CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: FICTION
Catapult Magazine
INFO: Catapult is an innovative publisher that celebrates extraordinary storytelling. We promote American and international fiction and narrative nonfiction that is insightful, stirring, and surprising by way of unique voices—whether emerging or established—that honor the craft of writing.
We welcome short stories, novel excerpts that stand on their own, and translated fiction. We pay for all pieces that we publish. While we publish pieces that are anywhere from 500 to 6000 words long, a typical piece has around 2500 words.
We are particularly interested in flash fiction (about 1000 words or less). If you’d like a few examples, we’re proud to have published Elizabeth Crane's "The Longest Trial", Anya DeNiro's "Take Pills and Wait for Hips", Jess Zimmerman’s “Never Quiet Again”, Nao-cola Yamazaki’s “A False Genealogy,” and Rion Amilcar Scott’s “Boxing Day.”
For both fiction and nonfiction submissions, please include word count and your email address in the document. Please submit only one piece at a time, and please include a cover letter along with your piece. Writers will receive compensation for accepted magazine pieces. We aim to respond to submissions within six months, hopefully earlier. We accept all file formats.
DEADLINE: October 1, 2020
https://catapult.submittable.com/submit
RESIDENCY
Vermont Studio Center
INFO: Each month, VSC welcomes over 50 artists and writers from across the country around the world to our historic campus in northern Vermont.
All of our residencies include:
A private room in modest, shared housing
24-hour access to a private studio space in one of our 6 medium-specific studio buildings
3 communal meals per day (plus fresh fruit, coffee/tea/cold beverages, and cereal available around the clock)
Most residents stay with us for 1 month, so our sessions adhere to a 4-week calendar; however, residencies can be scheduled in 2-week increments ranging from 2 to 12 weeks if a shorter or longer stay better suits your needs.
DEADLINE: October 1, 2020
vermontstudiocenter.org/residencies
WRITERS & ARTIST RESIDENCY
Millay Colony for the Arts
INFO: Each year Millay Colony for the Arts invites up to 62 individuals (including writers, poets, playwrights, screenwriters and visual artists) for residencies through the colony's application process.
Residency sessions are held each month from April through November, usually lasting around 3 1/2 weeks, with 2 twelve-day sessions also available in June & September. In each discipline, decisions are made by juries of artists, critics and academics.
Your work is presented anonymously to the jury and is considered solely on the merit of your artist statement and work sample. Please keep these factors in mind as you prepare your application. It is very important that you do not include your name anywhere on your artist statement or work samples as you may be disqualified if they are within the body of work shown to the jurors. Your application will instead be assigned a number by the administration.
DEADLINE: October 1, 2020
https://millaycolony.submittable.com/submit
GOOD COP/BAD COP: AN ANTHOLOGY
Flowersong Press
INFO: In 2010 police killed over a thousand people in the U.S. Black people are 3x more likely to be killed by police than white people. 99% of killings by police from 2013 – 2019 have not resulted in officers being charged with a crime.*The names of the murdered will not be forgotten. We call on poets, writers, and artists to submit work for an anthology that addresses the continuing problem of police violence in this country and around the world.
Our focus is on the people who are affected by this uncontrolled problem—the victims, the victims’ families, people of color, and a society that lives in fear of being shot and killed by those who are supposed to protect it.
We are looking for art, photography, essays, poetry, and other creative works to explore the racism, injustices and soul-killing aspects of this problem. We want artists to cry out in this anthology and demand justice. The anthology will be published by FlowerSong Press, an independent press dedicated to supporting writers of color and their allies.
Projected publication date: 2021. To submit, please send no more than 10 pages of creative work to info@flowersongpress.com with the subject line: Bad Cop/Good Copy Anthology
DEADLINE: October 1, 2020
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
The Adroit Journal
INFO: Since inception, the journal has been listed for extended periods among Duotrope.com's 25 Fastest & Most Challenging Poetry and Fiction Markets, and has been the #1 Poetry Market with the Most Submission Responses Reported for the past two years.
We are currently OPEN to submissions of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and art.
- Prose - up to 3 pieces at a time, 9,000 words maximum (across pieces).
- Poetry - up to 6 poems at a time, no length limits.
- Art - up to 6 pieces at a time, both black/white & color accepted.
*Please include a third-person bio in your cover letter for submission.*
DEADLINE: October 1, 2020
https://adroit.submittable.com/submit
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
Lost Balloon
INFO: Lost Balloon publishes flash fiction, flash nonfiction, and prose poetry (all 1,000 words or less). We publish one new piece every Wednesday. There are no theme or genre restrictions, but we want your best. Give us work that entertains and challenges, that pushes boundaries and breaks hearts.
Please send only one piece at a time and wait to hear back before sending another submission. We do not accept reprints, so your piece must be original and unpublished. Do not submit in more than one genre at a time. If your submission is rejected, please wait at least 1-2 month(s) after hearing back before you submit again. We will specifically ask for more work if we would like to see something else from you right away. If we accept and publish your piece, please wait one year from your publication date before submitting again.
Simultaneous submissions are great—please withdraw your piece right away if it’s accepted elsewhere.
We cannot currently pay our authors. We do promise to promote your piece on social media. We also nominate work for anthologies.
You can usually expect to hear back in about 60-90 days. If it has been at least 120 days, and you have not received a response, feel free to send a query about your submission status to lostballoonmag at gmail dot com. If you query before 120 days, your email will not be answered.
SUBMISSION FEE: $0
DEADLINE: October 7, 2020
https://lost-balloon.com/submit/
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: Tricks and Treats Issue
No Contact
INFO: We are now OPEN for submissions to our No Contact: Tricks and Treats Issues!
We are reading for your best Halloween work! Please send us all things horrific, gothic, dreadful, dark and dreary and particularly spooky. We’ll publish the best of what we find in one of our two October Tricks and Treats Issues.
As always, we consider art, fiction, creative non-fiction, humor, poetry, and any fusion therein — so long as the work pays homage to this most ghastly of holidays. Please take a look at our guidelines, and click the link below to submit!
DEADLINE: October 8, 2020
https://www.nocontactmag.com/submissions
Journalist of Color Investigative Reporting Fellowship
Investigative Reporters and Editors Inc.
INFO: The program is intended to prepare and support a journalist of color for a solid career in investigative reporting. The program also provides an opportunity for the fellow’s news outlets to benefit from the fellow’s investigative skill-building. The goal of the program is to increase the range of backgrounds, experiences and interests within the field of investigative journalism, where diverse perspectives are critically important.
The fellowship is made possible by the generosity of IRE donors, ABC News, CNN, ESPN, Gray TV and the Hearst Foundations.
What materials are needed for the application?
An investigative reporting project idea that benefits his/her community
Links to three work samples
Link to LinkedIn page or resume
Link to letter of support from supervisor/management stating the newsroom/management will allow the fellow time to work on the project and time to attend all required IRE trainings included in the fellowship. In addition, the letter should serve as a recommendation letter. For independent journalists, the letter should serve as a recommendation letter.
Who is eligible?
U.S. journalists of color who want to improve their investigative skills.
Applicants should have at least three years of post-college work experience.
Applicants should be currently working with a supportive news organization or working as an independent journalist.
Applicants who can propose a well-developed project who would benefit from the training and mentoring.
Students are not eligible.
What would the fellow do?
