NewPages Blog :: Calls for Submissions

Discover calls for submissions from literary magazines, independent publishers, literary events, and more.

Call :: Blue Mountain Review Wants the Best Stories in All Genres

The Blue Mountain Review flierNow in it’s 5 year, The Blue Mountain Review was launched from Athens, Georgia in 2015 with the mantra, “We’re all south of somewhere.” As a journal of culture the BMR strives to represent life through its stories. Stories are vital to our survival. Songs save the soul. Our goal is to preserve and promote lives told well through prose, poetry, music, and the visual arts. Our editors read year-round with an eye out for work with homespun and international appeal. We’ve published work with Jericho Brown, Kelli Russell Agodon, Robert Pinsky, Rising Appalachia, Nahko, Michel Stone, Genesis Greykid, Cassandra King, Melissa Studdard, and A.E. Stallings. www.southerncollectiveexperience.com/submission-guidelines/

Call :: Club Plum Wants Powerful yet Subtle Pieces

Deadline: Rolling
Submissions open for flash fiction of no more than 800 words and prose poems. Send powerful yet subtle pieces. Send strong voices. Send dreamy words that don’t gush. Skate on the edge of realities. Club Plum also seeks art: Please send one image only of pen-and-ink line art, watercolor, bold colors, experimental work, collage, impressionistic or abstract pieces. Tell the editor about your piece. The editor will pass on photography. See clubplumliteraryjournal.com for details.

Call :: Red Planet Magazine Wants Speculative Work

Deadline: Rolling
Red Planet Magazine is an independent literary magazine emphasizing a theme of speculative fiction, and is open for submissions year-round on a rolling basis. Contributors receive a digital copy of the issue in which their work has been featured. Please visit www.redplanetmagazine.com for additional information.

Call :: borrowed solace seeks mystical work

Deadline: July 31, 2020
borrowed solace is looking for “Mystical” works for the fall themed 2020 literary journal. We accept nonfiction, fiction, poetry, and art. Submissions close July 31, 2020; and you can review our guidelines, what the editors are looking for, and submit here at www.borrowedsolace.com. We want to read what mystifies you!

Call :: About Place Journal Works of Resistance, Resilience

Deadline: August 1, 2020
Each issue of About Place Journal, the arts publication of the Black Earth Institute, focuses on a specific theme. From 6/1 to 8/1 we’ll be accepting submissions for our Fall 2020 issue Works of Resistance, Resilience. Our mission: to have art address the causes of spirit, earth, and society; to protect the earth; and to build a more just and interconnected world. We publish prose, poetry, visual art, photography, video, and music which fit the current theme. More about this issue’s theme and our submission guidelines: aboutplacejournal.org/submissions/.

Call :: Xi Draconis Books Seeks Socially Engaged Manuscripts

Don’t forget that Xi Draconis Books is open to socially engaged, book-length works for publication in 2020 and 2021. They accept novels, short story and poetry collections, memoirs, essay collections, and cross-genre works. Their mission is to publish works examining social justice issues of all kinds. Head to xidraconis.org/submission-guidelines/ to submit. Check out a recent title from their catalog—it’s free. There is no fee to submit. Deadline: July 31.

Call :: This Is What America Looks Like Anthology Closes to Submissions on June 1

If you are a poet or writer living in or with ties to Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia, don’t forget that you have until June 1 to submit fiction or poetry to Washington Writers’ Publishing House for their first anthology in 25 years!

They are a 47-year-old nonprofit, cooperative, all-volunteer press and are looking for new and established writers, a cross-section of diverse voices, to write on America today. Be provocative, be personal or political (or both). They want writing that helps us see and reflect on this moment we are living in. More information at www.washingtonwriters.org. Submit at wwph.submittable.com/submit. There is a $5 fee.

Call :: ode to Queer

Deadline: September 1, 2020
ode to Queer is an unabashedly queer literary and artistic journal looking for art from LGBTQIA+ artists that is experimental, fringe, and vulnerable. Our journal exists to create a queer cannon that centers and celebrates marginalized and rural voices without hiding behind diluted language or imagery to appease cis-hetero-centered viewership. We don’t wish to bottleneck the creativity of our artists, which is why we welcome all forms of visual and written art that are conscious of our guidelines. Visit odetoqueer.com/submissions for more details and to see what we’re about!

