Excellent news! You may lastly cease stressing about the place and how you can submit your quick tales—we compiled a listing for you.
Looking for a way of group comes with the territory of being a author. Whether or not you’re in search of the fitting writing contests or residencies, it’s exhausting to know the place to start and how you can discover the fitting house on your private work.
On this information, you’ll discover 30+ magazines and literary journals that publish quick fiction (and nonfiction). Our listing contains a mixture of publications throughout varied genres and types, starting from prestigious, extremely aggressive choices to these particularly searching for new and rising voices.
Plus, worldwide writers, loads of these are open to you, too!
30 Retailers that Publish Brief Tales
Whereas we’ll offer you a short thought of the flavour of every journal and website, you’ll positively wish to spend a while studying your goal publications earlier than submitting to change into acquainted with the form of items they like.
Many of those quick story publishers settle for unique submissions which might be concurrently submitted elsewhere. Simply ensure that to withdraw your submitted submissions should you get your story revealed!
Able to get began? Right here’s the place to submit quick tales.
1. The New Yorker
May as nicely begin with a bang, proper? Including publication in The New Yorker to your portfolio places you in a complete new league, although it gained’t be simple. Creator David. B. Consolation calculated the chances of acceptance at 0.0000416 p.c!
It accepts each commonplace quick fiction in addition to humorous quick fiction for the “Shouts & Murmurs” part. No phrase counts are talked about, although a fast scan of the column reveals most items are 600 to 1,000 phrases.
Deadline: Open
Fee: Large bragging rights; pay for unsolicited submissions isn’t specified. As of this submit’s publication, no charges particularly for brief tales
2. The Atlantic
One other extremely revered journal, The Atlantic, publishes each massive names and rising writers in fiction and nonfiction. Submission tips advise, “A basic familiarity with what we’ve got revealed up to now is the perfect information to what we’re in search of.”
Deadline: Open. Fiction tales are submitted to [email protected]
Fee: Unsolicited submissions are typically unpaid
3. The Threepenny Evaluation
The 3P Evaluation is quarterly arts journal focuses on literature, arts and society, memoir and essay. Brief tales needs to be not more than 4,000 phrases, whereas submissions to the “Desk Discuss” part (pithy, irreverent and humorous musings on tradition, artwork, politics and life) needs to be 1,000 phrases or much less.
Deadline: January 1 to April 30
Fee: $400 for brief tales; $200 for Desk Discuss items
4. One Story
One Story is simply what the identify says: a literary journal that publishes one nice quick story each three to 4 weeks, and nothing extra.
Its fundamental standards for an ideal quick story? One “that leaves readers feeling happy and [is] sturdy sufficient to face alone.” Tales will be any type or topic however needs to be between 3,000 and eight,000 phrases.
Deadline: January 15 – Might 31 | September 3 – November 14
Fee: $500 plus 25 contributor copies
5. AGNI
Thought-provoking is the secret if you wish to get revealed in AGNI. Its editors search for items that maintain a mirror as much as the world round us and have interaction in a bigger, ongoing cultural dialog about nature, mankind, the society we dwell in and extra.
There aren’t any phrase limits, however shorter is usually higher; “The longer a chunk is, the higher it must be to justify taking over a lot house within the journal,” word the submission tips.
Deadline: Open September 1 to December 15; February 15 to Might 31
Fee: $10 per printed web page (as much as a max of $150) plus a yr’s subscription, two contributor’s copies and 4 reward copies

6. Kindle Vella
Somewhat than searching for {a magazine} or journals editorial approval, you’ll be able to publish on to Kindle Vella’s quick story program. Right here, your work will go on to market and its success can be decided by most people, not by an editorial group. You additionally don’t have to attend months on a response as as to if your quick story can be revealed. You may add and be revealed on Kindle Vella in below 48 hours.
For a full assessment of Kindle Vella, learn this text.