The fellow would:
Obtain employer support
Develop an investigative reporting project that benefits his/her community
Attend an IRE data journalism bootcamp (dates are TBD)
Attend the NICAR conference (March 4-7, 2021)
Attend the IRE conference (June 17-20, 2021)
Utilize IRE data services
Receive a one-year IRE membership
Set up monthly video calls with his/her mentor network for one year, or until the project is complete, whichever comes first, to discuss the project’s progress
The fellow would be encouraged to do the following after the fellowship concludes:
Serve as part of a mentor network
Serve on fellowship selection committee
Renew IRE membership
What does the fellowship provide?
Complimentary one-year IRE membership/renewal
Complimentary 2021 data journalism bootcamp registration and support
Complimentary NICAR 2021 conference registration and support
Complimentary IRE 2021 conference registration and support
Complimentary IRE Data Services
Modest reporting fund
DEADLINE: October 12, 2020
WRITING BLACK JOY: TRUE STORIES FROM REAL PEOPLE
Grub Street
INFO: During a time when the news is mostly dispiriting, we want to read true stories about joy – specifically Black joy: moments, scenes, memories, that celebrate Black families, relationships, culture, and history. We are looking for a vivid story that is transporting and meaningful – maybe funny, maybe poignant, but always with joy at its center.
Submissions must be true stories between 500 and 1000 words. Submissions can be in any genre: prose, poetry, or cross-genre.
AWARD: The winner will receive $1000, 2nd place $750, and 3rd place $500. This contest is in partnership with MBK Boston and the Black Joy Project by Thaddeus Miles.
ELIGIBILITY: Open to any resident over the age of 18 in New England (Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine) and New York state.
DEADLINE: October 12, 2020 by 11:59pm EST
https://grubstreet.org/get-involved/writing-black-joy/
SAC Community Support Fellowship Grant for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) Individual Artists
Somerville Arts Council
INFO:The Somerville Arts Council (SAC) in Massachusetts has launched a new grant program to support the local BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) community with a special emphasis on serving the Black community and celebrating Black culture. This grant program is designed to serve individual BIPOC artists, as well as build organizational capacity to provide leadership in arts presenting, programming and instruction that predominantly serves BIPOC culture. Priority may be given to artists and projects that convey strong need due to the impacts of COVID-19.
This BIPOC grant program will support two types of grants:
1. Fellowship grants to individual artists in Somerville’s BIPOC community.
2. Project grants to help cultural organizations and culturally-oriented businesses to
create initiatives, programs, and series in Somerville that support local BIPOC artists and the traditions of the BIPOC community. We are especially interested in projects and initiatives that lead to systemic shifts that empower BIPOC artists and culture.
FUNDING: This new BIPOC Support grant program, and SAC’s new COVID Relief grant program, have a total of $120,000 to distribute. We anticipate providing one-time fellowships of up to $4,000 and program grants of between $3,000 and $15,000 each. All grants will be reimbursement grants. For Fellowship grantees to be reimbursed, you will need to have conducted a community benefit (see below). For Project grantees you may request reimbursement as you go. If, for example, you spend money on materials to begin your project you can immediately submit those receipts to SAC to be reimbursed. You will receive payment in about six weeks. If you hire someone to help you, you can submit their W9 and invoice and SAC will pay them directly.
ELIGIBILITY: To be eligible for a Fellowship grant you must be a BIPOC artist who currently lives, or has a studio, in Somerville. Grants are meant to support your development and exploration as an artist through ongoing or new work, such as working on a novel, continuing to develop a series of paintings, choreographing a new dance, etc. If funded, you will be expected to perform a small community benefit project at the end of your grant period. While you do not have to develop your community benefit project now: If you are awarded a grant, SAC will direct you on how to propose a project later and be available to help you develop your proposal.
You may request a Fellowship grant of up to $4,000. You may receive this amount or less depending on the community's overall response and demonstrated need.
DEADLINE: Oct. 12, 2020 by 11:59 pm
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfRAPDtAsRpYN3qrkNCRehsbZAz7eU32PSjNazH_b-aCtPf6A/viewform
South Asian Experience in the American South
South to South / Khem Aryal
INFO: Accepting submissions of short stories and essays by writers of South Asian heritage from the American South.
Works (and questions, if you have any) can be emailed to khemaryal@gmail.com
DEADLINE: October 15, 2020
https://twitter.com/KhemAryal6/status/1297925435670634499
call for proposals: sexuality and creativity
AltSex NYC Conference
INFO The CFP for the 6th annual AltSex NYC Conference (which will be held on Friday, May 14, 2021) is now open!
Please note that this year’s theme is Sexuality and Creativity. Our goal as always is to provide an open forum to explore topics on the far reaches of sexuality. We are open-minded and open to suggestion on all new, intriguing, and thought-provoking presentations on alternative sexualities, but this year we would especially like to hear proposals on ways in which sexuality can be used to allow us to tap into our creative selves, and imaginatively explore ourselves and our relationship to others.
Be creative! Topics can be relevant to the current moment, for example: how sexuality helps us cope in the time of covid; future thinking, such as the intersection of sexuality and technology; or timeless, such as the interplay of sexuality and psychedelics.
We request that speakers frame their presentations in an accessible manner, and format clinical information and/or research results in a way that can readily be distributed and consumed by lay audience and media. Selected speakers will receive free entry to the conference.
DEADLINE: October 15, 2020
https://altsexnycconference.org/call-for-proposals/
Writers Mentorship Program
Latinx in Publishing
INFO: The Latinx in Publishing Writers Mentorship Program is a volunteer-based initiative that offers the opportunity for unpublished and/or unagented writers who identify as Latinx (mentees) to strengthen their craft, gain first-hand industry knowledge, and expand their professional connections through work with experienced published authors (mentors).
QUALIFICATIONS TO BE A MENTEE
Must identify as Latinx (does not include individuals of Spanish origin)
Must be unagented and/or unpublished
Must have an active interest in writing books
Must be located in the U.S. and at least 18 years of age
Must be available to dedicate one hour per month for a minimum of ten months
QUALIFICATIONS TO BE A MENTOR
Must identify as Latinx (does not include individuals of Spanish origin)
Must have published at least one book prior to February 2020
Must be located in the U.S. during the course of the program
Must be available to dedicate one hour per month for a minimum of ten months
ABOUT THE WRITING MENTORSHIP PROGRAM
The next cycle of the program runs from February 1, 2021 through October 31, 2021.
Mentees must complete a sign-up survey and submit 5-10 pages of sample writing.
Mentors must complete a sign-up survey and review mentor guidelines.
We match individuals based on category and time- commitment preferences. The sign-up survey will help us make the best matches between mentor and mentee.
Please be aware that not everyone who applies will be matched.
Participants will be notified of their mentor-mentee match and provided with contact information by January 15, 2021.
Mentors and mentees will connect for one hour per month over a minimum of ten months.
The program closes on October 31, 2021, but if the mentor and mentee would like to continue their mentor relationship, it is entirely at their discretion.
Please be aware that the Latinx in Publishing Writers Mentorship Program is a volunteer-based initiative. Latinx in Publishing will not be held responsible for mediating any relations between mentors and mentees once the program ends.
DEADLINE: October 15, 2020 at 11:59pm ET
https://latinxinpublishing.com/mentorship
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
Rigorous
INFO: Rigorous is an online journal highlighting the works of authors, artists, critics, and educators of color. We take our name from an accusation commonly leveled at authors of color—that our works are not as rigorous as works created by white authors. We add our voices; we continue to prove otherwise.
