Story Unlikely is an award-winning monthly publication that features fiction and nonfiction that focuses on the quality of both the writing and storytelling, not on genre or author pedigree (or lack thereof).
Literary Magazines
Find a home for your poems, stories, essays, and reviews by researching the publications vetted by our editorial staff and listed in the Literary Magazines database. Here you’ll find editorial policies, submission guidelines, and contact information—everything you need to determine which publications match your vision for your writing and your writing life. Use the filters below to find magazines with reading periods that are open now or opening soon (within the next thirty days), accept unsolicited submissions, and match all of your criteria for the perfect publisher of your work.
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Reading Period: Feb 2 to Sep 30Genre: Fiction, Creative Nonfiction -
The editors of Sublunary Review welcome poetry, short story, and art submissions from all people and places. Send them your most oneiric, moonlit work.
Reading Period: Aug 1 to Aug 31 -
“Strong Words for a Polite Nation.” subTerrain Magazine was founded in 1988 to publish writers from the other side of the tracks. Each issue features progressive and sometimes controversial writing, alongside timely book reviews and...
Read moreReading Period: Jan 1 to Feb 28, Mar 1 to May 15, Aug 1 to Sep 15Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction -
The Sun is an independent, ad-free magazine that for more than fifty years has used words and photographs to evoke the splendor and heartache of being human. Each monthly issue celebrates life, but not in a way that ignores its...
Read moreReading Period: Jan 1 to Dec 31Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction -
Since launching in January of 2019, Sunspot Literary Journal has amplified diverse multinational voices. New works have been published in their original language side-by-side with English translations. Boundaries that exclude meaningful...
Read moreReading Period: Jan 1 to Mar 31, Apr 1 to Jun 30, Jul 1 to Sep 30, Oct 1 to Dec 15Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, TranslationSubgenres: Autobiography/Memoir, BIPOC Voices, Creative Nonfiction, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Formal Poetry, Graphic/Illustrated, Historical, LGBTQ Voices, Literary Fiction, Lyric Essay, Micro-poetry, Nonfiction, Poetry, Prose Poetry, Short Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Translation, Visual Poetry, War -
Superlative publishes quality, innovative work by emerging short story writers and poets in order to promote new, developing authors and the art of the short story and poetry to readers worldwide. Superlative’s main aim is to nurture...
Read moreReading Period: Jan 1 to Dec 31Subgenres: Experimental, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Literary Fiction, Poetry -
Superpresent is a quarterly magazine of the arts. It is available free online and a limited run of print copies for each issue. Superpresent publishes poems, short stories, essays, visual art pieces, experimental art, video art...
Read moreReading Period: Jan 1 to Mar 1, Apr 1 to Jun 1, Jul 1 to Sep 1, Oct 1 to Dec 1Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Translation -
The Swamp Ape is a legend that reflects Florida—its mythology, its weirdness—as well as the human desire to create a narrative around that which they can’t explain. Submissions to the Swamp should defy form to the extent that the piece’s...
Read moreReading Period: Mar 1 to Aug 1Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Translation -
swamp pink publishes fiction, poetry, and nonfiction on a semimonthly basis. Its aim is to publish exceptional work from writers at all stages of their careers. The editors are particularly interested in submissions from writers of color...
Read moreReading Period: Sep 1 to Dec 31, Jan 1 to Jan 31, Feb 1 to May 31Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative NonfictionSubgenres: Cross-genre, Flash Fiction, Literary Fiction, Narrative Nonfiction, Prose Poetry, Translation -
SWING is devoted to excellent poetry, fiction, essays, and comic art in print, and the editors are committed to a design that speaks to the contents within. The look and feel of their issues will always reflect the natural world and...
Read moreReading Period: Jun 6 to Oct 1Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction -
Tabula Rasa Review is filled with poetry and prose that show just how much can be done with a blank piece of paper. Its authors have formed dimension, and feeling in black and white text. They’ve created relationships, climaxes, and...
Read moreReading Period: May 30 to Sep 30Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction -
Talking River Review, Lewis-Clark State College’s literary journal, seeks examples of literary excellence and originality. Send us your poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction manuscripts.