Call :: Writings on Domestic Verbal, Emotional, and Physical Abuse

Deadline: October 15, 2020
We are seeking work by survivors of domestic abuse. Creative nonfiction, memoir, flash nonfiction. Please note that at this time we are not accepting poetry. Deadline: October 15, 2020. The book will be published by McFarland & Company; contributors will receive a complimentary copy. Please send your submission in Word, with a brief cover letter and 50 word bio to Judith Skillman, [email protected] and Linera Lucas, [email protected]. This text is dedicated to all those who dared to break the silence.

Call :: Four Quartets: Poetry in the Pandemic

Tupelo Press Call Four Quartets: Poetry in the PandemicTupelo Press has announced they are moving their Tupelo Broadside Contest submission period to the month of September. This is so they can accept folios for Four Quartets: Poetry in the Pandemic to be published in late fall. They seek four 12-page folios of poetry. Submissions are open now through midnight on June 30. Judges for selection will be Publisher Jeffrey Levine, Editor In Chief Kristina Marie Darling, and Poetry Editor Cassandra Cleghorn. Selected writers will receive a $250 honorarium.

There is a $22 reading fee.

Call :: Awakenings Review Seeks Poetry, Fiction, Nonfiction, Photography, and Art

Established in 2000, The Awakenings Review is an annual lit mag committed to publishing poetry, short story, nonfiction, photography, and art by writers, poets and artists who have a relationship with mental illness: either self, family member, or friend. Our striking hardcopy publication is one of the nation’s leading journals of this genre. Creative endeavors and mental illness have long had a close association. The Awakenings Review publishes works derived from artists’, writers’, and poets’ experiences with mental illness, though mental illness need not be the subject of your work. Visit www.AwakeningsProject.org for submission guidelines.

Call :: Jay Lit Review Seeks Submissions on a Rolling Basis

Remember Jay Lit Review, the companion journal to the Journal of African Youth Literature, seeks critiques, commentary, research, essays, and translations on a rolling basis. Fields of interest: African (youth) literature and literacy; African (youth) culture and language studies; African language education; feminist/gender, post/decolonial, reader-response, linguistic, comparative, etc. analysis; translation into/from African languages; related areas of study. Topics: African youths, youth culture and literature; reflections on teaching African languages; multilingualism in Africa, linguistics, related subjects.

Educators, academics, and translators are invited to showcase knowledge and skills in their professional field. Postgrad essays on a variety of African youth concerns will be considered. Double-blind peer review. Visit africanyouthliterature.art.blog/the-jay-lit-review for more info. Email [email protected].

Call :: Mizmor Poetry Anthology – Spirituality

Deadline: August 15, 2020

“Spirituality is a broad concept with room for many perspectives. In general, it includes a sense of connection to something bigger than ourselves, and it typically involves a search for meaning in life. As such, it is a universal human experience—something that touches us all…”

No reading fee. Contributors will receive one free copy mailed to U.S. address, only. Please visit the website for the complete guidelines: www.poeticapublishing.com.

Call :: Chestnut Review (for stubborn artists) Invites Submissions

Chestnut Review (“for stubborn artists”) invites submissions year round of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, art, and photography. We offer free submissions for poetry (3 poems), flash fiction (<1000 words each & up to 4 pieces), and art/photography (20 images); $5 submissions for fiction/nonfiction (<5k words), or 4-6 poems. Published artists receive $100 and a copy of the annual anthology of four issues (released each summer). Notification in <30 days or submission fee refunded. We appreciate stories in every genre we publish. All issues free online which illustrates what we have liked, but we are always ready to be surprised by the new! chestnutreview.com

Call :: Adanna Closes to Submissions for Special Issue on May 15

Don’t forget Adanna Literary Journal, a women focused print publication, is open to submissions for a special issue through May 15. They are seeking essays, poetry, and creative nonfiction that speaks towards the experience of mothering in a time of crisis—caring for children, especially those with children in college returning from affected areas, those with younger children exposed to media and the anxiety of school shut-downs, as well as women who are caring for elderly relatives or those in the medical profession. To submit, please go to adannajournal.blogspot.com/p/submission-guidelines.html. The subject line should read “Special Issue” to distinguish this from their annual issue.