We publish fiction, creative non-fiction, poetry, visual art, sound art, audiovisual art and movies, cartoons, and any other artistic creations by people of color. We accept all genres, and have a particular affinity for science fiction, superheroes, and other “geek” genres. We enjoy work geared toward the Young Adult market, but we note that Rigorous will sometimes have content that is “Not Safe For Work.”
We seek essays on the personal experiences of people of color and interviews with interesting people of color. We seek critical analysis of art by people of color. We are especially interested in stories about and by educators of color, and the experience of teaching the works of people of color.
Rigorous is edited by Rosalyn Spencer and Kenyatta JP Garcia. Its next issue will be released around the end of October. If you’d like to submit, please do so through Submittable. If you are a white ally working on these issues, please consider our friends at Unlikely Stories and horse less press.
All submissions are handled through Submittable. Please submit up to 10 files, with a maximum of 3000 words.
Please include a cover letter with a brief bio (up to 100 words).
DEADLINE: Extended to October 15, 2020
https://rigorous.submittable.com/submit
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
Apogee Journal
INFO: We consider submissions as they come in during the month-long reading period. We aim to choose pieces for publication by November, to finish editing pieces by mid-January, and to send rejections by the end of January. We share this tentative timeline to help manage any anxiety that comes with the submissions process.
Apogee is a journal of literature and art that engages with identity politics, including but not limited to: race, gender, sexuality, class, ability, and intersectional identities. We are a biannual print publication featuring fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and visual art. Our goals are twofold: to publish fresh work that interrogates the status quo, and to provide a platform for underrepresented voices, prioritizing artists and writers of color.
Working toward these goals, our fiction team is piloting several initiatives. Go here to 1. read what the team looks for (and other FAQ) and 2. complete a Submitter Form. Then submit your work at the Apogee Journal Submission Manager. You must complete the Submitter Form and submit your manuscript for us to consider your fiction. Please note, these steps apply only for fiction submissions. For guidelines on how to share poetry and nonfiction, please see below.
We often receive work from over-represented perspectives whose primary goal is to interrogate its privilege or come to terms with the “other.” Please note: this is not the work we seek to elevate at Apogee. We look for work that centers the experience of marginalized perspectives. We want to foster work that addresses the politics of identity, such as migration, diaspora, multiculturalism, privilege, hierarchy, oppression, though these themes are not a requirement for publication. We believe the exploration of perspectives and voices that are mostly unheard and ignored is a political act itself. To read our mission statement, please visit this page.
All work must be previously unpublished.
Cover letters are optional.
Please include a current bio.
We accept simultaneous submissions. Please notify us if your work has been accepted elsewhere.
For prose submissions, please send a maximum of 5,000 words, in either .doc or .docx format.
Please send only one piece per reading period.
Please send a maximum of five poems in the same document, either .doc, .docx, or .pdf format.
DEADLINE: October 15, 2020
https://apogeejournal.org/submit/
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: FICTION
Pangyrus
INFO: Pangyrus publishes well-crafted, thought-provoking writing in every genre: fiction, poetry, journalism, essays and memoirs, reviews and criticism, comics and visual arts. We publish two print editions a year, and continuously online.
We are looking for well-crafted, thought-provoking fiction in all forms. The tastes of our editorial team are far-ranging from work with a very sharp wit and a critical social eye to that which crosses genre and other boundaries, writing that tackles race, gender, and sexuality head on to immigrant and international writing. First and foremost, we seek writing that displays that rare gift of storytelling, that pulls our readers into the narrative and holds them there until the end.
Our specific categories of Zest!, Politics, Environment, and Society, In Sickness and In Health, Field Notes, and Schooled are always open to compelling fiction as well. Please see the nonfiction section for full descriptions.
Word count: submissions should be a maximum of 3,800 words. Because our volume of submissions is high, we ask that you send only one submission per reading period.
SUBMISSION FEE: $3
DEADLINE: October 15, 2020
https://pangyrus.submittable.com/submit
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: NONFICTION
Pangyrus
INFO: Pangyrus publishes well-crafted, thought-provoking writing in every genre: fiction, poetry, journalism, essays and memoirs, reviews and criticism, comics and visual arts. We publish two print editions a year, and continuously online.
We are looking for high-quality nonfiction writing that connects exciting ideas, tells a compelling story, and offers a fresh perspective.
We favor two kinds of submissions: short, focused essays between 600 and 1500 words, and longer, more reported features of up to 3,500 words. Please send only one selection at a time.
The following are specific categories for Pangyrus. If you submit in one of these categories:
Essays & Memoir
Any subject, any form: essays, memoir, reviews, cultural and political commentaries, travel, love, and living. If you think it would be entertaining or thought provoking for our readers, send it our way!
Craft and Career
As a journal deeply committed to finding new voices and developing new talent, we love insight into word work. Send us your essays on the creative process, on making a life as a writer and artist, and on overlooked essentials of craft.
Zest! (Food Writing)
We want writing that’s not only in good taste, we want writing that tastes good. Wow us with memories of that perfect dish—or the perfect disaster. Tell the story of a region, a history, a family, a love, a war, through meals shared and soufflés ruined.
Politics, Environment, and Society
Give us an unexpected and expansive view into the forces and faces shaping the world we live in now—and into the resistance to them. Tell us stories based on personal experience, reporting, analysis and commentary, or research, whether focused hyperlocally or globally. We want stories that make unexpected connections and raise our awareness of problems—and solutions.
In Sickness and In Health: Life in the Pandemic and Beyond
Give us perspective on the way we live now, drawing on anything from personal narrative to reporting to the science (and art) of public health. Be political, be personal, be whatever you need to be to stay authentic to your lived experiences and observations. This is a time we need shared voices.
Field Notes (Science)
We’re looking for innovative perspectives from researchers, professors, engineers, clinicians, and onlookers who can shine a light on science in the modern world. Our goal is to bring your voice and recent findings from the bench to our readers’ living rooms. At the moment, we are especially interested in women in science, engineering, environment and ecology, and in science affected by today’s political climate.
Schooled (Education)
We’re looking for stories and perspectives from all levels of education, personal stories from teachers, students, and parents. Take us deeper into theory, practice and policy. Tell us about life in and out of the classroom and on (and off) campus in the pandemic, about transformative moments, and about the state of democracy as reflected in our schools.
Lightning Submissions
This is for nonfiction pieces tied to occasions that have immediate relevance or that are coming up soon. If you have a piece that reacts to something that has just happened in our world, submit it. Lightning submissions are presumed to be for our online publication and may or may not be right for the print edition. Word limit: 600 - 3,500.
SUBMISSION FEE: $3
DEADLINE: October 15, 2020
https://pangyrus.submittable.com/submit
2021 KWELI JOURNAL FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM
INFO: Building on Kweli's successful history of mentoring emerging authors, we will provide three or more early-stage writers with 11-month writing fellowships.
Eligible candidates are early career vocational writers living in New York City, who are not enrolled in degree-granting programs and self-identify as POC, Native, and/or Arab American.
Writers who have not yet contracted to publish a book are invited to apply.
Three fellowships will be awarded, which will include:
ten months of editorial support from Kweli Journal editors to prepare a piece for publication in the magazine;
a $1,000 stipend;
admission-free enrollment in four professionally led writing workshops on the short story, poetry, literary nonfiction, and young adult/children's literature
participation in four public readings by workshop participants
admission-free participation in our International Literature Festival, inclusive of pitch sessions with literary agents and editors
optionally, admission-free participation in our Color of Children Literature Conference
publication in Kweli Journal.
