contests, though! We don’t run them every summer, but we always post in advance of opening.

Q: What is your acceptance rate?
A: Our acceptance rate is typically around 1% or lower.

Q: How much can I submit?
A: Depends on the category:Poetry: up to 3 poems
Fiction or Creative Nonfiction: up to 7,500 words
Flash: up to 2 flash pieces of 500 words or less
Comics: up to 20 pages, JPEG, width: 850-900px, Landscape preferred
Audio: up to eight minutes of content

Q: Is it cool if I just send you an email with my work, or mail you a hard copy?
A: Sorry, no. We have a workflow and reading teams and a process.

Q: How many submissions do you receive?
A: Through our reading period, we typically receive around 3,000 submissions, an average of around 15 per day.

*Wiffle ball, naps, reading comics books, and naps while reading comic books.

Submission Fee: $3.00 

Submit your work here.

Call for Submissions: A Short Story, Long

A Short Story, Long 

Short stories, 2k-8k words long (with the 3,000-5,500 range being our real sweet spot).

What are we looking for? Honestly, best indicator is to read a story or two we've already published. Second best indicator is to generally be familiar with Aaron's taste and what he's published on HAD, and Hobart before that.

Every published story will be paired with original art, and I am paying both writer and artist $100. (Becoming a paid subscriber helps pay contributors!) 

Deadline: Oct. 1, 2025

Submit your work here. 

Call for Submissions and Writing Competitions: Tampa Review

 

Tampa Review is the faculty-edited literary journal of The University of Tampa. We publish two print issues a year and also publish complementary work on our blog. Our editorial staff considers submissions between September 1 and December 31 each year for publication in print or online during the following year.

Please read our publication ethics statement before submitting and note that we follow COPE Guidelines on AI usage: “Authors who use AI tools in the writing of a manuscript, production of images or graphical elements of the paper, or in the collection and analysis of data, must be transparent in disclosing in the Materials and Methods (or similar section) of the paper how the AI tool was used and which tool was used. Authors are fully responsible for the content of their manuscript, even those parts produced by an AI tool, and are thus liable for any breach of publication ethics.”

We consider submissions made online through Submittable only. There is a small processing fee ($3 for poetry; $4 for prose) for online submissions.

Tampa Review is open for submissions September 1 – December 31, including for the Danahy Fiction Prize and Richard Mathews Poetry Prize.

Our payment for work accepted for the print edition of the journal is ten dollars per published page for both prose and poetry (payable upon publication), together with one free copy of the issue in which the work(s) appears, and a 40% discount on any additional copies you may wish to purchase. International authors will receive a digital issue.

Please note that prize entries appear as categories distinct from general poetry or fiction.

Call for Submissions: Indiana Review

 

Indiana Review accepts general submissions of unpublished fiction, nonfiction, and poetry from February 1–March 31 and from September 1–October 31. Send us your best "carefully strange" work!

Please view our full guidelines and submit on Submittable.

We do not accept unsolicited email submissions. We do not accept submissions of artwork nor book reviews.

We strongly encourage you to submit through Submittable. If you are unable to do so, you may mail your manuscript to our office at:

Indiana Review 

1020 E. Kirkwood Ave.

Bloomington, IN 47405

All mailed submissions should include a self-addressed, stamped envelope and a check with the $3 submission fee made out to Indiana University. We welcome no-fee submissions from incarcerated writers.

We cannot consider work from anyone currently or recently affiliated with Indiana University, which includes those who have studied at or worked for IU in the past 4 years.

If our submission fee presents a hardship to you for any reason, please email us at:

inreview@iu.edu

to request a fee waiver.

Publishing Details

Indiana Review is published biannually, usually in May and December. We publish about 6–8 stories, 40–60 pages of poetry, and 4–6 nonfiction pieces per issue, as well as occasional art inserts and special folios. We are able to accept less than half of 1% of work submitted. Payment for publication is $5.00 per page ($25.00 minimum) and two contributor copies of the issue in which the work appears. Rights revert to author upon publication, but we ask that Indiana Review be credited if the work is republished elsewhere.

Withdrawing a Submission

If you have submitted a simultaneous submission that is accepted elsewhere or have another reason to withdraw your submission, please withdraw through Submittable. If you need to withdraw a single work from a submission containing multiple pieces, please use Submittable's "Message" feature to send us a message detailing which piece(s) should be withdrawn. We are unable to refund submission fees in the event of a withdrawal.

Call for Submissions: Four Way Review

 

Four Way Review accepts poetry and fiction from both established and emerging authors. We look for work that demonstrates fine attention to craft while retaining a powerful and compelling voice. We want writing that showcases the imagination's unique ability to refine the raw materials of human experience.

We encourage submissions from diverse voices.

Unsolicited submissions are considered year-round. Before submitting, please see our latest issue and ensure your work is a good fit. Please wait to hear back from us before submitting again.