Call :: little somethings press issue three

little somethings press flierlittle somethings press is open for submissions for issue three. We want work that breathes in the space of a page, even as the world falters. Send your flash memoir and fiction of up to 300 words, your poetry of up to 12 lines, and your visual art to [email protected] by June 15th.  Up to three pieces per submission are welcome. Contributors will receive compensation through a contributor copy. All rights revert back to the author/contributor upon publication. littlesomethingspress.com

Call :: Gold Man Review Open to Submissions from OR, AK, HI, CA, & WA

Deadline: June 1, 2020
Literary magazine Gold Man Review is a West Coast journal. They are currently looking for submissions of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction for Issue 10. They are open to all topics and themes and love work that pushes boundaries. Have work on the unusual side? They are probably the journal for you. Please note they only accept submissions from writers living in Oregon, Alaska, Hawaii, California, and Washington. See their website for full submissions guidelines: www.goldmanpublishing.com.

Driftwood Press Extends Application Deadline for Online Seminars

Good news! If you missed the April 30 deadline for Driftwood Press’s 2020 Online Seminar Series, you’re in luck! They have extended the deadline to apply to May 30. These seminars will run for five weeks starting on June 1 and ending on July 3.

The Erasure Poetry Seminar instructor is Jerrod Schwarz who teaches creative writing at the University of Tampa. This seminar features an in-depth look at the history, practices, and importance of erasure poetry. Every week students receive a video lesson, tailor-made writing prompts, and detailed feedback. The course will culminate in a Showcase Booklet of students’ work which will be made available for free download on Driftwood’s website.

The Editors & Writers Seminar is targeted towards three types of writers: writers submitting to magazines and wanting to fight through the slushpile, writers who wish to be editors of short fiction or run a magazine, and writers who wish to become better editors of their own and others’ work. The instructor will be Driftwood Press Fiction Editor James McNulty. Students receive weekly video lessons, a writing or revision assignment, a reading assignment, and detailed feedback on writing assignments.

Don’t forget that the biannual journal is open to submissions year-round and the publishing arm is currently open to submissions of novellas, graphic novels, and comic collections. They do charge a reading fee. Expedited response options available for journal submissions.

Call :: Bending Genres Seeks Zany Work

Deadline: Rolling
Send us your zany, innovative best fiction, poetry, and CNF. We publish bimonthly, and year round. Bending Genres also host monthly weekend workshops and retreats. The next online class is Artifact Lit: Exploring New Forms with Tyler Barton from May 22 to May 24. The next retreats are scheduled for August 16-22 in West Bend, Wisconsin, and September 1-7 in New Mexico. www.bendinggenres.com

Call :: The Conium Review Themed Submissions: “(Re)new”

Deadline: June 1, 2020
The Conium Review seeks flash fiction in response to the “(Re)new” theme from May 15th through June 1st, 2020. This theme will be edited by James R. Gapinski, author of the Edge of the Known Bus Line, Messiah Tortoise, and the forthcoming Fruit Rot. If your piece is accepted, it will be published on our website. Published authors also receive $20, a copy of our latest print issue, and a signed copy of the editor’s latest book. Send a single unpublished piece up to 1,000 words. No reading fee. Full guidelines here: coniumreview.com/themes/renew/.

Call :: Wordrunner eChapbooks Seeks Mini-Fiction Collections

Deadline: June 30, 2020
Two fiction collections will be selected for our fall 2020 e-chapbook series, to be published in August and December, online and as epubs. Stories may be flash or longer, from 500 up to 5,000 words each. We’d like at least five stories, but no more than 15 (if flash fiction). We will also consider novel excerpts. No genre fiction, please. Stories by authors who receive Honorable Mentions will be considered for our 2021 themed anthology. See www.echapbook.com/submissions.html for detailed guidelines and Submittable link. Payment: $100 plus royalties. Submission fee: $6.

Call :: trampset Now Paying for Quality Work

Deadline: Rolling
trampset, an online literary journal of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, is seeking new submissions on a rolling basis. We want your best brain, your beating heart. Send that good human stuff our way. We pay $25 per accepted piece. We have 50 free submissions a month through Submittable as well as Tip Jar and Quick Response options. Visit our submissions page: trampset.org/submissions-6e83932b0985.