Eligibility: Only writers who have not yet published or been contracted to write a book-length work are eligible. Only one submission per person is allowed. Please do not submit a piece you have previously submitted to Kweli Journal, either through the Fellowship category or the General Submissions category. Kweli Journal reserves the right to invite submissions.
Timeline: Successful applicants will be informed no later than December 15, 2020. The fellowship period will be January 2, 2021 – December 2, 2021.
Procedure: Applications must be submitted through the Fellowship category in Submittable. There is no application fee. Please submit the following:
A cover letter containing a one-paragraph biographical statement; one paragraph that is a favorite of yours from a book you've read recently; and a brief statement telling us why this particular passage is meaningful to you. Please also note in your cover letter if you are a resident of one of New York City's five boroughs.
A CV or résumé
a letter of recommendation
a brief statement of your career goals and what you expect to accomplish as a Kweli Fellow.
A 10 page writing sample. There is no word-count requirement. Eligible genres are fiction, poetry, literary nonfiction, and cross-genre writing, whether written for adults, young adults, or children.
Selection will be based on (i) quality, promise, and subject matter of the writing sample; (ii) educational or experiential preparation; and (iii) seriousness of purpose and willingness to push beyond one's comfort zone.
Note that we only accept PDF or Word files (.doc and .docx). The cover letter and manuscript should be submitted as separate files. Incomplete applications will not be considered and will be returned unread.
DEADLINE: October 19, 2020 at 11:59pm EST
http://www.kwelijournal.org/kweli-fellowship-program
National Teen Storyteller Writing Contest
The Center for Fiction
INFO: Terrify and surprise twist your way into a chance to win up to $100 to our bookstore, and online publication with us and our contest partner, the Decameron Project! We’re calling on young writers, aged 14 to 18, to submit chilling tales that lead us through the haunted corridors of their imaginations. But we can’t stay long. The horror-themed thrill rides have to be completed within 300-1,000 words.
RULES & ELIGIBILITY:
One submission per storyteller
Storytellers must be between the ages of 14 and 18 at the time of submission
Stories must be between 300 and 1,000 words (the title is not included in word count)
At this time we can only consider stories written in English
PRIZES:
The three winning stories will be published on the Center for Fiction and Decameron Project’s websites.
First-place winner will receive a Center for Fiction tote bag and a $100 bookstore gift certificate
Second-place winner will receive a Center for Fiction tote bag and a $50 bookstore gift certificate
Third-place winner will receive a Center for Fiction tote bag and $25 bookstore gift certificate
Final decisions regarding winners and finalists will be made by the Center for Fiction staff. The Center for Fiction reserves the right in its sole discretion to disqualify any entries that do not follow the contest rules or contain lewd, obscene, defamatory, or hateful content.
About Our Contest Partner: We are thrilled to bring back Decameron Project as our contest partner. The student-run NYC-based nonprofit aims to empower students to express themselves creatively and share their stories amidst school closures and other hardships posed by COVID-19.
SUBMNISSION FEE: $0
DEADLINE: October 25, 2020
https://centerforfiction.org/event/national-teen-storyteller-writing-contest-october-2020/
Call for Papers: “I Can’t Breathe:” Addressing the Impact of Racism and Social Injustice on the Psychosocial and Psychodynamic Functioning of Black and Hispanic Populations
Clinical Social Work Journal
INFO: Clinical Social Work Journal seeks submissions for a Special Issue on the impact of racism and social injustice on the psychosocial and psychodynamic functioning of Black and Hispanic populations. Psychotherapeutic interventions with Black and Hispanic people require clinicians to evaluate their psychosocial problems through the prism of their lived familial, cultural, ethnic and racial experiences—while recognizing that the effects of living in a hostile and unjust environment negatively alters individual development, induces terror, psychological pain and chronic or toxic stress. This view of clinical social work practice provides the impetus for developing a special issue centering on the nexus among racism and injustice and the psychosocial and psychodynamic functioning of Blacks and Hispanics. Racism and injustice are often manifested via unfair and violent policing in Black and Hispanic communities, systemic racism, white supremacy, and the unmet mental health needs of these two groups.
Relevant manuscripts may consist of theoretical or conceptual papers, case studies, completed research studies or clinically and theoretically-informed commentaries. All submissions should have clear clinical practice implications that are informed by contemporary psychosocial, psychodynamic and developmental theories—and must be related to the impact of racism or social injustice on Black or Hispanic populations. Manuscripts that address one or more of the following topics are welcome:
Systemic racism and the psychosocial developmental trajectory of Black and Hispanic individuals
Psychotherapy and/or clinical practice approaches that mitigate (or address) the negative effects of racism, inequality and/or social injustice
Police brutality/police-induced violence and its psychodynamic implications
White supremacy and its impact on the mental health outcomes of Black and Hispanic individuals
Race-related stress and its implications for psychosocial and psychodynamic functioning among Blacks and/or Hispanics
Discrimination and social and racial injustice (and its toxic psychosocial effects)
Guest Editors
Samuel R. Aymer, PhD, Hunter College, City University of New York, Silberman School of Social Work
Manny John González, PhD, Florida Atlantic University, Phyllis and Harvey Sandler School of Social Work
DEADLINE: Prospective authors need to submit an abstract of 800 words by October 26, 2020
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NjK9puEGgdEqSIUpnYuZfT5Q_4thza77/view
Open City 2021 Fellowship
Asian American Writers’ Workshop
INFO: The Asian American Writers’ Workshop is now accepting applications for the 2021 Open City Fellowship. The fellowship is a nine-month program and will run from January through September.
STIPEND: $2,500 for the duration of the nine-month grant period;
PUBLICATION OPPORTUNITIES: We will publish two long-form pieces and two short ones, or three long-form stories, you’ve written over the nine-month period on our online magazine, The Margins. We want these pieces to be special and we hope you will too.
OPEN CITY WORKSHOP SERIES: We have created a special workshop series just for Open City Fellows. We’ll launch with a special orientation that will feature professional writers and former fellows. Future sessions in the workshop series may deal with interviewing, the craft of writing, photography, multimedia storytelling, and data research;
GUIDANCE AND MENTORSHIP: You’ll receive mentorship and editorial guidance from Senior Editor Noel Pangilinan and will have access to potential resources from the CUNY Journalism School;
AAWW PERKS: You’ll receive free membership to the AAWW, discounts, free access to general programs;
WRITING WORKSHOP: One free writing workshop organized through AAWW ($200 value).
Previous fellows have gone on to write and report for Granta, Al Jazeera America, the New Yorker, among other outlets. Their work during our fellowship has been picked up by NPR, CityLab, and the New York Times.
Open City Fellows will be required to:
— meet with the Open City editor every two weeks.
— attend six writing workshop sessions, which may include feedback from the Open City editor;
— attend occasional get-togethers with all fellows; and
— attend an initial all-day orientation at the start of the nine-month term.
APPLICATION:
SUBMITTABLE APPLICATION FORM: In this form, we ask you to specify which neighborhoods you are uniquely qualified to cover for Open City;
PROJECT PROPOSAL: Identify two to three story ideas tied up by a common theme in your chosen neighborhood (900 words max)
CV: Upload a 1-3 page resume or CV that also includes publication history
WRITING SAMPLES: 2 or 3 writing samples that best illustrate the kinds of articles you would like to write for Open City. Samples should not be more than three pages each and must be uploaded to the application form as PDFs or MS Word documents. They should be double-spaced, in 12-point font size, and should not include publication information.