Reading Period: Aug 1 to Apr 1Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative NonfictionSubgenres: BIPOC Voices, Flash Fiction, LGBTQ Voices, Literary Fiction, Lyric Essay, Prose Poetry -
Since 2017, Teach. Write. has sought to showcase the creative writing of teachers to bring them back to the fundamentals of the writing process and closer to their students. Although the editorial focus is teaching and writing by...
Read moreReading Period: Apr 1 to Sep 1, Oct 1 to Mar 1Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction -
Place. Climate. Justice. Terrain.org is an award-winning literary journal publishing online on a rolling basis: editorials, poetry, essays, fiction, articles, reviews, interviews, artwork, videos, and case studies.
Reading Period: Jan 1 to Mar 31Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, TranslationSubgenres: Autobiography/Memoir, Cross-genre, Experimental, Feminist, Flash Fiction, Graphic/Illustrated, Healing/Health, Humor, Journalism/Investigative Reporting, LGBTQ Voices, Literary Fiction, Micro-poetry, Narrative Nonfiction, Nature/Environmental, Political, Pop Culture, Prose Poetry, Translation -
Digital literary quarterly for new, emerging and established writers and artists. The editors seek good writing above anything else: inspired, unbound, and diverse. Original work only.
Reading Period: Jan 1 to Dec 31Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Translation -
Based at 7,000 feet, Thin Air Magazine has no choice but to invite work that takes us to dizzying heights with its innovation and insight. The editors aspire to foster diversity, authenticity, surprise, and excitement while making the...
Read moreReading Period: Apr 1 to Oct 15Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction -
TINGE Magazine, Temple University’s online literary journal, is published one to two times a year.
Reading Period: Aug 15 to Nov 15, Jan 1 to Mar 1Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction -
The Tusculum Review fosters a vibrant community for both professional and emerging writers. The editors engage a diverse audience with captivating works across four genres that reflect the complexities of contemporary life.
Reading Period: Jan 1 to Dec 31Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Translation -
Established in 2023, Twin Bird Review is a biannual online literary publication for imaginative fiction, poetry, essays, art, and comics. The editors love the metaphorical, the speculative, the fantastical, the whimsical, and the strange...
Read moreReading Period: Jan 1 to Dec 31Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction -
A digital literary journal brought to you by students and faculty in the BA in Liberal Studies Creative Writing Concentration at Antioch University Los Angeles. Two Hawks Quarterly is dedicated to publishing works that spark debate,...
Read moreReading Period: Oct 1 to Jun 30Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative NonfictionSubgenres: Cross-genre, Flash Fiction -
The Uncommon GRACkle seeks works with deep, emotional resonance and empathy for the human experience. We welcome all creators from all demographics, including marginalized writers/artists who identify as...
Read moreReading Period: Nov 1 to Dec 31Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction -
Valiant Scribe is a platform that focuses on faith and social issues. It covers a wide range of topics, including violence against women, forced labor, human trafficking, criminal justice, mental health, climate change, poverty, and...
Read moreReading Period: Jan 15 to Dec 15Temporarily Closed to SubmissionsGenre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Translation -
Variety Pack tries to live up their namesake! A bedrock of diverse voices, expressing a variety of arts & letters. Open to both genre and literary. Sure there’s an aesthetic, but it’s a broad atlas rather than a narrow stream!
Reading Period: May 1 to Jun 15, Sep 1 to Oct 15Temporarily Closed to SubmissionsGenre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, TranslationSubgenres: Autobiography/Memoir, BIPOC Voices, Creative Nonfiction, Cross-genre, Experimental, Feminist, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Formal Poetry, Graphic/Illustrated, Historical, Humor, LGBTQ Voices, Literary Fiction, Lyric Essay, Micro-poetry, Narrative Nonfiction, Nature/Environmental, Nonfiction, Poetry, Political, Pop Culture, Prose Poetry, Regional, Short Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Translation, Visual Poetry, War, Young Adult -
A Velvet Giant is a literary journal for work that exists outside the boundaries of genre.
Reading Period: Mar 15 to May 15Temporarily Closed to SubmissionsGenre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Translation -
Vestal Review is the longest-running flash fiction magazine on the planet, published continuously since March 2000. It’s an online magazine coming out twice a year, and it’s eclectic, so a lot of different approaches work, provided they...
Read moreReading Period: Feb 1 to May 31, Aug 1 to Nov 30Genre: FictionSubgenres: Flash Fiction