Call :: An Anthology of Mental Health Recovery

Main Street Rag seeks poetry and prose (fiction/nonfiction) for an anthology with a mental health recovery theme; uplifting stories of overcoming mental health challenges and trauma from writers who have experienced a mental illness or love someone who has. Length: up to 6,000 words (prose) or 5 poems. Reading Period: May 1-August 1. Simultaneous submissions and previously published considered, however, authors must own the rights (no third-party permissions). Questions may be directed to editor Erika Nichols-Frazer at [email protected]. Submissions should be sent to: mentalhealth.submittable.com/submit.

Call :: The Revolution (Relaunch) Wants Your Creative Activism

The focus of The Revolution (Relaunch) is feminism in the broadest sense. This means they are interested in “creative activism” that voices the marginalized and/or criticizes corrupt authority for their online journal. They publish a range of styles—memoir, poetry, cultural criticism, interviews, and profiles featuring activists and grassroots organizations. Submit one piece of prose under 750 words, three poems, or 5 images to [email protected].

Call :: Mental Snapback Podcast is Looking for Recovery Stories!

Submission accepted year-round.
Mental Snapback Podcast is looking for your mental health recovery stories to be featured in our episodes. This podcast is for everyone and anyone who has experienced mental illness, whether it be that you have experienced acute or chronic illnesses yourself or someone you love has experienced them. We know the struggle, and we don’t want to invalidate that. However, we want to hear about the other side—the recovery of your struggles—to build a foundation of hope for whoever may need it. Currently, we only accept creative nonfiction in the form of essays. Acceptance of manuscripts occurs on a rolling basis, and they will be read aloud on weekly podcast episodes. mentalsnapback.com/submission-guidelines/

Call :: Spread Art and Philanthropy by Submitting to COVID LIT

COVID LIT logoDeadline: Rolling
COVID LIT is a new online lit mag that gives the middle finger to COVID-19 by publishing, promoting, and spreading art, poetry, and prose using the disease’s name. What sets us apart from other magazines? Simple: instead of paying us a submission fee, all submissions must be accompanied with a minimum $3 donation to a nonprofit of the artist’s choosing. Our goal is to publish weekly online content and, eventually, a print anthology, so send your best work and use your creative superpowers for good! Visit www.covidlit.org today and help those who desperately need it.

Call :: Underground Writers Association of Portland Maine Seeks All that is Essential

Deadline: Rolling
The Underground Writers Association of Portland Maine seeks poetry, micro fiction, and visual art submissions for Essential, the press’ fourth annual anthology. Submitted works should be inspired by one or more of the themes: isolation, disruption, abandon, and what is essential. It is up to the author to define and make the argument for what is essential in times like these. All are welcome to submit; emerging writers are encouraged. No fee to submit. Simultaneous submissions and previously published work OK. An optional charity-based reading fee is available for an expedited response. Full submissions guidelines at www.undergroundwritersassociation.com/submit.

Call :: The Blue Mountain Review is Open to Submissions Year-round

The Blue Mountain Review flierBefore sending work in for consideration, check out Issue 17 of Blue Mountain Review. Published in February, this issue features interviews with Kelli Russell-Agodon, Zoe Fishman, Alex Gannon, Eurydice Eve, Justin Butts, Firewords. You can also find Poetry by Shutta Crum, Betsy Rupp, Jeremy Ray Jewell, and Twixt; plus fiction by Jacquelyn Scott, Kimberly Knutson, and Jim Kelly.

When you’re done reading, head on over to their submission manager and consider submitting your own poetry, fiction, micro fiction, and essays. They do charge a $5 fee. Remember, they particularly want work with both homespun and international appeal.

American Poetry Journal Submission Opportunities

American Poetry Journal April eLitPak flierAmerican Poetry Journal publishes in print and online every year. We publish full-length books, chapbooks, and an annual anthology. This year’s anthology is Gods & Monsters. APJ is proud to introduce the American Poetry Journal Book Award and residency at City of Asylum in Pittsburgh. Award Publication of Full-length Book & $500 Honorarium from American Poetry Journal and 1-4 Week residency & travel provided by City of Asylum. www.apjpoetry.org

View the full April eLitPak Newsletter here.