REQUIREMENTS:
During the fellowship term, fellows must live in one of New York City’s five boroughs: Brooklyn, the Bronx, Manhattan, Staten Island, or Queens.
Asian American and Asian diasporic writers are eligible to apply. “Asian American” is defined broadly to include not just, say, Chinese and Indian Americans, but also Asian American adoptee and multiracial writers, Indo-Caribbean writers, and West Asians, such as Iranians and Arab Americans.
SELECTION PROCESS:
The Open City Fellows are chosen based on the following criteria:
— Relevance, quality, and cohesiveness of project proposal;
— Merit of past work, based on submitted work sample;
— Demonstrated ability to cover the proposed neighborhoods;
— Career record, as described in the resume;
— Demonstrated willingness to take the most advantage of the Fellowship: e.g., to attend ALL trainings and workshops, and take advantage of publishing opportunities.
Applicants will be assessed based on a multi-round selection process, in which the applicant pool grows smaller in each round. The assessment process will involve Programs Manager Lily Philpott, and Senior Editor Noel Pangilinan, as well as an outside jury comprised of literary and journalism professionals. Finalist applicants will be interviewed in person or online, depending on the pandemic situation.
DEADLINE: October 29, 2020 by 11:59pm ET
Adina Talve-Goodman Fellowship
One Story
INFO: Together with the Talve-Goodman Family, One Story is happy to open submissions for the Adina Talve-Goodman Fellowship. This educational fellowship offers a year-long mentorship on the craft of fiction writing with One Story magazine. Our hope is to give a writer outside of the fold a significant boost in their career.
Previous winners of the Adina Talve-Goodman Fellowship include Nay Saysourinho (2019) and Arvin Ramgoolam (2020).
The fellow will receive:
Free tuition for all One Story online classes and programming offered in 2021.
Travel stipend ($2,000) and tuition to attend One Story’s July 2021 week-long summer writers’ conference in Brooklyn, which includes craft lectures, an in-person intensive fiction workshop, and panels with literary agents and publishers.
A full manuscript review & consultation with One Story Executive Editor Hannah Tinti (story collection or novel in progress up to 150 pages/35,000 words).
REQUIREMENTS: This fellowship calls for an early-career writer of fiction who has not yet published a book and is not currently nor has ever been enrolled in an advanced degree program (such as an MA or MFA) in Creative Writing, English, or Literature, and has no plans to attend one in the 2021 calendar year. We are seeking writers whose work speaks to issues and experiences related to inhabiting bodies of difference. This means writing that explores being in a body marked by difference, oppression, violence, or exclusion; often through categories of race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, class, religion, illness, disability, trauma, migration, displacement, dispossession, or imprisonment. All applicants must be at least 21 years of age as of January 1st, 2021. For complete eligibility details, please visit our FAQ.
CHECKLIST: To apply to this fellowship you will need:
A fiction writing sample (3,000 - 8,000 words)
A personal statement (600 - 1,100 words)
Two professional references (no recommendation letters but please provide: name, email, phone)
A current resume detailing any work or educational experience. Please also list any writing classes you have taken, along with writing-related awards, fellowships, publications, and residencies (if any).
All applications will be received via Submittable.
SUBMISSION FEE: $0
DEADLINES:
Applications are open until October 30, 2020 11:59pm ET.
The winner of the 2021 Adina Talve-Goodman Fellowship will be publicly announced in January 2021.
https://www.one-story.com/index.php?page=fellowship
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: PARENTING DURING A PANDEMIC
Raising Mothers
INFO: Raising Mothers seeks submissions that speak to the layered intricacies for parenthood from the perspective of the parent or the child by writers who identify as Black, Indigenous, or POC. We're currently accepting submissions for our next issue, Parenting During a Pandemic.
We want to hear the stories that aren't being told. What it means, as a parent, when parenting also means homeschooling also means controlling screen time also means navigating your own emotions as well as that of your children also means the spoons spent to keep you and your parents and your children safe, all at the same time. And how are these multiple, incremental navigations complicated by issues of race, gender, and/or sexual identities? We want any genre, any approach that includes the above, or is not included. Let's share our stories in this time of isolation, and perhaps feel a little less distant from one another where distance is adamant.
DEADLINE: October 31, 2020
http://www.raisingmothers.com/submissions/
CALL FOR BLACK WRITERS
Knights Library Magazine
INFO: The Knights Library Magazine is looking for Black writers to fill our inbox for our special December issue. If you are a Black poet, playwright, fiction writer, nonfiction writer, etc., please send us your work.
All work submitted must be original material and previously unpublished.
Super secret special guest judges to be announced soon, so keep your eyes peeled on Twitter!
GUIDELINES:
One poem or prose piece can be submitted. No longer than 3 pages (poetry) and 8 pages (prose).
Work must be submitted as a separate Word document where your name does not appear in the document.
You must be a Black writer.
Please submit to BlackWriters@KnightsLibraryMagazine.co
DEADLINE: October 31, 2020
Quill (Queer) Prose Award
Red Hen Press
INFO: Founded in 2015 by Tobi Harper of Red Hen Press, Quill seeks to publish quality literature by queer writers.
The Quill Prose Award is for a work of previously unpublished prose with a minimum of 150 pages, by a queer writer.
The awarded manuscript is selected through an annual submission process which is open to all authors.
The final judge for 2020 will be Amber Flame.
Title on cover sheet only, with a 150 page minimum.
AWARD: $1000 and publication of awarded manuscript by Red Hen Press.
GUIDELINES:
The award is open to all writers with the following exceptions:
A) Authors who have had a full length work published by Red Hen Press, or a full length work currently under consideration by Red Hen Press;
B) Employees, interns, or contractors of Red Hen Press;
C) Relatives of employees or members of the executive board of directors;
D) Relatives or individuals having a personal or professional relationship with any of the final judges where they have taken any part whatsoever in shaping the manuscript, or where, for whatever reason, selecting a particular manuscript might have the appearance of impropriety.
ENTRY FEE: $10
DEADLINE: October 31, 2020
https://redhenpress.submittable.com/submit/59201/quill-queer-prose-award
Short Fiction Fast Response: Free for Black Writers
CRAFT
INFO: While our submissions for short and flash fiction are always free and always open, this summer we are offering fast response for free to Black writers. This form is for short fiction (short stories and standalone excerpts) between 1,000 and 6,000 words.
We will respond to your piece within three weeks of submission. If we decline your work, we'll offer a few lines of actionable feedback.
We pay $200 for accepted short stories. To serve our aim of exploring the art of fiction, each published story includes an editor’s introduction as well as a craft essay (author’s note) by the writer. This essay will be requested upon acceptance.
Other opportunities:
If you are a Black writer looking for free fast response for flash fiction (fewer than 1,000 words), please use this form.
If you are not a Black writer and wish to send short fiction for a fast response, please use this form for fast response in exchange for proof of donation to an organization in support of Black lives.
If you are not a Black writer and wish to send flash fiction (fewer than 1,000 words) for a fast response, please use this form for fast response in exchange for proof of donation to an organization in support of Black lives.