Deadline: Open
Fee: Royalties on KDP reads
7. Barrelhouse
Revealed by an impartial nonprofit literary group, Barrelhouse’s biannual print journal and on-line challenge search to “bridge the hole between critical artwork and popular culture.” Its editors search for high quality writing that’s additionally edgy and humorous—as they are saying, they “wish to be your bizarre Web buddy.”
There’s no exhausting phrase depend, however attempt to maintain your submission below 8,000 phrases.
Deadline: At present open for e-book evaluations solely. Verify the webpage to see all open classes and join the e-mail listing to obtain updates on submissions
Fee: $50 to print and on-line contributors; print contributors additionally obtain two contributor copies
8. The Cincinnati Evaluation
The Cincinnati Evaluation publishes work by writers of all genres and in any respect factors of their careers. Its editors need “work that has vitality,” that’s “wealthy in language and plot construction” and “that’s not simply ecstatic, however that makes its reader really feel ecstatic, too.”
Fiction and nonfiction submissions needs to be not more than 40 double-spaced pages.
Deadline: The assessment accepts submissions throughout three time intervals, September, December, and Might. Submit earlier within the month as a result of they are going to cease accepting submissions when their cap is reached.
Fee: $25 per web page for prose in journal
9. The First Line
This cool quarterly is all about jumpstarting that pesky author’s block. Every challenge of The First Line comprises quick fiction tales (300 to five,000 phrases) that every start with the identical pre-assigned first line.
For those who actually wish to get formidable, you may also write a four-part story that makes use of every of that yr’s first strains (which is due by the following yr’s spring challenge deadline). To search out every challenge’s assigned first line, try the submission tips.
Deadline: February 1 (spring); Might 1 (summer time); August 1 (fall); November 1 (winter)
Fee: $25 to $50 (fiction); $25 (nonfiction) plus a contributor’s copy
10. The Georgia Evaluation
One other one excessive on the status listing, The Georgia Evaluation options all kinds of essays, fiction, e-book evaluations, and extra throughout a variety of matters. You may learn particular necessities for every within the submission tips, however the widespread theme amongst all of them is high quality, high quality, high quality.
Keep in mind submitting requires a $3 processing price should you’re not a subscriber.
Deadline: Opens on August 15
Fee: $50 per printed web page; contributors additionally obtain a one-year subscription to the quarterly and a 50% low cost on extra copies of that challenge
11. Boulevard Journal
Boulevard Journal is all the time looking out for “much less skilled or unpublished writers with distinctive promise.” It accepts prose items (fiction and nonfiction) as much as 8,000 phrases (word: no science fiction, erotica, westerns, horror, romance or youngsters’s tales).
There may be an internet submission price of $3. Free if submitting by submit.
Deadline: Open November 1 to Might 1
Fee: $100 to $300
12. Story
Story Journal is, you guessed it, all in regards to the story, no matter form it takes. Every challenge—printed tri-annually in February, June, and November—is “dedicated to the advanced and various world of narrative with a deal with fiction and nonfiction.” Fortunately, you don’t have to stay to any formal tips with reference to type, content material, and even size; they contemplate all “quick” narrative size work, from flash fiction to novellas. There’s a $3 submission price.
Deadline: Open
Fee: Common cost charge is $10 per web page upon publication
13. Vestal Evaluation
Choose to maintain your quick tales further quick? Vestal Evaluation publishes flash fiction of not more than 500 phrases. Its editors are open to all genres apart from syrupy romance, exhausting science fiction and kids’s tales, and so they have a particular fondness for humor. R-rated content material is OK, however keep away from something too racy, gory or obscene.
There’s a submission price of $2 for every submission.
Deadline: Submission intervals are February to Might and August to November
Fee: The creator of an accepted print submission will get $25 and a print copy; $10 for accepted internet submissions
14. Flash Fiction On-line
Flash Fiction On-line permits for barely longer flash tales—between 500 and 1,000 phrases. Its editors like sci-fi and fantasy however are open to all genres (apart from nonfiction and poetry!). As with Vestal, keep away from the heavier stuff like erotica and violence. What they’re in search of is developed, empathetic characters and discernible, resolved plots. Not like most of the different publications, they are going to settle for beforehand revealed work, which you’d submit within the reprint class.
