Submission Calls for Writers 6/15/2023

While I was putting together today’s list of submission opportunities, I discovered that Catamaran Literary Reader is charging $8 for general submissions. That’s insane. My personal philosophy is to never pay this much to submit my work. I’ve been involved with numerous literary journals and organizations over the years, and I understand all of the reasons to charge reading fees and generate income. I’m not opposed to the idea. But $8 is obscene even in a time plagued with inflation. Back to my own philosophy on the matter: There are too many good journals who don’t charge at all or who only charge a nominal fee. Submitting work can be expensive, and I try to take that into account when I compile submission lists. You’ll notice that some of today’s opportunities do come along with application or submission fees. Again, I’m not opposed to the concept. The key, I believe, is to make sure the benefit is proportionate to the risk and/or reward. In that spirit, here are 10 opportunities I recommend. Good luck!

Cimarron Review We accept submissions year-round in poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and art. Please include a cover letter with your submission. Please send 3-6 poems, one piece of fiction, or one piece of nonfiction. Please only submit to one genre at a time. Address all work to the appropriate editor. https://cimarronreview.com/submit/

Southeast Review The Southeast Review publishes poetry, literary fiction, creative nonfiction, and art in each biannual issue as well as on SER Online, in addition to online book reviews and interviews. We pride ourselves on presenting emerging writers alongside well-established ones. Please submit one double-spaced short story of up to 7500 words. Please submit no more than 5 single-spaced poems at a time, with a maximum of 15  pages per total submission. Place all poems in one document. https://www.southeastreview.org/general-submissions

32 Poems We welcome unsolicited poetry year round and accept simultaneous submissions.  As a rule we publish shorter poems that fit on a single page (about 32 lines), though we sometimes make exceptions to accommodate remarkable work that runs a little longer.  $3 submission fee. http://www.32poems.com/submission-guidelines

Berkeley Fiction Review Berkeley Fiction Review accepts short fiction, sudden fiction, comics, and art submissions. We look for innovative and reflective short fiction from new and emerging writers across all genres that play with form and content, as well as traditionally constructed stories with fresh voices and original ideas that say something new or bring nuance and perspective to an ongoing cultural conversation. https://berkeleyfictionreview.org/submit/

Juked There are no limits on word count for online fiction or nonfiction—we like narratives and essays of all sizes, so long as the colors fit. For our print issue, we accept prose submissions of at least 2,500 words. For poetry, we are looking for long poems (four pages or longer) or sequences of two or more linked poems. Submit a maximum of five poems. We read year-round. http://www.juked.com/info/submit.asp

Key West Literary Seminar Emerging Writer Awards The Cecelia Joyce Johnson Award, Scotti Merrill Award, and Marianne Russo Award recognize and support writers who possess exceptional talent and demonstrate potential for lasting literary careers. Each award is tailored to a particular literary form. The Merrill Award recognizes a poet, while fiction writers may apply for either the Johnson Award (for a short story) or the Russo Award (for a novel-in-progress). Winners of the 2024 Emerging Writer Awards will receive full tuition support for our January 2024 Seminar and Writers’ Workshop Program, round-trip airfare, lodging, a $500 honorarium, and the opportunity to appear on stage during the Seminar. There is a $12 application fee. Deadline is June 30, 2023. https://www.kwls.org/awards/emerging-writer-awards/

Rhino Poetry Rhino looks for the best-unpublished poems, translations, and flash fiction/nonfiction by local, national, and international writers. We welcome all styles of writing, particularly that which is well-crafted, uses language lovingly and surprisingly, and feels daring or quietly powerful. General submissions are open through June 30, 2023. https://rhinopoetry.org/general-submissions

Muzzle Magazine Muzzle publishes poetry, interviews, and book reviews. We are actively seeking submissions in poetry and are also open to queries about reviews and interviews. Please send 3-5 poems at a time. Include all poems in one DOC or PDF file. Make sure that your name does not appear anywhere in the document or submission title; our editors like to view submissions blindly. We are open from June 15 through July 15, 2023. http://www.muzzlemagazine.com/submissions.html

Sundress Publications Call for Full-Length Poetry Manuscripts Sundress Publications is open for submissions of full-length poetry manuscripts. All authors are welcome to submit qualifying manuscripts through August 31, 2023, but we especially welcome authors from marginalized and underrepresented communities. We’re looking for manuscripts of forty-eight to eighty (48-80) single-spaced pages; front matter is excluded from page count. Individual pieces or selections may have been previously published in anthologies, chapbooks, print journals, online journals, etc., but cannot have appeared in any full-length collection, including self-published collections. Single-author and collaborative author manuscripts will be considered. There is a $15 reading fee per manuscript, but the fee will be waived for entrants who purchase or pre-order any Sundress title or broadside. http://www.sundresspublications.com/fulllength/2023/06/sundress-opens-for-full-length-poetry-manuscripts/

Ploughshares We accept fiction and nonfiction that is less than 7,500 words. Excerpts of longer works are welcome if self-contained. Submit 1-5 pages of poetry at a time with each poem beginning on a new page. We accept submissions to the journal from June 1, 2023, to January 15, 2024. There is a $3 submission fee. https://www.pshares.org/submit/journal/guidelines

Thanks for reading. Please feel free to share these opportunities with other writers. 

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In case you missed it… I had a wonderful conversation with Patricia Hudson about her novel Traces, which gives voice to Rebecca Boone and her daughters.

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