DEADLINE: N/A
https://craft.submittable.com/submit/168970/short-fiction-fast-response-free-for-black-writers
SHORT STORY SUBMISSION: CALL FOR BLACK MALE & BLACK NONBINARY WRITERS
Kwame Mbalia
INFO: For too long the stories of Black boys have been written for us and our joy has been omitted. No longer. I want to present, read, and tell stories that center the joy of Black boyhood.
I am putting together and editing a to-be-announced Middle Grade anthology (i.e. targeted towards readers age 8-12) that will center the joy of Black boyhood. A stellar group of authors have agreed to come with me on this journey, and a fantastic publisher is committed to publishing these stories.
Something that is near and dear to my heart is the idea of mentoring and providing space for up-and-coming writers. To that end, I am launching a call for submissions with the hope of finding two writers to be published in this anthology. I did not get to where I am by myself. Other authors reached back, boosted, lifted, and helped me climb, and I want to do the same.
ELIGIBILITY
A Black male/non-binary author as specified above
Unagented and non-traditionally published (if you’ve previously published novellas or short stories, that’s fine!)
Must be 18 years old or older in order to submit a story
SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
Stories should be typed in a manuscript format and emailed as an attachment to BlackBoyStories@gmail.com
In addition to the short story, all submissions must include a 150 words or less bio that tells me about you.
Due to the volume of submissions, submissions will not be returned and comments will not be provided. (It’s just me, y’all.)
If selected, then you agree upon request to cooperate with the editor (me) and the publisher and in the editing and publishing process. You further understand that you will be asked to sign a contributor agreement in a standard form acceptable to the editor (me) and the publisher, and your submission may not be published if you elect not to sign. You further agree that the submission may be edited for length, format or otherwise by the editor (me) and the publisher.
If selected, you will be paid $2,000 on delivery and acceptance, and you will receive credit upon publishing.
SHORT STORY REQUIREMENTS
Short stories must be written for a Middle Grade audience, i.e. for readers age 8 to 12 years old. Stories can be of any genre, i.e. contemporary, science-fiction, fantasy, etc.
Stories must be no more than 3000 words in length.
Stories should not have been previously commercially published and you must be the sole author of the story you submit.
Stories should center joy (which doesn’t mean excluding other experiences) and feature and center Black boys (which doesn’t mean excluding other characters. Say it with me: Centering doesn’t mean excluding.)
All short story submissions must be typed in a manuscript format.
The submission must not contain any material that violates or infringes upon the rights of any third party, including without limitation any copyright, trademark or right of privacy or publicity, or that is unlawful, in violation of or contrary to any applicable law or regulation, or the use of which as described in this call for submissions by the editor would require a license or permission from or payment to any third party; and the submission must not contain any material that is defamatory.
By submitting, the applicant represents and warrants that the applicant owns the copyright in the submission, has complied with all of the requirements and has obtained all permissions, licenses and consents that are necessary for the submitting of the submission and to the use of the submission by the anthology editor and publisher and their licensees. The anthology editor reserves the right in the editor’s sole discretion to disqualify any submission that the editor determines does not comply with these requirements, or to require the applicant to make such changes to any submission as are necessary to make it compliant.
DEADLINE: November 1, 2020
https://kwamembalia.com/a-call-for-joy/
Start A Riot! Chapbook Prize
Foglifter
INFO: In response to rapid gentrification and displacement of QTBIPOC+ literary artists in the San Francisco Bay Area, and in celebration of these communities’ revolutionary history, Foglifter Press, Radar Productions, and Still Here San Francisco are pleased to announce Start a Riot! - a chapbook series for local emerging queer and trans Black writers, Indigenous writers, and writers of color.
AWARD: Each year, the prize will honor one author with:
chapbook publication
a $1,000 prize
promotion
a spot on the Sister Spit Tour
ELIGIBILITY:
Submitter is a QTBIPOC+ literary artist
Submitter is a current resident of the larger San Francisco Bay Area
Submitter does not have a previous full-length publication in their submission genre
MANUSCRIPT DETAILS:
Open to all genres, including poetry, fiction, nonfiction, hybrid, graphic novels
25 pages (maximum)
IMPORTANT DATES:
Deadline: November 1, 2020
Results Announced: Spring 2021
Chapbook Release: Fall 2021
https://foglifterjournal.com/submit-to-start-a-riot/
2020 CRAFT Flash Fiction Contest
Craft Literary
INFO: Welcome back to our annual flash fiction contest for unpublished stories up to 1,000 words!
Leesa Cross-Smith will select three winning stories
AWARD: $1,000
GUIDELINES:
Open September 1 to November 1
CRAFT submissions are open to all writers
International submissions are allowed
Fiction only!
Please submit work in English only
1,000 word count maximum—flash fiction only
We review literary fiction, but are open to a variety of genres and styles—our only requirement is that you show excellence in your craft
Previously unpublished work only—we do not review reprints, including self-published work, for contests
We allow simultaneous submissions—writers please notify us and withdraw your entry if your work is picked up elsewhere
We allow multiple submissions—please submit each set of two flash stories as a separate submission accompanied by a reading fee
All entrants will receive an exclusive digital compilation next year that includes: the winning pieces with Leesa Cross-Smith’s introductions and the winners’ craft essays; the editors’ choice winners; excerpts from finalist pieces; and more
Please, please, double-space your submission and use Times New Roman 12 pt font
Please include a brief cover letter with your publication history (if applicable)
We do not require blind submissions
We do not discriminate on the basis of age, ancestry, disability, family status, gender identity or expression, national origin, race, religion, sex or sexual orientation, or for any other reason
Additionally, we do not tolerate discrimination in the writing we consider for publication: work we find discriminatory on any of the bases stated here will be declined without complete review (you will be refunded, less fees)
READING FEE: $20
DEADLINE: November 1, 2020
https://www.craftliterary.com/craft-flash-fiction-contest/
The Commonwealth Short Story Prize
Commonwealth Writers
INFO: The Commonwealth Short Story Prize is awarded for the best piece of unpublished short fiction (2,000–5,000 words). Regional winners each receive £2,500 and the overall winner receives £5,000.
As well as English, stories are accepted in the Bengali, Chinese, French, Greek, Kiswahili, Malay, Portuguese, Samoan, Tamil and Turkish languages. Translated entries from any language into English are also eligible.
The competition is free to enter and open to any citizen of a Commonwealth country who is aged 18 and over.
DEADLINE: November 1, 2020
http://www.commonwealthwriters.org/our-projects/the-short-story/
JACK STRAW WRITERS PROGRAM
Jack Straw Cultural Center
INFO: Jack Straw Cultural Center is now accepting applications for the 25th year of the Jack Straw Writers Program. To date, the program has included more than 275 writers from the Pacific Northwest and beyond who represent a diverse range of literary genres. Each year, an invited curator selects 12 participants.
The purpose of the Jack Straw Writers Program is to introduce writers to the medium of recorded audio; to develop their presentation skills for both live and recorded readings; to encourage the creation of new literary work; to present the writers and their work in live readings, in an anthology, on the web, and on the radio; and to build community among writers. Participating writers are presented in live readings, in the printed Jack Straw Writers Anthology; and on the web and radio. Each year an invited curator selects the participating writers from a large pool of applicants based foremost on artistic excellence. Among past curators are program co-founder Rebecca Brown, Anastacia- Renée, Donna Miscolta, Matt Briggs, Stephanie Kallos, Shawn Wong, and Jourdan Imani Keith. Writers receive training in vocal presentation, performance, and microphone technique to prepare them for public readings, interviews, and studio recording. Their recorded readings and interviews with the curator are then used to produce programs for SoundPages, our literary podcast, and for selected radio broadcast.