Deadline: Open every month for submissions from the first to the twenty first of the month.
Fee: $80 per story; two cents per phrase for reprints
15. Black Warrior Evaluation
Black Warrior Evaluation publishes a mixture of work by up-and-coming writers and nationally identified names. Fiction items of as much as 7,000 phrases needs to be progressive, difficult, and distinctive; its editors worth “absurdity, hybridity, the magical [and] the stark.”
BWR additionally accepts flash fiction below 1,000 phrases and nonfiction items (as much as 7,000 phrases) that complicate western traditions of truth-telling, and “foregrounds the historical past of feelings moderately than the historical past of info.” There’s a $3 submission price.
Deadline: Submission intervals are December 1 to March 1 and June 1 to September 1
Fee: A one-year subscription to BWR and a nominal lump-sum price (quantity not disclosed in its tips)

16. The Solar Journal
The Solar Journal gives among the largest funds we’ve seen, and whereas its tips particularly point out private writing and provocative political/cultural items, additionally they say editors are “open to absolutely anything.”
Works ought to run not more than 7,000 phrases. Submit one thing the editors love, and you can get a pleasant payday.
Deadline: Open
Fee: $300 to $2,000
17. Virginia Quarterly (VQR)
A various publication that options each award-winning and rising writers, VQR accepts quick fiction (3,500 to eight,000 phrases) however will not be a fan of style work like romance, sci-fi and fantasy. It additionally takes nonfiction (3,500 to 9,000 phrases) like journey essays that study the world round us.
Deadline: Submissions learn July 1 to July 31
Fee: Usually $1,000 and above for brief fiction and prose (roughly 25 cents per phrase) with larger charges for investigative reporting; $100 to $200 for content material revealed on-line
18. Ploughshares
Ploughshares’ award-winning literary journal is revealed by Boston’s Emerson School. They settle for fiction and nonfiction below 7,500 phrases and require a $3 service price should you submit on-line (it’s free to submit by mail, although they like digital submissions). You can even submit your considerably longer work (7,500 to twenty,000 phrases) to the Ploughshares Solos collection!
Deadline: June 1 to January 15 at midday Jap Time
Fee: $45 per printed web page (for no less than $90 per title and a most of $450 per creator); plus two contributor copies of the difficulty and a one-year subscription
19. Carve Journal
Writers are in for a deal with! Carve Journal accepts poetry, quick tales and nonfiction submissions, not exceeding 10,000 phrases. They settle for literary fiction solely and will not be open to style fiction (i.e. thriller, horror, romance, and so forth.). In addition they settle for novel excerpts however solely these that may stand alone within the story. There’s a $3 submission price, however you’ll be able to subscribe to the journal to skirt previous it.
Deadline: Open all-year-round from wherever on the earth
Fee: Pays $100 and gives suggestions on 5 to 10% of declined submissions
20. Each day Science Fiction
Sci-fi and fantasy writers, this one’s for you. Each day Science Fiction is in search of character-driven fiction, and the shorter, the higher. Whereas their phrase depend vary is 100 to 1,500 phrases, they may contemplate flash collection—AKA three or extra flash tales constructed round a typical theme.
Deadline: Open apart from the interval between December 24 to January 2
Fee: Eight cents per phrase, with the opportunity of extra pay for reprints in themed Each day Science Fiction anthologies
21. JMWW
JMWW is a literary journal that publishes fiction tales with as much as 300 phrases and flash fiction of not than 1.500 phrases, and it’s open to any style so long as the story is well-crafted. To up your possibilities of catching the editors’ eyes, word that they like “sturdy characters whose motivations will not be all the time identified to us however will be defined throughout the confines of widespread sense,” in addition to shock endings (nothing gimmicky).