Call :: Palooka Open to Submissions Year-round

Palooka screenshotDon’t forget that literary magazine and chapbook publisher Palooka is open to submissions year-round. Even better? They are currently offering free digital copies of past issues to help lift the spirits of creatives and book lovers. So go ahead and grab a copy today. Palooka is open to all voices, forms, and styles. Submit unpublished chapbooks, fiction, poetry, nonfiction, art, photography, graphic narratives, and comic strips. There is a $3 fee for fiction, poetry, and nonfiction journal submissions and an $8 fee for chapbook manuscripts.

Call :: Club Plum Seeks Flash Fiction, Prose Poems, & Art

Have you read the first two issues of online literary magazine Club Plum Literary Journal yet? Check those out and consider submitting your own flash fiction, prose poetry, and art for their next issue. There is no fee to submit. Fiction should be under 800 words. They want the lyrical and the unusual. They accept images of pen-and-ink line art, pencil drawings, watercolor, experimental, impressionistic, or abstract pieces. These can be black and white or in color. They do not currently accept photography at this time.

Call :: the Vitni Review Spring & Fall 2020 Issues

Deadline: Rolling
the Vitni Review seeks creative writing submissions on an ongoing basis for its spring and fall 2020 issues. Our intention is to publish writing that pushes against convention, which challenges, subverts, or skillfully manipulates tradition, and which serves to advance the understanding of human culture and experience via interesting metaphors, exciting diction, and engaging content. We are especially dedicated to publishing work by writers from historically under- or misrepresented demographics. See our guidelines at www.vitnireview.org/submit.

Call :: Tolsun Books Closes to Submissions on May 31

There is just over a month remaining to submit manuscripts to Tolsun Books, an independent, non-profit press based in the Southwest. They are accepting both full-length and chapbook-length manuscripts composed of parts. This includes poetry, short stories, essays, hybrids, translations, and things they haven’t dreamed of. They want both new and experienced writers with high-energy voices. They offer free submissions on the 15th of every month otherwise it is $15 to submit.

Call :: Washington Writers’s Publishing House Seeks Work for Anthology

This is What America Looks Like coverWashington Writers’ Publishing House is accepting poetry and short fiction for their first anthology in 25 years. If you are a writing living in or connected to DC, Maryland, and Virginia, you have until June 1 to submit work to the This is What American Looks Like anthology. They seek new and established writers, a cross-section of diverse voices, to write on America today. Be provocative, be personal or political (or both). There is a $5 fee to submit.

Call :: The Roadrunner Review Invites Student Writers to Submit

Deadline: May 11, 2020
The Roadrunner Review‘s mission is to provide student writers with a beautiful publishing venue. We publish flash fiction, flash nonfiction, poetry, and cover art. We have an international focus. We also have a particular need for more creative nonfiction and essays. Submissions FREE via Submittable. roadrunner.lasierra.edu/submissions/

Call :: Oyster River Pages Closes to Submissions on May 31

Don’t forget that Oyster River Pages, a literary and artistic collective, is open to submissions of fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, and visual arts that stretch creative and social boundaries for its fourth annual issue. They believe in the power of art to connect people to their own and others’ humanity. Because of this, they seek to feature artists whose voices have been historically de-centered and marginalized. Additionally, their Emerging Voices section seeks new voices in fiction from those who have published fewer than two publications and who meet our submission criteria. Please see www.oysterriverpages.com for submission details and send your important work for an urgent time.

Call :: Xi Draconis Seeks Socially Engaged Works for Publication in 2020-21

Deadline: July 31, 2020
Xi Draconis Books seeks socially engaged, book-length works of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry for its 2020 and 2021 production years. We accept novels, short story and poetry collections, memoirs, essay collections, and cross-genre book-length works. Our mission is to publish works that examine social justice issues of all kinds. Head to xidraconis.org/submission-guidelines/ to submit.

What Are You Reading?

What are you reading?

Last month, we asked all of you what you’ve been reading while sheltering in place. We’re thrilled with the response and thankful for everyone who has shared their recommendations with us.

If you‘re reading anything you’d like to recommend, send it over—we’d be happy to share it here on our blog. We have a little more information on what we’re looking for at this post to help you get started: www.newpages.com/2020/03/25/what-are-you-reading.

We’re looking forward to checking out your recommendations!