The Writers Program requires participants to be on-site at Jack Straw Cultural Center for a number of activities, such as an introductory orientation, workshops for microphone/voice technique and live performance, in-studio interview session with the program curator, and live readings. (See Covid-19 advisory for more on this.) Most of these activities take place between January and June. Additional Writers Program readings will take place around the community throughout the year, including a final reading with all of the writers in November. Work appearing in the Jack Straw Writers Anthology may not be previously published material, and any subsequent publication of this work must acknowledge the Jack Straw Writers Program.
The 2021 Writers Program Curator is E. J. Koh. E. J., a 2016 Jack Straw Writers Program fellow, is the author of the memoir The Magical Language of Others (Tin House Books, 2020) and poetry collection A Lesser Love (Louisiana State University Press, 2017), winner of the Pleiades Editors Prize for Poetry. Her poems, translations, and stories have appeared in Academy of American Poets, Boston Review, Los Angeles Review of Books, PEN America, Slate, and World Literature Today. Koh is the recipient of The Virginia Faulkner Award for Excellence in Writing from Prairie Schooner and has received fellowships from the American Literary Translators Association, Kundiman, MacDowell Colony, Napa Valley Writers’ Conference, and Vermont Studio Center. She is the editor for Pleiades: Poetry by Korean American Women and has appeared in anthologies: Bettering American Poetry Vol. 3, Privacy Policy: The Anthology of Surveillance Poetics, Political Punch: Contemporary Poems on Politics of Identity, and The World I Leave You: Asian American Poets on Faith and Spirit. Koh earned her MFA at Columbia University in New York for Creative Writing and Literary Translation. She is completing her PhD at the University of Washington in English Language and Literature.
Selection Process
Writers Program applications are evaluated and awarded by an invited curator. The curators change each year. All applicants will be notified of the results in writing. Please allow at least eight weeks after deadline dates for the review and notification process to be completed. The first Writers Program mandatory meeting will take place in January 2021.
Selection Criteria
The Writers Program receives more than a hundred applicants, from which 12 writers are selected. Curator selections will be based upon the excellence of the work represented in the support materials provided by the applicant.
Covid-19 Advisory
We will almost certainly need to adapt the 2021 Writers Program to fit the safety requirements of the current situation, as we have been doing for the 2020 Writers. Some elements – such as workshops, readings, and meetings – will be moved online, and some will be adjusted to minimize the number of people sharing space.
It is impossible to know exactly what the situation will look like in January, when this program is set to begin, so we are requesting your patience, flexibility, and adaptability in advance. Know that we will do whatever we can to help you get the most out of this program and find community with your cohort and curator.
DEADLINE: November 3, 2020
https://jackstraw.submittable.com/submit/90532/jack-straw-writers-program
THE OCM BOCAS PRIZE FOR CARIBBEAN LITERATURE 2021
INFO: The OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature is an annual award for literary books by Caribbean writers, first presented in 2011. Books are judged in three categories: poetry; fiction — both novels and collections of short stories; and literary non-fiction — including books of essays, biography and autobiography, history, current affairs, travel, and other genres, which demonstrate literary qualities and use literary techniques, regardless of subject matter. (Note: textbooks, technical books, coffee-table books, specialist publications and reference works are not eligible.)
There will be a panel of three judges for each category, who will determine category shortlists and winners.
The three category winners will then be judged by a panel of four judges — consisting of the chairs of the category panels and the prize chair — who will determine the overall winner.
AWARD: The author of the book judged overall winner will receive an award of US$10,000. The other category winners will receive US$3,000.
To be eligible for entry for the 2021 prize, a book must:
Have been first published in the calendar year 2020 (1 January to 31 December);
Have been written by a single author who either holds Caribbean citizenship or was born in the Caribbean (this must be verified by the publisher), regardless of current place of residence;
Have been written by an author who is living on 31 December, 2020;
Have been written and first published in English originally (i.e. translations are not eligible);
Be a new work, previously unpublished in book form (though collections including poems, stories, essays, or other short pieces that have individually appeared in print in periodicals or anthologies are eligible).
The OCM Bocas Prize is requesting both digital and print copies of each entry for 2021: a PDF file of the book must be uploaded with the entry form below, and five copies of the book must be mailed via reliable courier to The Bocas Lit Fest.
DEADLINE: November 9, 2020
https://www.bocaslitfest.com/2021/awards/ocm-bocas-prize-entry/
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: NYT’S MODERN LOVE COLUMN
The New York Times
INFO: Although Modern Love has evolved into a podcast, a book, a TV show and Tiny Love Stories in its 16 years, the column’s central mission remains the same: to publish honest personal essays about contemporary relationships.
We seek true stories on finding love, losing love and trying to keep love alive. We welcome essays that explore subjects such as adoption, polyamory, technology, race and friendship — anything that could reasonably fit under the heading “Modern Love.” Ideally, essays should spring from some central dilemma you have faced. It is helpful, but not essential, for the situation to reflect what is happening in the world now.
The best way to see the range of styles and subjects we publish is to read the column and listen to the podcast. There’s a Google doc of tips from the editor that someone culled from the Modern Love Facebook page (some details are out of date, but nearly all of the advice is still generally applicable).
Love may be universal, but individual experiences can differ immensely and be informed by factors including race, socio-economic status, gender, disability status, nationality, sexuality, age, religion and culture. We especially encourage Black and Indigenous people and other people of color to submit, as well as writers outside of the United States and those who identify as members of L.G.B.T.Qcommunities.
How do I submit?
Send submissions to: modernlove@nytimes.com. Please put the subject of your essay or a possible title in the email subject line.
Limit your essay to 1,500-1,700 words.
Attach your essay as a Microsoft Word-compatible doc and paste the text into the body of the email. If your first submission is incomplete, please resubmit one complete entry; do not submit just the missing pieces in additional emails.
Essays must be entirely true. Do not use pseudonyms (including for yourself), composite characters or invented situations or scenes. There are no exceptions to this rule.
Essays must be previously unpublished. Work that has appeared online — on another news website, a personal blog, Medium or elsewhere — is considered previously published.
Essays will be edited in consultation with writers, and writers will be compensated for work that is published.
We attempt to respond to every submission within three or four months, though response times may vary because of the high volume of submissions. There is no need to follow up.
DEADLINE: Modern Love has two submission periods, September through December and March through June. We do not accept submissions in July, August, January or February. Submissions made during those months will be deleted unread. Please submit again when the inbox reopens.
https://www.nytimes.com/article/how-to-submit-a-modern-love-essay.htm
CALL FOR AUDIO SUBMISSIONS: HEARD/WORD
Galleyway
INFO: HEARD/WORD is Galleyway's new audio series highlighting compelling voices in poetry and prose. We invite you to share recordings of original poems and short fiction. Selected work will be showcased on our blog and social media platforms. Submissions should include:
MP3 recording of you reading your poetry (no longer than 3 minutes) or short fiction (no longer than 5 minutes)
Text version of the piece
A headshot
A brief bio
Social media handles and link to website
Please send submissions to camille@galleyway.com
DEADLINE: Ongoing
https://galleyway.com/blog/2020/3/31/call-for-audio-submissions
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: BIPOC WRITERS
Bad Mouth
INFO: Bad Mouth is an Albuquerque-based reading and music series that—in regular non-pandemic times—was a quarterly curated reading series featuring writers across genres, along with live music. Since the pandemic shut-down, we’ve been featuring weekly videos of one writer reading, with bio, links, and other information to highlight and promote that writer’s work. We post the videos on the Bad Mouth Facebook Page, the Bad Mouth website, and send to the Bad Mouth email list.