Deadline: Open
Fee: No pay specified
22. Smokelong Quarterly
SmokeLong, a literary magazine dedicated to flash fiction, publishes flash narratives as much as 1000 phrases—and that’s a agency phrase restrict, so you should definitely persist with it. The SLQ aesthetic stays “an ever-changing, ever-elusive set of ideas,” nevertheless it most probably has to do with these sorts of issues: language that surprises and excites, narratives that attempt towards one thing apart from a remaining punch line or twist, and extra which you’ll see within the submission tips. Assume you’ll be able to deal with that?
Deadline: Open
Fee: $50 per story upon publication within the quarterly challenge
23. The Grasp’s Evaluation
The Grasp’s Evaluation’s New Voices class is open to any new or rising creator who has not revealed a piece of fiction or narrative nonfiction of novel size—not together with authors with quick story collections. Submit your flash fiction of 1,000 phrases or your piece of fiction or narrative nonfiction of as much as 7,000 phrases. Although, editors are trustworthy: There aren’t any submission charges, however they’re extremely selective.
Deadline: Open
Fee: A flat charge of $100 for flash-length tales; $200 for brief fiction
24. Ruminate Journal
Each rising and established writers are inspired to submit fiction or inventive nonfiction tales that “engages the contemplative spirit of our journal and embraces curiosity and discovery moderately than decision.” Each genres are capped at a phrase depend of 5,500 phrases.
Need an alternative choice? There’s no pay for this one (simply contributor copies), however The Waking is Ruminate Journal’s on-line publication house and so they’re in search of short-form prose, fiction and nonfiction that’s “holy, nutritious and essential.” Preserve your submissions to 1,000 phrases or much less.
Deadline: July 2, 2020; fiction studying intervals are April 1 to June 30; January 15 to June 30 for nonfiction
Fee: $20 per 400 phrases, plus contributor copies
25. Asimov’s Science Fiction
Have you ever ever puzzled the place George R. R. Martin’s Daenerys Targaryen first appeared on the printed web page? Nicely, that is it! A longtime marketplace for science fiction tales, Asimov’s Science Fiction journal has gained quite a few Hugo and Nebula Awards, and the writers they’ve revealed have led profitable careers.
They need you to submit your character-oriented, “critical, considerate, but accessible fiction,” however there’s room for humor as nicely. Whereas science fiction dominates what the journal publishes, you’re welcome to submit borderline fantasy, slipstream and surreal fiction—keep away from sword and sorcery, specific intercourse or violence. Whereas there’s no particular phrase depend, ASF seldom buys tales shorter than 1,000 phrases or longer than 20,000 phrases.
Deadline: Open
Fee: 8 to 10 cents per phrase for brief tales as much as 7,500 phrases; 8 cents per phrase for every phrase over 7,500
Try this useful video from our mates at selfpublishing.com for writing a brief story.
26. Slice Journal
Obtained a recent voice and a compelling story to share? This one’s for you. To bridge the hole between rising and established authors, SLICE gives an area the place each are revealed side-by-side. In every challenge, a particular cultural theme turns into the catalyst for articles, interviews, tales and poetry from famend writers and lesser-known voices alike. Brief fiction and nonfiction submissions needs to be 5,000 phrases max.
Deadline: Slice revealed their remaining challenge within the fall of 2021 and are not in search of submissions
Fee: $400 for tales and essays; $150 for flash fiction items; $100 for poems
27. Cricket Media
Cricket Media desires to publish your best high quality writing for youngsters of all ages in considered one of its 4 literary magazines—you’ve gotten choices! Open to submissions from writers of each degree of expertise, CM’s mags are fascinated about loads of issues, it doesn’t matter what style: reasonable up to date fiction, historic fiction, science fiction and fantasy, people tales, myths and legends, humor, and even westerns. Their recommendation? Deal with telling story that’s well-plotted, character-driven and has a satisfying conclusion.
Most tales are 1200 to 1800 phrases in size; nonetheless, they sometimes serialize longer tales of as much as 6,000 phrases.