We accept .pdf (preferred), .doc, and .docx. You may also include a cover letter with your contact information and a brief bio in the "comments" box. Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please note this in your cover letter and let us know immediately if a piece is accepted somewhere else. Due to a high volume of submissions, we cannot respond individually to withdrawal requests.

In order to offer our writers a small honorarium, we now charge a small submission fee of $3 for part of the year. In January, April, August and November, all submissions are fee-free. During these months, we might close submissions for one or more genres, should the submission maximum be reached. This is done to ensure that our readers are able to read and respond to each submission in a timely manner.

Poetry

— We are interested in all styles and forms of poetry.

— We ask that writers submit poetry no more than three times per year, with three to five poems in a single submission.

— Please email us to withdraw individual poems.

Fiction

— We're looking for finished stories that are both whole and surprising.

— Keep longer submissions below 6,000 words. Submit only one piece at a time and no more than three pieces a year.

— Short shorts should be under 1,000 words. You may submit up to three flash pieces in one submission.

Translation

— We are interested in all styles and forms of writing in translation.

— We ask that writers submit work no more than three times a year, adhering to our guidelines for poetry, fiction and nonfiction (i.e., no more than three to five poems in a single submission and keeping prose below 6,000 words).
— If possible, please include the original piece with your translated submission.

— Please confirm that you have obtained permission, either from author or rights holder, to publish the translation.

Creative Nonfiction

— We're looking for pieces that surprise us, pieces that push at the corners of the form.

— Keep longer submissions below 6,000 words. Submit only one piece at a time and no more than three pieces a year.

— We do accept flash nonfiction. These should be under 1,000 words. You may submit up to three flash pieces in one submission.

All submissions must be previously unpublished. We request first North America serial rights for any work that we accept. All rights revert to the author upon publication, though we ask that you acknowledge Four Way Review if the work is published elsewhere.

You can withdraw your work using our submissions manager. To withdraw part of a submission, email us at:

fourwayreview (at) gmail [dot] com (Change (at) to @ and [dot] to . )

We try to respond within 90 days. Please note that our submissions manager is separate from the manager for Four Way Books. We will not respond to manuscript submissions.

We accept submissions through our online submissions manager. Unsolicited email submissions will be discarded unread.

THE BASICS

Submit through our Submissions Manager

Up to 5 poems or 6,000 words

We'll respond within 90 days

Call for Submissions: Bellevue Literary Review

 

Bellevue Literary Review seeks high-caliber, unpublished work, broadly and creatively related to our themes of health, healing, illness, the mind, and the body. We encourage you to read BLR before you submit.

BLR general submissions are OPEN through December 31.

Fiction/nonfiction word max is 5,000 words (though most of our published prose is in the range of 2,000-4,000 words).

• Fiction: We seek character-driven fiction with original voices and strong settings. We do not publish genre fiction (romance, sci-fi, horror). We have only occasionally published flash fiction. While we are always interested in creative explorations in style, we do lean toward classic short stories.

• Nonfiction: We are looking for essays that reach beyond the standard ‘illness narrative’ to develop a topic in an engaging and original manner. Incorporate engaging and creative analysis that allows anecdotes to serve a larger purpose. (Please, no academic discourses or works with footnotes. )

• Poetry: We encourage poems that are accessible to a wide audience. Characteristics we look for are vivid writing, strong narrative, and rendering the familiar new. We encourage you to peruse back issues in our archive to get a sense of our ethos. Please submit no more than three poems. Each poem should be on a separate page within a single document.

We happily consider simultaneous submissions, but please inform us immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere.

Manuscripts can only be accepted electronically via Submittable.

Fiction and nonfiction should not exceed 5,000 words (double-spaced, please). Most of our published prose is in the range of 2,500-4,000 words, which allows us to publish more authors.

You may submit up to three poems as one submission. Each poem should be on a separate page within a single document. Poems can be of any length, though shorter poems allow us to include more poets in our pages.

There is a $5 fee per general submission but it’s waived for current subscribers. (If you are not a current subscriber, you can subscribe when you submit your work and take advantage of free submission.) These fees help BLR fund publication of the journal, but if it’s a hardship for you, please contact us.

We strive to provide several reviewers for each manuscript and kindly ask your patience in this necessarily slow process. But if you have not heard from us within five months, feel free to inquire about your manuscript.

BLR pays $75 for poetry and $150 for prose. Published authors will receive two copies of the issue in which their work appears, plus an additional 1-year subscription to BLR. There is an author discount for purchasing extra copies.

All submissions must be of previously unpublished work.* BLR acquires First North American rights, and the right to reprint in anthologies and online. After publication, all other rights revert to the author and the work may be reprinted as long as appropriate acknowledgement to BLR is made.

(*For BLR, “published work” means published in print in North America, or published on the Internet in electronic journals, e-zines, academic websites, and other “public” or “official” websites. Works posted on personal blogs or websites will be considered on a case-by-case basis. We ask that authors be honest about web postings. If a work is discovered to have been posted or published elsewhere–and not openly acknowledged by the author in advance–we will remove it from consideration.) 

More information and submission links here.