We’re currently open to submissions from writers of any genre (poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction). At this time, we are asking for submissions from BIPOC writers.
If you’d like to participate, please send a note and brief bio to badmouth@plumeforwriters.org.
Thanks for considering, and we look forward to hearing from you!
DEADLINE: Ongoing
https://badmouthreadingseries.wordpress.com/about/
Micro/Flash Fast Response for BIPOC Writers
Fractured Lit
INFO: Fractured Lit is committed to providing a platform to diverse, emerging voices. We are now offering an expedited reading category explicitly for marginalized or underrepresented writers. Submissions to this category will receive a response in two weeks or fewer.
All submissions are considered for publication at the payment rates below based on the appropriate word counts. Please see the guidelines below, or contact us at contact [at] fracturedlit.com with any questions. This form is for marginalized or underrepresented writers only.
Fractured Lit publishes micro and flash fiction from writers of any background or experience. Both Micro and Flash categories are open year round and we do not charge any submission fees. We accept simultaneous submissions but ask that you inform us immediately and withdraw your work if your story is accepted elsewhere. We pay our authors $50 for original micro fiction and $75 for original flash fiction.
Micro fiction for Fractured Lit is 400 words or less.
Flash fiction is 401-1,000 words.
We will also consider previously published fiction, as long as the writer retains the rights or second-publication rights can be obtained. We do not pay for reprints.
Writers may submit up to two stories in the same document. Please wait 1 month after our initial reply before submitting again.
Cover letters are optional, but it's nice to know who is submitting to us. Please refrain from describing your stories. The work needs to speak for itself. Including the title and word count of each story is helpful for more efficient consideration of your work. Please include a brief third-person biography statement.
We consider submissions sent via Submittable. We are not open to email submissions and are not open to submissions sent via post.
Fractured Lit holds first serial publication rights for three months after publication. Authors agree not to publish, nor authorize or permit the publication of, any part of the material for three months following Fractured Lit’s first publication. For reprints, we ask for acknowledgment of its publication in Fractured Lit first.
DEADLINE: Ongoing
https://fracturedlit.submittable.com/submit/175793/micro-flash-fast-response-for-bipoc-writers
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: Intervenxions
The Latinx Project
INFO: Intervenxions is an online publication of The Latinx Project that features original writings, criticism, and interviews exploring contemporary Latinx Art, Politics, & Culture.
Pitches no longer than 100 words are accepted on a rolling basis. No completed drafts or manuscripts.
Please inquire about Spanish-language and bilingual submissions.
Include a brief bio (250 words or less) with your pitch.
For image requirements, see Squarespace guidelines on sizing and format. Please do not send images without verifying copyright restrictions and permissions.
Article length is roughly 1,200 to 2,000 words, with occasional exceptions for longer pieces.
Please hyperlink sources, no reference lists.
For interviews, please have audio or transcript available upon request. *Please note: interview questions do not need to be submitted beforehand.
Avoid redundancy, such as the same word or phrase used twice in a sentence.
Drafts should prioritize clear and concise language, as well as strike a balance between a casual, yet informed tone.
For additional guidance, please review past contributions.
DEADLINE: Ongoing
https://www.latinxproject.nyu.edu/submission-guidelines
SEEKING BOOKS FOR REVIEW
BIPOC Book Critic's Collective
INFO: BIPOC Book Critic's Collective is a networking platform for book critics writing personalized, creative book reviews and author interviews that will bring a spotlight to women writers of color.
To ensure equity and accessibility to the public, we review books written within the decade, outside of the cisgender, patriarchal standards of traditional publishing. Allowing writers, agents, and publishers to submit manuscripts that align with our mission to promote BIPOC books. Our focus is on women and non-binary writers.
MISSION: To write personal, thoughtful reviews of self-published, queer, non-conforming and super strange books while also acknowledging writers who are published within traditional companies. We cover those who identify as women. We also cover those who don't. We don’t follow “rules” of convention, we make our own. And that's ok.
We will be going live soon. If you are interested in sharing your book for review on our website or in being a guest on our Podcast, please see the guidelines below.
GUIDELINES:
- We accept self-published and traditionally published titles
- We accept digital AND print galleys/arcs (email editors@bipoccriticscollective.com for physical address)
- You can complete this form without a digital arc/galley
- We are only accepting submissions from authors of color.
- Doc. or PDF formats ONLY.
- We do not accept ZIP folders.
- If you have promotional photos, author photos or blurbs, you can submit up to five files. Please, be sure that all author/promo pictures belong to you or you must provide the information of the photographer that they belong to so that we may reach out for permissions.
***Submitting your manuscript for review does not guarantee that your book will be reviewed by the Bad Book Biddies. We will give all submissions equal consideration. We have three other platforms outside of the Medium Publication which we can also use to highlight your unique contribution to the literary community. It is easier for us to review if you provide us with a copy, but some of us will have no problem purchasing your book to review.
DEADLINE: Ongoing
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
It’s Real
INFO: It’s Real - a publication devoted to exploring mental health in Asian American communities - is open for submissions.
There are no submission guidelines for your work - they need only be related to mental health, the Asian American community, and our monthly theme.
Please complete the following two-part submission form. If you are unable to submit through the submission form, please email us your submission as an attachment.
We are open to simultaneous submissions, so long as you classify them as such on the Submissions Form and promptly notify us by email if they are accepted elsewhere. Please note that (unless otherwise stated) we accept both First North American Rights or Nonexclusive Reprint Rights. Following publication, all rights revert to the writer; under the condition of accepting First North American Rights, we ask that you credit It's Real Magazine as the place your work first appeared.
Please note that because of the recent increase of submissions to It's Real, publication in the magazine is selective. We will be evaluating submissions on a basis of skill and a unique artistic voice. We respond to submissions within 2 weeks.
Questions? Email us at itsreal.magazine@gmail.com or contact us through our socials!
DEADLINE: Ongoing
https://www.itsrealmagazine.org/submit.html
SUBMISSIONS CALL FOR WRITERS OF COLOUR
Sapere Books
INFO: Sapere Books is always open for submissions, and we especially encourage writers of colour to send us their work. We recognise that writers of colour are underrepresented in genre fiction publishing, and we believe that it is important to take steps to address this.
We are an eBook-focused publisher; physical copies of books are made available on a print-on-demand basis.
We are looking for both new submissions and out-of-print titles in the following genres:
Crime Fiction, Mystery and Thrillers
Romantic Fiction and Women’s Fiction
Historical Fiction (including Sagas, Mysteries, Thrillers and Romance)
Action and Adventure (Military, Aviation and Naval Fiction)
History and Historical Biography
If you are a writer of colour with a finished manuscript or an out-of-print book, please see our submissions guidelines and get in touch with our editorial director, Amy Durant: amy@saperebooks.com.
If you have further questions about the submissions process, or what Sapere Books is looking for, feel free to email them directly to Amy and she will get back to you as soon as possible.
Please click here to find out more about what we can offer authors.
We look forward to reading your work!
DEADLINE: Ongoing
https://saperebooks.com/blog/submissions-call-for-writers-of-colour/