Deadline: Varies; test the rules to be taught the deadlines for every lit magazine
Fee: As much as 25 cents per phrase
28. The Darkish Sire
Horror writers, you’re up! A reasonably new literary journal, The Darkish Sire is a quarterly on-line and print journal that “explores speculative fiction works for lovers” of gothic, horror, fantasy and psychological realism in brief fiction, poetry and artwork. Topics of explicit curiosity embrace: vampires, monsters, previous castles, dragons, magic, psychological sickness, hell, illness and decay of society. No phrase depend.
Deadline: Open
Fee: None, however they promote writers by way of creator occasions, social media outreach and the (in improvement) TDS podcast
29. The Frequent
Primarily based at Amherst School, The Frequent is an award-winning print and digital literary journal revealed biannually within the fall and spring. They search fiction and nonfiction tales and dispatches (800-word notes, information and impressions from around the globe) that “embody a robust sense of place: items through which the setting is essential to character, narrative, temper and language.” Keep on with a ten,000 word-count and also you’re stable. There’s a $3 submission price.
Deadline: Studying intervals are March 1 to June 1 and September 1 to December 1; subscribers can submit at no cost year-round
Fee: $100 for fiction and nonfiction submissions; $50 per dispatch
30. The Antioch Evaluation
The Antioch Evaluation is presently paused and never accepting submissions. Verify again sooner or later.
The Antioch Evaluation hardly ever publishes greater than three quick tales per challenge, however its editors are open to new in addition to established writers. Authors revealed right here usually wind up in Finest American anthologies and because the recipients of Pushcart prizes.
To make the lower, editors say, “It’s the story that counts, a narrative worthy of the intense consideration of the clever reader, a narrative that’s compelling, written with distinction.” Phrase depend is versatile, however items are typically below 5,000.
Deadline: When operational, open besides between June 1 to August 31. No digital submissions
Fee: $20 per printed web page plus two contributor copies
31. Literary Orphans
Literary Orphans is presently paused and never accepting submissions. Verify again sooner or later.
Fiction comes first for this quick fiction and artwork journal. Editors need your fiction of any style, however they’ve a necessity for micro-fiction, flash, and quick tales which might be 2,000 phrases or much less (however 1,500 is their candy spot!). Artistic nonfiction can also be accepted for the bi-monthly Literary Orphans challenge on the primary web site; simply maintain your story to five,000 phrases max. Plus, teenagers below 19, there’s a class for you, too. Submit a narrative of not more than 3,000 phrases to its “TEEN SPIRIT” part
As a result of they obtain a excessive quantity of submissions, editors ask that you simply submit your *finest* piece. However right here’s the place it will get fascinating: For those who can’t select only one, ship each! (So long as each tales mixed don’t surpass 2,000 phrases.)
Deadline: At present no open requires submission, however test again sooner or later!
Fee: Not specified
Brief Story Submission Suggestions
With exhausting work and endurance you’ll be able to see your quick tales revealed!
Listed here are a couple of suggestions to bear in mind when trying to submit quick tales
- Take time to learn by way of the literary magazines earlier than you submit. You should have a greater thought of what they’re trying and know which magazines match finest together with your writing type
- Learn the submission particulars earlier than you submit. Every publication has completely different specs for submissions – ensure you fulfill their necessities
- Be affected person. Many of those publications have a small group and loads of submissions. It’s regular to attend a number of months earlier than listening to whether or not an article can be revealed or not
- Preserve observe of which articles you’ve gotten submitted to which publications. As a result of can submit the identical quick story to a number of publications, you will have to withdraw that article if it will get revealed. You don’t wish to unintentionally publish the identical piece in a number of locations
- Don’t surrender! Whilst you would possibly obtain a number of rejections earlier than you get your first piece revealed, with exhausting work it is going to be well worth the wait when you get your first piece in print!
The unique model of this story was written by Kelly Gurnett. We up to date the submit so it’s extra helpful for our readers.
Photograph by way of Nito/ Shutterstock