Call :: Pensive: A Global Journal of Spirituality and the Arts Issue 1

Submit by May 15 to the inaugural issue of Pensive, an interfaith global journal based at Northeastern University in Boston. Original poetry, prose, visual art, film, music, and translations welcome. Especially interested in work that deepens the inward life; envisions a more just, peaceful, sustainable world; and advances dialogue across differences. Submissions by global and historically underrepresented groups particularly encouraged. Submit up to 5 pieces; simultaneous submissions and previously published works welcome. Send documents in 12 point Times New Roman with a brief (3-5 line) contributor’s bio in third person to [email protected]. Email Alexander Levering Kern, co-editor, with questions.

Call :: Light and Dark Issue 15

Deadline: May 15, 2020
Light and Dark is seeking your best short stories for our fifteenth online issue! We are particularly interested in stories that deal in some way with the dichotomous nature of existence. Please send us nothing longer than 3,000 words. All stories will be published on our website: www.lightanddarkmagazine.com. The author will also receive a token payment of $15. We look forward to reading your best work: lightanddark.submittable.com/submit.

Call :: the tiny journal iii

Deadline: June 1, 2020
Feeling quarantined and alone? Come connect with us! We are an annual online lit mag looking to publish beautiful works of micro-fiction, short poems, and flash nonfiction for issue iii. We are especially interested in works grappling with the challenges of our current times. Navigate to our website, www.thetinyjournal.org, for submission details.

Call :: Jay Lit Review Issue 1

Deadline: Rolling
Jay Lit Review call for critiques, commentary, research, essays, and translations. Fields of interest: African (youth) literature and literacy; African (youth) culture and language studies; African language education; feminist/gender, post/decolonial, reader-response, linguistic, comparative, etc. analysis; translation into/from African languages; related areas of study. Topics: African youths, youth culture and literature; reflections on teaching African languages; multilingualism in Africa, linguistics, related subjects. Educators, academics and translators invited to showcase knowledge and skills in their professional field. Postgrad essays on a variety of African youth concerns will be considered. Double-blind peer review. Visit africanyouthliterature.art.blog/the-jay-lit-review for more info. Email [email protected].

Hypertext Magazine Waives Submissions Fees

Due to the ongoing crisis, literary magazine Hypertext Magazine has decided to waive normal submission fees for the foreseeable future. If you would like to help out their independent magazine during this time, please do consider making a donation. Editorial staff do not know who donates to the journal, so donations do no affect editorial decisions. They are open to submissions through June 1.

Hypertext Magazine has been publishing short stories, essays, poetry, and interviews in print and online since 2010. Earlier this month, they published two interviews. One with Kelly Fordon and another with Sahar Mustafah.

Call :: Journal of African Youth Literature Issue 2

The Journal of African Youth Literature Issue 1Journal of African Youth Literature issue 2 call for submissions of creative writing and artworks open now. Poetry, fiction, visual stories, plays, essays. Artworks of all kinds, including front cover. Criteria: Must be created by, about and/or for African youths (15-35 years). ‘African’ definition is, generally, born-in-Africa and of African heritage. Includes the diaspora, and not related to race or colour. Our mission is ‘Preserving African Youth Identities’ through creative expression. Visit africanyouthliterature.art.blog for more info. Email [email protected]. See issue 1 at bit.ly/2SxiOI8.

Alaska Quarterly Review Moves Temporarily to Online-only Submissions

Due to the necessity of social distancing in this time, Alaska Quarterly Review will no longer be able to review hard copy submissions to the journal. But don’t fear, they are still accepting online submissions through Submittable. Poetry submissions are being accepted through April 16 and nonfiction submissions will be open from April 17 to 30. They do charge a $3 fee.

Also, don’t forget to pick up a copy of their Spring 2020 issue which includes a special feature “Carrying the Fire: Celebrating Indigenous Voices of Canada.”

Call :: The Red Wheelbarrow Wants Work for Summer 2020 Issue

Formerly known as Red Savina ReviewThe Red Wheelbarrow Review is set to to debut its first issue under the new name this month. Don’t forget that they are still on the hunt for poetry, short fiction, and creative nonfiction where “word meets spirit in a commingling of the sacred and mundane.” Submissions accepted on a rolling basis. $3 fee. They also offer an expedited response option. Learn more…